Safe Church classroom training in 2016

The 2016 Safe Church classroom training schedule is online. You can learn more about Safe Church training and register for upcoming classes here. Upcoming classes are:

• Jan. 23, 2016 - Johns Memorial, Farmville
• Feb. 27, 2016 - Good Shepherd, Richmond
• Mar. 19, 2016 - St. John's, Hopewell
• Apr. 23, 2016 - Hickory Neck, Toano
• May 21, 2016 - St. Christopher's, Portsmouth
• Jun. 18, 2016 - Good Shepherd, Norfolk
• Sep. 17, 2016 - Galilee, Virginia Beach
• Oct. 1, 2016 - St. Augustine's, Newport News

Latest issue of ECW Grapevine newsletter is here

The ECW Grapevine is a quarterly, print-ready newsletter with occasional special editions. The deadline for the next issue is Friday March 18.  Please help us with distribution via email or, printed copies for folks who don't have computers. If you have news you would like included in The Grapevine, or would like to be added to the email list, please contact Nancy Smith, nsmithwtr@aol.com. In this November 2015 issue you'll find:

• President's letter from Nancy Sands
• Getting to know Diocesan ECW Board members
• A real-life love story
• Women to Women update

Lost Boys Foundation: Volunteers needed

Outreach Africa: Lost Boys Foundation helps our Sudanese refugees (many of whom are now citizens) as advocates in the complexities of American life. It also raises money to help their younger relatives get an education in Kenya. Founder Julie Hill is in need of volunteers on the Peninsula to help with patient advocacy and with fair housing issues. Go to  http://lostboysUS.org to learn more about the Foundation and the Lost Boys or contact Julie at 757-749-3644 or julhill@cox.net to learn how you can help!

Robert B. Wynne elected to Board of Jackson-Feild Behavioral Health Services

Robert B. Wynne, an associate in the tax and employee benefits department at McGuireWoods LLP has been elected to the Board of Trustees of Jackson-Feild Behavioral Health Services. A native of Cary, North Carolina, Mr. Wynne received his Bachelor of Arts from Sewanee: The University of the South, his Juris Doctor with Honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and his Master of Laws in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center. Mr. Wynne and his wife Tsveti reside in Richmond, and he looks forward to his board service to an organization that helps children with mental health disorders.

Young Adult and Seminarian Grant Programs from United Thank Offering

Young Adult and Seminarian Grant Programs from the United Thank Offering are accepting applications. In addition to grant applications from Young Adults, the UTO Board has also created a process for seminarians to apply for UTO grants for projects either at their field education site or in their home diocese.

 

There are a couple of changes from last year for the Young Adult grants. Instead of awarding one per province, the Board will select the top ten applications to fund. A video is not required, but applicants are welcome to submit one if they feel so called. Young Adult grants are for projects led by people 21-30 not for projects to minister to that age group.

 

All of the applications are also available on the UTO website, www.unitedthankoffering.org. The deadline for applications is January 29 at 5 p.m. Eastern time.

November Weekend 2015 hits maximum capacity!

Last weekend, nearly 70 individuals gathered at Chanco for our annual middle school retreat, and we used every available conference room to host these teens. This year's turnout was the largest ever; the program has grown steadily since it originally kicked off as an overnight lock-in at St. Martin's, Williamsburg, in 2010. Now November Weekend runs from Friday evening through Sunday morning at Chanco and features engaging worship, music, mixers and games, a dance, zip lines, and field games. To learn more about our diocesan youth programs visit www.diosova.org/youth or contact diocesan Youth Missioner Ashley Scruggs at ascruggs@diosova.org.

Registration open for Holiday Lock-in at Chanco for youth in grades 6-12

What's even more fun than a lock-in?  A lock-in at Chanco! Come with your parish youth group, or by yourself, or make plans to reunite with favorite camp friends from all over the diocese at this fantastic youth event for teens in grades 6-12. Friday, December 4 through Saturday December 5, we will be hosting an overnight full of fun games, creative worship and a jamming dance! Teens will stay lock-in style in our two large conference rooms, so bring your own pillow, sleeping bag and toiletries. Snacks Friday night, breakfast and lunch on Saturday are provided. Check-in is on Friday after dinner between 7-8 pm and pick up is at 3 pm on Saturday. Fantastic food, friendly fellowship and fabulous fun can be yours for the very low cost of $15 per person plus a donation of two canned goods for our Christmas Food Drive. This is the perfect opportunity to reunite with camp friends, bond with your youth group outside of church and/or to try Chanco for the first time and meet some wonderful new friends! Don't miss it! Click here to register. Questions? Contact Diocesan Youth Missioner Ashley Scruggs at ascruggs@diosova.org.   

Watch & Read: Video and books to help you prepare for Trinity Institute 2016

The Trinity Institute's 45th annual conference - Listen for a Change: Sacred Conversations for Racial Justice - will be webcast live at the Diocesan office in Newport News, Jan. 21-23, 2016. This year's conference - TI2016: Listen for a Change - focuses on racial justice. TI2016 is for anyone who is interested in a theological perspective on racial justice and a fuller understanding of present realities and ways to transform them.

To help you get a taste of Trinity Institute and prepare for the rich conversations at this year's conference on racial justice, click here for books and videos from this year's speakers.

The books from TI2016 speakers as well as other important voices are a great preface to the issues that we'll discuss at TI2016, including structural racism, mass incarceration, and policy change. Click here for a reading list you can download.

Get more information and register online at www.diosova.org.

Southern Virginia is participating in the Asset Map of The Episcopal Church

The Asset Map of the Episcopal Church is the first platform of its kind, housing information about all of the ministry programs and institutional resources in United States Episcopal network in the same place. The purpose of the Asset Map is to equip churches and institutions to share their own good news, and connect with the larger networks of mission and ministry diocesan and nationwide. The map could benefit any number of programs, including disaster preparedness and response work, and collaborative ministry development.

 

"The Asset Map is a visual catalog of The Episcopal Church at large, enabling diocesan leaders, church members and church seekers alike to see at a glance and in depth what the Church's presence looks like in their area, both infrastructure and programs," said Abagail Nelson, Episcopal Relief & Development's Senior Vice President of Programs. "It has wide-ranging potential to facilitate the development of new ministries and partnerships, and support the mobilization of resources and expertise."

The interactive map displays pins for each church. Clicking on a pin provides contact information and descriptions of programs at that particular location. Scan and search functions help users find ministries in their area or across the country. This short video  helps explain how the Asset Map works.

 

The Diocese of Southern Virginia is actively participating in the Episcopal Asset Map project.  Bishop Hollerith has asked churches to designate someone to help manage their presence on the map. Communications Officer Ann Turner is the diocesan map administrator. Please contact her if you have any questions about the Asset Map, aturner@diosova.org.

 

Whether you have just begun a food pantry and are looking for churches that have done the same, or you are dreaming of teaming up with another church to create a new ministry, the Episcopal Asset Map can be a valuable resource.  Our diocesan page can be found at http://edsva.episcopalassetmap.org/.

 

YASC Mission to Tanzania: The present is a gift, that's why we call it the present!

By Andy Russell, YASC Missionary, Bruton Parish, Williamsburg

Well folks it's a little hard to believe but I, Andy Russell, am no longer really a stranger to this place called Dodoma.  To be sure, I don't know everything about Dodoma, not even close.  But I know the compound where I live, my walk to work, the CK office, Rose's (where I get lunch most days, as well as a good number of the other store fronts and spots around Dodoma.  This familiarity has brought something else along with it: routine. Click here to continue reading. 

 

News from Chanco on the James

Introducing our newest staff member, Molly Williams  

Chanco is pleased to introduce Molly Williams, our new Director of Programs.  Molly attended Catawba College and graduated in 2011 with a BA in Religion and Philosophy: Outdoor Ministries. She has been involved in Christian camping in some form since she was in the fourth grade, primarily working in United Methodist summer camp and outdoor education programs. Molly shares, "Joining the staff at Chanco has given me the opportunity to fulfill a long time goal of serving Christ in a year round capacity in an outdoor ministry setting. I look forward to becoming a part of the Chanco family and joining in what God is already doing here!"  Please join us in welcoming Molly to the Chanco family! 

Veterans Day

Washington National Cathedral's Veterans Initiative

This week, the nation will honor our veterans, and Washington National Cathedral is proud to release three short "Honoring Our Veterans" videos that can assist churches and other worshipping communities on starting the conversation with those who have served. You can find the videos on the cathedral's YouTube channel here. 

 

Bishop Jay Magness reflects on Veterans Day

"On this Veterans Day 2015, unlike some of my friends in the faith community, I am not all that interested in what we can do for service members and veterans. I am, however, very interested in what these persons can do for the faith communities of America. Service members and veterans, if given the appropriate recognition, honor, welcome, and permission can teach us so very much about the spiritual value of personal and corporate sacrifice." Click here to read Bishop Magness' essay.

Bishop Magness is Bishop Suffragan, Federal Ministries of The Episcopal Church. He was formerly Canon to the Ordinary in the Diocese of Southern Virginia.

Diocese of Southern Virginia receives award from Recovery Ministries of the Episcopal Church

By the Rev. Lauren McDonald, St. Stephen's, Newport News

L to R: Jan Brown; Shannon Tucker, outgoing president of RMEC; the Rev. Lauren McDonald

The last week in October, Jan M. Brown and the Rev. Lauren McDonald, co-chairs of the Addictions and Recovery Commission (ARC) of the Diocese of Southern Virginia, attended the annual Gathering of Recovery Ministries of the Episcopal Church (RMEC) at St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle. This year's Gathering featured presentations by the Rev. Becca Stevens, Anne Lamott, and Sybil MacBeth. Jan, who was elected Vice President of the RMEC Board during the Gathering, facilitated an afternoon of "telling our recovery stories," in which Gathering participants learned to share their stories in five sentences. It was a powerful afternoon of honest and open sharing.

 

This year, at the Friday night banquet, RMEC presented two awards that had been given out in the past but had not been awarded recently. One was the Sam Shoemaker Award given to an individual who has made significant contributions in the field of addiction in the Episcopal Community. The other was the Russell Horton Award given to a Diocese with a new or renewed recovery commission that has had a significant increase in activity, a creative/renewed ministry, and has supported RMEC's goals of making a difference in and through the Episcopal Community in the field of recovery from addiction. This year the Russell Horton Award was given to the Diocese of Southern Virginia in recognition of restarting our Addictions and Recovery Commission and working to create Recovery Ready churches and a Recovery Ready Diocese. Jan and Lauren received the award on behalf of DioSoVA, and Lauren gave a presentation to those gathered on what the ARC has done in the past year.  

 

In 2016 the RMEC Gathering will be held in Williamsburg, hosted by the Diocese of Southern Virginia. Those interested in helping with the conference may contact Lauren at 757-903-0000 or lauren@spiritworksfoundation.org. We look forward to showing the rest of the Episcopal Church our Southern Virginia hospitality.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry to preach at Trinity Institute

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will preach at the opening Eucharist for the 2016 Trinity Institute. Curry is the first African American to serve as Presiding Bishop. He has been extensively involved in preaching missions, Crisis Control Ministry, the Absalom Jones initiative, the brokering of millions of dollars of investment in inner city neighborhoods, and the founding of day camps, day cares, and educational centers for children and families. He has received honorary degrees from Sewanee and Yale.

The Trinity Institute's 45th annual conference - Listen for a Change: Sacred Conversations for Racial Justice - will be webcast live at the Diocesan office in Newport News, Jan. 21-23, 2016.

This year's conference - TI2016: Listen for a Change - focuses on racial justice. TI2016 is for anyone who is interested in a theological perspective on racial justice and a fuller understanding of present realities and ways to transform them.

Get more information and register online at www.diosova.org.

New online class: Digital Strategies for Congregations

ChurchNext has a brand new online course offering - Digital Strategies for Congregations. Learn the best practices around church websites, Facebook and Twitter from expert Kyle Oliver. Kyle is the Digital Missioner for Virginia Theological Seminary and offers sound advice on how congregations can best minister in our increasingly digital environment. Click here for more information.

Another new offering is Building a Spiritually Mature Congregation. The juvenilization of America has altered the way people mature - and the way congregations mature. In this course author and professor Thomas Bergler unpacks the societal factors that promote adolescence and tells us how congregational leaders can help their members mature in Christ. Click here for more information.

Holiday Lock-in at Chanco for youth in grades 6-12

What’s even more fun than a lock-in?  A lock-in at Chanco! Come with your parish youth group, or by yourself, or make plans to reunite with favorite camp friends from all over the diocese at this fantastic youth event for teens in grades 6-12. Friday, December 4 through Saturday December 5, we will be hosting an overnight full of fun games, creative worship and a jamming dance! Teens will stay lock-in style in our two large conference rooms, so bring your own pillow, sleeping bag and toiletries. Snacks Friday night, breakfast and lunch on Saturday are provided. Check-in is on Friday after dinner between 7-8 pm and pick up is at 3 pm on Saturday. Fantastic food, friendly fellowship and fabulous fun can be yours for the very low cost of $15 per person plus a donation of two canned goods for our Christmas Food Drive. This is the perfect opportunity to reunite with camp friends, bond with your youth group outside of church and/or to try Chanco for the first time and meet some wonderful new friends! Don’t miss it! Questions or to register for this exciting event, please contact Diocesan Youth Missioner Ashley Scruggs at ascruggs@diosova.org.

Message from the Presiding Bishop: This is the Jesus Movement

"This is the Jesus Movement, and we are The Episcopal Church, the Episcopal branch of Jesus' movement in this world," Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry says in his first address as Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church. Filmed at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York City, Presiding Bishop Curry continues, "Now is our time to go.  To go into the world, let the world know that there is a God who loves us, a God who will not let us go, and that that love can set us all free." Click here for video or text of the message. 

Curry installed as 27th Presiding Bishop

From Episcopal News Service

After knocking on the west doors of Washington National Cathedral in the traditional manner and being admitted to the cathedral by the Very Rev. Gary Hall, the cathedral's dean, and Diocese of Washington Bishop Mariann Budde, Curry was asked to "tell us who you are."

"I am Michael Bruce Curry, a child of God, baptized in St. Simon of Cyrene Church, Maywood, Illinois, on May 3, 1953, and since that time I have sought to be a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ," he replied.

"Michael, Bishop in the Church of God, we have anticipated your arrival with great joy," 26th Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori told him. "In the Name of Christ, we greet you," she added, and the greeting was echoed by the more than 2,500 people in attendance.

Curry, the former bishop of North Carolina, promised to be a "faithful shepherd and pastor" and, when asked by Jefferts Schori if they would support Curry in his ministry, those attending roared in reply, "We will."

Click here to read more.

Episcopal Church Young Adult Service Corps: untold opportunities throughout the Anglican Communion

Young adults (21-30 years old) have an opportunity to transform their own lives while engaging mission and ministry in the Anglican Communion by joining the Young Adult Service Corps. Applications are now available for 2016-2017 placements in the Young Adult Service Corps, commonly known as YASC. The application with additional information and instructions is available here. The application deadline is Friday, January 8, 2016.  

 

Currently YASC missionaries are serving throughout the Anglican Communion and in several international dioceses of The Episcopal Church. They are working in administration, agriculture, chaplaincies, development, education, parish-based and refuge ministries. They are serving in Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, England, France, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Panama, the Philippines, South Africa, and Tanzania.

 

New opportunities for service are available each year. Among the possible placements for 2016-17 are Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, England, France, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Panama, the Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, Tanzania and Zambia.

For more information contact Elizabeth Boe, Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society Global Networking Officer, at eboe@episcopalchurch.org or Grace Flint, Young Adult Service Corps, Networking at gflint@episcopalchurch.org.  

College ministries come together for retreat at Chanco

By the Rev. Wendy Wilkinson, Good Samaritan, Virginia Beach, and ODU Chaplain

Four campus ministries - William & Mary, Old Dominion University, Christopher Newport University and Longwood/Hampden Sydney - came together for a retreat at Chanco on the James Oct. 30-31. The time away provided an opportunity for the students to build relationships with each other and discuss how their faith impacts their life on campus. The retreat was built around the Daily Offices with the intention that they students would find a place of calm and spiritual renewal in the midst of their hectic class schedules. They found time to enjoy Chanco's zip lines and the high ropes course as well. One of the parts of the retreat that the students found calming was to experience the Great Silence from the evening Compline service until the next morning's opening worship. At the close of the retreat, students were eager to find an opportunity to get together again in the spring.

A Mission to Tanzania: Walking in Dodoma

By Andy Russell, Bruton Parish, Williamsburg and YASC Missionary

Ever wondered what my morning walk to the Carpenter's Kids office looks like? Then you are in luck my friend for this video has been made especially for you. In all seriousness though, I hope you enjoy this short film. If you have six and a half minutes to spare, I think it gives a small but meaningful taste of life in Dodoma. The compound where I live is in a quieter residential part of town; it's kind of neat to see the changes in sound and scenery as you get closer to a more bustling part of Dodoma town.

Click here to watch the video and read more about Andy's missionary experiences.

Ridley Foundation Scholarship applications due Jan. 15

The Ridley Foundation board will meet in February to consider new applicants for the second semester. New applications and documents are due by January 15. Current recipients need to send their first semester transcript in order to receive the second half of their grant. Click here for more information on the Ridley Foundation Scholarships.

Episcopal Church women support Jackson-Feild

The Episcopal Church Women (ECW) of the Diocese of Southern Virginia has a long history of helping the children at Jackson-Feild Behavioral Health Services. The members met recently at St. Timothy's, Clarksville where they collected items from a Wish List as part of their "Bless the Children" project and presented them to Jackson-Feild.

 

The ECW was founded in 1890 to assist the women of the Episcopal Church to carry on Christ's work. Their mission today is to empower women to do Christ's ministry in the world.

Chanco seeking members for Board of Directors

Do you have a passion for Chanco's ministry and a desire to see it thrive into the next generation of campers and retreat guests? Then we may have the job for you! Chanco is seeking lay and ordained persons to serve on the Board of Directors beginning service in early 2016. There possibly may be no more exciting time to be a part of Chanco's growth than now. All interested persons must be a member in good standing at an Episcopal church in our diocese.  All applications are vetted through the current Chanco Board and Bishop Hollerith. Click here for an application to be sent to Executive Director Gareth Kalfas at director@chanco.org. Questions? Contact Gareth at 888-7CHANCO (888-724-2626) or via email.  We are grateful for our Chanco Board and the vibrant ministry they support.

United Thank Offering

Drop one of more coins in your UTO Blue Box this week as you remember and give thanks for those who have positively impacted your life and for those who love you without condition: teachers, parents, neighbors, and children.

It is so easy to put a coin in your United Thank Offering Blue Box: open the wallet, feel around in the change pocket, take out a penny or two or three, drop them in the Blue Box. Countless people have put coins in the box in just that manner, but many more of them have found something else; a joy, a sense of peace, even a way of living that has radically changed their attitudes about stewardship and shown them a clearer path to following Christ's commandments to help the needy.

Many ideas to help women feel empowered in the past have included taking special classes or meditating or finding rituals and spaces of quiet to try to bring joy and peace into one's life. These have all been tried over the years. Out of many self-help ideas that were generated, this one seemed to stand out: that is, to "keep a record for a week or so of things or people that one is thankful for". Wow, how easy! Really, it isn't a new concept.

One woman at a recent seminar shared how this singular action of empowerment changed her life. She wrote her first entry recording her thanks on a scrap of binder paper. The items were the usual list of thanks like being thankful for her home, children, husband, and garden. She continued to record her thanks daily and soon bought a bound book to date and record her thanksgivings and blessings. Pretty soon she started not just listing her thanks but thinking about "why" she gave thanks and recording those thoughts. Eventually she started "paying it forward" in small ways like paying for a soldier who was having lunch in the same restaurant or in the Starbucks line. Soon she was committing "random acts of kindness" like delivering food to the sick or senior citizens homes. She did most of this without thought of a return but just because it "felt good". Her husband and friends noticed that she seemed happier, more positive, was smiling more and they also wondered what change had occurred in her life.

She found that practicing thankfulness and gratitude increased her thankfulness and gratitude; that the more she gave, the more she herself felt gratitude and thankful. Much of her giving was monetary, coins and bills of various denominations all put in the Blue Box over the years. But, she also found she was giving of her time and her talents to others as a way for her to give thanks.

Visit United Thank Offering online and on Facebook.