​The Rev. Chris Arnold has accepted the position of Interim Priest in Charge of St. Thomas, Menasha. Fr. Chris is canonically resident in the Diocese of Fond du Lac and a recipient of the Bishop's Cross in 2021. He received an M.Div.  from Church Divinity School of the Pacific in 2008. In his ordained ministry he has served congregations in Kansas, Kentucky, and Wisconsin. He and his wife Celeste live in Oshkosh. 

The Rev. Ralph Osborne has announced retirement from active ministry as a priest as of January 31, 2023. He served as Rector of St. Thomas, Menasha since 2010, during which time he has fulfilled various roles at the diocesan level including Intake Officer and Dean of the Lake Winnebago Deanery. He was of Co-Chair of the Way of Love Revival Planning Committee in 2019.  He served as Deputy and Chair to the General Convention a number of times. He was awarded the Bishop’s Cross in 2022.

He was ordained Deacon in 1994 and Priest in 1996. He served congregations in the Diocese of Central New York. He earned a Masters of Divinity from Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri; a Master’s in Counseling and Bachelor’s degree in Biblical Literature.
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In a letter to the people of St. Thomas, he shared “Even in retirement, we are all a part of God’s Kingdom, so there will be ministry of some type in my future. I just don’t know yet what that will be.” In retirement he is looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Cindy, as well as his children, grandchildren and his mother. 

A verger assists clergy in the conduct of public worship and wears a gown while carrying a staff called a virge. The duties vary from parish to parish but it is said the verger serves the church in a ministry of welcome. The office dates from the Middle Ages when the verger was the “Protector of the Procession,” clearing the way and protecting it from vagabonds and animals that may attack it.
 
“Serving as a Verger today gave me tears of joys!” Martina shared in a Facebook post. “It was an awesome feeling using my Spiritual Gift Serving in God’s House of Prayer!” If you might have interest in verging, speak with your parish priest. Additional information may be discovered from the Verger Guild of the Episcopal Church (VGEC) at vergers.org.

The Lake Winnebago parishes (Trinity, Oshkosh; St. Thomas, Menasha; All Saints, Appleton; Cathedral of St. Paul, Fond du Lac) are coming together for an evening of food, fellowship and worship at Praise in the Park. Anyone is welcome to join in! Gather Shelter #1 in Rainbow Park (on the Fox River), Oshkosh on Sunday, August 12 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. The celebration of the Holy Eucharist will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will include testimonials about the recent mission trip to Puerto Rico. 

• Please bring a dish to share. We'll have plates and utensils (but feel free to bring your own as well).
• You may want to bring a chair and/or blanket with you. There are only so many places to sit at the picnic tables in the shelter.
• It's on the river and you can fish if you bring some fishing gear (make sure your license is up to date).
• Have some lawn games to share? Bring them along too!!!
• It would be great if you could RSVP on Facebook

Fr. Kamal Farah, a Palestinian Anglican Priest from Nazareth will be visiting the Diocese of Fond du Lac from Tuesday, June 11 - Monday, June 18.  Fr. Kamal is an expert understanding the scriptures in the context of where they were written and took place: The Holy Lands of Jordan, Palestine, and Israel.  You will not find a better storyteller and teacher of The Gospels in their Context.  Fr. Kamal speaks several different languages including Hebrew, Arabic, English, Syriac Aramaic, Greek, and many more.
 
Several people from the Diocese of Fond du Lac have gone on pilgrimage to The Holy Lands and have studied and sat at the feet of Fr. Kamal who was their instructor.
 
You and your friends and family are invited to come and participate as often as you can during his visit to the diocese.  All dates and times and locations are below.

Julius Njogu, a 2013 graduate of Mothers’ Mercy Home in the Diocese of Mt. Kenya South, will be spending 5 weeks in the Fox Cities from June 28th to August 2nd. The Mothers’ Mercy Home Partnership Program established by St. Thomas, Menasha, in April, 2007 is currently in its 12th year.  Sue and Bill Steinhilber have been partnered with Julius from the beginning. Julius visited in April of 2016 with then Administrator of MMH, Paula Karanja.  He has been attending Nairobi University and will be the first University graduate from MMH when he completes a degree in Criminal Justice in November of this year.

Julius will provide up to date information about Mothers’ Mercy Home and the children who reside there through the eighth grade and those who board at Secondary Schools during the school year.  The Board will also discuss renewing their three year agreement with MMH during his visit.

A question asked by many of the Partners is what happens to the students once they leave MMH after Secondary School? CARGO MEN’S CLUB was organized by alumni of MMH in June, 2017 with the purpose of addressing the needs of young men through empowerment, mentorship, direction and nurture of skills. Julius serves as secretary of the group.  He will describe the voluntary community projects the Club engages in to give back to society.  He will also provide updates on each of the alumni who have had Partners.

Julius will be speaking at both the 8 am and 10 am services at St. Thomason Sunday, July 8th and at St. Boniface, Mequon on Saturday evening July 21st and Sunday, July 22nd. If any individuals or groups are interested in meeting with Julius please contact Kathy Peterson, (920) 725-3174, [email protected] or Sue Steinhilber, (920) 573-0465 or [email protected].