If you want to meet people that share your interests, you’re invited to join our activities at St. Peter’s Church. There are also a number of volunteer opportunities that enable you to share your skills.
STAY IN TOUCH with what’s happening at St. Peter’s Church. Check our events calendar or if you’re volunteering this month, check the Gifts of Service Schedule.
Activities
Amazing Greys
Amazing Greys is a group of Christian seniors who get together 4th Wednesday of the month at 10:30 am to experience and share God’s love. We enjoy good food, fun, and fellowship. We listen to interesting speakers and watch wholesome entertainers.
You don’t have to be a member of St. Peter’s, or a Lutheran, to participate. Everyone is welcome to join this amazing group.
Check our calendar for the next meeting.
Carizon
Carizon’s Children & Parents Connecting Program (CAPC), offers the Busy Babies group for parents and their children aged birth to 4 where parents and children begin the morning together in Music & Movement, then separate so parents can learn skills and strategies which fosters their child’s well-being, development and connectedness to themselves and the world.
Growing Healthy Two-gether operates in partnership with Public Health Nurses and Registered Dietitians to provide a wide spectrum of topics relating to experiencing an optimal pregnancy and raising a healthy infant.
Children play and learn in a fun, safe and stimulating environment supervised by Carizon Childminding Staff and learning to socialize with other little ones, while parents are in programming.
Both programs run Thursday mornings from 10 am – 12 noon at St Peters Church
Circle of Music
The Circle of Music is a choir for those living with dementia, their partners in care, and students from local high schools and universities.
On Thursday afternoons at 3:00 pm, seniors, care givers, and teen and young adult volunteers gather in the St. Peter’s lounge to sing and make music together. The group sings folk songs, songs from movies and musicals, plus well-known classics. Students support those living with dementia through finding pages, and guiding a finger along the lines of lyrics. They also socialize with participants an and learn about how dementia affects those living with it and their families. Caregivers enjoy some respite and have an opportunity to connect with others in the same position.
St. Peter’s volunteers host the social time after the singing.
For more details and to register as a participant, please contact Sasha Judelson at (519)-342-4764 or email Circle Of Music.
Girl Guides
Girl Guides meet at St. Peter’s on Monday and Tuesday evenings. On Mondays we have Pathfinders (grades 7,8,9) from 6:30-8:00pm and Rangers (grades 10,11,12+) from 7:00-9:00pm. Our second Ranger group meets on Tuesday evenings from 7:00-9:00pm. The youth focus on leadership, citizenry and community service projects. They actively travel, camp, create works of art, socialize and share great company. There is a place in Guiding for every woman and girl. We have opportunities for adults on our leadership teams and there are programming opportunities for all school-aged girls!
Ladies Night
Ladies from St. Peter’s get together to socialize at 7:00 p.m. on the last Friday evening of the month. We gather in each other’s homes to share appetizers and drinks along with conversation and friendship. All women are welcome to come; friends from outside the congregation are always invited. Check our calendar for the next meeting.
Men’s Breakfast
The men of St. Peter’s meet on the third Wednesday of the month @ 8:00 am at Kypreos Restaurant at 305 Lancaster St W, Kitchener, ON. This breakfast is an opportunity for men of all ages to talk about how God works in their daily lives. This lively ministry encourages us to be “real men:” men of faith, humility and action, who aren’t afraid to ask for directions every once in a while. Explore your faith, laugh a whole bunch, eat and learn from others.
Prayers and Squares
St. Peter’s was the first chapter of the international Prayers and Squares prayer quilt ministry. The idea behind these quilts is simple, yet powerful. A heavy thread is used to take stitches through the quilt layers, and the ends are left free to be tied with a square knot. As each knot is tied, a silent prayer is offered for someone who has requested prayer. The quilt is then given to the person. What makes each quilt special is not the pattern, colour or workmanship, but the fact that prayer is symbolically tied into each one. These comforters are a statement of faith, and a testimony to our belief in God and in the power of prayer.
On a Sunday morning, the gathered community is given an opportunity to offer their individual and collective prayers (complete with knot tying) and then these lovingly made quilts are blessed during the worship service.
We meet Monday afternoons at 1 pm at the Church. New quilters are always welcome.
Rug Hooking Club
The K-W Rug Hooking Guild provides a venue for traditional rug hooking enthusiasts to meet and learn from one another and to enjoy camaraderie with people that share a love for this artistic fibre art. Traditional rug hooking uses the same simple techniques used over 100 years ago. With a hook, frame, and strips of wool material or yarn, loops of fabric are pulled up through a burlap backing to create the desired design. Once used to warm cold floors, these rugs are now beautiful pieces of art. The guild organizes exhibitions, demonstrations and introductory workshops at local museums, galleries, libraries, fairs, schools and clubs. We meet at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, one Monday evening, one Thursday morning and one full Saturday a month from September to June. Check the St. Peter’s calendar for the next meeting.
The Women of St Peter’s
The Women of St. Peter’s (formerly ELW) have a long history of faithful and committed ministry and service by the women of this congregation to St. Peter’s, to the community and also to the mission work of our extended church. The Women of St. Peter’s gathers on the second Tuesday of the month at the church for fellowship, Bible study and devotions, work meetings, and various social events throughout the year. The Women of St. Peter’s is a vital ministry partner of our regional Eastern Synod and our national church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC). The national ELW publishes a quarterly magazine entitled Esprit.
Children & Youth
Children are precious to us! During the service, children from toddlers to grade 6 will be escorted to bright, colourful classrooms on the second floor and supervised by caring teachers. The Sunday School Team will captivate your child’s heart and imagination as they present God’s Word in fun and innovative ways.
Youth are welcome to participate in volunteer opportunities such as ushering, greeting, and singing in our choir.
Our two-year Affirmation of Baptism program for youth includes discussions, innovative and creative learning drawing upon Martin Luther, the Bible, the Confessions, and what our tradition says about modern issues for young people – issues that matter to them. If a topic is brought to the table, we talk about it in a safe, open environment where our young people can be themselves. At the end of the two years, youth are invited to stand before the congregation to “confirm” that the faith in which their parents and sponsors brought them for baptism has become their own.
Music & Choir
Music Program
Music is a vital part of worship at St. Peter’s. The choir, musicians, and guest artists enrich our worship and enliven our praise! Choirs have served the church and led the musical portions of the liturgy for over a century.
Do you like to sing or play but don’t know where to contribute your talent? All adults and youth are welcome to join the Senior Choir which is directed by Peter Nikiforuk. This volunteer ensemble sings during the weekly worship service from September through June. They are assisted by six choral scholars. Weekly rehearsals are held Sundays at 9 am in the choir room. The choir sings a variety of repertoire from classical through gospel. There is always a place for your musical talent in the worship service.
The instruments used by the church for leading worship include a 3-manual Hallman pipe organ of 48 ranks, a Kawai grand piano in the main sanctuary, and a 3-rank portative organ by Brunzema.
To get involved, please contact Peter or call the church office at (519) 745-4705.
Outreach
St. Peter’s congregation reaches out locally through funding provided to food voucher programs, camp programs, community support groups, exercise/yoga programs, etc.
Members also supports efforts of the wider church, regionally, nationally and internationally. Through regular donations to mission ministries of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada through the national church’s Eastern Synod Office.
These ministries include:
- Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR)
- Martin Luther University College
- The Women’s Auxiliary of the Waterloo Lutheran Seminary
Volunteer & Giving Opportunities
St. Peter’s provides many opportunities to learn, grow in faith, and serve the needs of others. Some opportunities include:
- Greeters provide a warm welcome and the initial contact to people who enter the church for worship. They invite visitors to sign the guest book, and direct them to the coat racks, washrooms, fellowship hall, Sunday School rooms, and sanctuary.
- Acolytes and Ushers light and extinguish the candles and receive the offering at worship services. Ushers distribute hymnals and bulletins along with directing people to the Lord’s table.
- Assisting Ministers read the Old and New Testament readings during worship services, lead various parts of the liturgy, offer prayers and assist the pastor with Holy Communion.
- Coffee Hosts prepare refreshments for fellowship after every worship service.
- Altar Care volunteers prepare and maintain all altar linens, hangings, paraments, communion ware and supplies. Prior to each service, volunteers prepare for communion. There are special opportunities to enhance worship at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas with creative altar displays.
Interested? Contact the church by email or call us (519) 745-4705 for more info.
Some other ways to get involved include:
Visitation Ministry
St. Peter’s visitation volunteers are a family of Christians committed to the Gospel of Christ. “We love because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19) Each month, volunteers visit congregation members in senior care residences, or in their homes, to remind them that they belong, and that the St. Peter’s family cares. During visits, we share interesting pictures, stories, and the church bulletin. We also inform them about church events and happenings. Some also receive communion.
Contact Pastor Mark to get involved.
Property Committee
The purpose of the Property Committee is to keep the church building and the many rooms, Chapel and Sanctuary, in good working condition.
Please contact Pastor Mark to join this committee.