CHILDREN & FAMILY MINISTRIES

A Message from Dean Thomason Dear friends, It is my great delight to announce that Wendy Claire Barrie has accepted the call to serve as Canon for Intergenerational Ministries at Saint Mark’s Cathedral in Seattle. She will begin her work November 1, 2021. Her visionary leadership and vast experience in lifelong spiritual formation and her passion for intergenerational ministry will complement the many gifts our formation team already brings into these areas, and as a lay person herself, she has a keen … Read More

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2021,  2 –5:30 P.M. Let’s hike together! All ages are welcome on this 3 mile roundtrip hike to Twin Falls as we take time to connect, move and pray in nature after church. We’ll meet at the trailhead at 2 p.m. and finish by 5:30 p.m. Bring your water, snacks and appropriate gear – we recommend good hiking shoes, layers, sunscreen and a hat. Register to attend here! Questions? Contact Emily Meeks (emcmeeks@gmail.com).    About Twin Falls: … Read More

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 6-7:30 P.M. We all know that the last year and a half has been hard for everyone, but especially for kids. Now, as the new school year looms, many challenges remain. To mark this milestone, all are welcome to a back-to-school gathering on Friday evening, September 3—to reconnect in person, to have some fun together, and to lift up and honor the amazing kids of our community. Bring a blanket and your own picnic dinner. The cathedral … Read More

WEDENSDAY, JULY 14, 4:30 P.M., via Zoom Join the choristers for a Choir Camp Evensong over Zoom! The Saint Mark’s Choir School’s Quarantine Quire Camp for senior choristers is happening July 11–14! On Wednesday, July 14, at 4:30 p.m., the participants will be leading a Zoom Evensong service. These talented young people will lead our prayer as officiants and cantors. Join using this Zoom link.

SUNDAY, JULY 18, 3:30–5 P.M. Grab your bikes, rollerblades, or walking shoes and do the 2.7-mile loop around Greenlake with other cathedral families. Parents must accompany their children or have a designated adult chaperone. Social distancing will be observed. Parking isn’t awesome on a beautiful summer Sunday but in addition to the on-site parking lot, free Sunday street parking in available in the area.   3:30 P.M. Gather at the outdoor stage area, east side of the Greenlake Community Center. Address: 7201 … Read More

SENIOR CHORISTER CAMP REGISTER: Senior Chorister Camp registration here. AGES: rising 3rd grade–8th grade CAMP DATES: July 11-14, 2021 Sunday, July 11, 3–4:30 p.m.: Camp kickoff (masked/distanced at the cathedral) Monday, July 12–Wednesday, July 14, 10–11:40 a.m. daily: Camp via Zoom Wednesday, July 14, 4:30 p.m.: Final Zoom Choral Evensong TUITION: No tuition fees will be charged for camp 2021.   SCHOLA HIGH SCHOOL CAMP REGISTER: Schola Camp registration here. AGES: rising 9th-12th grade, and younger newly changed-voice tenors/basses CAMP DATES: August 2-6, 2021 7–8:30 p.m. … Read More

Sign up today! Calling all families with elementary school children! Saint Mark’s faith formation leaders are preparing packets for you to observe Holy Week at home while staying connected to the broader community. We’ll drop off your packet between April 25 and 27, or will mail it to you if you are at a longer distance. We want to be sure to include all families with younger children—please send a note to Canon Jennifer with your name, address, and names of children at jkdaugherty@saintmarks.org. We’ll … Read More

WEDNESDAYS IN LENT, BEGINNING FEBRUARY 24, 4:30 P.M., via Zoom During the season of Lent, the choristers of the Choir School will host a weekly Evensong service over Zoom on Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. All are welcome! Take a break in your week to be led in prayer by the voices of our cathedral choristers. (Daily Evening Prayer continues at 6:30 p.m. as usual.) Join using this Zoom link. Although these services are led by the choristers of the choir … Read More

What Lenten prayers are on your heart? We may be distanced from each other in these times, but we can share our prayers, a piece of ourselves, in community. All in the Saint Mark’s cathedral community are invited to contribute to a display of prayer banners around the labyrinth—a tangible and tactile expression of our prayers, both personal and communal. UPDATE: On Maundy Thursday all the banners will be gathered together, collectively blessed at the evening liturgy, and offered up … Read More

SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 10:30 A.M., via Zoom Join your Dean Steve, Canon Jennifer and Canon Nancy on Saturday, March 6 from 10:30–11:30 am on Zoom as we make pretzels together and learn why they are a Lenten tradition. Download the recipe here—you won’t need many ingredients, just flour, yeast, sugar, salt, and an egg! Join using this Zoom link. Contact Canon Jennifer at jkdaugherty@saintmarks.org for the Zoom link and for more information.

The season of Lent has provided a certain rhythm to the lives of Christians for twenty centuries now. Through thick and thin, Lent is a steadfast part of the journey for people of all ages. Of course, this year will be different, but there is also an opportunity to return to our roots in the early Christian community, before church buildings became normative, and the home was the principal place for gathering and growing in faith. Here are some resources … Read More

These coloring pages are based on passages from the Psalms.

The following message was included in the February 2021 edition of Be Present at Our Table, the monthly newsletter of Children and Family Ministries at Saint Mark’s.  Dear families, In the past year, the familiar heavy doors pictured above have not been swung open by little hands or harried parents very often. Prior to the pandemic, they were the physical threshold we passed through into the expansive and sacred space where we worship together, and the signal to our bodies … Read More

During Black History Month, check out the resources and materials made available at The Conscious Kid, an education, research, and policy organization that promotes healthy racial identity development in youth. Here are some quick tips from them: Name and take action against white supremacy with kids as early and as often as possible. Support racial identity as part of healthy child development. It is important to name whiteness, and for white people to identify as “white” in ways that acknowledge … Read More

This year, we will be celebrating the birth of Jesus together from home!  Your family may participate in one of the Cathedral services together through a computer or TV, following along with the service leaflet, or you might choose to light candles, sing and pray and read scriptures together on your own. You might even choose to act out the story of the Nativity! It doesn’t matter how you choose to celebrate Christ this year on Christmas Eve. What matters … Read More

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20, 7 P.M., via YouTube live premiere; Community Zoom afterparty to follow. Missing the Christmas Pageant this year? The delight of little angels, the sweet sounds of children’s voices, Magi processions, and three choirs gathered? Want to sing your carols as part of the experience? Pageants are an ancient way of telling the sacred story—a way that nourishes us deeply. Join Dean Thomason and others in the cathedral community as we experience a prayerful telling of the Nativity … Read More

This simple form of evening worship is intended to be used during the lighting of the Advent wreath or other table candles at home from November 29 to December 24. It can be used at the daily evening meal, or another time. The entire form will take no more than five minutes. The beauty is in the simplicity and repetition for people of all ages. Repeating these words together centers them in our heads and hearts, and draws us into … Read More

UPDATE!  The generosity of Saint Mark’s parishioners to the 2020 Alternative Giving opportunity was overwhelming. The cathedral ended up sending more gift cards to Casa Latina and Lowell Elementary than they asked for! For Lowell Elementary and Casa Latina, you gave $14,700—for a total of 588 gift cards, and that does NOT include gifts to Mary’s Place (which collected donations directly). Know that our friends at Casa Latina and Lowell were so heartened—responding a resounding “WOW” and “That’s incredible!” THANK … Read More

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 10–11:30 A.M. (mini-pilgrimage), 12 P.M. (prayer service) Watch video of the concluding prayer service: Service Leaflet As the season changes and the weather becomes colder, Saint Mark’s offers an opportunity to remember and be of service to those in our community who lack safe and secure shelter. Participants will create small care packages, known as “Manna Bags,” containing items that people experiencing homelessness themselves have said are most useful to them. The act of assembling these bags … Read More

UPDATE: The video had its premiere at the conclusion of the “O” Antiphons liturgy, and watching it was a meaningful and moving experience for many. Huge thanks to everyone who participated, including community members from across the country and around the world! The completed video can be seen below, or with the other recent offerings on the Virtual Choir Video Collection page. You—yes, YOU—are invited to be part of a video offering of “O come, O come, Emmanuel,” the closing … Read More

The Wisdom of Children is an audio project recorded in June, 2020, featuring the voices of the children of the Saint Mark’s Cathedral community. Listen now using the embedded player below, or read on for other ways to listen. LISTEN NOW: A MESSAGE FROM DEAN THOMASON Dear friends, Several weeks ago, in the throes of feeling the acute loss of human interaction, it washed over me how much I missed hearing the voices of children in my life—the murmurs of … Read More

SUNDAY, JUNE 14, at 4 P.M., via Zoom So much has changed so quickly! As parents and caregivers, we are continually adapting to these unusual times. Many of us report that juggling competing responsibilities and dealing with ongoing change is trying and overwhelming. It can also reveal a capacity for resilience we didn’t know we had. Join The Rev. Canon Cristi Chapman and fellow parents for connection and reflection each month. To receive the link, contact the Rev. Canon Nancy … Read More

Monday, June 1. Special service of Evening Prayer: 6:30 p.m., via Zoom Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has joined with over one hundred other faith leaders—from Christian, Jewish and Muslim traditions representing major denominations, national faith-based organizations, local congregations, and millions of people of faith across the country—in calling for a National Day of Mourning and Lament to grieve and honor the over 100,000 people in the U.S. who have now died from COVID-19. This call is being supported by the U.S. … Read More

The Feast of Pentecost is upon us! On May 31, the Church observes the Feast of Pentecost. It is a great feast, a grand day, and one full of joy and anticipation!  While social distancing may change the look of some of our celebrations, nothing can stop the Holy Spirit from transforming our lives and the life of the Church. This year, there are lots of ways to catch that Pentecost Spirit at Saint Mark’s! Read on for some suggestions… … Read More

Spend some time with The Rev. Canon Cristi Chapman and The Rev. Earl Grout, and hear how Earl approaches the reading of the Gospel, the stories of the Bible, and the way we tell our stories as people of faith! Earl also shares a few of his favorite Bible stories. What are your favorite bible stories?  Post in the comments below.

A Webinar with Shelley Mackaman, PhD, and Wayne Duncan, PhD SUNDAY, MAY 24, 2020, 3 P.M., via Zoom  Documents for this event: List of Resources (pdf) Complete Powerpoint presentation (pdf) A complete video of the webinar is available below: Do you find yourself fretting or anxious about reopening? Are your children stressed with the challenges of virtual school? Are you struggling to balance all the aspects of life now converging in your home life? We are all facing new pressures … Read More

A few days ago, I saw a t-shirt with the words DO LESS. It didn’t have anything else written on it so I’m not sure how to execute that plan but it was an intriguing idea. I’m clear I cannot do more but I’m not sure doing less is an option either. With that conundrum in mind, I’m offering a few ways to weave a little Godly Play into our current quarantined lives. Many of our stories tell us God … Read More

Earlier this week, the people of Saint Mark’s were invited to create home altars to serve as a focal point for their Holy Week observances. Visit this post for details. Below are some of the photographs that members of the community have sent in to the cathedral or shared in the Facebook Group. Click to enlarge!

The music program at Saint Mark’s Seattle, somewhat famously, involves seven different choirs (Saint Mark’s Singers, Cathedral Choir, Evensong Choir, Compline Choir, Junior Choristers, Senior Choristers, and Schola). During this time when choirs are neither singing for liturgies nor meeting weekly to rehearse, choir members are feeling separation and absence acutely. Canon Kleinschmidt and Choir School Director Rebekah Gilmore made the following video to recreate the warm-ups which begin all choir rehearsals, when singers prepare our voices and our bodies … Read More

Let’s gather virtually and have fun staying connected! This Wednesday, March 25, on our usual Cathedral Commons night, visit the Saint Mark’s Seattle Community Life during the Closure group and post a photo of your dinner table or what you’re eating. Some members of the group tried this last Wednesday, and it was so lovely to see everyone! (A few examples are pictured at below.) This Facebook group is “private”—to join in, just follow the link above, or visit our our regular Facebook … Read More

Yin and Yang. Sinner and Saint. Blessing and Curse. As they say, there are always to sides to a coin. In this time of limbo, I find myself thinking about this daily. What is the take-away from all of this? What are we supposed to be learning? How are we going to make it through? Will this ever this end? All around us, we are experiencing a new normal. Students are not in school, employees are being laid off (including … Read More

After hearing Dean Thomason’s sermon on March 15, 2020, parishioners were invited to reflect on where they had been experiencing sacramental grace in their daily lives during this challenging time.    I snapped a photo (attached) on my walk out of PCC this evening after being greeted by a brass band playing music together in the park. All of the musicians were standing at least 6 feet apart (practicing social distancing) while they played joyful music. Lifted my spirits immediately … Read More

Every Wednesday night the community of Saint Mark’s has been invited to join together for a meal in Bloedel Hall. That meal always begins with the table grace sung by the choristers of the Choir School and all the parishioners who are attending. During this time of isolation, if you would like to begin your Wednesday night meal in the same way, Canon Keinschmidt offers this video > Be present at our table Lord; Be here and everywhere adored. These … Read More

Associate for Spiritual Formation Kelly Moody recently sent the following letter to the participants in Children and Family Ministries at Saint Mark’s. Her reflection is relevant, however, not just to parents of young children, but to all of us, and so we are sharing it here. “Everything has changed.” We say that in Godly Play at the beginning of a new liturgical year, and it seems appropriate in the wake of the news all gatherings over 50 people are prohibited, … Read More

All who feel a connection to the community of Saint Mark’s Seattle (where ever they might be) is invited to join the closed facebook group Saint Mark’s Community Life during the Closure. The purpose of the group is to connect with each other and with the cathedral during this time of isolation, quarantine, and building closure. Check it out! For those who do not use Facebook, content from the group will be posted on the Online Community Life page on … Read More