LOOKING AHEAD AT EMMANUEL—YOUR INPUT IS INVALUABLE

Congregational Survey 1

Seminarian Update 2

Lenten Resources and

Holy Week

3

Adult Spiritual

Formation

4

Youth Ministry Update 5

Inreach and Outreach 6

Parish and Diocese

News

7

Emmanuel Preschool 8

Inside this issue:

LOOKING AHEAD AT EMMANUEL—YOUR INPUT IS INVALUABLE

As we enter the final year of our 5-year strategic plan, it is time to begin planning for the next 5 years. What do we want Emmanuel to look like in 2027? What are we doing well and where do we need to continue to improve? Your input can help us find the answers to these very important questions.

To prepare us for developing our next strategic plan, we have contracted once again with the organization whose survey we used in 2010 and 2015. The survey itself is a little different, with the U.S. Congregational Vitality Survey replacing the former version. The survey has less questions, can be completed online, or on your phone, and results will be analyzed and compared to previous surveys to establish how we are doing and identify important trends over time. However, the analysis is only as good as the data received so please help us write the future of Emmanuel.

It has been almost a year since we have gathered together in person and may be a challenging time to think ahead. Hopefully, as you answer these questions, you can envision Emmanuel in a non-COVID environment and how it meets your needs in normal times. To provide your anonymous input and complete the survey online, click here or on the link in the Thursday e-news. It should not take more than about 15 minutes of your time. If you prefer to complete the survey in paper form, please email the office or call us at 703-683-0798 and we will mail one to you.

As you complete the survey please don’t forget to use the text/comment box at the end to provide feedback on any specific ministries or areas (i.e., youth ministry, spiritual formation, outreach, music, etc.). This is crucial information for developing where we go from here.

Thank you in advance for taking the time to add your signature to the next 5-year strategic plan and shaping the future of Emmanuel.

Chuck and the Vestry

March 2021

High Notes Submissions

Please submit your articles for

the April High Notes to Janie

by Friday, March 26.

Page 2 HIGH NOTES

Our 10 -Year Vision

for Emmanuel

Emmanuel Episcopal Church is a

thriving, engaged and creative parish

working to educate and meet the needs

of children, youth and adults; live and

demonstrate our Christian values; and

create a more humane and just world

through community service and

outreach.

Diocesan Bishops

The Rt. Rev. Susan Goff

The Rt. Rev. Jennifer Brooke-Davidson

The Rt. Rev. Porter Taylor

Emmanuel Church Staff

Rector

The Rev. Charles C. McCoart, Jr.

Associate for Worship

The Rev. Joan L. Peacock

Seminarians

Kevin Newell

Winnie Smith

Director of Youth Ministry

Katherine Conner

Organist/Choir Director

Ryan Fitch

Parish Administrator

Janie Piemonte

Administrative Assistant

Karen O’Hern

Sexton

Carlos Guzman

Nursery Caregivers

Lillian Urrea

Natalie De Leon Santizo

Jeni Rivera

Sunday Services

Online

Church Office Hours

Monday—Friday

1:00 pm —4:00 pm

Emmanuel Episcopal Church

1608 Russell Road

Alexandria, VA 22301

Seminarian Update

Since we are not connecting with the seminarians in person each week, we thought you might like to know what’s new in their world.

From Kevin:

With the General Ordination Exams behind me and my final semester at VTS in progress, my search for a call has begun. My canonical status has officially shifted to the Diocese of Virginia, meaning I’m “one of you” now. One year of formation within the diocese begins now, with my ordination projected to occur (God willing and the people consenting!) March of 2022. In the meantime, I am to find a position at a church as a lay associate (or some similar post) and grow in hands-on ministry. My husband and I are very excited to see what comes next for us, and we will keep you all posted.

My time at Emmanuel Episcopal Church has been marked by such warmth, love, and formation. Thank you all for your support and welcome, and for helping me to grow and learn in the context of such a great group of folks. I hope to be able to worship with you all in person at least one more time before the end of my tenure here—fingers crossed!

From Winnie:

Hello, Emmanuel family! I can't believe I have been worshipping with you all regularly for almost six months (well, minus a long break over Christmas and January). I continue to be amazed by the warmth and inviting nature of Emmanuel and your energy around making this a really strong community, whether in the church, in the chapel garden at VTS, or on Zoom!

I was fortunate to spend the month of January at St. Stephen's Episcopal Cathedral in Harrisburg, PA. I spent about half of my time with the Dean of the Cathedral, working on the Annual Report and stewardship and helping in worship. The other half of my time was spent shadowing the Chaplain of St. Stephen's School, a pre-K through 7th grade school connected to the Cathedral. I taught religion classes, led morning chapel, and met about a hundred new friends in the short time I was there. I have long sensed a call to school chaplaincy, and this absolutely confirmed that. I am definitely drawn to parish ministry, but I am also very excited to explore the possibility of work in a high school setting after seminary.

For now, when I'm not furiously reading (okay, occasionally skimming) for class or running to a student government meeting, I love to exercise, cook, watch trashy reality TV, and stare at pictures of my family's two standard poodles, Bea and Bernie, or at my niece, Salka, born last August.

Of course, this is a strange time to be getting to know you all, but as the weather warms up, please reach out if you'd like to go for a walk or grab a cup of coffee at Misha's or Swing's!

2021 Vestry

Tom Craig (Senior Warden) Meredith Wade

(Junior Warden, Youth Education)

Barbara Huffman (Fundraising) Liz Kane

(Service) Scott Keplinger (Building & Grounds)

Emily McNaughton (Stewardship) John Read

(Strategic Plan) Doris Rudolph (Fellowship)

Nathan Turner (Communication)

Chris Yianilos (Preschool)

Gene Lange (Treasurer)

Sarah Kolo (Clerk)

Contacts for Ministry Teams

Worship

Team Coordinator: Nancy Dupree

Acolytes: Kelly and Joe Dresen

Altar Guild: Meredith Wade

Counters: Janie Piemonte

Guitar Circle: Stewart Bartley

Music & Choirs: Ryan Fitch

Readers (8:00): Suji Kelly

Readers and Chalice (10:30): Jerry Boykin

Ushers: Bob Callahan

Education

Team Coordinators: Joani Peacock

Adult Spiritual Formation: Beth Boland

Sunday School: Katherine Conner

God & Donuts: Chris Piemonte

Preschool: Nicole Crochet

Service

Team Coordinator: Sean Ellis

ALIVE!: Liz Kane

Bag Lunch Program: Karen Coda

Carpenter’s Shelter Breakfast: Jennifer Jones

Carpenter’s Shelter Dinner: Bonnie Lilley

Community Lodgings: Barbara Harslem

Giving Tree: Sylvie Harris

Haiti: Sean Ellis

Haitian Coffee Sales: Kim Scott

Meals on Wheels: Mary Tinsley

Refugee Family: Kim Scott

Yard Sale: Gretchen Walzl

Fellowship

Team Coordinator: TBD

Breakfast with St. Nick: Courtney Keplinger

Coffee Hour Baristas: Ann Wheaton

Craft & Sewing Group: Gudrun Callahan

Prime Time Zoomers: Meredith Wade

Shrine Mont Parish Retreat: Joe Scott

Twenties & Thirties (TnT): Lauren Maxey

Stewardship

Team Coordinator: Adam Schildge

Annual Giving: Jane Kolson, Dawnita Altieri

Building and Grounds: Stewart Bartley

Finance: Aaron Flaaen

Foundation: Jane Kolson

Resources for Lent and Holy Week Services

Emmanuel’s worship life remains vibrant as we continue to flex, adapt and reinvent the liturgy in the midst of pandemic. Throughout this holy season, Emmanuel at Home continues along with links to Sunday Live Morning Prayer and coffee hour, both on Zoom. Here’s what’s coming up!

Simplify: Spiritual Songs for Lent. Simplify: Spiritual Songs for Lent is a homegrown musical devotional for this purple

and penitential season. It draws on the many musical traditions of the American church and features American artists. This Lenten soundtrack has links to Shaker tunes, gospel, folk & bluegrass, along with playlists on both Spotify and YouTube.

Contemplation & Contrition. Our Lenten Sunday liturgy begins with the Great Commandment and includes an abbreviated and adapted form of The Great Litany. The Great Litany was the first of the 16th century translations of the liturgy of the Mass from Latin into English., and was sung in procession in the streets during the season of Lent. Included in the first English prayer book of 1549, it has been part of every Book of Common Prayer hence, including the American 1979 BCP we use today.

Palm Sunday, March 28. Palms in a pandemic? Well, the parish liturgist suggests a few creative substitutes: Cut spring branches from a budding bush or tree. Cut and color some “palms” out of construction paper. The Passion according to Mark will be read in parts.

Maundy Thursday, April 1: Living Last Supper. An online drama with twelve players interwoven with beautiful music. Inspired by Leonardo De Vinci’s painting, it premieres live on Zoom at 5:00 PM.

Good Friday, April 2: Taize Way of the Cross. The fourteen traditional stations each illustrated with a variety of art and interlaced with chant from Taize, 5:00 PM on Zoom.

Easter Sunday, April 4: We will celebrate The Feast of the Resurrection with great fanfare, music & flowers. We continue to watch the Bishop’s Guidance on regathering for what is permissible.

Questions? Reach out to Joani via email. She will be happy to hear from you!

Links for Sunday and Holy Week services will be forthcoming in the Thursday weekly e-news.

Stay tuned!

Page 4 HIGH NOTES

Paperbacks, Popcorn & Privilege: A Soul-Searching Discussion Group

March 7, 7:30 PM, Harriet, the Movie

This 2019 film follows the heroic abolitionist Harriet Tubman, who escaped slavery and liberated hundreds of enslaved persons via the Underground Railroad. The film is available to watch on your own at Amazon Prime. Click here to join the conversation.

April 11, 7:30 PM, His Truth is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope, Jon Meacham.

“A triumphant biography of a Civil Rights hero that will make you weep and then fill you with hope.” Click here to join this discussion.

Lenten Reflection Series, March 14, 7:30 PM

Join Seminarian Winnie Smith on March 14 for the last installment of her three-session Lenten book study on Jon Meacham's The Hope of Glory: Reflections on the Last Words of Jesus from the Cross. Meacham - a historian and lifelong Episcopalian - writes about the significance in the Christian tradition of the last words spoken by Jesus and invites us to think about what they mean to us as individuals today. There is no need to have attended the first two sessions to join the third. During the March session, we will be discussing the book's Sixth and Seventh Word and the Epilogue.

Reading the book will enhance discussion, but all are welcome regardless of whether you have read or not! We are hoping for a meaningful, fruitful discussion about anything and everything people want to bring to the table.

Click here to join the Zoom at 7:30 PM. Password: 755688. Contact Winnie Smith with any questions.

Lenten Playlist Discussion

Please join Nan DeRenzi on March 28 at 7:30 PM for a discussion about our Lenten Spotify playlist, Simplify: Spiritual Songs for Lent. Between now and then, play one song at a time, listen to several songs on a walk, or binge them like Netflix! You’re sure to find old favorites and hear something new in this compilation of musical traditions of the American church -- Shaker, early American, folk, Bluegrass, and Gospel. Let’s chat about it together March 28.

Youth Ministry Update PreK—Grade 5

Lent in a Box was delivered to 46 of our youth the week of February 8. Craft activities, coloring sheets, Lenten

activities and parent resources all combined to help our Pre-K through 5th grade students learn more about the

40 days of Lent. Thank you to all the volunteers who helped assemble and deliver the boxes. We could not have

done it without you!

Thank you to Audrey Smith who shared these photos of her children Quinten and Lily opening week 1. Lily was

excited to color the Baptism coloring sheet!

St. Patrick’s Day Zoom Game Night

Join Katherine Conner once again for another fun night of Zoom games and song

on Sunday, March 14 at 4:00 PM. Link will be sent in the weekly e-news.

Grade 6—8 Connection

How do we connect when everyone is “Zoomed Out”? We are going old school with this age group and

connecting via email once a week during Lent. Each week’s communication will come from a different author

offering a variety of topics, some music, and just a brief hello to say “we are thinking of you”. We can’t wait until

we can gather in person with these awesome kids.

God and Donuts

Working the pancake supper was yet another thing missed this year but again we found a way to adapt. God &

Donuts assembled pancake kits for some of our parishioners and delivered them in a Mardi Gras hat to be

enjoyed during the virtual pancake supper. It was great to see the hats and beads being worn during the fun

Zoom event, filled with pancakes and Lenten trivia. Thanks to Chris and Rachel Piemonte and Wellesley Snyder

for assembly and delivery, and to Joani for researching and providing some fascinating trivia.

Daylight savings time begins at 2:00 AM on March 13, 2021. Don’t forget

to change your clocks!

Page 6 HIGH NOTES

Making Connections Inside and Outside Emmanuel

Inreach: Our committee has continued to reach out to those on the prayer list and also to

welcome all of the new babies born in the past year. Here is what one parent wrote:

“ Thank you so much for the personalized baby block. It ‘s on the bookshelf in the baby’s

room. This special gift reminds me of how blessed we are to be part of a loving church

community”. Thank you to Nancy Dupree and her committee for keeping us connected.

Outreach: Many of our ministries continue to serve in whatever way we are able. Thank you to the bagged lunch,

and Carpenter’s Shelter volunteers who continue to serve those in need.

Refugee Ministry: As many of you know, our parish has graciously supported Jerry and Salima Latifi and their children these past two years as they started anew in Alexandria. They are certainly in a better place thanks to your help! Most recently, Ms. Melanie Gray, Director of Lazarus Ministries, has suggested that our church family consider helping a new family in need.

Ms. Benard Kwi, a lovely and resilient Cameroonian single mother came to the U.S. two years on an immigrant visa with the U.S. Green Card Lottery. She speaks fluent English and has 2 children - daughter, Solidard, age 6 and son, Mungai, age 3. Benard is a certified nurse assistant (CNA) and works at a local nursing home. This past January, they finally moved into their first apartment along with a roommate to help with her $1,800/month rent. However, she is struggling financially on her own due to the high cost of rent and also the $800/month in daycare for her two children on one income of $1,600 per month. Nonetheless, Benard is staying positive and thanks you for your generous donations from our 12 Days of Christmas collection! She and her children are starting to feel the caring community around her.

So, what can we continue to do on our end? The Kwi family would greatly appreciate preschool (age 4-5) and elementary (grade 1-2) age books, coloring paper, crayons, pencils, a girl’s backpack, elementary Spanish books for Solidard who is in a Dual Language Program in ACPS, and children’s clothing (boy size age 4-5, shoe 12, clothing and girl size age 6-7, shoe 2). And stay tuned! In the near future, we would like to introduce Benard to our church community via Zoom during a Coffee Hour. And as a fundraiser to help support her family, Benard would like to offer a Cooking Class via Zoom. Let’s call it Cooking with Ms. Kwi! where kids and parents can learn how to cook one of her favorite culinary dishes from Cameroon and ask her questions about her country.

We look forward to sharing more about the Kwi family’s progress and hope you can share this request of giving with your friends, family, and neighbors. Donations can be dropped off at Kim’s home: 970 N. Paxton St. 22304. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions about donations! Thank you!

Does this make you want to be involved in the awesome things happening but aren’t sure how?

The outreach virtual ministry fair,

March 28, 11:30 AM will answer this ques-

tion and more. We look forward to seeing

you there!

Parish News

Congratulations all around!

Jason and Sarah Scofi on the newest addition to the family, George Burwell Scofi, born on February 19, 2021.

Leo Cruz on his recent appointment as Special Assistant to the Undersecretary of the Navy.

Barbara Harslem and George Tuttle and Jeanie and Gene Lange who welcomed new grandchildren recently.

Anne Seville and Rob Flax who welcomed Ryan Yates Flax on November 6, 2020.

News from the Diocese

In our continually evolving circumstances, we’ve all been anxious to have the most current status

updates, especially the status of worship protocols and regathering for public worship. As you know,

many of our policies are guided by the Office of the Bishop of the Diocese of Virginia.

And while we will always communicate the latest information from the Bishop’s office, you are eligible

to get these updates directly from the Bishop’s office by subscribing to the diocesan e-news service.

Last year, the Diocese made the difficult decision to discontinue the printing of the quarterly magazine,

the Virginia Episcopalian. In a time of decreasing budgets, a costly magazine was simply not a luxury

that our church or the Diocese could afford to continue.

The good news is that the monthly diocesan newsletter, the eCommunique, will now be incorporating

some of the great storytelling and features you enjoyed in the Virginia Episcopalian, but without the lag

time and hefty price tag of a traditional print publication. By subscribing to the diocesan news service,

you will receive the monthly eCommunique plus announcements from your Bishops as they happen.

Rest assured that the diocesan offices will never share your information with any other parties. So be

sure you are in the know by subscribing today.

Be sure to read the weekly e-news sent to your inbox every Thursday for the latest information on events and

happenings at Emmanuel. Here is a recap of upcoming events mentioned in this newsletter:

March 7—Paperbacks and Privilege—page 4

March 14—Lenten Reflection Series—page 4, Youth Zoom game night, page 5

March 28—Ministry Fair—page 6, Lenten Playlist Discussion—page 4

April 1—Maundy Thursday Living Last Supper—page 3

April 2—Taize Way of the Cross—page 3

April 4—Easter Sunday—page 3

Page 8 HIGH NOTES

Preschool Board of Directors

Pam Resnick (Chair)

Kate Sosnoff (Treasurer)

Kate Bartholomay (Secretary)

Chris Yianolis (Vestry Liaison)

Becca Brocato (Teacher Representative)

Sara Stekloff (Resource Parent)

Ashley Berang (Resource Parent)

Marissa Simpson (Parishioner)

Chuck McCoart (Ex Officio)

Nicole Crochet (Ex Officio)

Janie Piemonte (Ex Officio),

Finance Manager)

Preschool Staff Director

Nicole Crochet

Teachers

Rebecca Brocato

Pat Connelly

Mary Beth Conry

Meghan Cote

Marilu Escalante

Christy Finn

Kelly Gable

Paige Gilgan

Mollee Hansen

Nancy Palmer

Kate Schneider

Cappie Stiers

School Hours

Monday—Friday

9:00 AM—12:30 PM

Emmanuel Episcopal Preschool

1608 Russell Road

Alexandria, VA 22301

703-683-0303 (phone)

703-683-6158 (fax)

preschooladminista-

[email protected]

www.emmanuelonhigh.org

Happenings at Emmanuel Preschool

The preschool is currently in the process of accepting applications for next year. New families are enquiring and we are safely providing tours on Friday afternoons. Priority registration has ended and new registrations are being accepted.

EPS Fund

Thanks to the extreme generosity of our families, staff and church community, our annual EPS Fund exceeded our goal. We had 100% participation by current families and staff and are very grateful to all. The EPS Fund donations are used to purchase permanent items for use by our students and this year we are adding some items to enhance our outdoor time since we are spending so much more time outdoors. In addition, we

have already purchased some Radio Flyer Cyclones that help with both bilateral and hand-eye coordination. Doesn’t this look fun?

In celebration of our successful fundraising, the school celebrated EPS spirit days last week complete with decora-tions and a new outfit for our robot sentry.

Vaccines

We are grateful that the Alexandria Health Department included childcare providers and preschool staff in the 1B group and all staff and teachers have had the opportunity to be fully vaccinated. Our safety protocols have continued to work well and so far we have avoided any major outbreak of the virus in the school. Fingers crossed that will continue,.

Snow Days

We continue to follow ACPS closing for the preschool. In February we lost several days due to snow and ice. We are looking forward to spring and a consistent schedule.