The first annual cathy showalter award
A flower and a sweet for the honorees
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Bill enjoying the tribute
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A special tribute to Bill Meyer who has sung with the NOVAtones for over 40 years
NOVA chairs thanked many NOVA members for their contributions to community life.
If you prefer you can read the appreciation statements in the document below.
NOVA Appreciations
May 7, 2023
When parents are laid off or laid up, when eviction is threatened, when the utilities are about to be cut off, when refugees have no beds, when families are going hungry, when the needs are great and there’s just no money, who’re you gonna call? She makes the connections and finds the people with the resources, the time, the talent to help. And in her spare time, she manages the website, creates slide shows, designs posters, holy cards and programs, shoots and curates the photos, leads the Holy Thursday team, hosts zoom meetings, serves as our tech guru and leads us in tears of sorrow and joy.
We appreciate our Peace and Social Justice minister Dianne Carroll.
We appreciate all members of the Peace and Social Justice team for their work on behalf of the community.
~~~~~~~
Are you coming to the retreat? He needs to know. How else can he manage reservations, rooms and money so we can show up to learn, pray and play together at our annual retreat? He makes sure Doorways has paper goods, connects us to Bridges to Independence, helps with Christ House, and facilitated our last Circle of Leaders meeting. For all his work, we appreciate our outgoing retreat reservation director/money manager Kopp Michelotti.
~~~~~~~
Our sacristan and head of the altar society, sender of birthdays and organizer of the wonderful scribes who keep us informed about what’s going on in the community. We appreciate Linda Christie.
Much appreciation to all of our scribes. Thanks for keeping us in the know.
~~~~~~~
A talented recording artist in his own right, he brings us his great voice, introduces us to new music, and creates beautiful videos to accompany the recordings that grace our liturgies. He, like so many of the Novatones, is his own roadie and sound engineer. We appreciate Jack Christie.
~~~~~~~
And together the two of them lead the Marie Pinho and Marie Keefe Scholarship Committee.
Thanks to all the Scholarship Committee members.
~~~~~~~
An ardent believer in the power of the church to live up to the expectations of the gospel, he brings us together to participate in Pope Francis’ synodal process, and reflects for us the ways in which we practice synodality here in NOVA.
We appreciate Clyde Christofferson.
Thanks to all who participate in the synodality process.
~~~~~~
For I was hungry and you gave me to eat. Week after week, she picks up, packs up and delivers van-loads of cereal, peanut butter and canned goods to AFAC. And when it’s NOVA’s turn at Christ House, her hands prepare the meals delivered on behalf of the community. We appreciate Christina Smith.
~~~~~~
You might catch her painting and planting kindness rocks, performing in concerts or joyfully singing with the Novatones when she’s not busy feeding middle school kids or engaging our minds, giving us lunch, and bringing us together for book gatherings. We appreciate Carolyn Miller.
~~~~~~
A pillar of support for our Guatemalan family, gorgeous voice, host of the men’s group, future thinker, leader of the jobs guarantee project, a sometimes professor of economics who lives his convictions and works tirelessly for a fair economy,
we appreciate Tom Clarkson.
We appreciate all the Guatemala Team for their support to our family.
~~~~~~~
An outstanding baby whisperer, friend and advisor to Ronaldo, longtime virtual airstream dweller before it became the real deal. Year after year he has managed our money with common sense and the sense of the community. It’s sometimes thankless work, but like the energizer bunny, he just keeps going and going. We appreciate Joe Formoso.
~~~~~~
She sits quietly and listens for the needs of the community, creates prayer wheels and signs us up to pray, organizes meals when they are needed and generally makes sure we’re taking care of each other. Our community life minister also scribes, and has a seasonal gig on the Holy Thursday team. We appreciate Cathy Goldschmidt.
~~~~~~
To do all the good you can... By all the means you can...
In all the ways you can...In all the places you can...
At all the times you can... To all the people you can...
As long as ever you can. Today we honor someone who lives this prayer. Wherever she is, she is working in all the ways she can to build a better world. For her quiet competence as co-leader of Peace and Social Justice committee, and for all her many gifts, we appreciate Markie Harwood.
~~~~~~~
Abraham Lincoln said, “You can please some of the people some of the time, all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time.” Lincoln’s wisdom aside, every fall he tries to please as many of us as he can. We appreciate our Liturgy Lottery Coordinator David Mog.
~~~~~~~
At a time when “our kind of Vatican II type” priests are harder and harder to find and the trend is toward conservatism, he finds wonderful priests who come to celebrate with us and become part of our community. He builds loving, supportive relationships with them - a source of support that becomes a mainstay in their lives, especially as they age. For that critical work, and for his wise and loving presence among us, we appreciate John Mooney.
~~~~~~~
She has an eye for beauty and a brilliant voice. Organizer of all things closet and creator of order and calm, for her music, her work on the NOVA directory, and all her many contributions to the community, we appreciate Victoria Robinson.
~~~~~~~
Next is what we think is new for us – a Zoom-specific appreciation. So let us honor the grande dame of Zoom. We can always count on her for good humor & good counsel. She speaks up and speaks out. Especially for those of us who hang out on zoom, she lights up the screen. We appreciate Rose Barrett.
And let’s appreciate our entire Zoom community. Thank you for hanging in there, through our initial zoom trials, for the periodic glitches, for the times you have trouble with your volume, or mic, or camera. We are so glad you’re here,
and we appreciate all of you.
Thanks to Cece for sending more information about some of Rose’s many contributions to the community:
Some of the gifts contributed by Rose Barrett over many years. When NOVA was much younger, there were a few snags that Rose sorted out so that they ran so much smoother for many years.
THE PADRE CADRE – often in the earlier days, NOVA members often had to struggle to find priests who could celebrate the liturgy with us. Rose understood that the non-parish priests had many varied responsibilities. She took on the challenge of calling them far in advance, stating our need and asking which one of the dates worked best for them. She valued their time, and was always succinct with her calls. After a short time, many of these priests were so appreciative of the model that NOVA provided, that they looked forward to coming and sometimes reserved two liturgies.
THE LITURGY LOTTERY – again, Rose had the foresight to get members to signup for the planning of a liturgy., much like what David does today; she made two lists of each Sunday with dates and a place for signup, and the second list had a tear-off that the volunteer tore off and could remember the commitment. A list was then published as an added reminder.
THE DUNN LORING CHRISTMAS SALE. Some NOVA people learned of a church having many needs and the members had few resources, so in addition to helping with the many needed repairs, Rose, with the help of many members, collected donations and organized a DUNN LORING CHRISTMAS SALE in the basement of the church. The donations were so successful and lovely that after the first year, it was decided to have the children come in first; they were given a bag and could choose gifts to take home and wrap with no cost. This “sale” continued for several years.
~~~~~~~
If it’s about space, he’s your guy. The leader of occasional space explorations, and the connection to our current home here at Kenmore, we appreciate this world traveler who also happens to be our Facilities Coordinator John Tarrant.
~~~~~~~
With a finely tuned sense of the sacred, she brings beauty, simplicity and meaning to our liturgies and leads us in awe and respect for our planet. We appreciate our Liturgy Coordinator and Care for Creation team lead Gloria Mog.
We appreciate all of the Care for Creation group.
~~~~~~~
She joins the voice and the power of the NOVA community to many other congregations working for change in our community and our country. For her faithful support for Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement (VOICE), and for keeping us engaged in that vital work, we appreciate Nancy Veldhuis.
~~~~~~~
We’ve already talked about the gift of music that elevates our liturgies and brings us ever closer to the Divine. Today we honor our resident composer, the creator of the sacred songs we cherish. He immerses us in beauty, opening our hearts to hear God’s voice. For the gift of inspiration, the work of music coordinator, and his faithful service to Christ House,
we appreciate Tim White.
We can’t thank the Novatones enough for their enduring musical gift to us.
And thanks to all those who help Tim with Christ House
~~~~~~~
She organizes the loaves and fishes for our First Sunday agapes. She asks, and we are all nourished with good food and good fellowship. For all of the time she has found the volunteers, set the table and prepared the celebration, we appreciate our outgoing agape coordinator, Judy Christofferson.
And we appreciate all the folks who feed us when we gather.
~~~~~~~
When something needs doing, he does it. He picks up stuff and restores stuff and delivers stuff – food for the hungry, furniture for new arrivals, desks for young scholars, chairs and boxes and boxes of supplies for Holy Thursday. If we don’t have just the thing we need, he goes out and finds it, and if it doesn’t exist, he builds it. And lest you think this is merely about brawn, he is a deep and creative thinker, opening us to new ideas and new interpretations of the scripture. A willing helper, a supporter of Ronaldo and all our Guatemalan family. We try not to rely too heavily on the promise on his license plate,
but we ask again and again, and he will do it. We appreciate Eric Carroll.
~~~~~~~
Continuing on the theme of “sees what’s needed and takes care of it,” she makes our feasts eco-friendly, lugs coffee pots, bins of table cloths, napkins, dishes and silver, she hosts us, facilitates some of our toughest conversations, subs in for whoever can’t be there and takes on their jobs, shares stories that underscore the message of the readings and the homily, plans meaningful Good Friday liturgies, and generally sees what’s needed and takes care of it. For all of this, we appreciate Meg Tuccillo.
~~~~~~~
We are richly blessed with musicians who bring beauty and reverence to our liturgical celebrations. She is one of those blessings, and today we honor her for another contribution to our sacred rites. For serving as resource and coordinator of community led liturgy, we appreciate Barbara Formoso.
~~~~~~~
Abuelita to our Guatemalan family and Nohemi’s confidant, she listens to our worries and concerns and writes the notes that convey the loving care of the community at the times we need it most. We appreciate Betsy Marron.
~~~~~~~
He’s witty and clever, a great entertainer and excellent emcee. In addition to fun, he brings pragmatic wisdom and a voice of reason to our discussions, and at the moment he’s marshalling the forces to take on the future. We appreciate Ted Miller.
~~~~~~~
Unlike most of the Sunday crowd, he has not a single gray hair on his head. His very presence invokes calm, whether he’s helping Ronaldo deal with the pressure and anxiety of the unknown, or figuring out the latest computer glitch at Kenmore. He keeps us connected with our NOVA on Zoom community. We appreciate Daniel Sanchez.
~~~~~~~
It’s only May, and these two excellent retreat planners have already lined up amazing retreats for this year and next. For leading us in deepening our spirituality and bringing us together for comradery and fun,
We appreciate Archer Heinzen and Jeanne Clarkson.
~~~~~
This year begins a new tradition. A special award to recognize an individual for their gifts of lasting impact not just to those of us present today, but to the generations of NOVA. We are naming this award for a beloved community member, with the hope that each year for as long as the community lives, we will recognize someone who carries on the tradition of extraordinary gifts that bless us all.
And now, with this first annual Cathy Showalter award for contributions of lasting impact to the community, we honor Cathy Showalter. Her art transforms these lowly rooms into sacred worship space, our church. She surrounds us with beauty. She lifts our eyes and our hearts to our God. With profound gratitude for her steadfast commitment, her true and faithful service to NOVA, and the blessing she is to each of us and all of us, we appreciate and bless Cathy.
~~~~~~
The final tribute of the day was a recognition of Bill Meyer’s 42 years singing with the Novatones – a beautiful slide show to lead us in appreciation for Bill. We love you, Bill!
May 7, 2023
When parents are laid off or laid up, when eviction is threatened, when the utilities are about to be cut off, when refugees have no beds, when families are going hungry, when the needs are great and there’s just no money, who’re you gonna call? She makes the connections and finds the people with the resources, the time, the talent to help. And in her spare time, she manages the website, creates slide shows, designs posters, holy cards and programs, shoots and curates the photos, leads the Holy Thursday team, hosts zoom meetings, serves as our tech guru and leads us in tears of sorrow and joy.
We appreciate our Peace and Social Justice minister Dianne Carroll.
We appreciate all members of the Peace and Social Justice team for their work on behalf of the community.
~~~~~~~
Are you coming to the retreat? He needs to know. How else can he manage reservations, rooms and money so we can show up to learn, pray and play together at our annual retreat? He makes sure Doorways has paper goods, connects us to Bridges to Independence, helps with Christ House, and facilitated our last Circle of Leaders meeting. For all his work, we appreciate our outgoing retreat reservation director/money manager Kopp Michelotti.
~~~~~~~
Our sacristan and head of the altar society, sender of birthdays and organizer of the wonderful scribes who keep us informed about what’s going on in the community. We appreciate Linda Christie.
Much appreciation to all of our scribes. Thanks for keeping us in the know.
~~~~~~~
A talented recording artist in his own right, he brings us his great voice, introduces us to new music, and creates beautiful videos to accompany the recordings that grace our liturgies. He, like so many of the Novatones, is his own roadie and sound engineer. We appreciate Jack Christie.
~~~~~~~
And together the two of them lead the Marie Pinho and Marie Keefe Scholarship Committee.
Thanks to all the Scholarship Committee members.
~~~~~~~
An ardent believer in the power of the church to live up to the expectations of the gospel, he brings us together to participate in Pope Francis’ synodal process, and reflects for us the ways in which we practice synodality here in NOVA.
We appreciate Clyde Christofferson.
Thanks to all who participate in the synodality process.
~~~~~~
For I was hungry and you gave me to eat. Week after week, she picks up, packs up and delivers van-loads of cereal, peanut butter and canned goods to AFAC. And when it’s NOVA’s turn at Christ House, her hands prepare the meals delivered on behalf of the community. We appreciate Christina Smith.
~~~~~~
You might catch her painting and planting kindness rocks, performing in concerts or joyfully singing with the Novatones when she’s not busy feeding middle school kids or engaging our minds, giving us lunch, and bringing us together for book gatherings. We appreciate Carolyn Miller.
~~~~~~
A pillar of support for our Guatemalan family, gorgeous voice, host of the men’s group, future thinker, leader of the jobs guarantee project, a sometimes professor of economics who lives his convictions and works tirelessly for a fair economy,
we appreciate Tom Clarkson.
We appreciate all the Guatemala Team for their support to our family.
~~~~~~~
An outstanding baby whisperer, friend and advisor to Ronaldo, longtime virtual airstream dweller before it became the real deal. Year after year he has managed our money with common sense and the sense of the community. It’s sometimes thankless work, but like the energizer bunny, he just keeps going and going. We appreciate Joe Formoso.
~~~~~~
She sits quietly and listens for the needs of the community, creates prayer wheels and signs us up to pray, organizes meals when they are needed and generally makes sure we’re taking care of each other. Our community life minister also scribes, and has a seasonal gig on the Holy Thursday team. We appreciate Cathy Goldschmidt.
~~~~~~
To do all the good you can... By all the means you can...
In all the ways you can...In all the places you can...
At all the times you can... To all the people you can...
As long as ever you can. Today we honor someone who lives this prayer. Wherever she is, she is working in all the ways she can to build a better world. For her quiet competence as co-leader of Peace and Social Justice committee, and for all her many gifts, we appreciate Markie Harwood.
~~~~~~~
Abraham Lincoln said, “You can please some of the people some of the time, all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time.” Lincoln’s wisdom aside, every fall he tries to please as many of us as he can. We appreciate our Liturgy Lottery Coordinator David Mog.
~~~~~~~
At a time when “our kind of Vatican II type” priests are harder and harder to find and the trend is toward conservatism, he finds wonderful priests who come to celebrate with us and become part of our community. He builds loving, supportive relationships with them - a source of support that becomes a mainstay in their lives, especially as they age. For that critical work, and for his wise and loving presence among us, we appreciate John Mooney.
~~~~~~~
She has an eye for beauty and a brilliant voice. Organizer of all things closet and creator of order and calm, for her music, her work on the NOVA directory, and all her many contributions to the community, we appreciate Victoria Robinson.
~~~~~~~
Next is what we think is new for us – a Zoom-specific appreciation. So let us honor the grande dame of Zoom. We can always count on her for good humor & good counsel. She speaks up and speaks out. Especially for those of us who hang out on zoom, she lights up the screen. We appreciate Rose Barrett.
And let’s appreciate our entire Zoom community. Thank you for hanging in there, through our initial zoom trials, for the periodic glitches, for the times you have trouble with your volume, or mic, or camera. We are so glad you’re here,
and we appreciate all of you.
Thanks to Cece for sending more information about some of Rose’s many contributions to the community:
Some of the gifts contributed by Rose Barrett over many years. When NOVA was much younger, there were a few snags that Rose sorted out so that they ran so much smoother for many years.
THE PADRE CADRE – often in the earlier days, NOVA members often had to struggle to find priests who could celebrate the liturgy with us. Rose understood that the non-parish priests had many varied responsibilities. She took on the challenge of calling them far in advance, stating our need and asking which one of the dates worked best for them. She valued their time, and was always succinct with her calls. After a short time, many of these priests were so appreciative of the model that NOVA provided, that they looked forward to coming and sometimes reserved two liturgies.
THE LITURGY LOTTERY – again, Rose had the foresight to get members to signup for the planning of a liturgy., much like what David does today; she made two lists of each Sunday with dates and a place for signup, and the second list had a tear-off that the volunteer tore off and could remember the commitment. A list was then published as an added reminder.
THE DUNN LORING CHRISTMAS SALE. Some NOVA people learned of a church having many needs and the members had few resources, so in addition to helping with the many needed repairs, Rose, with the help of many members, collected donations and organized a DUNN LORING CHRISTMAS SALE in the basement of the church. The donations were so successful and lovely that after the first year, it was decided to have the children come in first; they were given a bag and could choose gifts to take home and wrap with no cost. This “sale” continued for several years.
~~~~~~~
If it’s about space, he’s your guy. The leader of occasional space explorations, and the connection to our current home here at Kenmore, we appreciate this world traveler who also happens to be our Facilities Coordinator John Tarrant.
~~~~~~~
With a finely tuned sense of the sacred, she brings beauty, simplicity and meaning to our liturgies and leads us in awe and respect for our planet. We appreciate our Liturgy Coordinator and Care for Creation team lead Gloria Mog.
We appreciate all of the Care for Creation group.
~~~~~~~
She joins the voice and the power of the NOVA community to many other congregations working for change in our community and our country. For her faithful support for Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement (VOICE), and for keeping us engaged in that vital work, we appreciate Nancy Veldhuis.
~~~~~~~
We’ve already talked about the gift of music that elevates our liturgies and brings us ever closer to the Divine. Today we honor our resident composer, the creator of the sacred songs we cherish. He immerses us in beauty, opening our hearts to hear God’s voice. For the gift of inspiration, the work of music coordinator, and his faithful service to Christ House,
we appreciate Tim White.
We can’t thank the Novatones enough for their enduring musical gift to us.
And thanks to all those who help Tim with Christ House
~~~~~~~
She organizes the loaves and fishes for our First Sunday agapes. She asks, and we are all nourished with good food and good fellowship. For all of the time she has found the volunteers, set the table and prepared the celebration, we appreciate our outgoing agape coordinator, Judy Christofferson.
And we appreciate all the folks who feed us when we gather.
~~~~~~~
When something needs doing, he does it. He picks up stuff and restores stuff and delivers stuff – food for the hungry, furniture for new arrivals, desks for young scholars, chairs and boxes and boxes of supplies for Holy Thursday. If we don’t have just the thing we need, he goes out and finds it, and if it doesn’t exist, he builds it. And lest you think this is merely about brawn, he is a deep and creative thinker, opening us to new ideas and new interpretations of the scripture. A willing helper, a supporter of Ronaldo and all our Guatemalan family. We try not to rely too heavily on the promise on his license plate,
but we ask again and again, and he will do it. We appreciate Eric Carroll.
~~~~~~~
Continuing on the theme of “sees what’s needed and takes care of it,” she makes our feasts eco-friendly, lugs coffee pots, bins of table cloths, napkins, dishes and silver, she hosts us, facilitates some of our toughest conversations, subs in for whoever can’t be there and takes on their jobs, shares stories that underscore the message of the readings and the homily, plans meaningful Good Friday liturgies, and generally sees what’s needed and takes care of it. For all of this, we appreciate Meg Tuccillo.
~~~~~~~
We are richly blessed with musicians who bring beauty and reverence to our liturgical celebrations. She is one of those blessings, and today we honor her for another contribution to our sacred rites. For serving as resource and coordinator of community led liturgy, we appreciate Barbara Formoso.
~~~~~~~
Abuelita to our Guatemalan family and Nohemi’s confidant, she listens to our worries and concerns and writes the notes that convey the loving care of the community at the times we need it most. We appreciate Betsy Marron.
~~~~~~~
He’s witty and clever, a great entertainer and excellent emcee. In addition to fun, he brings pragmatic wisdom and a voice of reason to our discussions, and at the moment he’s marshalling the forces to take on the future. We appreciate Ted Miller.
~~~~~~~
Unlike most of the Sunday crowd, he has not a single gray hair on his head. His very presence invokes calm, whether he’s helping Ronaldo deal with the pressure and anxiety of the unknown, or figuring out the latest computer glitch at Kenmore. He keeps us connected with our NOVA on Zoom community. We appreciate Daniel Sanchez.
~~~~~~~
It’s only May, and these two excellent retreat planners have already lined up amazing retreats for this year and next. For leading us in deepening our spirituality and bringing us together for comradery and fun,
We appreciate Archer Heinzen and Jeanne Clarkson.
~~~~~
This year begins a new tradition. A special award to recognize an individual for their gifts of lasting impact not just to those of us present today, but to the generations of NOVA. We are naming this award for a beloved community member, with the hope that each year for as long as the community lives, we will recognize someone who carries on the tradition of extraordinary gifts that bless us all.
And now, with this first annual Cathy Showalter award for contributions of lasting impact to the community, we honor Cathy Showalter. Her art transforms these lowly rooms into sacred worship space, our church. She surrounds us with beauty. She lifts our eyes and our hearts to our God. With profound gratitude for her steadfast commitment, her true and faithful service to NOVA, and the blessing she is to each of us and all of us, we appreciate and bless Cathy.
~~~~~~
The final tribute of the day was a recognition of Bill Meyer’s 42 years singing with the Novatones – a beautiful slide show to lead us in appreciation for Bill. We love you, Bill!