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.  

Trinity Institute 2016 to be live webcast at Diocesan office

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 focuses on racial justice. It 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. Featured speakers include Nicholas Kristof, Anna Deavere Smith, Emilie Townes, Michael Curry, and many more.

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