On Sunday, September 8 at 10:00 am, all are invited for a joyous Rally Day service with baptisms and Blessing of the Backpacks! Following the 10:00 am service, we will have a festive lunch provided by Bella Isla Café. Whether it’s been a week or a few years since you’ve joined for in-person worship at Epiphany, you won’t want to miss the joy and fellowship, crafts, games, bounce house, or pop-up basketball.

The 2024-25 Chorister program at Epiphany is for children with unchanged voices in grades 3-8. This program provides professional musical training to children in a challenging and fun environment at no financial cost to parents. Previous musical experience isn’t necessary for admission. This choir rehearses weekly on Wednesdays during the school year and sings in church at the 10:00 am worship service on the first Sunday of each month (October through June) and at other scheduled services and events during the year. Less intensive preparatory training for interested 2nd graders will also be made available during the 2024-25 season. For more information or to arrange a brief vocal evaluation for your child, please reach out to Director of Music Jeremy Bruns at jbruns@3crowns.org or by phoning the church office at 781-729-1922.

About a month ago, your Team Epiphany embarked on our annual ride to combat ALS, and we want to thank all of you for your support and prayers. The ride was a great success, despite some challenges with the weather. The first day, we were able to complete our assigned routes — either 100 or 30 miles. The temperature was really nice, and we only saw some scattered rain towards the end of the day. The second day was a slightly different story.  At the very moment we were to ride out, a nasty storm front came through, bringing with it hail, lightning, and the threat of tornadoes. In an unprecedented move, the ride organizers postponed the start and waited for the front to pass through. As a result, the second day had to be truncated, and all of us did the 30 mile course together — albeit in the pouring rain. Nevertheless, it was a great weekend, as all the riders returned safely and we had a lot of fun along the way.

But all of this is incidental to the main reason we were out that, and that is to raise money for the ALS Therapy Development Institute. As a team, we have raised almost $14,000 and remain in the top ten of fundraising teams — though many of those teams are much larger than ours. And all the riders together have raised almost $600,000.
But it's actually not over! It is definitely not too late if you'd like to contribute to the effort. Just head on over to www.team-epiphany.org and donate whatever you feel moved to.

Once again,  we are so grateful for this beloved community, which has been so generous to those combating this horrible disease. Be well, and we'll see you next year!

Sacred Ground is a sensitive, prayerful resource that creates space for difficult but respectful and transformative dialogue on race and racism. Starting in October, J2J (Journey to Justice) will be offering several Sacred Ground discussion groups. These groups will meet every other week for 11 sessions. Sessions will be facilitated by parishioners who have completed the course. Please let us know if you are interested (no commitment yet!) here, and we will be in touch in early September. In March 2025, we hope to embark on a Racial Justice Pilgrimage to Atlanta, Selma, Montgomery, and Birmingham as the culmination of our learning. Participation in Sacred Ground is a prerequisite for attending the pilgrimage. 

Our Parish Weekend Away in New Hampshire is coming up on September 27-29. We have special merch designed by Rev. Janelle available now, including unisex, women's, and youth t-shirts; hoodies; and crewneck sweatshirts. Click to orders yours! 

Epiphany's vestry wants to hear from you! Our leadership is interested in knowing that has been helpful to your spiritual growth this past year; what we have been doing that has been great; what activities you hope the church might offer in the future; and your hopes for the upcoming year. To share your thoughts, please fill out our survey! Children and youth under 18 can also submit answers with parent permission.

Congratulations to Ilario Faienza and Liam Cumming, who performed on Tuesday, June 25 at King’s Chapel in Boston as scholarship winners of the Young Organist Initiative hosted by the Boston Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Mark your calendars now for June 24, 2025 at 12:15 pm, when the 2024-25 scholarship winners will perform at King’s Chapel. These seven winners include Ilario Faienza as a second-year scholarship recipient, and Katherine Cumming as a new recipient.

Starting this July, Winchester Community Access & Media (WinCAM) will begin streaming Parish of the Epiphany’s services on their local television network. Viewers can tune in on Mondays at 2 pm via Comcast channel 8 or Verizon channel 36. Services will also be available in HD on Mondays at 4 pm via Comcast channel 1073 or Verizon channel 2136. WinCAM will begin with older services and work towards catching up with our current streams. 

This summer, join Journey to Justice (J2J) as we read Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond. This powerful book challenges the way we understand poverty in the United States and offers some ways to work towards a more just and equitable society. This will be a low-key book study, with one group on Zoom and one group in person, likely meeting two times throughout the summer. Please click to sign up! For questions, please contact Rev. Janelle.

Every Sunday through Labor Day weekend, the Summer Choir will assist in leading the music at our 10:00 am services, and we would like to invite anyone interested to join in. No commitment needed — simply be in the choir loft at 9:00 am on any Sunday you choose, and we will prepare the music for that day. Make it a family event if you like; anyone entering second grade or older is invited to sing. The summer choir will not vest or process. This is your chance to give choir a try in a more relaxed setting! We hope to see some new faces and hear some new voices over the summer. If you have questions, please contact Jeremy Bruns in the music office.