The Discernment Committee has exciting news to share!
The Rector application period ends November 3rd. We will meet with Canon Augusta on November 20th to review applicants and discern which candidates move on to the interview phase which we will conduct via Zoom meetings. The top candidates will then be presented to the Vestry, who will conduct the final interviews and make the choice of who to call to be our priest. Please continue to hold your Discernment Committee and Vestry in your prayers. May the Holy Spirit continue to lead our next priest to us and help to keep us open in mind and heart to God's guidance. Amen.

Join the Holy Cross Chancel Choir!
If you enjoy singing in the car or the shower, consider joining the Holy Cross Chancel Choir. We rehearse on Wednesdays from 7pm-8:30pm in the Skiles Hall Choir Room. Can't read music? No problem. Afraid you can't carry a tune? That's probably false. Afraid of the time commitment? Just talk to Shane. We'd love to have you join this aspect of our music ministry.

Storage Clean Out – Help Needed!
The much-anticipated Lower Skiles moisture mitigation project will begin on November 17th. The right-hand side of storage area (off the youth room) will need to be cleared.  Everything on the right-sided shelving needs to come out and be placed in the Children’s Chapel.
Many hands make light work! I would be grateful if after worship on Sunday each congregant could remove one or two items from the shelving if so inclined. In the coming weeks, Lower Skiles will go through a deep clean and reorganizing. 
God Bless you!
Darby Logan - Jr. Warden

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Items Missing from VCCC Shop
As you are recovering from the hugely successful Valle Country Fair, cleaning up and putting away for next year, if you've borrowed anything from the Conference Center, please return any items that may have been used for the Fair to the shop in the first floor of the Annex (where the Dining Hall is). Thank you!

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2025
Daylight Savings Ends!
Be sure to turn your clocks back one hour before retiring on Saturday night and plan to attend the 8:00 and 11:00 am Worship Services on Sunday! Our morning worship will be a time for celebrating all the Saints and Souls that have brought the grand tradition forward and have been the lights of Christ in their generations, and will be followed by a celebration of remembrance at 1:00 pm.

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2025
A Day of Remembrance – 1:00-4:00 pm

Holy Cross Episcopal Church is hosting a Day of Remembrance at the church, and we would love to have Valle Crucis students, families, and staff join us in remembering and celebrating people we love that have died.

What: Day of Remembrance. There will be a potluck lunch, the option of picnicking in the cemetery (weather permitting), music, and activities for kids like face painting, temporary tattoos, arts and crafts, etc.

When: Sunday, Nov. 2nd 1:00-4:00pm

Where: Holy Cross Episcopal Church Campus

Why: To share stories and food that help us celebrate people we love who have died

The Day of Remembrance will draw on some traditions of Mexican Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos), when people believe that the spirits of their loved ones return to fiesta (party!) with their living friends and family in a special way.

There are two ways to participate in the Day of Remembrance celebrations - we would love to have you join us for both!

1. Make an "ofrenda," or a little altar, dedicated to a person or persons that you love that have died. You can set that up the week before Nov. 2nd, and the ofrendas will be blessed during the Day of Remembrance event. Instructions can be found here.

2. Prepare a dish to share (with 8-10 people) that reminds you of a person you love who has died and bring it to the church on Nov. 2nd at 1:00pm for the Day of Remembrance celebrations. In keeping with Day of the Dead tradition, you will have the option of picnicking in the cemetery, weather permitting.

If you have any questions, email Rev. Robert Hartmans at hartmansrobert@gmail.com.

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2025
Parish Annual Meeting and Brunch
One Service ONLY at 10:30 am
Come and celebrate the grace of God that has continued to abound through the ongoing mission and ministry of Holy Cross, hear reports from our leadership, and elect 3 new Vestry Members at the meeting.
The Slate of Vestry Nominees for the Class of 2028 (with pictures and biographical information) is now posted in Skiles Hall. The Nominees (listed in alphabetical order) are:

• John Goodrich

• Randy McDonough

• Nina-Jo Moore

If you wish to nominate someone other than those on the slate, please complete and submit a Nomination Form (available in Skiles Hall) to the Parish Office by no later than Sunday, October 26, 2025.

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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2025
Potluck Lunch for Annual Meeting
Parish Friends,
Our Annual Meeting will be a busy one on November 9th. Please bring a dish to share, a main, a vegetable, a salad or a dessert. Remember our gluten free parishioners with sensitivity to  processed foods or foods with flour. Think “lunchtime” sustenance and bring what you would like to eat to share with our church family. Plates and beverages will be provided but forks are always needed. See you week after next.
--Your Hospitality Committee

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2025
Men’s Night Out at St. Mary's in Blowing Rock – 5:15 pm
Our next Men’s Night Out gathering will take place at 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday November 11 in the Parish Hall at St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church in Blowing Rock, located at 140 Chestnut Drive at the corner of Chestnut and Main. The Merry Men of St. Mary will provide smoked pork butts with all the fixin’s. There is no charge for this event, but you’re welcome to donate if the spirit moves you. All beverages will also be provided by the men of their parish, so it is not necessary to bring anything but a healthy appetite and a spirit of fellowship and fun. There is on-street parking, in a lot on Chestnut adjacent to the church, and across Main Street at BRAHM, but carpooling is always encouraged.
MNO is a monthly opportunity for men from within our parishes and in our community to enjoy having an evening of fellowship together. We're very flexible and inclusive, so feel free to bring a friend... or three! To let our gracious St. Luke's hosts know how many will be in attendance, please RSVP by noon on Sunday, November 9 via email to KeithTMartin@gmail.com.
If you do not drive at night, need a ride to and/or from MNO, or are without reliable transportation for whatever reason, simply let us know. We have participants from all over the High Country who would welcome your company and be happy to pick you up and deliver you safely home. Come join us!

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2025
Valle Glow – Tree Lighting Event

Help the Valle Crucis Community Council raise funds to re-string the Christmas Tree and throw the biggest holiday party ever! Every dollar counts towards making the lights this year the brightest and best. Valle Glow is more than a tree lighting. It's community, coming together. To make Valle Glow possible, we need your help. We’re raising funds to cover the cost of the lights and installation on the giant Norwegian spruce below Holy Cross Episcopal Church. Visit www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/valle-glow to make a contribution. All donations go through the Valle Crucis Conference Center and are tax deductible.

Together, we’ll make the Valle Glow brighter than ever. Be a shining light and donate today!

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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2025
A Quiet Advent Retreat – 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Our annual Advent Retreat will take place on Saturday, November 22, in Johnson Hall, Valle Crucis Conference Center, from 10:00 to 2:00. Everyone is invited, men, women, and young people.
Advent fills us with the thrill of anticipation for the joy that is to come. We will experience this together with those who were present and waiting more than 2000 years ago. Whom were they expecting? What was it they were seeing? How did they greet the mind-opening promises given to them?
We will also look at the promises and follow them in awe, accompanied by angel song, to a humble manger.
Please contact the Valle Crucis Conference Center to register for this program, or follow this link to sign up: https://pci.jotform.com/form/232883990404160.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2025
Drama and Carols – 11:00 am
This year, Lessons and Carols will be performed as Drama and Carols. We will listen to the story of God’s dream for us in the form of drama instead of the traditional readings. The readings will become the drama spoken by the characters we meet in the Biblical stories. The choir will emphasize every part of the great drama with beloved carols. Come to listen and to sing and invite your friends to participate in a new Advent experience.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2025
Cooperative Thanksgiving Service – 6:00 pm
The Watauga Cooperative Thanksgiving Worship Service will be held on Sunday, November 23rd at 6:00 pm at Henson’s Chapel UMC. As usual, the Offertory for the service will be a bag of canned or boxed food that will be donated to the Western Watauga Food Outreach Program and possibly, the Blessings Bin at Brushy Fork Baptist Church. Additional information will be available as we get closer to the date of the service.