Large print BCP and Hymnal CDs help blind and visually impaired

The Large-Print Ministry offers three CDs that can help the blind and visually-impaired and others with special needs with their devotions and to be able to more fully participate in worship. The Large-Print Book of Common Prayer CD includes the entire Book of Common Prayer (1979) of The Episcopal Church USA. The Revised Common Lectionary is included. The CD material is formatted in Microsoft Word™ and is mainly in 18-point Times New Roman type. It is laid out for 8.5 x 11-inch pages and can be used to help prepare large-print worship materials.

"Sing Praise to Our God" is a CD that includes large-print lyrics to the 338 hymns from The Hymnal 1982 of the Episcopal Church, USA that are in the public domain. They are in Microsoft Word™ and 20-point Arial type. The hymns are laid out for use on 8.5 x  11-inch pages and can be printed out as part of large-print service materials.

"Prayers & Psalms for Today" can help those who are hurting in body, mind and/or spirit. It includes selections from Prayers and Thanksgivings, Prayers for the Sick, Prayers for Use by a Sick Person, Ministration at the Time of Death, and the Book of Psalms from The Book of Common Prayer (1979). The CD is in Microsoft Word™ and is mostly in 20-point Arial type.

It is laid out for use on 8.5 x 11-inch pages.

Blind individuals with electronic note takers and special software and visually-impaired people with access to computers can use the CDs. The material can be loaded into a note taker and re-edited into a form of Braille. The CDs should also be useable in optical-character readers that can read material formatted in Microsoft Word™.

To order, please send a self-addressed, stamped 6x9-inch envelope with four first-class stamps attached (five on a padded envelope) to Ann Dahlen, 1900 6th Ave., Apt. 513, Rock Island, IL 61201. Please add more postage when ordering more than one CD. Please indicate which CDs you want. There is no charge for the CDs, but a donation of any amount to help cover costs is appreciated. The Large-Print Ministry is not affiliated with any diocese, church or organization. For more information, contact Ann Dahlen at a.dahlen@att.net.

Blessed to Be A Blessing: Tools for stewardship campaigns

from Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs 

The Office of Stewardship is offering a program called Blessed to Be A Blessing, which offers tools to enhance stewardship campaigns and features prominent writers from throughout the Episcopal Church. Blessed to Be A Blessing is a six-week series inviting reflection and discussion on stewardship principles and practices based on the Gospel readings from Mark for each Sunday from October 7 through November 11.

According to the Rev. Laurel Johnston, Program Officer for Stewardship, "Blessed to Be A Blessing is designed to complement and support a congregation's annual giving campaign, each of the six contributing writers explores stewardship, giving, gratitude and generosity in connection with the Gospel lection for each Sunday during the month of October through November." She added, "The series is ideal for those leading stewardship formation, and each week participants can download Blessed to Be a Blessing bulletin inserts as well as a pledge card with a proportional giving chart."

Blessed to Be A Blessing materials are available free at www.episcopalchurch.org/page/blessed-be-blessing. For more information contact Johnston at ljohnston@episcopalchurch.org.

Save the date! Young Adults Conference on Dec. 1

The Young Adults Conference will be held December 1, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at St. John's, Hampton. All young adults (20s and 30s) are invited to attend. Conference features a special Advent Eucharist and programs by: Bishop Hollerith; Jason Sierra, Young Adult Ministries Officer of the Episcopal Church; and the Young Adults Commission of Southern Virginia. Lunch provided with coffee and refreshments served all day. Optional happy hour and fellowship dinner to follow. More information and registration coming soon!

Certificates of Lay Delegates & Alternates due Aug. 31

The Certificate of Lay Delegates & Alternates for 2012-2013 is available on the Governance page of our website. Vestries should elect the delegates and alternates for their congregations who will serve from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013. Questions? Contact Leah Sicignano, lsicignano@diosova.org or 757-213-3381. Please have your certificates in to the Diocesan office by August 31, 2012.

Chanco on the James is seeking Executive Director

Chanco on the James is seeking an experienced, dynamic individual to fill the position of Executive Director. This position oversees the day to day operations of the entire facility including summer camp and year round conference center business. This position will manage both full and part time staff and will report to the Board of Directors and the Bishop of the Diocese of Southern Virginia. This position will offer a competitive salary based on experience, full benefits package, and a tranquil daily work environment. A bachelor's degree in a related field combined with a minimum of 3-5 years experience in senior leadership position(s) in camping, conference center or resort environment and managing staff, preferably in a camp environment are required. The successful applicant must be able to work on-site fulltime during summer months including flexible hours, nights and weekends during shoulder season. For a complete position description and application form, go to the Employment Opportunities page of our web site.

Godly Play: Stories that engage the senses

The Diocese of Southern Virginia is pleased to present a Godly Play training, "Stories that Engage the Senses" with nationally accredited trainer Kathleen Capcarra on Saturday, August 11, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at St. Martin's, Williamsburg. Cost to attend is $25 per person. All registration fees should be pre-paid by credit card through PayPal, or a check mailed to the diocese. Registration will close on Monday, July 23. Click here for more information and registration.

New Wineskins project bears fruit for Executive Board

The Executive Board of the Diocese has been working with the results of the New Wineskins project begun in 2011. This project invited Southern Virginia to take a look at our mission, to listen and talk about who we are and what we are called to do and to be. An important step in this process was listening to the members of our parishes. Many of you took part in one of six regional meetings with Bishop Hollerith. The data gathered from those meetings has led our Executive Board to form three Focus Teams: Stewardship, Leadership Development and New Communities.

Stewardship: 

The Stewardship Focus Team of the Executive Board is committed to helping broaden our understanding of stewardship for ourselves, our parishes as well as the entire diocese. We hope to meet parishes where they are and help them to move toward a greater understanding of the theology of stewardship and how our resources are being used to change the community and the world. A number of ideas emerged from our first conversation but a common theme was the need for better formation and education about stewardship as well as more direction for clergy and other leadership. Leadership needs to walk the walk and they need to be equipped for the walk. We have amazing stewardship stories in our diocese that are rarely shared and we recognize that the power of story needs to be harnessed and shared. A narrative diocesan budget would be an excellent beginning. We hope that we will move toward running diocesan stewardship in much the same way we run parish campaigns and we as a team are committed to reflecting that behavior as a model. Two specific initiatives that were suggested will continue to be discussed in the fall.      

Leadership Development:

The Leadership Development Focus Team will center its efforts on three key areas: on the ground listening, evaluative work, and allocation of resources. At our first meeting, we identified a number ways Leadership Development is already being accomplished in our diocese, such as Fresh Start, Bishop's Days, Vestry Training days, CE-Net, EYC Board, and Youth Leader Trainings, to name a few. Then we brainstormed possible approaches and areas of focus for Leadership Development going forward, evaluating current initiatives with respect to both mission and budget priorities of the diocese. We discussed evaluating young vocations initiatives, allocating appropriate resources and exploring models for new clergy mentoring, and strategies to develop new recruitment and training for leaders at the parish level, including expanded vestry training and best practices for committee management. We intend to identify two to three primary areas of work for the next year.

New Communities: 

The New Communities Focus Team of the Executive Board will be working with the Mission Network and the Church Plant Committee to strategize, support, and communicate the work of New Community efforts in our diocese. What do we mean by New Communities? Primarily it means new gatherings, ministries, or congregations that reach new people with the Gospel. It includes new church plants, multi-cultural ministries, emergent ministries, mission communities supported by one or more congregation that reach a particular group are area(new ministries like Mission of the Holy Spirit), rebirthing/redeveloping existing congregations, and churches collaborating or partnering in new ways. The New Communities Focus Team desires first to learn what "New Community" initiatives are currently taking place within our congregations. This fall, the Focus Team will hone in on specific goals for the upcoming year.