The Parish of the Epiphany

Family Newsletter
for week of September 12, 2021
Rally Day & the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Sun 12-Sept 8 or 10am  :  Worship & Blessing of the Backpacks

Sun 12-Sept 11:00am  :  Rally Day Picnic & Celebration

Sun 19-Sept 11:15am  :  State of the Church gathering after worship

Wed 22-Sept 6:15-7:30pm  :  Midweek Dinner & Programming for all ages!

Sun 26-Sept  10:00-10:40am  :  Church School Begins! (register)

Sun 26-Sept 3:00pm  :  Youth conversation with Nick (sign-up)

Sun 26-Sept 5:00-5:30 pm  :  Family Outdoor Worship 

Dear friends,

Welcome to our new program year! I am so happy to be on this adventure with you. This year we get to try new things--like outdoor Church School, and Wednesday evening dinners. We'll get to laugh and shrug when new things bring surprises, and cheer when new ideas become "keepers." We get to be and do church in different and deeper ways.

This Sunday is our Blessing of the Backpacks and Rally Day celebration. Children (and hey, grownups too!) are invited to bring their backpacks to church, and place them up front for a special blessing. I can't wait to show you our new backpack blessing tags and (a new "keeper" tradition) device stickers.

After the 10am service, please join us for lunch (catered by Bella Isla), and lots of fun with crafts, a scavenger hunt, and an obstacle course bouncy house. If you haven't done an obstacle bouncy before, you're in for a treat. Not only does an obstacle course bouncy allow for easy social distancing, but it just happens to be my personal favorite kind of bouncy. 

Let's jump into our new year together! 

Peace,

Bryn

Youth: Ice Cream & Conversation with Nick

Youth in grades 6-12 are invited to join Rev. Nick for frozen hoagies (think ice cream) on Sunday, September 26 at 3pm, at the church. Nick really wants to hear your voices as Epiphany begins the process of hiring a full time youth minister. Please come, spend some time together, hear about the new position, and share your hopes for who and what it can be. 

RSVP here please!

Church School Begins Soon: Please Register!

We couldn’t be more excited to start our new program year together! This fall we are offering two options for children’s Church School: 

In-Person, Outdoor Church School on Sunday Mornings at 10am

Meet us under canopy tents in the Cloister Garden! During our hands-on classes, we’ll hear Bible stories in creative ways, explore and make art, learn fun facts, and explore our own feelings and responses to these stories all within a loving and supporting community of teachers and children. We invite children in pre-K through 5th grade, as well as 6th graders as special helpers this year. 

At-Home, Family-Led “Church” School -- Anytime that Works for You!

At-home formation is family-centered and family-led. We’ll give you the same materials we’re using for in-person church school, as well as weekly emails with support like background information and questions to ask, and periodic paper mailings for your child. If in-person church attendance doesn’t work for your family this fall, or if your family wants to sit together through the entire church service, this is a great option!

REGISTER HERE

Both options will use a curriculum called Storymakers, which creatively retells stories from the Old and New Testaments through “zines.” Zines are a combination guide, magazine, and workbook. Every child -- whether at home or at church, including visitors receives their own beautifully illustrated zine for each unit. Regardless of which form of formation you choose, each week our children are invited to deepen their faith by immersing themselves in a story from the Bible, asking questions about what it means to them, and being creative.

Please register your children so we can create the right environments and get material into everyone’s hands. Please email Bryn with any questions, concerns, comments--really! We’re trying something all new again this year, and our on-going conversations will help us all to grow the best, safest, and more rewarding programs for our children.

Communion Enrichment Program for Children in Second through Fourth Grade

This year Parish of the Epiphany will be offering a Communion Enrichment class designed to help children better understand the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. This class will be for children in grades 2-4, including those who began the program in 2020 shortly before the shut-down. If you're interested in learning more or having your child participate, please contact Bryn Hollenbeck

3Crowns.org

A Welcoming Episcopal Community

70 Church Street, Winchester, MA  01890
781-729-1922
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