The Annual Meeting

St.Paul's held its Annual Meeting on February 9, 2025. About 30 church members gathered for a potluck meal after the worship service. The Rev. Rik Rasmussen presided and presented the reports of the Senior and Junior Wardens and various committees, the budget, and his own Rector's Report, which follows below. Three Vestry members were elected to three-year terms; one member was elected to a two-year term. Delegates and alternates were elected to the Diocesan Convention, which will be held in November in Redding this year. You may read the full 2024 Annual Meeting Report here.

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2024 Rector's Report – St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Sacramento
The Rev. Rik Rasmussen
February 9, 2025

Wow, what a year 2024 was for St. Paul's! Being Rector as we celebrated 175 years of ministry in the City of Sacramento was amazing! Our 175th year saw an increase in our reaching out into our community. We celebrated 175 years by not just looking back and patting ourselves on the back but by looking forward and finding new ways to be the hands, heart, and feet of Christ in our neighborhood. The generosity of so many allowed us to spend the entire year celebrating.

The fabulous 175th Anniversary Committee was able to plan multiple events to celebrate our unique ministry in Sacramento. Kim Fry stepped up to create regular history posts to Facebook and on our website to chronicle our 175 year history. Cross posting them on the Sacramento History page, as well as the Sacramento Events page when relevant, reached audiences far beyond our usual posts. The installation of the Colors of Compassion mural transformed two bricked up windows that face J street from a drab – almost abandoned building look – into one that says we are here, we are active in the community, and we are vibrant.

As part of the 175th Anniversary we hosted a pre-revival event for the Diocese of a  "Sacred Ground Pilgrimage."  The speakers talked about the ways which the church has addressed racism and the changing demographics, including the truth behind the redevelopment that emptied downtown Sacramento of vibrant housing and destroyed racial diverse vibrant communities. Importantly we did not focus on just those things that happened that were problematic we also celebrated the vibrant ministries that started, and continue to this day, at St. Paul's. We celebrated the importance of women in the ministry and life of St. Paul's – from buying the mortgage of our second building back from the bank, to being among the first donors to build our current building. St. Paul's has a history of outreach into our community. When the congregation dwindled in numbers during the1960s, instead of closing the congregation was reimagined and started St. Paul's Center for Urban Ministries, which began what is now known as River City Food Bank, and the Senior Reassurance Program (now operated by Eskaton).

We celebrated the importance of the Arts in our congregation. From the west coast premiere of the Saint Seáns Christmas oratorio at the dedication of our Johnson and Son pipe organ, the many renowned artists who have played the organ, to the Grateful Dead performing in the building when Memorial Auditorium was double booked. We continue to be a vibrant center for the arts in Sacramento. The Sacramento Baroque Soloists continue to perform at St. Paul's every year. We host several student recitals in the building as well as up and coming young artists. Several very talented young artists have recorded in our building for contests and as part of applying for prestigious schools.

This year we participated in the Small Church Vitality Improvement Program which allowed us to look at the community around us to explore new ways we might reach out and service our community. As part of that we developed several "90-day Micro-Strategies" to explore new ways to reach out and meet our neighbors. Unlike many of the more rural/suburban congregations that are participating in the program, it is harder to "meet our community" when so much of the housing surrounding our church is in apartment buildings where we are not allowed to enter without being invited.

We planned and celebrated the Sunday closest to our actual anniversary in August with a celebratory Eucharist and a visitation from Bishop Megan. Our morning started with a procession that started near the site of the blacksmith shop where the first Episcopal Service was held in August of 1849. We continued with an Episcopal Parade, accompanied by bagpipes, to the site of the first and second buildings on K streets between 7th and 8th streets, before continuing to our current building. Bishop Megan marched with us and at each stop we offered a land acknowledgment and a prayer giving thanks for the ministry that happened at the site, and continues at our current site.

Our Wide Open Doors event in September was a wonderful day. We started with conversation, coffee and goodies outside our doors – both the J street and 15th Street doors, before moving inside for a service of Morning Prayer from the 1789 Book of Common Prayer – which is likely the first service formally said in Sacramento. The day continued with music, history, food, and conversation. The variety of performers was astounding – from classical music, Celtic music, to a "psych drone ensemble." We ended the day with evening prayer according to the New Zealand Prayer Book. We fed over 200 people a taco lunch and hosted well over 200 people into the church for one or more of the performers and presentations.

Our service to our community seems to frequently fly under the radar. I watch with great pride as so many in our congregation actively work to live into their Baptismal promises. Our Sack Lunch program has benefitted with partnerships with the Downtown Partners (when their staffing allows) and with Sacramento Street Medicine. Unfortunately, I was recently told that Sacramento Street Medicine will no longer be hosting clinics at St. Paul's due to a greater need in another downtown area. I hope we can find another partner who will work with us to provide referral services to serve our downtown community.

As you will read in the Sack Lunch Ministry report we provided well over 2500 lunches in 2024 and towards the end of the year I began offering a short service to "Feed our Spiritual Sides" towards the end of our Saturday distribution time. The service is short. It starts with a candle lighting ceremony, continues with a short scripture reading (frequently from the Gospel appointed for Sunday). We have time for silent prayer and we offer anointing and healing prayers for those who would like to receive them. 

I want to thank our current Vestry for all their work in guiding our Church. Class of 2022 (finishing their 3-year term at this annual meeting) Emmi Felberg, Merrill Starr, and William Jagger (finishing a one-year term). Class of 2023 (term ends at Annual Meeting in 2026) Doug Clay, Dick Gilmore, Michell Herrera (resigned). Class of 2024 (terms end at Annual Meeting in 2027) Susan Blacksher, Doug Fry, and Tammy Trovatten. Please join me in thanking all of them. They have worked hard to support this congregation.

Thank you, the people of St. Paul's for all the wonderful ministry that you do. Thank you for your ministry that feeds the hungry, clothes the needy, and visits the sick. Thank you for your ministry of hospitality that welcomes all into this place of sanctuary. The church is not about me as your priest. It is about the important ways that you all show the world that God is indeed love. That we truly welcome all to God's table. So thank you to all of you for being a wonderful and supportive congregation. I look forward to the important work we will do to welcome and love on this corner of 15th and J streets in downtown Sacramento as we continue to Seek and Serve Christ in all persons as we respect the dignity of every human for the next 175 years.