Good morning, church!
think I can share with you now that our dear friend Steve W. had heart surgery earlier this week at Lehigh Hospital. He didn’t want too many people to know and worry, but he allowed our prayer team to pray for him during this time. Steve and his wife Eileen re-joined St. Peter’s some eight years ago. They were married at St. Peter’s a good while ago and had always fond memories, but attended another church as their lives and careers evolved. Since coming back, Steve has become involved on our Property Team and also joined the council two years ago. Eileen is probably responsible for one-third of all the home-baked goodies that usually find their way into our freezer and onto the coffee table on Sunday mornings. And yes, Eileen, I miss that part of church!!! In any case, Steve had open heart surgery on Monday. They laid bypasses, using arteries from his legs, and everything went very well according to my sources. I expect his recovery to take a while because open-heart surgery is no picnic. So please, keep him in your prayers! Steve and Eileen are very thoughtful people. Before he went into the hospital, Steve made sure that a property matter was taken care of, it’s the kind of person he is… Heart problems can sometimes come on very suddenly, as was the case here. This is what Eileen wrote initially, which I am sharing because it gives you some insight as to how people are dealing with “regular” medical problems during this time… You may send him a card to his home, 833 Elm Street, Hatfield, PA 19440.
“Steve will have bypass surgery on Monday at Lehigh Hospital. SuPRIZE, SuPRIZE, right! He had some chest pain yesterday, racing heart, elevated B/P, so we went to GVH ER. [He’d worked reg. work day & was mowing.] Since yesterday 4pm-ish, he’s had a significant number of tests @ GVH and is going to be transferred to Lehigh later today. I don’t know if I’ll be permitted to see him, so we’re waiting on that. This is what life’s like during Covid-19. We do know that 3 arteries have blockages (tho’ not 100%) and they’ll check the 4th during Monday’s surgery. GVH Cardiologist reports good, strong heart muscle. Steve will have the same incision as his Mother (had hers @ 80!) and Father before him.”
Meet Sarah N. She is one of our high school graduates this year and will also appear in our picture show on Sunday. I remember this year’s St. Peter’s senior high school class from the two confirmation years I had with them. It was the quietest and most polite and reserved group I ever had! (And one of the smaller groups.) That group initially consisted of Sarah, Sam W., Tyler T., Nolan R. and Jake H.. I often had to draw pulls things out of them, but they are all good kids. Here is what Sarah wrote for us:
“I graduated from North Penn and will be attending Temple next fall as a bioengineering major. Since quarantine started it really affected my senior year. Classes were moved online and I found it difficult to stay focused. I wasn’t able to enjoy the “senior experience”, with prom and the traditional graduation being cancelled. I will be officially graduating on June 5 with my friends via a car lineup. Hopefully I can experience college life next year. I’m staying connected with my friends by FaceTiming them frequently and I can’t wait for quarantine to be over so I can hang out with them before college starts. I hope you and your family are staying safe and healthy.” (Best, Sarah Nguyen)
We are looking forward to our service recording this afternoon with several of those graduates and some others participating. Please do remember that this Sunday we will offer Virtual Holy Communion again. When you watch the service, please have a plate with some bread and a cup with wine or grape juice ready before you. If you don’t have either, you may use water. Our Lord has been known to turn water into wine, you know!
We will continue to record services over the summer even as we plan to open the church for small in-person church services by July 5. If you have technical expertise or video skills, please let us know. We are looking to expand our tech team so we won’t have to rely on the same wonderful people all the time! Early next week, you will receive the re-opening documents. They will also be posted on our website, and they will be sent out as part of a special Steeple Views edition.
Be blessed and be safe! Pastor Andreas Wagner