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The beautiful Church of the Annunciation is located on Anna Maria Island, a barrier island just off the city of Bradenton, in Manatee County, and reached by three bridges. We are on the west coast of Florida, with Tampa Bay to our north and Sarasota and Longboat Key to our south.
Anna Maria Island is largely a tourist and retirement area, with most businesses catering to these populations. The area has grown steadily in population. Ann Maria Island is 7.5 miles long, and less than a mile wide in most places. On it are three communities: City of Anna Maria, Holmes Beach, and Bradenton Beach. The church is located in Holmes Beach, just about at mid-point of the island, and near the two major shopping areas. There is an elementary school on the island. Anna Maria Island is largely residential, with single family homes, and an increasing number of condo units. There are two shopping areas with a grocery, 2 hardware stores, chain drugstores, and a variety of tourist-oriented businesses. One unique thing about this island is that no building can be more than 37 feet above the road. The single family homes were once all resided in by their owners, but there is an increasing number that are investment properties, rented out in the winter months to visitors from the north. A free public trolley runs from one end of the island to the other, providing free transportation back and forth. It runs right in front of the church about every 20 minutes. Bradenton shares a major airport with Sarasota, and a wider variety of national and international flights are available from the Tampa airport, about an hour away. Bradenton and Sarasota provide a huge number of shopping malls and other shopping opportunities, along with many good restaurants. Both Bradenton and Sarasota also offer a wide variety of cultural opportunities, with theaters, opera, ballet, major league baseball, and a symphony orchestra. Median household income in Bradenton 2008 was $59,600. Median family home price was $178,000. |
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Our parish is made up of about 135 full timers, and another 100 who are here for one to four or even six months each winter. Many winter visitors have been coming for years and are fully absorbed into the parish and participate in all facets of our life together. They lay-read, usher, cook, attend adult classes, and Lenten programs. Of the full time residents 60% live in Bradenton, 38% live on the island, and the remaining 2% live in other surrounding towns, some traveling 20 miles or more to attend Annunciation. The pattern here is for people to retire to this area relatively young. They are active and involved for 20 years or more, taking on leadership roles at the church and activities in the community. Each year we are excited to have a large number of new families, but usually their numbers are offset by those who moved away or have died. Another unusual factor in the parish is the high education level of our members. Most have at least a bachelor’s degree and a large number have advanced degrees. Most have been active in an Episcopal Church elsewhere and bring with them a wealth of experience and ideas. Parish History: The first service held on Anna Maria Island - Evening Prayer - took place May 4, 1952, in a private home. Twelve people attended. The Rt. Rev. Henry Loutitt, Bishop of the then Diocese of South Florida, soon after assigned the Rev. Burkett J. Kniveton as Vicar of the new congregation. Initially, services were held in the original Island schoolhouse and community center, and the Vicar divided his time between Annunciation and another new congregation, St. Mark’s in Venice, some 30 miles to the south. When Fr. Kniveton was assigned to the Anna Maria mission full-time, the parishioners converted a garage beneath an apartment belonging to one of them and named it St. Michael’s Oratory. It seated 60 people and services were held there from October 1952 until the next year when land was acquired and ground broken for the present church building and rectory. The Church of the Annunciation was dedicated by Suffragan Bishop Martin J. Bramm September 14, 1953. In later years, Lowe Hall was built, and the parking area at the rear was added. Remodeling in the early 1990’s created additional office space and a further extension of the parking lot. The Memorial Garden (where parishioners may have their ashes buried) was created in the early 1970’s and greatly improved around 2000. |
Our church is located on Gulf Drive, less than a block from the beautiful waters of the Gulf of Mexico. There is easy beach access just a half block from the church. The church owns a total of seven contiguous building lots, four are used for parking, and the remainder are church facilities.
The church complex consists of a long, narrow church (just eight seats across) that seats 140, including the choir. The altar is free-standing, and the church has many lovely stained glass windows. Parallel to the church is a long narrow corridor that connects it to the rectory and to Lowe Hall and the kitchen. The corridor is covered and has sliding windows which overlook the Memorial Garden.
The Memorial Garden is a courtyard surrounded by church buildings. It has lovely plantings, granite benches, and an outdoor altar. Members may choose to have their ashes buried in the garden at the time of their death. It is a lovely, quiet, and peaceful place, very special to our parishioners.
The Rectory is attached to the rear of the church. Downstairs is a kitchen, living room, dining room, and
Lowe Hall is a large open hall of approximately 4,200 square feet. One end is used as a small chapel area with portable altar. There is an enclosed office for the treasurer, and at the other end are two parish offices, one for the secretary and one used by office volunteers. The rector’s office is presently in the rectory. There is a large well-equipped kitchen with dishwasher, commercial size ovens, and two refrigerators.
A recent capital fund drive has allowed us to do about $60,000 in long-neglected repairs and renovations. At this time, everything is in good shape, and there is money reserved in the fund for future needs. For most of our needs, the buildings serve us well. In high season (February through Easter) the church is very full at the 10:30 service. Occasionally we have had to set up chairs on the long corridor to Lowe Hall and open the doors to the church—thus allowing an overflow crowd visibility of the altar. This usually only happens once or twice a year. The building gets used all week by a variety or groups who need various combinations of space. We have recently closed off one small section to be a Sunday School area for our youngest members. Our large parking area in the rear has been recently landscaped and is attractive and seems to fill our needs. There is also a smaller parking area at the front of the church. Gulf Drive, where the church is located, is the busiest road on the island. It is the main thoroughfare from north to south on the island, and we are just two blocks from one of the bridges which brings traffic from Bradenton.
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Our membership remains quite steady with 137 communicants in 2009. Average Sunday attendance is 126 with 274 at Easter. June through September we have one service and October through May we have two services on Sunday. Through 3/10/2010 we gained 7 new members and lost 6: 2 deceased, 1 transfer our, and 3 changed status to inactive.
Attendance at last annual meeting: 90
Service Schedule:
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Sunday School:
Our Sunday School is a relatively new development. We have up to 12 children attending, but eight is a more usual number, from ages two to twelve. In the spring of 2010, we have three teachers. Children start out in church with their parents, with some of the older children serving as acolytes. After the processional, children in the congregation are invited to follow the acolytes out of the church and into Lowe Hall for their program. One teacher works with the youngest children (2-5) and the other teacher does age-appropriate lessons for the older group (ages 6-12). The third teacher helps where the need is greatest. Just before Eucharist they all return to the church where they kneel at the rail with their teachers. They then return to Sunday School for a snack and to finish up their lessons.
The teachers have sometimes used “Lessons that Work” from the Episcopal Church web site as their curriculum. This puts them on the same lectionary cycle as their parents or grandparents. Recruitment, support, and training of teachers have been informal, but now we are recognizing the need for more support from the rector. Because the Sunday School is so new, we have not had the issue of preparation for confirmation. There are several children ages 10-12 now who will soon be ready for this training, and we hope to develop a program in the near future. Adult Confirmation classes are held in the spring of each year. The Rector holds classes on a series of Saturday mornings. The Bishop does a regional Confirmation service, usually in April, each year.
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Parish Organizations/Activities:
Altar Guild
The Altar Guild is made up of 14 women and 1 man who prepare our altar for services. The man helps with refilling the candles. One member has taken responsibility for flowers and for special decorating for major holidays. The women work in teams and each is responsible for one week a month. New members are always welcome.
Annunciation Botanical Society This august-sounding group is a group of volunteers who help with the gardening, and especially the Memorial Garden. They gather at 7 AM on the first Monday of each month to pull weeds or do whatever is needed in the garden. Their numbers vary from 4 to 10, depending upon the season.
ECW Annunciation has an active Episcopal Church Women’s organization. They meet on the first Thursday of the month from October through May, following the Thursday morning Eucharist, usually attracting 20-35 women. They usually have a short business meeting and a speaker or program, and lunch.
This group is the main fund raising body of the church. They have two or three big sales each year, usually earning $4,000-$5,000 each time. Everyone (men included) pitches in to help, but the women do the organizing of the sales. Nearly all the money that they raise goes to the church or to charitable organizations in the area and around the world. They provide all the money for coffee hour (food and serving person) throughout the year. Visitors often remark on the quality and quantity of our coffee hour—it’s a lot more than just a cup of coffee. Card Ministry A group of four women who send birthday and anniversary cards to all our members on their special days. They also send get well cards and other appropriate greetings throughout the year. Each functions for three months, then passes along the duty to the next person. Choir Daughters of the King Events Committee
Each spring a group gathers to plan a full calendar of social events for the coming year. In general, at least one social event is planned for each month. In recent years, these have included potluck suppers, wine tasting, games night, Burgers and Brats, Spaghetti dinner, Movies, Mothers’ Day Brunch, Fathers’ Day Brunch, Brunch following Annual meeting, Oktoberfest, Mardi Gras, Easter Dinner, and a formal Annunciation Day Dinner on our name day. These social events have turned our church community into a family. They have helped us all to become better acquainted and drawn people from the fringes into the heart of church activities.
Moses Basket Group A small group of women (3-6) started making Moses baskets from plastic laundry baskets for newborn migrant infants, in response to a request from Sister Anne at Catholic Charities in Arcadia. The women sew fabric basket liners, covered mattresses, and sheets. They also provide knitted and crocheted baby items for these babies. At Christmas the whole parish provides Christmas gifts for a number of migrant families in an “angel tree” program.
Military Ministry This project has several facets. We collect toiletries, snack items, and other requested items and mail care packages to service men and women on our parish prayer list. We have a small group of women who knit helmet liners for servicemen. And we have another larger group who knit or crochet 6” x 9” rectangles. These are sent to a larger organization in Maryland who use them to make afghans for wounded service men and women. We have shipped about 800 rectangles to date, and the project continues with an ever-growing number of women knitting. Over 4,000 afghans have been shipped to service men and women.
Outreach Committee This group of eight people meets each spring to recommend to the Vestry how the $10,000 in the parish budget for outreach is distributed. They research various charities and try to determine the areas of greatest need locally, nationally, and internationally. In addition, the ECW has $8,000-$10,000 which they have raised at their annual sales. An ECW committee recommends the distribution of this money, and the membership votes their approval. Shawl Ministry This group was started about five years ago to knit or crochet shawls for those who are sick, grieving, or just going through a difficult time. Women find it easier to work at home and bring their finished shawls to the church to be blessed before they are delivered to the needy. There are at least ten women making shawls. Welcome Bags Lay Readers
Lay Eucharistic Visitors |
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Father Harry worked with a small committee for our 2009 stewardship campaign. The committee wanted to focus on our love for the church, rather than on how much money was needed. We had written and oral testimonies from many different parishioners, each telling why the church is important to him or her. A poster picture of the church building was made and cut into jigsaw puzzle pieces. “Our picture isn’t complete without you,” was the message. As each person turned in a pledge card, he was given a puzzle piece, wrote his name on the piece, and inserted it into the puzzle. People enjoyed seeing the puzzle fill in. It was a very successful campaign, surpassing our (unannounced) goal. We have a similar campaign in the early stages of planning for 2010, using pieces of a quilt.
2009 Diocesan Assessment was $24,683, of which we paid $24,683 or 100% |
| Our staff includes... Rector Full time. Pension, vacation, sick, and holiday time. Administrative Assistant Sexton
Choir/Music Director Visitation
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Newsletter
Our main means of communication is our monthly newsletter, the Annunciator. It is 12 pages long and mailed to 200 households. It arrives in each household by the first of each month and contains timely parish news, a full financial statement from the treasurer, that month’s lectionary readings ,a calendar of events, messages from both Junior and Senior Wardens, and a full page message from the Rector. A volunteer does all the preparation and editing and usually does the folding and labeling and taking it to the post office. WebSite Sunday Leaflets Ecumenical Involvement |
| Our Community Outreach Family Promise Family Promise, housing for homeless families with children, is just one of the community outreach projects that our parishioners support. We have parishioners who serve meals at Our Daily Bread, the local soup kitchen for the needy. We also work closely with the Coalition for the Homeless, providing warm clothing, knitted hats, bicycles, and financial support.
Requests for Help are funneled to All Island Denominations(AID). The ECW hears speakers from local helping agencies throughout the year, learning more about their clients and their needs. Often the ECW will take on a special project at the request of the agency and work with them to see that the need is met. For example, the Coalition for the Homeless came to us seeking warm hats for homeless men one winter. Our knitters got to work and provided nearly 100 hats in just a few weeks. Our Moses Basket project came from just such a request. Catholic Charities told us that infants who slept in the same bed with their parents had suffocated for want of safe sleeping places for the babies. The Moses baskets answered this need, providing not only safe sleeping, but also a way for migrant families to take babies safely into the fields at picking time. |
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