Presiding Bishop coming to Southern VA!

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori is coming to Southern Virginia to help Old Donation, Virginia Beach, celebrate 375 years of worship. The celebration will begin Saturday, June 23 with a prayer service at Church Point at 10:15 a.m. This is the site of the first Anglican service held in 1637 by Adam Thorowgood and other citizens of the Lynnhaven Parish. Following the service, there will be a reading at the Adam Thoroughgood House honoring the lives of Adam and Sarah Thorowgood. A choral concert by Old Donation's St. Cecilia Choir will be held at 1:45 p.m. at the church. The Presiding Bishop will officiate and preach at all three services at Old Donation on Sunday, June 24. Services are at 8, 9:15 and 10:30 a.m. A reception will follow the 10:30 service. For more information contact the church office, 757-497-0563 or odc375@yahoo.com.

Southern VA ready to take part in General Convention

The 77th Episcopal Church General Convention will be held July 5 through July 12 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, IN. The Episcopal Church's General Convention is held every three years, and is the bi-cameral governing body of the Church. It is composed of the House of Bishops, with upwards of 200 active and retired bishops and the House of Deputies, with clergy and lay representatives elected from the 110 dioceses of the Church, at more than 800 members.

Southern Virginia will be sending four clergy and four lay deputies to this year's General Convention: The Rev. Samantha Vincent-Alexander, Head of Deputation, Ascension Norfolk; The Rev. John Baldwin, Emmanuel Virginia Beach; The Very Rev. Chris Cunningham, Johns Memorial Farmville; The Rev. Anna Noon, St. John's Hampton; Ms. Cindy Barnes, St. Michael's Bon Air; Mr. Matthew Grizzle, ODU Canterbury Center; Ms. Athena Hahn, Ascension Norfolk; and Mr. Tony Robinson, St. Thomas Chesapeake.

For complete and extensive information on the General Convention, check the website generalconvention.org. The Report to the General Convention, known as the Blue Book, the Bishop & Deputy Handbook and filed resolutions are all available for download.

Want to keep up with General Convention news and follow the work of our deputies as it happens? Check out our General Convention blogspot. Leading up to and during General Convention, we'll be posting the latest news and events. You can also find a link to the site on the General Convention page of our website. Become a subscriber to the diocese's weekly email news. Subscribers will receive a report of convention highlights. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. We'll be using these social networks for news as it happens. You can also follow General Convention on Twitter by using the hashtag #GC12.

Planning and strategy workshop for youth leaders

Get prepared for the next program year!  Mark your calendar for the Open Planning & Strategy Workshop for Youth Leaders on Saturday, July 21, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Hickory Neck, Toano. Adults who work with youth in parishes around the diocese are invited to come together for this annual gathering. We will join in problem-solving, calendar-planning and sharing effective strategies for youth ministry in the parish. We will also discuss ways we can better collaborate locally and brainstorm ideas for diocesan youth ministry initiatives. This is a great opportunity to network with other leaders, share your ideas, and get inspired. Light breakfast and full lunch provided. No fee to attend. Please register by emailing Youth Missioner Ashley Scruggs at ascruggs@diosova.org 

Southern Virginians elected to national and provincial seats in Province III Synod elections

The theme of the Province III Synod held in Martinsburg, West Virginia April 29 through May 1 was "Preparing for General Convention." Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori was present and addressed the gathering on the challenges facing the church. Bishop Stacy Sauls, chief operating officer of the Episcopal Church, spoke about the re-structuring of the national church center. Bonnie Anderson and Gregory Staub, president and secretary, respectively, of the House of Deputies, presented a brief history of General Convention and led an orientation for convention deputies.

Southern Virginia was well represented at the Synod. In attendance were: Bishop Hollerith, Canon Caroline Black, the Very Rev. Chris Cunningham (Johns Memorial, Farmville), the Rev. Conor Alexander (St. Francis, Virginia Beach), the Rev. Anna Noon (St. John's, Hampton), Dr. Angela Parker (St. Paul's Memorial, Lawrenceville), Mary Lou Crifasi (Eastern Shore Chapel, Virginia Beach), Cleo Shields (Johns Memorial, Farmville), and Anne Lund (Johns Memorial, Farmville).

The Very Rev. Chris Cunningham, rector of Johns Memorial, Farmville, was elected to the Executive Council of the Episcopal Church. The Executive Council of the Episcopal Church is an elected body representing the whole Church. It is the job of Executive Council to oversee the ministry and mission of the Church. The Executive Council is comprised of twenty members elected by General Convention (four bishops, four priests or deacons and twelve laypersons) and eighteen members elected by provincial synods. Scott Norris, a member of Emmanuel, Jenkins Bridge, and Toni Hogg, a member of St. John's, Hampton, are candidates for Executive Council election at General Convention.

Caroline Black, Canon for Christian Formation, was elected to the Province III Court of Review. The court is the disciplinary body for the province.

Election of new officers for Province III was also held. The Rev. Melanie McCarthy (West VA) was elected president; the Rt. Rev. Neff Powell (Southwest VA) was elected vice president.

Mission of the Holy Spirit holds Celebration Dinner

The first annual Mission of the Holy Spirit Celebration Dinner will be held Saturday, June 9 at 6 p.m. at Old Donation, Virginia Beach. The event will celebrate the dedication and service to the Mission by the Revs. Bev & Julia Tucker and the Rev. Bill Starkey and will feature music by members of the Mission. Tickets are limited, so get yours now! $25 per person. Call 757-858-0010 or send a check marked "Dinner" to Mission of the Holy Spirit, 1445 Norview Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23513. For more Mission news, click here for the Spring issue of The Mission Spirit newsletter.

Diaconal ordination on June 9

On Saturday, June 9, Bishop Hollerith will ordain Eve Butler-Gee, Terry Davis Edwards, Roger Alan Hungerford, Dana VanVliet-Pullin, and Wendy J. Wilkinson to the Sacred Order of Deacons. The ordination will take place at St. Andrew's, Newport News at 11 a.m. A reception will follow the service. Clergy: red stoles.

Presiding Bishop calls on all Episcopalians to help Saint Paul’s College survive

Saint Paul's launched its "Now & Forever" campaign last November with the goal of raising $5 million. With the May 17 deadline fast approaching, the college needs to close a $1.2 million gap in the drive. The fund-raising campaign, along with budget right-sizing and organizational re-structuring at Saint Paul's, are key elements in the school's drive to be reaffirmed with full accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges in mid-June.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, in an open letter to Episcopalians dated May 1, said Saint Paul's "has played a vital role in the life of our church since its founding in 1888." "We need the leadership and service of these students and graduates in our common life. We also need your assistance to help the students and faculty" to "continue their strong record of achievement now and well into our shared future," the bishop added. "Our challenge is to share the abundance of our lives with these students and this institution, so that all might share in the gifts that are being raised up in classrooms, playing fields and volunteer programs in southern Virginia."

Investor Charles M. Royce and his wife Deborah are offering a $250,000 challenge grant of $1 for every $2 raised of unrestricted gifts through the May 17 deadline. The first $500,000 raised will become $750,000 toward the $1.2 million goal. "As Episcopalians, we share a deep, spiritual commitment to support educational institutions and strengthen communities," said Royce. "We take pride in Saint Paul's College and its important mission. With this gift, my wife Deborah and I hope to help ensure that Saint Paul's College will be able to continue to help young people fulfill their potential and serve and lead in their communities."

"We are humbled and honored to receive this support in our hour of need," said Saint Paul's College CEO and Interim President Eddie N. Moore, Jr. "For more than a century, Saint Paul's has evolved with the times, but remained united in mission with our founding Church to provide all students - and particularly the under served - with a strong sense of community, with spiritual guidance, and with a thirst for lifelong learning that would form them for service and leadership."

You can learn more about Saint Paul's College and make a donation online at www.saintpaulsnet.com.