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Slow Down for Advent

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A Time to Slow Down

Advent is the season of four Sundays before Christmas, a time of intentional preparation, slowing down occasionally to make room in our hearts for the coming of Christ. Throughout Advent, we encourage you to slow down and savor the beauty of this season of reflection and anticipation. While it may seem counter-cultural to step away from the hustle and bustle of Christmas, we invite you to turn to God through special practices of devotion, prayer, scripture, study, and silence.

Here are some resources to help you slow down for Advent:

Advent Practices Brochure

A Sanctified Art Advent Calendar

Way of Love Advent Calendar

If you have questions about Advent and how you might get involved, please fill out the form below. If the form isn’t displaying correctly, please click here.

December 8, 2019: Annual Parish Meeting and Vestry Election

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Save the date! Come celebrate our blessings of the past year and look ahead to 2020. On December 8, we will have a combined 10 am service during which the Annual Meeting and voting will occur. See the vestry candidate profiles below and please join us in prayerful discernment as we consider who we elect to serve on our Vestry.

Jason Kunkler

I am a lifelong Episcopalian, and have always been active in the church. After moving to Fredericksburg 5 years ago I began attending St. George’s, and after 5 years it is time to get more involved! I currently serve as an usher, reader, and on the stewardship committee. Past roles at other churches have also included serving on vestries and as a warden—as well as chairing a capital campaign. I have served on the board of my childhood church camp in the Diocese of Atlanta, and remain active in the life of the camp.

I have been in small business my entire career and understand that a church functions very much like a small business. I also bring the understanding that a church is unlike a business, in that we must act with our hearts as much as our heads.

Quick Facts about Jason

Worship Service(s) Regularly Attend at St. George’s: I bounce back and forth between 9, 11:15, and 5:30

Year of Confirmation / Reception in Episcopal Church: 1982

Hobbies: Yard work and old house repair

Parishes / Congregations Have Been Member of:

  • St. George’s 2014 to present
  • Emanuel Episcopal Baltimore 2013 to 2014
  • Memorial Episcopal Baltimore 2003 to 2013
  • St Bartholomews Atlanta 1993 to 2003

Recent Places of Work:

  • Knifecenter 2006 to present
  • Chesapeake Knife & Tool 2003 to 2006
  • Matthews Cutlery 1994 to 2003

Recent Community Involvement:

  • Every local history tour that is offered.
  • Every Biography series lecture that I can make.
  • Taking advantage of the hiking and biking trails around Fredericksburg

Where Jason calls home: Wherever I can meet up with my parents and my sister, usually Atlanta or north central Ohio. Also Colorado.

 

Caroline_PritchardCaroline Pritchard

St. George’s has become my home over the past few years, and its people have become my family. I feel called to give back to St. George’s. I feel as though I have good experiences and skills to help me fill this position and give back to the church. I enjoy singing at the 11:15 am, Celtic, and Compline services, as well as volunteering at The Table at St. George’s, serving on the Children’s Formation committee, and playing the violin in the St. George’s Chamber Ensemble.

I am very organized and detail oriented. I have worked in finance both at a bank and I used to do a great deal of budgets when I was an Interior Designer. I am also creative and have leadership skills. I have served on the diaconate at my previous church.

Quick Facts about Caroline

Worship Service(s) Regularly Attend at St. George’s: 11:15 am, Compline

Year of Confirmation / Reception in Episcopal Church: 2015

Hobbies: Sewing/embroidery, cooking, music

Parishes / Congregations Have Been Member of:

  • First Baptist Church, Savannah, GA (1980 to 2015)
  • St. George’s Episcopal (attended since Feb 2014, confirmed in 2015)

Recent Places of Work:

  • Usborn Books and More, Independent Consultant
  • Fairchild Tropical Garden (Miami, FL)
  • Wrightington Rheumatology (Savannag, GA)

Recent Community Involvement:

  • St. George’s Chamber Ensemble
  • Volunteering at The Table (Also doing work behind the scenes)
  • Member of an Early French Renaissance Choir (singing at UMW on December 7)

Where Caroline calls home: St. George’s, Salem College, Savannah, GA

 

 

Josue Rivera-Orellano

The opportunity of serving on St. George’s Vestry can provide me a way to contribute and give continuity to the services that St. George’s provides to our community. I feel blessed to be part of the St. George’s Parish. I have received and witness all the love, support, and spiritual nourishment that St. George’s offers to everyone. I have served with the Youth Formation ministry at St. George’s, leading Rite 13 and Confirmation Classes. Also, I am volunteering with the 2020 Commission as we plan our 300th Anniversary celebrations.

My contributions will be based on my professional experience (Human Resources, Organizational Development, and Administration), sensitiveness on diversity issues, and commitment with St. George’s values. In addition to my experience, my contributions will be centered on integrity, hard work, and my ability to build trust and rapport with others.

Quick Facts about Josue

Worship Service(s) Regularly Attend at St. George’s: 9 am

Year of Confirmation / Reception in Episcopal Church: 2019

Hobbies: Playing Bomba Music and Cross-fit (weight lifting)

Parishes / Congregations Have Been Member of:

  • St Georges 11/2015 to present

Recent Places of Work:

  • Pathways Health and Community Services – Benefits Manager
  • PR Aqueduct and Sewer Authority – Senior HR Deputy Director
  • Municipality of Caguas – HR Deputy Director

Recent Community Involvement:

  • Board of Director – FAHASS (Fredericksburg Area HIV/AIDS Support Services)
  • Member of Semilla Cultural – Non-profit organization with the purpose of developing and cultivating a community that embraces Puerto Rican culture and arts in the Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia region.

Where Josue calls home: Fredericksburg, Virginia and Caguas, Puerto Rico

Stuart Whitford

I feel blessed to be a member of such a wonderful, loving, and giving congregation and would like to help with the work and challenges that our church faces in the coming years. I have hosted Songwriters Showcases at St. George’s to help raise money for Youth in Global Community and for St. George’s Haiti Mission. I have also volunteered at St. George’s Community Dinners. Previously, I was a member of the choir and Youth Fellowship at First United Methodist Church in Bristol, Tennessee.

I am a careful listener and participant in church outreach and worship discussions. I also have a lot of knowledge and experience with software and with music.

Quick Facts about Stuart

Worship Service(s) Regularly Attend at St. George’s: I attend the 9:00 service mostly, but also the 5:30 and 11:15 services.

Year of Confirmation / Reception in Episcopal Church: 2017

Hobbies: Music – playing, singing, and songwriting

Parishes / Congregations Have Been Member of:

  • 1966-67 First Methodist Church, Bristol, TN
  • 1967-68, Haygood Methodist Church, Virginia Beach, Virginia
  • 1979-1983, Covenant Presbyterian Church, Johnson City, TN

Recent Places of Work:

  • Booz Allen Hamilton 2014 to present
  • Naval Ordnance Safety and Security Activity (NOSSA) 2010 to 2014
  • Naval Surface Warfare Center/Dahlgren 2006 to 2010

Recent Community Involvement:

  • Performed at Fredericksburg Porchfest in 2019
  • Performed benefit concerts for Friends of the Rappahannock in 2018 and 2019

Where Stuart calls home: City of Fredericksburg, St. George’s Church, Down Home Pickin’ Parlor in Johnson City, TN

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Feedback Needed – Master Planning Presentation

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The architectural drawings from the Sunday, November 10 master plan presentation with Stephen Koenig are available below along with the Rev. Joe Hensley’s introductory remarks. We welcome your comments and questions which will help us discern our next steps.

To share your thoughts, please fill out the below form. If the form isn’t displaying correctly, please click here.

Thank you!

Existing Parish Building

Proposal A

Proposal B

Learn – November 2019, St. Georgian

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Trellis_Learn The following is Associate Rector Areeta Bridgemohan’s monthly opening message from our weekly e-newsletter the St. Georgian. If you’d like to receive our weekly e-newsletter, sign-up here.

“God comes to us disguised as our life.” – Paula D’Arcy

‘The Way of Love’ is patterned after the monastic rules of life. I like the analogy of a rule of life as a trellis; a structure around which the rest of our lives can grow and take shape. We all have core values and commitments that we orient our lives around, sometimes these are expressed formally as in baptism or wedding vows, and sometimes they function as an internal compass, quietly shaping our decisions and responses.

The vows in the ordination service form a trellis. In preparation for ordination, I spent some time reflecting on the vows I was about to make. One of the promises that excited me the most was: “Will you be diligent in the reading and study of the Holy Scriptures, and in seeking the knowledge of such things as may make you a stronger and more able minister of Christ?” This vow articulated a commitment to a life of intentional learning about God, our sacred story, and all of God’s creation. Implicit in that promise, is the idea that we are not expected to have all the answers and that we are constantly in a process of becoming, of growth and learning, and ultimately transformation.

Learning requires a certain posture: it embraces curiosity and questions, it relies on a desire and willingness to receive, and an openness to wonder. These are helpful postures to life in general, which is perhaps our greatest teacher. My spiritual director often refers to life experiences as “earth school”. Experiences that teach us something new about ourselves, something new about God, that expand our capacity for love and healing, providing us with opportunities to grow into the full stature of Christ. I have taken earth school classes in self-acceptance, embracing solitude, to let go of control and trust God… I’ve come to suspect that the curriculum is as long as my life! Where is learning in the trellis of your faith? What class in earth school are you taking right now? How might this faith community support your learning?

May our faith journeys never cease to be a source of learning and growth.

 

Yours in Christ,

Areeta+

St. George Chamber Orchestra to Perform Free Concert

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St. George’s Episcopal Church will host The St. George Chamber Orchestra on Sunday, November 17 at 3:00 pm as part of the church’s Chamber Concert Series. Selections for the concert include works by Russell Holsapple, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and J. S. Bach.

James Kazik, staff arranger at one of the premiere Washington D.C. service bands since 2001, will conduct the Chamber Orchestra. Kazik is a renowned composer and orchestrator, staff writer for Hal Leonard Corp, and the current composer-in-residence for the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic in Washington D.C.

Located at 905 Princess Anne Street in historic downtown Fredericksburg, Virginia, St. George’s Episcopal Church offers a wide range of concerts throughout the year featuring local and out of town musicians. The nave’s lush acoustics provide the perfect backdrop for “beautiful music in a beautiful space”.

The concert is free with donations accepted at the door. For more information, contact (540) 373-4133 or send an email. To learn more about St. George’s concert series, visit www.stgeorgesepiscopal.net/music/concerts.