Connecting: St. James Presbyterian Church in 2010 photo taken by Warren Johnson

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Connecting as a community of friendly, faithful pilgrims;
Believing the good news of redemption;
Serving all our neighbors;
Worshipping God with joyful music, grateful prayer, thoughtful words, and silent anticipation; and
Learning to listen to God's Word, to become Jesus' disciples, and to enjoy God forever.

Getting to Know One Another

When we're already a rather small church, it may seem silly for us to talk about our small groups, but our small groups are in many ways the very heart of St. James. It's in the small groups that meet irregularly for yard work or painting and in the more regular groups like the choir, the knitting group, or the Session that friendships grow and the real person behind the Sunday mask can become known and accepted. If you want to know who we are, what we value, and what we believe is important; check out our small groups. Here are a few.

The Committee Structure at St. James 2010

Building Committee Chair: Warren Johnson

Oversee maintenance and repair of building including mechanical systems.
Be the liaison to the Fire Marshall, cleaning staff and contractors.
Purchase and replace light bulbs, fuses, etc.
Control the thermostat.
Organize work days.

Education Committee Chair: Steven Price

Plan and supervise adult, teen and child programs (e.g. Bible studies)
Supervise new member class.
Supervise confirmation class.
Coordinate with Worship Committee to plan special Sundays (e.g. Teen Sunday)

Fellowship Committee Chair: Price Thomas

Purchase supplies for kitchen (e.g. paper towels, trash bags, dish soap).
Purchase supplies for bathrooms (e.g. paper towels, toilet paper, soap).
Purchase coffee and sweeteners.
Wash kitchen towels.
Do set-up for events in the Dining Room (e.g. coffee hour, pot-lucks)

Grounds Committee Chair: Pattie Relosky

Oversee or perform lawn mowing.
Oversee or perform raking leaves.
Oversee or perform snow removal.
Purchase salt for ice removal.
Maintain urns, beds and borders,
Prune shrubs.
Organize work days in May and October.

Membership Committee Chair: Price Thomas

Maintain the mailing list.
Prepare all church mailings (for instance the newsletter)
Supervise the development of the website
Send notes to visitors.
Encourage involvement of all frequent visitors and members.
Publicize special events (for instance St. Nicholas Party, Blessing of the Animals, Arts at St. James)

Mission Committee Chair: Charlotte Whitley

Encourage volunteerism in the church.
Coordinate groups to go to Greater Chicago Food Depository.
Oversee cookie repack for The Night Ministry.
Consider one time opportunities at other charities.
Report on mission works throughout the city and beyond.

Nominating Committee Chair: Warren Johnson

Recruit new Session members.
Recruit committee members.

Personnel Committee Chair: Pattie Relosky

Act as liaison to pastor.
Act as liaison to music director.
Put in writing a list of duties/responsibilities for staff
Set goals and priorities.
Meet with church members as requested.

Stewardship Committee

Provide regular reports to the congregation regarding our financial health.
Coordinate with the Treasurer regarding financial reports to Session.
Prepare the annual budget.

Worship Committee Chair: Charlotte Whitley

Design and critique worship service components.
Receive feedback regarding worship from the congregation.
Maintain sign-up sheet for liturgists, and coffee hour hostesses/hosts
Recruit and supervise liturgists.
Recruit and supervise greeters.
Recruit and supervise ushers to take up the offering.
Coordinate flowers.

The Knitters of St. James Presbyterian Church

Knitting This group comes together in fellowship through their common interest in needlework to share patterns and techniques, to find causes to support and to dream of the next big project. They donate their handiwork and the proceeds of their sales to such charities as

In 2007 our knitters raised and donated over $900 to various charities. To join this group, ask around on Sunday for one of the members and she'll be glad to tell you how to join. They even teach knitting to men and women who have no experience whatsoever!

The St. James Choir

Our choir is made up of volunteers, some with musical training and others with none, but all of them love to sing and seem to have a lot of fun in the process. Philip Seward, our Music Director, selects music from ancient to newly composed--from contemporary to classic. The ministry of the choir to inspire, to teach, and to lead in prayer is one they do very well. They lead in worship from early September till the end of June. But even in the summer they are eager to solicit for new members. Their rehearsals are a great place to get to know other members and exercise your vocal cords. You can read more of what we believe about worship and music here. The St. James Music Calendar is here (password required).

St. James at the Greater Chicago Food Depository

Once a month a group from St. James makes the hike to the The Greater Chicago Food Depository to repackage food for distribution through local shelters and food banks throughout the metropolitan area. Folks from St. James join with members of other churches and social groups to move tons of produce, pasta, or canned goods from industrial pallets into family sized packages for hungry people. You'll be proud to contribute to the community and enjoy chatting as you work and visiting on the ride down and back. Thomas Akompong organizes the team which usually volunteers as a group on the fourth Saturday of the month.

Stu Smith, Thomas Akompong, Kwaku Akompong, Charlotte Whitley, and Lee Lohman from St. James regularly volunteer at the Greater Chicago Food Depository

Yoga at St. James

Yoga Class at St. James At 9:30 on Saturday mornings, we offer a yoga class in the church sanctuary as a way to encourage meditation and to honor our bodies. Although there is not a lot of socializing during the class, you will get to meet and get to know the other participants from the neighborhood and from St. James as you get set up for the class and as you reset the sanctuary for worship after class. You can read more about the class here.