Page 37 - MLD Book

On November 10, 1998, the cross on the steeple a hundred feet in the air, fell through the roof and onto the ground in a windstorm that came in from the south. The staff was eating lunch at the time of the loud crash, and suddenly it was raining in the nave. After much talk and planning with the help of our dear contractor John Campbell (he built the addition in 1994, remember), they were able to attach a new cross by crane on October 10, 1999. It was a newsworthy item for sure. Mary Rob Kagin, our southern belle from South Carolina who lived across the street at the 800, produced a step by step video narrative that is priceless, not only for its historical value, but also for the sheer hilarity of her description. Mary Rob, by the way, kept her binoculars trained on the north door of Calvary almost continuously over the years she lived there, and would call me from time to time to tell me if anyone suspicious was lurking around, or to remind me that it was time to go home!
We lost some good ones in 1998, including Jim Powell, Kenny Renner, and Tom Harris. Harold Six was confirmed, holding to his word that he gave Marion when she was very sick – he said if she pulled through, he would become an Episcopal. She did and he did! They both have been wonderful to me, and I mourn her death in 2019 and grieve that Harold is quarantined today (December 2020) in a nursing home. Kyle Hibbs spent a long time painting the library a vibrant red, with four large green dots at the Mantel that we called the watching eyes. They created quite a stir! He painted emblems of saints as a ceiling border, and they mostly survive today, except where the water has leaked through and the unartistic plasterers have plastered over them. I have a chart showing who is what.
The Loft had served the clothing mission well since 1994, but with the increase in clients and the trek upstairs becoming unmanageable, the vestry at its retreat voted to build the north entry, and plans were solidified. Please remember it was built expressly so clients would have a room to receive their food bags and look through clothing. Over the years, it became a bone of contention, led by Ginger Ray, who thought ministering to the poor looked MESSY and that room should only be used on Sundays as a sort of living room so parishioners could sit there comfortably. Of course, jumping ahead to John Allen’s interim in 2018, he allowed us to move to Parker Hall, and now all are satisfied. Well, most people anyway. The important this was that in 1998, the go ahead was successfully voted on, and it was built in 1999. And speaking of vestry, my Melvin had been reluctantly elected (well, HE was reluctant!) in 1997, and was elected JuniorWarden in 1998. In the 1998 annual report, he wrote something so typical of him: I was glad for the opportunity to have served Calvary as Junior Warden in 1998, and I challenge you to continue to care for each other, to minister to each other, to respect each other, to listen to each other, and to treasure each other.
Calvary was looking into the next century! We got email first in 1997, and that was followed in 1998 by our very own website, with tenor Bob Forbes helping to set it all up. It was Windows 98 and we were fascinated that it could do all sorts of unheard of things, like store sermons, services, bulletins, tours, pictures, and newsletters. I must say it was less complicated than what we have now, but maybe that was a good thing. It did the job. Jelly proceeds also bought a new copier, which brought us a long way from the Morticia days when she had to put sheets of paper in between each copy so the ink wouldn’t run.
One last remembrance concerns one of our most difficult clients – Frederick Baker! He was alternately homeless and then would pick up a lady and go live with her, but he always came for food. He would sit on the couch and scratch and said he had lice and crabs! This went on for years, and then one day a crazy guy decided he wanted to know how it felt to murder somebody. So he enticed Frederick into his car, murdered him, and then dumped