Volume 113, No.

7 Houston, Texas September 2010

Education is Foundation of
Mission in Belize

Slippery Slide

Camp is Extra Special,

Page 14-15

Miriam Rodriguez (front right), scholarship recipient, and her family.

Miriam graduated from Holy Cross
By Jimmy and Barbara Hemphill in 2009. She completed her first year

M
iriam’s mother needs a miracle. Every morning the first thing she thinks about is what she can sacrifice to at San Pedro High School this year and
help assure that her daughter finishes high school. The second thing she does is pray for a family at Good was third in her class. Her sponsors have
Shepherd, Kingwood – a family that donated the scholarship for Miriam’s first year of high school. already committed to paying tuition for
Miriam and her mother live in San Mateo, one of the poorest parts of Belize, a tiny, poor country between another year of high school.
Mexico and Guatemala on the Caribbean Sea. Her family cannot afford the cost of high school and the government When asked about the value of
See more of does not financially support public education beyond the eight grade. education in Belize, Miriam’s mother
the story at: San Mateo, a community of about 1500 people, is a barrio built over a swamp with no sewer or sanitation said, “I have suffered for not being
system, no roads, no running water or electricity. Most of the families live in homes built from scavenged pieces of educated. Because I am not educated, I
plywood and sheet metal. Most of the 175 families who live here came to work in the booming construction and remain as I am. I am not bad, but always
tourism business on nearby Ambergris Caye. But the cost of living on the island is high, and the typical San Mateo I have work that is hard for me. I have
resident earns the equivalent of $20 a day. to work many hours to have a little bit
Until 2006, there was no primary school for children in San Mateo to attend. In September 2006, starting of money to eat ... many hours to have a
with 60 students, American Episcopal missionaries Vernon and Francis Wilson co-founded Holy Cross Anglican little money.”
Primary School. The school has already become the cornerstone for an ongoing series of miracles. This year, Nancy Schorr, director
www.epicenter.org/youtube Today, Holy Cross has more than 500 students. It has the largest library in the area and a state-of-the-art of Youth Ministries at Good Shepherd,
computer center. Graduates score extremely well on standardized tests and demonstrate amazing results when given Kingwood, raised money for scholarships
the opportunity to attend high school.
See Mission in Belize, page 10

INSIDE
Bishops’ Calendars......................... 27
Bishop’s Column.............................. 2
Calendar of events.......................... 17
Diocesan News.................... 18-24
Parish News.......................... 3-13
Sam Todd’s Column..................26 Mission Funding Goes Green this Fall, Page 16
Episcopal Diocese of Texas
Diocesan Center
1225 Texas Ave.
Houston, TX 77002-3504

Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org 1 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

2 0 11 M i s s i o n f u n d i n g
Opportunities CD
 Seeking God’s Story
W
hen Peter
stands and
addresses
the men and women
gathered in Jerusalem, he
is addressing a crowd of Parthians,
Medes, Elamites, the residents of
Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia,
Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and
Pamphylia, Egypt and many parts of
Libya, Romans, Jews and proselytes,
Cretans and Arabs. It is quite the
collection of people and languages. It is a
diverse collection of stories.
Peter tells them the one story of the family
of God. He tells them the dueteronomistic
story of the family of God, which culminates
not in the resurrection, but the coming of the
Holy Spirit that the entire world may hear
of the Messiah, the Christ. When they heard
this they were cut to the heart, awe came upon
everyone and there were many wonders and signs.
(Acts 2)
Christianity is a story - a particular story.
It is the story of God who is glorified through
creation. When creation falls away from
its ultimate purpose, thanks to the work of
humanity, our sacred story tells us of the Messiah
who comes to reorient and lead us to our eternal
place within the family of God. Our sacred story
leads us to undertake the work of glorifying God
in all things.
The Texas Episcopalian (since 1897) is an official
publication of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas.
Mission: In the name of Jesus Christ, the Texas Episcopalian
seeks to inform the people in the diocese of events and
philosophies which affect the mission and life of the Church.
Publisher: The Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle
Editor: Carol E. Barnwell, cbarnwell@epicenter.org
Layout: LaShane K. Eaglin, leaglin@epicenter.org
The Texas Episcopalian (ISSN# 1074-441X) is
published monthly except July and August for $15 a year
by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas, 1225 Texas Ave.,
Houston, TX 77002-3504. Periodical postage paid at
Houston, Texas. Deadline is the 10th of the month
preceding publication. Articles, editorials and photos
should be submitted to the editor at the above e-mail
address. Photos will not be returned. Address changes
can be made at www.epicenter.org/infochange.
Postmaster: Address changes: THE TEXAS EPISCOPALIAN,
1225 Texas Ave., Houston, TX 77002-3504
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
This story is told and retold through the experience of
people, the diverse spiritual journeys, cultures and languages.
Many different people, more diverse than the first Pentecost
gathering, tell and retell the story of Christ as they have come
to know him and love him and worship him.
In telling the one story of the family of God, the strength
of its truth is that missionaries have found the story alive over
the centuries within the cultures and peoples who do not yet
know Christ. The strength of the family of God, rooted in
the Holy Spirit, comes because for centuries Christians have
engaged in a conversation with their neighbors, listening to
their stories, and seeing (as if for the first time) the story of
Christ alive in the “other.” Christians leave their world of
comfortable symbols and journey to foreign places to discover
and rediscover Christ at work in the world.
We might think of the biblical image of Paul speaking to
the people of Athens about the “unknown God” (Acts 17.22ff).
Paul, a missionary of Christ was able to see in the lives, even
in the local worship of idols, the revelation of Jesus Christ.
After listening and seeing how they believed, he used this as an
opportunity to witness to his own belief and to offer them the
opportunity for a transformed life in Christ.
For the church’s mission to be healthy, it must exist as a
group of people who are dedicated to proclaiming the story of
God in Jesus Christ – people who can listen, see and discover
Christ at work in the world in the lives of others. The mission of
Christ will die if all we do is say there is one way. Get on board!
We must be at work in the world helping people to understand.
In the words of Rascall Flatts, God blesses the broken road that
leads to Christ. Faithful Christians make room for the story
telling and for the listening. Christians make room so that
those who do not yet believe may come to believe that their
lives have been leading them to Christ.
For me, Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. As a
Christian missionary, I have to be willing to listen to people
and to discover how Christ is bringing them along the way,
to the truth, that they might live the life of virtue. Christians
must be willing to touch the lives of others, to listen to their
stories of their journeys and see the revelation of Christ so that
we can retell the ancient story again and again.
Texas Episcopalian to Retire
New Website, Quarterly Magazine, to launch 2011
A new quarterly magazine will replace publication of the
monthly diocesan newspaper, Texas Episcopalian, after December,
2010, said Carol E. Barnwell, editor and communication director
for the Diocese of Texas. The first issue of the as-yet-unnamed
magazine is scheduled to be published in the late spring of 2011.
News and information from the Diocese of Texas will be published
online at www.epicenter.org and through the weekly Out of the
Ordinary (clergy e-news) or the bi-weekly Diolog (e-news) from the
diocese. Additionally, the diocesan website is being redeveloped to
become more interactive and user friendly. The new site will debut
at the next Diocesan Council in February, 2011.
“We have upgraded and increased our electronic
communications over the last year,” Barnwell said. “The new
quarterly magazine will allow us to reallocate our energies to
do even more electronically. This is both environmentally and
economically sound.” Many readers of the Texas Episcopalian have
opted to receive the official diocesan publication online since the
beginning of 2010.
Published since 1845, with a lapse in the late 1800s, the
newspaper (née Texas Churchman) has been published continuously
2 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
As I reflect upon the work
of the Episcopal Church and the
Diocese of Texas this summer,
I relish in the news of churches
who have undertaken mission
trips in their own back yards and
around the world. Engaging,
listening and discovering Christ
in the midst of diverse cultures
and peoples is our work. These
stories beckon to us to renew
our missionary commitment at
home. We must return to our Bishop Andy Doyle
congregations with the news that Christ is alive in the world
about us God is truly at work in and beyond our churches and
all we have to do is step outside to see the manifest opportunities
for transformation. Our missions abroad help form us in the
knowledge that we are to be missionaries locally.
Unfortunately, just as we are sure of our one story of
Christ, we are sure of the one story about the people who
live in the neighborhoods and communities that surround
our churches in the Diocese of Texas. We tell ourselves, they
already go to church, they don’t want to hear from us, they
aren’t like us, they are unbelievers, they are … they are … they
are … As your bishop I would remind you of the missionary
knowledge that they are Christ’s and we are called to minister
to them, reach out to them and to discover Christ already at
work in their lives.
This issue of the Episcopalian is a celebration of the good
work we are doing in Galveston, in Belize, in Honduras, in
Uganda, at Camp Allen and in South Africa. I hope it will
be a reminder that we have the opportunity to change the
world across the street and across the world. Moreover, our
own transformation may lie within the work of listening to the
stories of our neighbors and witnessing God already at work in
their lives.
The Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle
IX Bishop of Texas
for the last 111 years.
“We did not make this significant decision lightly,” Barnwell
said. “The paper has a long and distinguished history and has served
as a mirror for the many congregations across the diocese and
throughout the Church. It has brought us together and helped to
celebrate our lives in ministry.” Costs of mailing and printing, as
well as the move to more electronic forms of news delivery, fueled
the decision.
“Our new publication will be delivered to all members’
homes and its contents will take into account the many responses
we have had to our communication survey (www.epicenter.org) in
order to provide the kind of publication that our members will find
valuable,” she added.
With a move to the magazine format, a new website and
enhanced social media venues through focused blogs, Twitter,
Facebook and additional e-news letters, the Communication Office
hopes to continue to respond to the information needs of a growing
and dynamic diocese. Participate in the communication survey
from a link on the homepage of the website or contact Barnwell at
cbarnwell@epicenter.org with suggestions/ideas.

Thrift Store Is Richly
Layered Ministry
S
t. Christopher’s Thrift Shop has been in business
in northwest Houston for 52 years, run entirely
by volunteers. Funds from the shop provide
outreach grants of nearly $20,000 annually, locally and
internationally. But the Thrift Shop is itself a multifaceted
outreach ministry.
It provides essentials, like household items and
clothing, for low prices, while luxury items are priced
a bit higher–supporting their philosophy of providing
for their neighbors in need while being good stewards of
things people have donated.
Homeless pets and persons receive help when
unsold or unsellable soft goods are donated to Star
of Hope Mission and local animal shelters. Medical
supplies and equipment are donated to the Lighthouse
free clinic in Bacliff. Personal care items go to local
women’s shelters. Eyeglasses are sent on to the Lion’s
Club. And they recycle.
But beyond the clothes and household goods, the
Thrift Shop provides a haven for day workers to get in
out of the heat and mosquitoes and rain, where they are
treated with kindness and respect and welcomed with
smiles. It’s a place where grandmas brag to volunteers
about grandbabies and fledgling performers search for
costumes. Many people come to those working at the
Thrift Shop to ask for prayers. “We pray on the spot and
we offer a prayer list for them to use which is added to
our parish prayer list and given to the DOK so our entire
parish can pray for our customers. Bibles and Christian
books and pamphlets are ‘freebies’ at the front door.
Hugs are freely given,” said Ruth Jarret.
The Thrift Shop literally has generations of
customers who have shopped with them. They come, not
just for the bargains, but for the smiles and conversation.
Volunteers continue to see the working poor, but
these days they also see middle and upper class people
who search for bargains and “great finds” in these less
than rosy economic times.
Each group of volunteers has formed its own small
group, encouraging and supporting one another in their
work and everyday life. “Good and faithful servants all,”
K.C. Miller said.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
PARISH NEWS
“Church Greening” Guide Now Available
T
he Small Groups Ministry
of St. David’s and
Deep Conversion
Communications, both of
Austin, recently announced the
availability of “Greening Church
Culture: A Guide to Adult Christian
Environmental Education and Formation
Curricula.”  Funded by a grant from the Richard S. Reynolds
Foundation, the Guide is intended to empower Christian
education/formation leaders as they work to engage
congregations at the convergence of faith and environmental
sustainability.
“So many church leaders, like me, want to encourage
more green consciousness and action, but with a dizzying
array of curricula options, it’s hard to know where to start,”
said Rebecca Hall, Small Groups Ministry director at St.
David’s. “While we do not at all mean to dismiss other
curricula, we have identified several that are high quality,
well-rounded and useful for a foundational program.”
Guide creators brought together expertise in Christian
education/small group ministry, sustainability consulting,
communications strategy and eco-theology to survey many
offerings of adult, faith-community oriented, eco-education
materials. They chose the five most compelling options,
analyzed strengths and weaknesses, and offered suggestions
for use under different circumstances. In addition, beyond
this discernment of existing curricula, the Guide directs
future curriculum developers to consider innovation in
several crucial, often controversial, content areas.   web-based resources and support from GreenFaith staff. To
“The green-church movement is really growing and
Cathedral Offers Worship and
Formation for Special Needs Children
By Lisa Puccio
R
hythms of Grace is a church experience for all
learning types — a place to dance, draw, wiggle and
rest in God.  It is an ecumenical church service and
playtime for special–needs children and their families.  The
program started so parents could have a place where they
could worship with their children without worrying about
verbal disruptions, distracting movements or gestures.  Bible
stories are presented in an interactive model that uses music
and movement, story cards, tactile and kinesthetic activities
and opportunities for developing communication skills.  contact Lewis at lighthouse@christchurchcathedral.org.
Play-dough, paint, bean bags, tissue paper, pipe cleaners team
with bread and wine, prayers, hymns and Holy Scripture to
make church and God’s love accessible to all.  Sunday, October 3, 2010 at 1:00 p.m.
Rhythms of Grace began in Torrington, CT, in 2003 as
a response to the needs of one family in one parish. Today
there are three parishes in Connecticut that participate in
a service rotation. The Cathedral and St. Mark’s, Houston,
will be the first churches outside of Connecticut to offer
Rhythms of Grace.
“The model and the curriculum have just been
published so we are certain there will be more churches to
follow, because the need is there,” said Martha Lewis, Special
3 Texas Episcopalian • September
moving into the mainstream now, and we hope this Guide
contributes to that momentum,” said Elizabeth Freese,
founder of Deep Conversion. “At the same time, we hope it
serves as a positive challenge to the Church to regenerate and
evolve its prophetic mission.”
View or download the Curricula Guide at http://stdave.
org/site/sitewide/cat/greening_church_culture/ or http://
www.deepconversion.net/greeningchurchculture.html. 
ECO Focus Gets Nat’l Attention
St. David’s, Austin, has been accepted into the GreenFaith
Certification Program, the nation’s first interfaith
environmental certification program for places of worship.
St. David’s is the first place of worship in Texas to join this
prestigious national program.
“In recent years the Church has been hearing anew the
Biblical mandate to care for God’s creation,” said the Rev.
David Boyd, rector of St. David’s. “For a number of years
St. David’s has been actively working to make the care of
creation part of our on-going parish life and to raise the
consciousness of our parish and of others in our community.
Our involvement with GreenFaith will strengthen our efforts
and remind us that we are not alone in responding to God’s
call to care for, sustain and heal the world in which we live.”
Founded in 1992, GreenFaith is an interfaith
environmental coalition which inspires, educates and
mobilizes people of diverse religious backgrounds as
environmental leaders. GreenFaith provides extensive support
to all participating institutions through webinars, a list-serve,
find our more about GreenFaith, see www.greenfaith.org.
Needs Program coordinator at Christ Church Cathedral.
Beginning in November, services will be held at 1:00
p.m. twice a month - at Christ Church Cathedral, 1117
Texas St. on the first Sunday and St. Mark’s, 3816 Bellaire
Blvd., Houston on the third Sunday.
Two Rhythms of Grace information meetings will
be held in October at the host churches. To learn more
about work with special–needs families go to www.
christchurchcathedral.org and click “worship & music” or
Rhythms of Grace Information Meetings
Christ Church Cathedral (Jones Bldg. basement)
1117 Texas Avenue
Houston, Texas 77002
Sunday, October 17, 2010 at 1:00 p.m.
St. Mark’s (Hauser Hall)
3816 Bellaire Blvd.
Houston, Texas 77025
Puccio is director of Family Ministry at the Cathedral
2010

Movie Ministry a Hit at Redeemer
“Hula Girls”
By Cindy A. Adams
E A
astwood’s historic Church of the Redeemer launched its
Movie Seminar in 2002, and since then, the Houston
congregation has shown almost 100 movies on first-Saturday
evenings and New Year’s Eves. The brainchild of a small
committee led by church member Allen Ansevin, Redeemer
Movie Seminar has shown selections from a gamut of
genres and decades of filmmaking and drawn age-diverse
audiences that enthusiastically paid the “price of admission”
– participation in a movie-related discussion after the show.
A core committee of four film afficionados meets
periodically to suggest selections, with recommendations
from the congregation. The route that led one committee
member to suggest the July 2010 selection, Hula Girls,
began at a Starbucks when she found a CD of Hawaiian
music that included a performance by ukelele master Jake
Shimabukuro. She thought her son, who lives in that lush
state, might enjoy it; further investigation of Shimabukuro’s
work led her to a movie he had scored, which she watched
and recommended for Movie Seminar.
The award-winning Hula Girls, made in Japan in 2006,
played to a rapt audience on July 10. They laughed … they
cried … and afterward had a lively discussion that focused on
change and how we humans adapt to it. Hula Girls is based on
the true story of how members of the small Japanese mining
community of Ikawi, Fukushima Prefecture, adapted as their
core economic resource – coal – began to be supplanted by
oil in the mid-1960s. Townspeople at first strongly resisted
a mining executive’s idea to harness the area’s hot springs to
create a Hawaiian Center Spa resort. An arduous, emotional
but ultimately successful process led to employment for
several hundred workers and family members, including
the women who were trained by a professional dancer from
Tokyo to be hula girls.
Ten Lesser-known Films  modest sum of 1000 pounds, the newly arrived vicar,
Discussed In The Redeemer Movie Seminar Series
“Tito and Me”  An hilarious foreign film exposing the very
serious consequences of totalitarian rule in Czechoslovakia
under the dictatorship of Tito.  (An authentic view into the lives
of ordinary people in post-war, Iron Curtain countries.)  “And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself ” Based on the true story
“Romero” -Stunning account of the important events that
transformed Oscar Romero from a mild-mannered, academic
priest to a courageous martyr for the church and the people of El
Salvador. 
“Entertaining Angels” Major incidents from the life of
American saint, Dorothy Day, whose sympathy for the poor
eventually transformed her from an agnostic feminist to a deeply
committed “daughter of the Church.”    “When the Moors Ruled in Europe” An eye-opening account
“Seven Years in Tibet” Based on a true story of
adventure about Heinrich Harrer, an arrogant Austrian
climber sent to the Himalayas to glorify the Nazi regime,
whose personality took on humility after his experiences in
Tibet as a tutor to the young Dalai Lama.
“Song Catcher” Highly original anthropological fiction about
a young woman who makes her way deep into Appalachia to
record folk music she finds is traceable to the English origins of
the residents; a fascinating musical adventure story.  
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
PARISH NEWS
The post-movie discussion
centered on how people react
when facing drastic change.
The timeliness of this theme
was clear as attendees
listed ways Houstonians,
Americans and citizens of
the world are being upended
as the economic and
employment landscapes
shift – including seismic shifts
in the automobile manufacturing, electronics
and newspaper industries, as well as in our churches.
Some individuals are visionaries who accept and take
hold of transitions, while others resist and dig their heels
in. Attendees discussed human nature and its tendency to
resist change, which, ironically, is inherent in the world God
created.
Is one of our guiding principles as Christians to look at
what’s going on around us, especially in the youth culture,
and see how it can be used for Christ? Does the church need
to change? Was the religion many of us grew up with more
about dogma than relationship – is that why we don’t engage
more of the unchurched and more newcomers? These issues
all were discussed and one attendee observed that the Bible
can’t be changed, but that its relevance in our lives certainly
can evolve.
Just 11 people participated in the rich discussion after
Hula Girls, but whether shown for an audience of a few or
a few dozen, Movie Seminar is a great ministry any church
can adopt to promote thought-provoking entertainment,
dialogue and fellowship. Contact Ansevin at akansevin@aol.
com for more information.
“Amen”  Based on a tragic, true story from WWII about a
highly placed German public health doctor who frantically
attempted to inform the West about Nazi death camps.  Wednesday, September 8, St. Thomas’, Wharton
of this idiosyncratic Mexican folk hero who arranged to have a
pioneering East Coast movie studio film him on the battlefield
during the Mexican revolution.  Chapel on the campus of Louisiana State University
“Padre Pio, Miracle Man”  Italian reenactment of significant
events in the extraordinary life of a recently canonized
modern stigmatic widely credited with miraculous events.
of the high cultural level enjoyed by Spain under Muslim rule
that advanced architecture, government, science, medicine and
scholarship while soliciting the cooperation of educated Christians
and Jews. 
“Nothing But the Truth” A fictional story paralleling true events
that led to the incarceration of investigative reporter, Judith Miller,
for refusing to name  her source of information for a politically
sensitive story; a case study on the significance of a free press to the
preservation of democracy.
4 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
Organ Concerts
Benefit
St. Catherine’s, Stuttgart
ndrew Dewar, the Artist–in–Residence at the
American Cathedral of Paris, will perform
a series of benefit organ concerts beginning
Wednesday, September 8, at St. Thomas’, Wharton.
Funds raised will help install and voice an old English
organ in St. Catherine’s, Stuttgart, Germany. Dewar
has won several international organ competitions,
recorded two CDs, and performs organ concerts
internationally on a regular basis. The Rev. Ken
Dimmick is a priest of the Diocese of Texas currently
serving as a diocesan missionary in the Church of
England’s Diocese in Europe, as vicar of St. Catherine’s.
The Wharton concert is a cooperative event
between St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and St. Thomas’
and is the only concert for which tickets will be sold
and includes dinner. Additional concerts in Texas and
Louisiana are without charge but ask for an offering.
Contact St. Thomas’ church office stthomaswharton@
sbcglobal.net for tickets.
A little background: In the Fall of 1944 the Royal
Air Force bombed Stuttgart seeking to neutralize the
Mercedes factories in the suburbs and in the process
destroyed 80 percent of the city, including the
charming little Neo-Gothic Anglican Chapel called
St. Catherine’s and its grand pipe organ.
After the war, the Church of England was busy
rebuilding churches in England, so the ruins were
sold to a German Protestant congregation, called Old
Catholics who rebuilt the church with as many of the
original stones as possible but without a thought to
replacing the organ.
Dewar, an English organ student at the famous
Stuttgart Music Conservatory, in 2006 suggested
buying a used pipe organ from England, and for the
Ken Demmick planted a project for the small flock of
faithful Anglicans.
Schedule
Friday, September 10, Grace Church, St. Francisville, LA
Saturday, September 11 at 2 p.m. at St. Alban’s Episcopal
Sunday, September 12, Episcopal Church of the Nativity,
Greenwood, MS
Tuesday, September 14, Christ Church, Tyler 7 p.m.
Wednesday, September 15, St. Matthias, Shreveport, LA
at 7 p.m.
Thursday, September 16, St. Thomas’, College Station at
7:30 p.m.
Friday, September 17, Christ the King Lutheran Church,
Houston at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, September 19, St. Peter’s, Brenham at 2:30 p.m.

Palmer Launches
Legal Clinic Ministry
P Choir Raises Voices in
almer Memorial, Houston, in
conjunction with the Houston
Volunteer Lawyers Program, Inc.
and the Texas Medical Center, has begun
offering free legal–assistance clinics to
eligible employees of the Texas Medical
Center. The ministry, called “Faith and
Practice,” provides legal advice and referrals
for a variety of issues, including divorce
and custody, consumer issues, bankruptcy
and landlord/tenant disputes. Presently 32
lawyers, who are members of the Palmer
congregation, are active in this ministry.
The Rev. Sam Craven, senior associate
rector at Palmer and a Faith and Practice
leader, explained that the ministry “derives
its name from the responsibility imposed
upon us as Christians to use our God-given
gifts to serve our neighbors and from our
professional obligation as attorneys to serve
the underprivileged in our community.”
With such inspiration, Faith and Practice has
had no trouble finding volunteers.
Adult Class Studies Forgiveness
By Paula Haenche
“…as we forgive those who trespass
against us.”
W
e recite those words every
Sunday; but, for many, saying is
much easier than doing. Some
offenses seem to cut too deep to be forgiven.
The murder of a mother, the betrayal of a
spouse, death by drunk driver, the Amish
school children massacre…9/11.
Sometimes the offenders are remorseful;
sometimes there is retribution and ‘justice.’
More times than not, the offenders do not
appear to suffer for their offenses but instead
move on with their lives, seemingly oblivious
to the suffering they have caused. And when
victims are unable to forgive, their unending
anger and resentment may compound the
aftermath – potentially perpetuating the
cycle of ‘hurt people’ hurt people.
At Holy Comforter, Angleton, the
Coffeehouse Theology group recently
explored The Power of Forgiveness with the
help of a four-week, video-based study. It
examined the responses of people of faith
when faced with unforgivable offenses. It
explained how the inability to forgive can
have long-term emotional consequences
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
PARISH NEWS
“I just started calling those who were
active in the church and within a few
weeks we had more than 20 lawyers signed
up. Interest has been really high. There is
no doubt that a ministry like this meets a
need to provide necessary legal assistance to
people.”
Palmer’s volunteer lawyers assisted 30
clients during the pilot clinic held at Palmer
last spring. An additional clinic was held in
August.
“Whether we counsel and advise on the
spot or provide a referral to a free agency,
Faith and Practice clinics allow us to serve
people who are in many ways the backbone
of the Medical Center. It’s very rewarding
to use our skills as attorneys as part of a
ministry,” said Meredith Levine, a Palmer
volunteer.
If you are interested in the “Faith and
Practice” ministry at Palmer or in how you
can organize a similar ministry in your
own congregation, please contact Craven at
scraven@palmerchurch.org.
and cause serious physical side effects. It
showed how ‘forgiving’ is not a one-time
action, but rather an intentional process that
becomes easier with practice. It provides an
understanding that forgiveness may benefit
the forgiver much more than the forgiven.
Many of the people in the video series
acknowledged that they should forgive – but
just could not bring themselves to do it.
Some expressed a need for the offender to
suffer as they did. Some said they could not
forgive the offender unless he demonstrated
some regret or sorrow at his actions. Others
felt forgiveness let the offender ‘off the hook’
or would somehow represent the betrayal
of their loved one, or be a sign of personal
weakness.
The offenses they had endured
could not be undone; and yet some still
struggled to seek a path to forgiveness.
The Coffeehouse Theology group joined in
their emotional journeys and learned from
their examples. Forgiving does not require
forgetting. Forgiving does not wipe away
the offense. Reaching ‘forgiveness’ is like
going through the stages of mourning; it
requires thoughtful processing. Even when
resolution is not possible, a person still has
Houston Parish
England
T
he Parish Choir of St. Martin’s, Houston, made its first pilgrimage to England to
perform at Westminster Abbey, Canterbury Cathedral, Windsor Castle/St. George’s
Chapel and Wells Cathedral during the first week in August. Former Archbishop
George Carey praised the choir while visiting St. Martin’s in the fall of 2009, which sparked
the tour’s inception and development.
The choir brings a diversity of talent to each performance marked by a special blend
of both professional singers and seasoned volunteers from all walks of life—rodeo cowboys,
accountants, federal judges and even a doctor of aerospace medicine.
Included in their program were songs of praise and devotion, Psalm settings by
Mendelssohn and Distler, anthems focusing on aspects of light and two original hymns by
Houston composer David Ashley White. The Parish Choir is directed by newly-appointed
choirmaster, Kevin Riehle, and accompanied by director of music and organist, David
Henning.
resolution.” Group members encouraged
to find a way to let go.
one another and discussed how important it
The personal testimonies on the video
is to seek emotional support in their struggle.
opened the Holy Comforter group to share
To start the journey toward forgiveness,
their own stories of wrongdoings suffered
there needs to be intention and practice that
and their struggle to forgive. Whether it
inclines us to choose forgiveness. There are
was a brother estranged for decades, a family
many activities like role-playing, writing a
member’s addiction, a sister’s suicide, or a
letter or a ritualistic letting go that may aid in
bitter divorce, everyone in the group could
the journey; but, the Coffeehouse Theology
identify with the pain.
group all agreed on two things: it is better to
“It was a very healing experience to
let go than to hurt forever and the journey to
discuss how forgiveness frees us from old
forgiveness starts with a choice.
hurts,” said the Rev. Carol Petty, rector. “I
think it helped participants surface some Haenchen is a member of Holy Comforter.
issues that they hadn’t realized still needed
5 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

Holy Comforter, Spring
10th Annual BBQ Cook-off
and Craft Fair
Holy Comforter Senior Warden Pam Walters has an executive
sample of the potato salad at last year’s Annual BBQ Cook-off
and Craft Fair.
H oly Comforter, Spring, is making ready for their 10th
Annual BBQ Cook-off and Craft Fair to be held on
Saturday, September 4 from 11a.m.- 4 p.m.
This is a sanctioned International Barbecue Cookers
Association event. Barbecue teams will vie for trophies and
cash for best brisket, best ribs, best chicken, best beans and
showmanship, open division, grand champion and reserve
champion. A silent auction, craft fair, cake auction, and live
music will round out the activities. Last year the church
served 525 meals. Whole and half briskets can be purchased.
Orders for briskets must be in by September 1. All funds
support the ministries and outreach activities of Holy
Comforter in the community.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children 6-12.
Children younger than six years of age eat free. Admission
includes unlimited barbecue and a chance to win a door
prize. Contact Chair Dan Brast for more information at
281.583.713. The church is located at 2322 Spring Cypress
Road, Spring, 77388.
St. John’s, Marlin
Helping Neighbors in Need of a Meal
M
embers of St. John’s, Marlin, have gathered with their
neighbors in an effort to furnish a meal to anyone
who is in need. What started at the church has spread to
include neighbors who come to help cook and serve, said
Pattie Pletzke. “We came together because we felt there was a
need for some folks in Marlin to have a good meal,” she said.
So started “The Disciples Table Group.” Their first meeting
was 12 people, including church members and friends. They
fed 55 people at their first meal, 11 at the next. “Even if we
feed just one person we are accomplishing our goal. We are
helping the people of our community,” Pletzke said.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
PARISH NEWS
Resurrection, Austin
Celebrates Milestone in Ministry
to Preemies
M ore than 20,000 handmade baby items have been
delivered to Austin-area hospitals over the past six
years from parishioners at Resurrection, Austin, through
their ministry, the Heart of Texas Chapter of Threads of
Love. The non-denominational sewing and needlework
outreach ministry meets the needs of premature infants in
neonatal intensive care units with more than 100 chapters
throughout the country. Threads of Love helps to bring
healing and support to parents at a time of uncertainty about
their baby’s health or when they have lost an infant. Members
of the ministry also make burial garments and wrappers for
premature infants.
The Resurrection group has also joined other chapters
to help clothe 130 orphans in Honduras and to make 100
special pillows for children attending Agape Bereavement
Camp.
A fully equipped workroom was dedicated just five
years ago with support from the Diocese of Texas Women’s
and Children’s Outreach Grant and another from the North
Austin Medical Center Auxiliary. Volunteers meet weekly to
crochet and knit blankets, caps and booties and make other
items.
For more information about this outreach go
to ecraustin.org/threads or contact Georgia Tabor at
512.255.6964 or email gtabor8@aol.com.
Good Shepherd, Friendswood
Concession Stand Supports Youth
G ood Shepherd, Friendswood, runs a concession stand
serving beer, soft drinks, margaritas, peanuts and
crackerjacks at Minute Maid Park in downtown Houston
during home stands on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays
throughout the baseball season. An outreach for Good
Shepherd’s youth group, the stand is run entirely by
volunteers, including the clergy. Funds raised support youth
mission trips and other activities. Be sure to stop by and say
hello and support Good Shepherd on Episcopal Night with
the Astros (and at other games). They are located on the
first floor of Minute Maid Park near Section 106, under the
escalators and the Crawford Boxes in left field.
6 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
Calvary, Richmond
Commits for Life
C alvary, Richmond, hosted a quarterly blood drive
through the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center this
summer as part of its “Commit for Life” group program.
Twenty-seven donors earned points through the program,
which can be redeemed for gifts. Contact www.giveblood.
org or call St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital at 832-355-GIVE
(4483) to schedule a mobile blood drive.
Christ Church, Matagorda
Game Warden Vs Mother Gator
O
ver Independence Day Weekend, heavy rainfall around
Matagorda sent a 10-foot-long alligator looking for
higher ground. Game Warden Arthur Lawrence and sheriff’s
deputies drove her from the parking lot of Stanley’s Grocery
Store into the shrubs next to Christ Church, at 3 a.m. on
the morning on July 2, confident she would rest there until
it got light.
Lawrence said he’d dealt with this alligator before,
calling her “very slim and very aggressive.”
When the alligator stuck its head out of the thicket
behind the church at about 8 a.m., Lawrence and the
deputies were waiting. The gator, which Lawrence guessed
to be about 30 years old, lived in a flood ditch near the
Intracoastal Waterway behind Stanley’s.
“She probably got a little bent out of shape when her
nest got flooded and that’s why she headed into town,”
Lawrence said, adding that they had previously fought the
same alligator for “hours on end trying to catch her alive.”
The instance of alligators wandering into populated
areas may increase, Lawrence warned.
“There are alligators all around us on the Gulf Coast,”
he said. “We’re actually encroaching on their territory and
that’s when you see them more and more.”
Susan Madison, a 30-year resident of Matagorda,
witnessed the search for the alligator while a bout of insomnia
kept her awake that night.
“It took five grown men to load the gator in the back of
Arthur’s truck,” Madison said. She credited Hurricane Alex
for the early morning excitement.
Reprinted with information from a story by Heather Menzies in
the Bay City Tribune with permission.

Trinity, The Woodlands
Helping hospitalized veterans
T axes pay for only part of veterans’ needs at any veteran’s
hospital. Donations from the community - veteran
and fraternal organizations and churches like Trinity, The
Woodlands - provide many needed, non-monetary items.
In July, parishioners collected toiletry items, socks,
baseball caps, magazines and more for hospitalized veterans at
the DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston. The Houston
center serves as the primary health care provider for more
than 120,000 veterans in southeast Texas with specialized
diagnostic care and medical treatment including post
traumatic stress disorder and mild to moderate traumatic
brain injury. Nearly 3,500 health care workers provide
services for one million outpatient visits annually.
Christ the King, Atascocita
9/11 Event Honors First Responders
T he congregation at Christ the King,
Atascocita, will celebrate September 11
with Patriots Day, honoring the
men and women “we see everyday
in uniform-our first responders.”
“We feel so blessed to have the
opportunity to give back to them in
some small way and we are privileged to
have their participation in our event as well,” said Rachael
Shedeed, the event coordinator.
The Atascocita Volunteer Fire Department, EMS and
Precinct 4 Constables will be present. An opening ceremony
with flag-raising and color guard begins at 11:45 a.m. to
honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
“We hope people will take the time to get to know the
men and women who serve us in our communities,” Shedeed
said.
Visitors can purchase tickets for food, drinks and games
and be able to enjoy the live entertainment all day. Play
areas for the little ones will also be available. Humble Area
Assistance Ministries (HAAM) will be on hand to accept
pantry food items in exchange for game tickets. Christ the
King is a covenant member with HAAM. Blue Star Moms
will share information about military personnel who are from
the area at their booth. Visitors are welcome and anyone who
wishes to participate with a booth may contact the church at
281.852.1990.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
PARISH NEWS
Calvary, Richmond
Christ Church, Matagorda Daughters of the King
St. Thomas, Wharton
Youth spent a week this summer
building a brick-lined labyrinth
Y outh from Wharton and Richmond spent a week this
summer building a brick-lined labyrinth on the grounds
of the Christ Episcopal Church in Matagorda.
Twenty two youth and eight adults provided the
congregation and the Matagorda community a place to
encounter God. The labyrinth is aligned with the steeple
of the church and incorporated 1,100 bricks outlining the
circular grass pathway.
According to the Rev. Lance Ousley, rector of St.
Thomas, Wharton, the labyrinth was an ancient prayer tool Members of the St. Theresa Daughters of the King at St. Mark’s,
used to symbolize one’s journey through life, its single path
leading to the center and back out.
Austin, gathered this summer to induct new members. From
l-r: Liz Badger (seated); Jill Collins, Jonea Raney, Judy Elkins,
Pam Johns, Jean Severn, Liz Davis, the Reverend Elizabeth
Anna Clark described the labyrinth as being similar to
Turner, Brenda White, Diane Silver, Millie Casparis, Lisa Martin
the world in which we live: “You are never lost. God is always and Kathy Genet.
there for you.” Ousley said it was “a place to have peace and
prayer and to realign with God in our daily walk.”
The Rev. Hoss Gwin, vicar of Christ Church was
“thrilled” with this gift to the community. Part of the vision
of Christ Church, he said, was to have the church be a
welcoming place for “pilgrims” who want a closer experience
with God.
St. Christopher’s, League City
BBQ and Art Benefit Outreach
S t. Christopher’s, League City, will host its fifth Annual
Community Barbecue October 9-11 with proceeds
benefiting local outreach projects. Habitat for Humanity,
Interfaith Caring Ministries and St. Vincent’s House in
All Saints’, Stafford, chartered a new Jr. Daughters of the
King this summer, adding to their very active adult group.
Galveston will all receive support from sales of BBQ and a Mothers, grandmothers and aunts wanted the young women
live and silent auction as well as an outdoor art market, which in their lives to experience the devotion to prayer and service
will be open from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday, October exemplified by the Daughters of the King.
9. Please contact Ally Hardick if you are interested in a
vendor space at alipanwoot99@yahoo.com or call the church
office at 281.332.5553 for information and application. St.
Christopher’s is located at 2508 St. Christopher Rd. and 518
directly across from the Clear Creek High School baseball
field in League City.
St. Michael’s and All
Angels’, Longview
Sharing God’s Love with Backpacks
S
t. Michael’s and All Angels’ members gave away 120
backpacks and school supplies to 70 families in Longview
Grace, Alvin’s, Dame Julian Chapter of the Daughters of the
just before school started. Families signed up to receive the
King recently completed its summer food drive to benefit
supplies during the church’s July garage sale, representing veterans at the DeGeorge Veterans Center in Houston, a center
more than 100 children. A downpour didn’t dampen spirits that helps homeless veterans reestablish their lives. The DOK’s
as the carnival moved indoors where games and popcorn next project will be to collect 107 personal care boxes that will
awaited the children. Water slides were even better in the be delivered to the DeGeorge in time for Christmas. Pictured
in the photo (l-r) are S. Wayne Mathis, Dorothy Campbell and
rain. St. Michael’s had collected enough backpacks and
Phyllis Wall.
school supplies to meet the needs of very grateful students
and parents.
7 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
 PARISH NEWS

Co-op Mission Team Serves 3000 Hondurans

pulling teeth. In one very rural village, he saw 27 patients and
extracted 64 teeth in a single day—with hugs of appreciation
from the grateful and relieved patients.
Hopkins’ wife Bobbi said they return to Honduras “to
change the lives of the Hondurans … We’ve learned that
the lives of the Americans who come on the mission trip are
profoundly changed as well.”
Honduras Good Works is the parent organization
for Mission: Honduras. A 501(c)3 nonprofit, charitable
organization, Honduras Good Works has a three-pronged
mission: the health of Hondurans through medical missions;
education through scholarship support for Honduran youth;
spirit, helping villages develop their own churches and clergy.
For more information, access the organization’s website at
www.hondurasgoodworks.org, or call 512.778.5805.

Swahn is executive director of Honduras Good Works.

Volunteers assess needs of a mother and child.

By Jo Ann Swahn

S
upported by Episcopal churches throughout Texas, 60
volunteers recently completed a week-long medical
mission to one of the poorest regions of Honduras.
The mission fielded four teams a day and ministered to
nearly 3000 Hondurans. St. Christopher’s, Killeen; Christ
Church, Cedar Park; St. Matthews and St. Luke’s-on-
the-Lake, Austin; St. Richard’s, Round Rock; Holy Spirit,
Waco and St. Mark’s, Bay City, sent volunteers to make up
teams that included 20 medical professionals doctors, nurse
practitioners, nurses, and a dentist and dental assistant.
Other volunteers assisted with translating, checking-in
patients, controlling the crowds and dogs, evangelism,
driving, children’s activities and working in the pharmacy.
Dr. Donald Hopkins, and his wife, Bobbi Hopkins,
nurse practitioner, began the medical mission more than St. Stephen’s, Beaumont, visits Uganda
11 years ago and estimate they have treated nearly 30,000
villagers in that time.
“We provide primary care to villages in remote areas to After sending the boys and male teachers away, Pat Richie talks about feminine hygiene with senior high girls at the Green Hills
School in Nabwendo, Uganda. Richie said the girls were very encouraged to have the private discussion with the women on the
serve people who have little support from their government mission team since girls are still somewhat voiceless and powerless in their culture. “They told me about how they manage during
and no access to medical attention,” Hopkins said. “We their menstrual periods and I was describing sanitary napkins to them,” Richie said, adding that the language challenges made for
“a lot of fun laughing as we tried to communicate what we each wanted to say.”
travel in four-wheel drive trucks across some really rough

roads in mountainous regions. When we arrive, we are
generally greeted by everyone in the village,” he continued.
“Each team is made up of 15-20 people, and by day’s
end each team will typically have seen 200 patient-families.”
This year Dr. Jim Humphries, a dentist from Bay City
and a member of St. Mark’s, brought his portable chair and
equipment. The only service he can provide in the field is
M
embers of St. Stephen’s, Beaumont, visited
Uganda this summer after Peggy Nash, a church
member, invited four Ugandan students who
are attending Lamar University on track scholarships to St.
Stephen’s. Nash was inspired to collect shoes and educational
supplies for the students’ home village after hearing their
stories. In cooperation with the students, Nash organized
Runners for Hope, and with Francis Kasagule, one of the
students, decided to deliver the donated shoes, books and
school supplies personally.
Kasagule, Nash and St. Stephen’s deacon, Pat Richie,
were joined by three college students and a high school
senior for the trip to the Diocese of Mityana and the village
of Nabwendo where they delivered the supplies. While in
Uganda, the team also visited a girls’ home in Soroti.
According to Richie, the trip helped St. Stephen’s
develop relationships and “discern if our church might walk
alongside particular schools, parishes or villages so that we
might provide children and their teachers with things they
need to help in their education.”

Texas Episcopalian • September 2010 8 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org


“Son One” Mission Trip Gathers Austin Youth
On Sunday, July 18th, Good Shepherd in Tomball, hosted youth from St. Paul’s Waco, for lunch on their way to a week-long
mission trip in Galveston. Twenty-nine youth under the direction of youth minister Erin Busby fortified themselves with plenty
of Steve Robinson’s famous BBQ brisket and encouragement from youth at Good Shepherd. Mandy Seymour, director of Youth
and Families at Good Shepherd encourages other congregations to find opportunities for inter-parish youth fellowship.
St. Mark’s Finds Much to do in Galveston – Still
By Liz Davis
N
early two years after Hurricane Ike made landfall,
wreaking havoc in Galveston and beyond,
parishioners from around the Diocese of Texas
continue to show up with tools, mops and buckets, helping
families devastated by the storm return to normal. Five
parishioners from St. Mark’s, Austin, found a very dedicated
band of recent college grads running an excellent program
to assist Galveston residents to rebuild their homes and their
lives.
St. Mark’s mission team provided willing volunteers
of “moderate skill level,” and we were received in Galveston
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
PARISH NEWS
with a comfortable (if not elegant) place to stay and
competent, knowledgeable, patient supervision from the
Episcopal Diocese of Texas Relief and Development team.
Together we provided an example of a caring relationship
with homeowners who had been granted help.
Last year, eight of us learned to sheetrock and “mud”
in a home where many volunteers worked before and many
worked after to complete the renovation. This year, three of
us spent a hot, sweaty day wielding wire brushes preparing
hurricane shutters to withstand another season. We also
helped finish work on a lovely home that was almost ready to
be turned over to its teacher-grandmother owner who would
9 Texas Episcopalian • September
A
number of Austin Convocation congregations sent
youth to Galveston this summer to help homeowners
still struggling in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike.
The “Son One” mission trip gathered middle-school youth
from Christ Church, Cedar Park and St. Matthew’s and St.
David’s, Austin.
Son One gathers youth and their leaders monthly at
alternate area churches for fellowship and worship. This
summer was the first mission trip that the groups embarked
upon together.
A number of challenging tasks faced the intrepid
travelers. While tutoring students at day camp for students
from low-income families, the Austin youth were shocked to
learn and struggled to comprehend how third graders could
not write complete sentences or read books far beneath their
grade level. “But I was reading chapter books in first grade!
What happened here?” questioned one.
“I was amazed to watch our middle schoolers cheering
on the children in games of whiffle ball, basketball and relay
races. They put aside their own all-star sports experience and
encouraged their new-found friends,” said the Rev. Beth
Magill, who helped lead the mission trip.
“Adult sponsors were in awe of these ten youth who had
clearly come to share their love for God with everyone they
encountered,” Magill added.
Youth also spent two days priming “Miss Mary’s” house
in preparation for a final coat of paint that would put the
memory of the Ike flooded home securely in the past. They
also helped distribute food for Mobile Loaves & Fishes. Cassie
Shannon, a middle schooler from St. Matthew’s said, “I realized
that even though my life is great, other people’s lives may not
be. I got to feed the people who couldn’t feed themselves,
and despite that, they were still happy – and that is amazing!”
As they sat around the circle for reflections each evening, the
youth shared honestly and deeply about their struggles and
accomplishments of the day.
“It is striking to me that ten relatively young members in
the church could come together and deliver such a poignant
and relevant message about the mission of the church. Simply
and gracefully, the youth proclaimed the Good News of Jesus
Christ to all whom they met!” Magill concluded.
resume her life there with several of her grandchildren.
The work we did was not easy and could not be called
fun, but we knew there was a payoff for the work in the
joy of the homeowners. We were confident that the owners
had been screened and that the young people running the
program had chosen to help those Jesus called “the least of
these.” We hope to return one more time this fall.
Luke Blount, our volunteer coordinator, tells us that
there will be plenty of work to do because Ike was a serious
hurricane. Katrina gets most of the press since it devastated
a larger city, but in some ways Ike was actually stronger. He
also points out that Lehman Brothers failed the day after Ike
hit land, so much of the nation shifted its attention to our
economic woes.
Consider a mission trip to Galveston. You will be glad
you did.
Davis is a member of St. Mark’s, Austin.
2010

Mission in Belize,
Hopeful High School Student
Holy Cross gradutes have high capacity to learn and little chance for a good life without education.
to send as many Holy Cross graduates to high school
next year as possible. The program was so successful
that 24 graduates—every qualified student—received
a scholarship. Twelve students who could not have
continued their high school education without some help
also received scholarships.
Holy Cross co-founder Francis Wilson lives in
San Mateo and coordinates the high school scholarship
program. She is relentless in her pursuit of academic
excellence and has been known to rent a taxi to find errant
students to make sure they attend class.
The Wilsons structured the scholarship program on
character development as well as education. Recipients
commit to an ongoing program of accountability, service
and learning. They review their grades with the Holy Cross
management team. They participate in work programs to
give back to the school and their community. They attend
computer classes at Holy Cross to assure their future
academic success.
This year Estrella, another Holy Cross graduate, told
Wilson that she would have to leave high school because
she was pregnant. Wilson encouraged her to go to night
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
PARISH NEWS
continued from page 1
school so that she could work during the day to provide
for her child and still continue her education. A sponsor
provided a scholarship and Estrella finished the year first in
her class (up from tenth the previous year).
Estrella attributes her remarkable performance to a promise
she made to her sponsor, a person she believes an angel sent
to her. “I made a promise and I had to keep it,” said the
young mother.
In four years Holy Cross has grown from a swampy
piece of property to a vibrant, growing school that is
changing the lives of every student. To keep the dream
alive and growing they are going to need lots of help
(mission trips, hands­ – on construction projects, $500.00
high school scholarships, and special projects of all sorts).
If you would like to support Holy Cross’ work in Belize,
contact Francis Wilson at www.holycrossbelize.org.
To learn more about Good Shepherd, Kingwood’s
work at Holy Cross, see the video at: www.epicenter.
org/youtube or contact Nancy Schorr at Good Shepherd
(NancySchorr@GoodShepherdKingwood.org).
See more videos about Holy Cross Anglican School
at: http://tiny.cc/vkypt and http://tiny.cc/r9agy.
10
St. James’ House
Marks Half a Century
Ministering to the Elderly
Robert and Betty Kelly
T
his year St. James’ House celebrates 50 years of
dedicated, quality elder care as a ministry of the
Diocese of Texas. 
A vision for St. James’ House began in 1956, when
Bishop John Hines appointed a Commission on the Aged.
The group concluded that the diocese had a responsibility
to establish a home to help meet the growing needs of older
people, whose greatest problems, after physical health, were
economic security, emotional security and housing suited to
their needs.
Four years later, the retirement community opened
its doors and today serves the elderly with 105 beds in the
skilled nursing unit and 40 independent living apartments
in Alexander Hall. A committed, capable and caring staff,
led by Executive Director Maria Elena Garcia, provides a
loving environment for residents where they have a feeling of
security and enjoy a full spiritual life.
Located on a beautifully wooded, ten-acre tract near
Baytown, St. James’ House is removed from the stress and
congestion of the big city, yet close to the area’s major medical
centers, 30 minutes from downtown Houston, 12 minutes
from Pasadena, and 45 minutes from Galveston.
St. James’ House offers financial assistance to many of
its residents who have outlived their savings. The 501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization relies on the generosity of individuals
and congregations to continue providing this outstanding
care.
Donations to this worthwhile ministry can be mailed
to: St. James’ House, 5800 West Baker Rd, Baytown, TX
77520-1618. For more information, call 281.425.1200 or
visit www.stjameshouse.org.
Mettie Nesbit and Alice Hawley with family
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
 PARISH NEWS

St. Francis, Prairie View Fetes Authors

Corey Turner signs copies of his book for members of St. Francis.
By Freddie Roberts
character “Benjamin” in Benjamin and the Red Fire
Ants, a children’s book. St. Francis’ Children’s Sunday
School Class hosted a reading of Turner’s book
where Turner revealed that  Benjamin enjoys playing
outside Grandma’s house, because there are many new
and exciting creatures to see and discover.  One day, his
adventure leads him close to the red fire ants that live
behind the house. In the end, his fears are conquered
and he explores the little critters that live around him,
helping him appreciate and understand the world in
which he lives.
Turner admits the book is not just about the ants
and Benjamin. “There is a Godly approach present,”
he says.  He wants the reader to understand that all of
God’s creatures are present and work for the common
good.  Turner’s story is about how we treat each other
and why we should be kind. Turner is an adjunct
lecturer of biology and sciences at Lone Star College,
Cypress.  He previously taught science at Prairie View
A&M University. 
Turner plans to release a second book this summer
– Little Benjamin, The Bugs, and The Holy Spirit, in
which Benjamin and his dog Snowcone visit Grandpa’s
house and encounter a thrilling variety of bugs. Little
Benjamin was unaware that today his dreams were On Sunday, July 18, Good Shepherd, Tomball, hosted St.
about to come true. Turner’s book can be purchased at Paul’s Youth Group of Waco, for lunch.  Twenty-nine youth
P. O. Box 2163, Prairie View, TX 77446, 979.645.0723 from St. Paul’s were on their way to Galveston for a  week-
or www.authorhouse.com and www.amazon.com. long mission trip.  Long-time parishioner, Steve Robinson,
served his famous BBQ brisket and sauce.  
Both Poindexter and Turner are available to share
their experiences throughout the Diocese of Texas.

E St. John’s, Tyler, Rededicated

veryone has a story to tell. Jimmie Poindexter and
Corey Turner, members of St. Francis of Assisi, Prairie
View, are no different, and they are mong America’s
newest authors.
Poindexter, a retired professor of sociology and social
work at Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) set out
to recapture her childhood growing up on the Prairie View
campus with her latest book, Campus Children. “This book is
about a time in PVAMU’s history that will not be repeated,”
she said.
Members of St. Francis’ Episcopal Church Women
hosted Poindexter at a special reading and high tea reception
to share her musings with the community where she
entertained the audience with anecdotes about being raised
on a college campus where all the teachers were involved
with your development.
“As children, our world was the campus,” she said. 
She noted several childhood friends in the audience – Irene
Fry Davis, Mae Helen James, Marshall Brown, all of whom
nodded approval at her comments.   Lawrence Jones (L-R) Lottie Ervin, Jr. Warden; Bishop Andy Doyle; Lena White,
Poindexter is an active lay reader and member of the Bishop’s Warden, following the rededication service.

ECW. She was among the first members of St. Francis and
has served on the vestry, Altar Guild, taught Sunday School
and served as a Council delegate.
She admitted to being inundated with others’ stories
since the publication of Campus Children. Community
members embraced the chance to get “up close and personal”
with Poindexter at the reading. For a copy of Poindexter’s
book, write:  Box 2727, Prairie View, TX 77446, 936-857-
3296 or see www.campuschildren.com.
Corey Turner, PhD, writes about his fictional
S
t. John’s, Tyler, once St. John the Baptist Episcopal
Church, was chartered as a mission of the Diocese of
Texas in 1892. The earliest members of St. John’s were
faculty and administrators at Texas College, a predominantly
African-American institution. These early members had been
educated at Episcopal colleges in the Carolinas and wished to
worship in an Episcopal Church.
In 2007, significant problems were discovered in the
facility, i.e. foundation shifting. With the help of the diocese,
repairs and an addition were completed in May, 2010, and
the worship space was rededicated on June 27, 2010. A small
congregation worshiped in the parish hall for more than three
years and were thrilled to welcome members of the other two
Episcopal congregations in Tyler for the rededication.
“The congregation of St. John’s has worked hard to get
to this time of celebration in our refurbished and enlarged
worship facility,” said the Rev. M. L. Agnew, interim vicar of
St. John’s, adding, “This day would not be possible without
the generous support of the Diocese of Texas and members
of other Episcopal congregations.”

Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org 11   Texas Episcopalian • September 2010


Bonnie Anderson to Keynote at Houston
Conference on Full Inclusion
T
he President of the House of Deputies of the General
Convention of The Episcopal Church, Bonnie
Anderson, will headline a free conference entitled
“Moving Forward: Exploring a New Path to Full Inclusion”
(“Moving Forward”) at Christ Church Cathedral, 1117
Texas Avenue in downtown Houston, on October 1 and 2.
The conference responds to longstanding calls from Church
leadership about the need for conversation pertaining to
the inclusion of LGBT Christians in the life and ministry
of The Episcopal Church. This conference is sponsored by
Christ Church Cathedral and includes parishes that are
“conversation partners” from across the Diocese of Texas.
Anderson will deliver the sermon at the opening
Art at Homeless Shelter Inspires
R
emember when you were a child and to finger paint
with friends was the high point of life? Pressing
that colorful goo from palm to paper, squishing it
between your fingers, relishing your parents’ joy as they hung
your creation on the refrigerator door?
That joy and sense of accomplishment is reflected in
the Art from the Streets program, which aids homeless artists
by providing them with the materials to create their art.
Recently, the 19 year-old program moved from the Austin
Resource Center for the Homeless to Trinity Center, a
ministry of St. David’s, Austin. The pinnacle of the program
centers on the annual art show where the works are displayed
for sale and the money goes directly back to the artists. This
year’s show will be held in Eden’s gym at St. David’s.
“It’s becoming an in-house thing which is wonderful,”
said Irit Umani, Trinity Center’s executive director.
Many of the artists who take part in the program also
benefit from aid offered by Trinity Center.
For Howard Cook, this is an opportunity not only
to make money but also to leave his mark on society for
generations to come. Many of his paintings include vivid
contrasts with lines of movement that fill up the foreground,
reminiscent of Jackson Pollock.
“I’m glad that people do love my paintings,” Cook
said. “I’m glad that God gave me a gift that people love my
artwork. Of all the jobs that I had through the years, none
of them compare to this, what I have now, doing my art and
making money with it.”
Through the funds from the art show, Cook was able
to afford rent for a few months, as have some of the other
artists. But the program is about more than just pay day.
“Art from the Streets moves the whole issue of
homelessness to a whole other dimension of art and artists,”
Umani said. “We usually-we human beings-don’t connect
the two. So it’s an opportunity for anyone interested to come
and see … those people sitting down and doing art, making
art, one forgets that they are homeless and it’s another
dimension of intimate relationship with these people. It’s a
bigger picture than we usually hold in our hand.”
By housing Art from the Streets, Trinity Center provides
the space for downtown homeless people to work through
the hardships they have faced.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
PARISH NEWS
communications director for the
Diocese of Vermont.
The final panel, entitled
“Exploring the Theology:
worship service Friday, October 1 at 7 p.m. The conference Liturgical and Pastoral
continues on Saturday October 2, from 9:00 until noon Implications of Full Inclusion,”
with three panel discussions. Anderson and her chancellor, includes Cynthia Briggs
Sally Johnson, will present a national perspective as well as Kittredge, a professor at the
some future possibilities including the Anglican Covenant Seminary of the Southwest and
and former Secretary of State James A. Baker’s local option member of the House of Bishops’
proposal. Theology Committee; Ruth Bonnie Anderson
A second panel, entitled “Home by Another Way, Meyers, a professor at Church
Inclusion Conversations that Work” will include the Rev. Divinity School of the Pacific and the chair of the Standing
John Bedingfield, rector of St. John’s, Silsbee, who has Commission on Liturgy and Music and Lowell Grisham,
provided leadership for inclusion conversations in East rector of St. Paul’s, Fayetteville, Arkansas, and co-convenor
Texas. The panel also includes Jason Sierra, young adult of the Chicago Consultation, www.chicagoconsultation.org.
missioner for The Episcopal Church and Anne Brown, “This conference will be an opportunity to affirm the
ministry and contribution of all members of the Diocese of
Texas as well as hear a perspective from the larger church,”
said the Very Rev. Joe Reynolds, dean of Christ Church
Cathedral. “I invite everyone to attend.”
Year of Service in
South Africa Awaits
Seminary Grad
A
manda Akes, who
grew up at St.
Christopher’s, League
City, headed to Capetown,
South Africa, this summer,
to serve as an Episcopal
Young Adult Service Corps
Missionary with HOPE
Africa. HOPE Africa, part of
the Anglican Church, seeks
“I also personally believe when one gets a channel to to promote and implement a
express one’s creativity it helps a person--it lowers, eliminates, social development program Amanda Akes
deletes the needs to express oneself in negative ways,” Umani for the Anglican Church
said. in Southern Africa for the improvement of the spiritual,
African animals come to life with artist Zebra’s use of physical and emotional wellbeing of the poor and oppressed
rich colors and metallic paints. After each year of hard work, people of Africa.
she enjoys the rewarding experience of attending the end of It is the outreach arm of the Diocese of Southern Africa
the year art show. and works with local congregations to provide outreach
“It’s just so awesome, it’s like Christmas for us,” Zebra programs tailored to the needs of the area.
said. “A lot of kids buy my work. Two years ago it was all Akes graduated from Episcopal Divinity School
strollers; there wasn’t any room for the strollers. And a lot (Cambridge, MA) in May and will be ordained in the
of kids and children and expecting parents bought my work
Diocese of New York in 2011.
and it was great to hear ‘Oh, I had my baby and the Zebra
“I grew up [at St. Christopher’s] seeking a deeper
looks beautiful in the baby’s room.’”
knowledge of God through Sunday school and youth
With less mess than those finger paints of yesteryear,
group, and witnessing Jesus’ love personified through my
Art from the Streets provides the tools for Austin’s homeless
brothers and sisters in Christ. St. Christopher’s is the place
to create their art within a community environment.
where my Christian formation was catalyzed, nourished and
“Being at Trinity Center has the potential of changing
one’s life,” Umani said. “It really does--the whole concept of flourished,” Akes said.
us and them, me and you--can really transform here. If you’re Akes will write a blog to keep friends and family
on the floor here, everybody’s ‘we.’ It’s very clear and it’s life on her new ministry. Follow her year of service at:
transforming.” amandaakesinsouthafrica.blogspot.com.
12 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org

East Austin Pre-School Offers
Wealth of Diversity
By Bob Kinney
S
t. James’ Episcopal School third-year student Imani
gets upset if she arrives at school late because she feels
the tardiness will “interrupt her work,” reports her
mother Brook Davis.
Entering her kindergarten year at St. James’, a ministry
of its namesake church in East Austin, Imani is among a
truly diverse group of three to five-year-old children who
are blossoming within the school’s unique blend of strong
Montessori-based learning with a Christian perspective that
emphasizes kindness.
St. James’ was founded by Episcopalians to reach out
into the wider Austin community while truly embracing
diversity – racial, economic and cultural. When the school
began its fourteenth academic year in late August, 27
different Austin area zip codes were represented among its
70 students. A broad range of racial and economic diversity
is represented. Forty percent of students enrolled with
financial aid. Working parents appreciate the school’s full-
day program.
“Several dedicated people from many Episcopal
churches in Austin began work in mid-1993 to open a school
in East Austin,” said Judith Rhedin, one of the school’s
founders and a St. James’ parishioner. They visited other
congregations and with diocesan officials to secure financial
support. “A cornerstone of our efforts was securing money
to ensure substantial financial aid,” said Rhedin, current
vice-president of the school’s board of trustees and assistant
director of campus and community engagement for the
Performing Arts Center at the University of Texas.
A number of local Episcopal parishes continue to
support St. James’. Most of the school’s donors do not have
children enrolled there but nonetheless support the mission
All Saints’, Austin, to host Global Fair Trade Bazaar
A
ll Saints’, Austin, will host a Global Fair Trade Bazaar
on October 2-3, 2010. Through this event, All
Saints’ affirms its support of fair trade, and upholds
ethical business practices in Austin and around the world.
Fair trade businesses guarantee fair wages and safe
working conditions and help fund education and vocational
training, as well as developmental projects for artisans and
their communities.
According to the World Fair Trade Organization, “Fair
Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency
and respect that seeks greater equity in international trade.
Most importantly, consumers are assured that fair trade
products were not manufactured with child or slave labor.”
The All Saints’ Fair Trade Bazaar is being coordinated
by Ethical City. Ethical City recently won Big Austin’s Big
Idea Competition for its plan to establish a network for
Austin’s fair trade businesses and to provide markets for such
companies to sell and display their products in the Austin
community.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
PARISH NEWS
of St. James’.
“I have grown into and been
enriched within this wonderful
family,” said Diana Garcia, one of
three Montessori-certified guides,
who came to St. James’ seven
years ago after 11 years at Austin
Montessori School.
When Garcia first taught
at St. James’, it was housed at
the church’s former location on
Martin Luther King Boulevard in East
Austin. Space was tight. The classrooms had to be emptied
every Friday afternoon to allow for Sunday church services
and reassembled for classes Monday morning.
St. James’ broke ground for the new campus in 2006
one mile east of its former site and completed construction
without debt within a year. The brightly colored buildings
are spacious and child-friendly with low windows and age-
appropriate desks, chairs and bathrooms. Classrooms are
adorned with a myriad of fanciful student artwork. The five
buildings circle an innovative playground area, ringed by a
wide and winding sidewalk for tricycle rides.
Students attend daily chapel. Once a week the children
have a class with a local musician who presents an interactive
music program. The students also have capoeira, an energetic
African-Brazilian form of artful calisthenics.
“It is wonderful to see the children bloom during their
three years here – it’s an explosion of awareness,” said Anna
Kago, another Montessori-certified guide who came to
Austin from Kenya 11 years ago when her husband, the Rev.
Peter Kago, was enrolled at the Episcopal Seminary.
“The diversity of the students mirrors the world as it is.
It is also very satisfying to teach about God and the wonder
Ethical City partners with businesses such as:
• Ten Thousand Villages – Austin’s only fair trade store
• Discover Hope – an Austin non-profit providing micro-
credit loans to women in Peru
• Hill Country Hill Tribers – a group of local Burmese
refugee women who weave bags in order to provide
supplemental income for their families
• Etnik – an Austin company run by two Colombian-
born women who work with artisans in Latin America
• Weavers of Hope – an Austin based non-profit
that promotes human dignity through educational
sponsorships and the sale of fair trade weavings from
Zacatecas, Mexico
• Austin Local and Fair Trade – an on-line fair trade store
offering consumers a way to support local and third-
world artisans through their everyday purchases
Ethical City recruits fair trade vendors for events and
supplements the bazaar with other fair trade products to
13
of creation,” she said.
“Our goal is to provide the
highest quality early childhood
education to a truly diverse group
of students,” said Ellen Jockusch,
who is beginning her first year
as Interim Head–of–School after
directing lay education degree
programs at the Seminary of the
Southwest and working within the
University of Texas Plan II Honors
Program.
“Ellen is a real gift to St.
James’,” said Jane Hill, a member
of the school’s board of trustees and
church parishioner. “When our board
interviewed her for the head–of–school position, Ellen
literally lit up the room with her faith-based dedication to
childhood education,” said Hill, who was the founding head
of Trinity Episcopal School in Austin and a consultant to the
Southwest Association of Episcopal Schools (SAES) before
her retirement. St. James’ is SAES accredited.
“St. James’ provides a nurturing educational experience
to help our students develop their unique skills and talents.
This joyful excitement of discovery leads to a lifelong love of
learning,” said Kent Burress, school board president, organist
at St. James’ and CEO of the Ronald McDonald House in
Austin.
“The St. James’ faculty and staff exemplify true
professionalism, competency and accountability toward
each child and parent,” said Victor Winston, father of twins
Alexis and Alex. The decision by Mary and Victor to enroll
the twins at St. James’ was, he said, “one of the best parenting
decisions we have made.”
Contacts for St. James’ School are phone (512.926.4214)
— email (admissions@stjamesepiscopalschool.org) — and
website (stjamesepiscopalschool.org).
ensure shoppers will experience a wide range of products
from around the globe. All of the bazaar products have a
story describing the artisan who made the product and giving
buyers the satisfaction of knowing who they are supporting
with their purchasing power.
Ethical City’s products include baskets made by a
widows’ cooperative in Ghana, metal work from Haiti, fair
trade clothing from India, jewelry from around the world,
and gift cards made by Rwandan orphans.
The bazaar will be held at All Saints’, 209 West 27th
Street, Austin, TX, on Saturday and Sunday, October 2-3,
beginning at 9 a.m. both days. This bazaar is open to the
public. Ten percent of all sales will be donated to All Saints’.
Ethical City, founded in 2009, is a women-owned business
dedicated to providing fair trade businesses sales venues,
educational support and networking opportunities.
For more information contact: Jennifer Lucas
512.529.7422 or email: jennifer@ethicalcity.com or, Jeanine
Cuellar of All Saints’ at jeaninemcdc@gmail.com.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
Camp is Extra Special for
Some Special Campers
By Carol E. Barnwell
A
driving accident in 1967 left Joni Tada in a
wheelchair and a deep depression until, with her
church, she began to see the opportunity to make a
difference for others with disabilities.
“Disabled people need to ‘feel’ the touch of Christ,”
Tada said. That happens nine times annually for more than
500 families at camps throughout the country, especially
designed for disabled children/adults and their families. Two
Family Camps are held at Camp Allen each summer.
“This is a piece of heaven,” said Susan Black, whose
35-year-old son Brian suffered traumatic brain injuries in a
car accident just after graduating from college. Black and her
husband are Brian’s primary care givers and have attended
Family Camp with Brian for ten years. The time at Camp
Allen is invaluable to all of them.
Ron and Bev Huckabee, both in their late 30s, attend
and teach Bible study at the Family Camp. Ron’s 2004
motorcycle accident left him a quadriplegic and, after seeing
Tada on Larry King Live, Huckabee agreed to attend a
camp. He continues
to return as a
volunteer chaplain.
“I want to talk
about the things
[families] are
going through,
let them vent
and receive some
encouragement,”
he said. “Joni
encouraged
me to get busy
living.” Now
r e
Volunteers ca he wants to do
for Campers
the same for
others.
For campers with
disabilities and their families in Texas, Camp Allen has
become a place of refreshment and transformation. Each
year, Joni and Friends (JAF) hosts two Family Camps here
because of the accessible and comfortable hotel-styled rooms
and, more importantly, because of the dedication and spirit
of the Camp Allen staff. Nearly 300 people – campers,
parents, siblings, volunteers and staff –participate in each
five-day camp.
“The Camp Allen staff is unbelievable,” said Bonnie
Banker, area director of Joni and Friends. “We have never
experienced a staff that has been so welcoming. To a person,
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
they have offered to do anything to meet our needs. It’s
remarkable,” she said. She spent 25 years in corporate
marketing before shifting careers, recounting a five-year
prayer journey that went from “No way” to “You have
to change my heart.” Banker networked with friends
searching for the right ministry and says her four years at
Joni and Friends have been “life changing.”
JAF is a not-for-profit Christian organization,
founded in 1979, dedicated to accelerating Christian
ministry in the disabled community. JAF has grown into
flagship programs that affect the lives of thousands of
disabled people and their families across the country.
“I really see purpose in life now,” Banker said.
“My world view has changed, expanded. There are a
lot of people who are broken, vulnerable, many who
Siblings
are in despair. JAF Family Camps provide respite, enjoy
the pe
hope and encouragement by modeling servant tting
zoo, t
hood,” she said. oo.
The family camp cares for the whole family, including dependent on parents
parents and siblings of the disabled person. One hundred or the volunteers for their care and
twenty-five volunteer “short-term missionaries” pay $400 feeding. Older campers need two volunteers to care for them.
each to help provide care for the disabled, so that parents can During the family retreat, short term missionaries step in for
take a break and siblings can enjoy normal camping activities parents from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. and again in the evenings
like canoeing and horseback riding. Families pay about the for several hours.
same amount but many receive financial support from their “Parents are able to get reacquainted with one another
churches. Banker raises additional funds for a petting zoo, and remember why they fell in love,” Banker said. Everyone
lifeguards and a DJ for the dance. goes home refreshed and with hope.
Several Dallas-area churches that have an active ministry All activities are optional. Some parents just want to rest
to disabled people and their families underwrite numerous by the pool and read a book, while others want to fish, ride
families to the camp. Bent Tree Bible Church sends 10 bikes or attend Bible study. Camp Allen also staffs the high
families, one of which is a family of eight with three disabled ropes challenge course for parents who are game.
children. Forty-eight families were represented at the second Brian Black plays UNO with a table full of friends,
summer session this year. laughing and slapping cards from his wheelchair. “He doesn’t
Everyone is special here get to socialize much,” his mom said.
The stress and strain of life with a disability is often “This camp is so positive, it overcomes the challenges
exceedingly high. The daily challenges of living with a we face everyday,” she added, acknowledging that the family
disability wear on the whole family. Family Camps refresh rarely goes to someone’s home for dinner or attends a friend’s
and strengthen while they offer a change of pace for families wedding because of Brian’s disability. “This [camp] inspires
in a safe and accepting environment. me to go on for another year … it’s good to see Brian playing
No one is stared at or judged at Family Camp, everyone cards with a table of people, participating, being loved, being
is on equal footing, participants say. Their normal feelings busy. [And] he loves it,” she said.
of isolation dissipate as they interact with other families, “It’s hard [for parents and family] to be happy, joyous,
knowing their children are taken care of by loving volunteers. patient all the time,” Banker said. “But there are enormous
Unlike many organizations that serve one specific smiles when a child on a ventilator gets to ride a horse. The
disability, the JAF ministry touches numerous mental and transformation goes beyond camp,” she said.
physical disabilities from the elderly, blind, deaf, retardation, Danny Reis, a former Green Beret from Bedford, TX,
cerebral palsy, spinal chord injuries and rare genetic disorders. volunteers for two weeeks each summer. When he returned
Some campers are non-verbal and unresponsive, totally from Viet Nam in the 70s, Reis said he was very angry.
14 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org

a ten tative dip in the po ol
Brian Black ta kes
his best sh ot
Through his ministry to the disabled Reis admits, “God has
softened my heart.” He cares for a 17-year-old young man
who is blind. Over the years their bond has grown. They
fish, attend Bible study, talk. “I keep forgetting he’s blind,”
Reis said.
Camp Allen was selected from more than 100 other
camps because it has hotel rooms rather than cabins and
bunk beds. Time and again, participants at the Family Camp
mention the Camp Allen staff, who surpasses anything the
organization had ever been exposed to before, Banker said.
Camp Allen’s president, George Dehan, said the staff is
always delighted to welcome JAF. “It’s inspiring for us to see
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
Slipper y Slide
Family Camp talent show
these families enjoy themselves, to try new things together, to
rest and be refreshed. Our staff has put paralyzed campers on
rafts so they can do a water slide with their siblings, or helped
disabled campers ‘scale’ the climbing wall and do the zip line
– plus all the things that able campers take for granted.”
While volunteers and staff model servanthood, the
Family Camp is also steeped in prayer. A team prays in each
room the day before families arrive and every morning of the
retreat, a prayer team goes to each wing of the hotel to pray
for the families. Nothing is left undone to provide a loving
and nurturing environment for JAF families.
Visit www.joniandfriends.org for further information.
15
Nonagenarian Brings
Morning Prayer to
Fellow Retirees
A t 99, Don C. Streeter, wanted a little
something at his retirement home that
reminded him of home. With the help of
his daughter, Rebecca Jay, he printed up
a bulletin and started holding Morning
Prayer with the residents of Treemont
Retirement Center in Houston.
Streeter updates the bulletin monthly
and includes a Bible passage and thoughts
on it from Forward, Day by Day, as well
as reading a biographical sketch of an
important Christian from the book Lesser
Feasts and Fasts.
Streeter, an Episcopalian for 70 years,
is a long-time member of St. Mark’s,
Houston, and spent many years as a lay
reader, choir member and lay Eucharistic
minister. He recently wrote Bishop Andy
Doyle about his Morning Prayer ministry
and said, “I wanted to have a little service
each Sunday that reminded me of happy
years gone by.”
After celebrating his 99th birthday in
April of this year, he began a 22-week series
of chapter readings from his autobiography,
much to the delight of his fellow residents,
further proving there is no retirement date
on ministry.
Don C. Streeter
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

M
ission Funding is NOT just a budget item. It
is one of the ways that we change lives in the
Diocese of Texas. Since 1999, the Mission Funding
Opportunities Catalog has been printed and distributed to
vestries in the diocese to provide information on the life-
changing work of the ministries congregations support
through voluntary giving. The catalog has helped vestries
decide how they wanted to allocate the funds committed
each year. It has also helped parishioners become familiar
with ministries and how they are making a difference in our
communities and beyond.
This fall, Mission Funding goes green. All materials
are currently available online at www.epicenter.org/
missionfunding, and on a CD mailed to each church
in September. In an effort to be more fiscally and
environmentally responsive, we will no longer print the
Mission Funding Catalog. However, while the packaging has
changed, the commitment to ministry and the people we
serve remains. This year’s catalog tells those stories “In Their
Voices.”
We encourage you to learn more about the ministries
you take part in by viewing the materials on the CD or at
www.epicenter.org/missionfunding.
The 2011 Mission Funding materials include the
following:
• The Bishop’s message
• “In Their Voices” Video - Ministry representatives
Crowds of refugee families from Burma and Congo seeking immunizations overwhelmed Harris County Public Health &
Environmental Services’ ability to meet the demand on August 8 at Epiphany Community Health Outreach Services (ECHOS). An
additional day was scheduled for later in the month to meet the needs. ECHOS, a ministry of Epiphany, Houston, partners with a
number of area health organizations to provide medical care to the underserved in Southwest Houston.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
SPECIAL NEWS
Insights Challenge
Spiritual Journey
Living Next Door to the Death
House, 224 pages, © 2003
By Dawn Bremer, Trinity, The Woodlands
A mong the many titles in the bookstore, one in
particular caused a “double take.” The title intrigued
me and then discovering the authors, Virginia Stem
Owens and David Clinton Owens, are friends, made it a
read too hard to resist.
Growing up in California, I knew little of the
history of the prison system and, subsequently, Texas’
death row, beyond what I saw in the media. Recently I
learned my great grandfather, whom I had always known
to be a rancher in the Huntsville area, had worked for the
prison. Living Next Door to the Death House offered the
Episcopal Diocese of Texas opportunity to learn more about Huntsville as a “company
Diocesan Center
1225 Texas Ave. town,” and explore the history and culture surrounding it.
Houston, TX 77002-3504
The writing style is engaging, reminiscent of a
bygone era of storytelling. The Owenses interviewed a
2 0 11 M i s s i o n f u n d i n g wide spectrum of people touched by the prison system and
Opportunities CD
the Walls Unit (housing the death chamber). I was drawn
in by the perspectives of the district attorney’s office,
tell how they have benefited from Mission Funding the defense attorneys (public defenders), victims’ and
support offenders’ families, prison staff who have long since retired
• Mission Funding Curriculum and those currently working for the TDCJ, chaplains,
and residents of Huntsville. Their stories fleshed out a
• Pew Sheets
broader picture [beyond] the two minute sound bite from
To schedule a visit for a Mission Funding presentation,
the media. Like a stone tossed into a pond, the effects
contact Kathy Culmer at kculmer@epicenter.org or call
of a crime ripple outward and impact the lives of many
800.318.4452.
more than we at first think. This book invites the reader
to consider not only the victims’ and offenders’ families,
but the first responders who live with the heavy burden of
what they witness.
David Owens is an active member of the Kairos
ministry at his church. This thought continued to resurface
in my mind throughout my reading as I considered
our own Kairos ministry and Montgomery County Jail
ministry through Trinity [The Woodlands] and how they
work as the body of Christ. These ministries are living
examples of Christ’s teachings about love, compassion and
forgiveness, and I am humbled by their devotion.
Whether you support or oppose the death penalty,
this book is an excellent source of information, not only
about Huntsville’s culture as a company town, offering a
broader understanding of the criminal justice system from
a more human perspective, but it is also a call to prayer.
That sounds a little odd, doesn’t it? There is no other
way I can articulate the feeling I came away with after
reading this book. I felt called to pray for the victims,
the offenders, the families, the legal representatives, the
prison personnel and those members of the ministries
who serve so faithfully to the members of society most
would choose to forget. Nothing in the title indicated the
spiritual journey I would embark on when I opened the
cover of this book, but I know that I am forever changed
after reading it.
16 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
 Calendar
Calendar
September
3-5 Family Camp at Camp Allen, complete with hula and fire dancer and much more. $435
for a family of four. See www.campallen.org for details.
4 BBQ and craft fair, Holy Comforter, Spring, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call 281.353.9169
for more information.
8 Organ concert with Andrew Dewar, Artist in Residence at the American Cathedral
of Paris at St. Thomas’, Wharton. See article, page 5 for details and additional concerts.
Benefitting St. Catherine’s, Stuttgart, Germany.
10 Episcopal Night at the Astros game, Minute Maid Ball Park, downtown Houston,
Astros vs Dodgers. Christ Church Cathedral will host a pre-game BBQ and invites others
from around the diocese to join the fun before attending the game. Parking is available
at no charge in the parking lot at San Jacinto and Texas, next to the Diocesan Center and
the Cathedral, within walking distance of the ball park. Tickets can be purchased at www.
astros.com/episcopal (use code episcopal1). Bishop Rayford High will throw out the first
ball. BRING YOUR HARMONICAS!!!
14 How Healing Becomes Killing: Eugenics, Euthanasia and Extermination lecture
featuring John Lienhard, author of The Engines of Our Ingenuity at the HAM-TMC
Library, auditorium of The University of Texas Medical School Building at 6431 Fannin,
Houston, TX 77030. 3 - 4:30 p.m.
19 Musical Reflections on the Windows of St. Andrew’s, Bryan, fall recital series featuring
Alan Strong, St. Andrew’s director of music. Series will highlight music that relates to
each of the stained glass windows. At 2:30 p.m. See www.standrewsbcs.org for more
information.
21 Prelude to dedication of new organ at the co-cathedral of the Sacred Heart, 1111
St. Joseph Parkway featuring Houston Chamber Choir, conducted by Robert Simpson,
organist and choirmaster at Christ Church Cathedral. Dedication week begins Oct.
2 with additional events. All Opus XIX events are open to the public. For ticketing
information and a complete concert roster, please see www.sacredhearthouston.org or
www.opusXIX.com.
21-22 Blandy Lectures at Seminary of the Southwest featuring Jeff Sharlet, New York Times
bestselling author. More information at www.ssw.edu/alumni or see story page 21.
24-25 Fall Gift Market, St. Mary’s, Cypress, 9-3, Pottery, jewelry, handcrafted gifts, home
décor, florals, silent auction, raffle, tea room and more. 15415 N. Eldridge Pkwy.,
Cypress. (corner of Louetta and N. Eldridge, Cypress)
29 How Healing Becomes Killing: Eugenics, Euthanasia and Extermination panel
discussion featuring Rabbi Samuel Karff, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo and Sheldon
Rubenfeld, MD, 3-5 p.m. HAM-TMC Library, auditorium of The University of Texas
Medical School Building at 6431 Fannin, Houston, TX. 3 - 4:30 p.m.
October
1-2 Exploring a New Path to Full Inclusion featuring Bonnie Anderson, president of the
Episcopal Church’s House of Deputies, hosted by Christ Church Cathedral, 1117 Texas
Ave., Houston. “Texas Episcopalians committed to the full inclusion of lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people in the life and ministry of The Episcopal
Church conceived and planned this conference to celebrate the diversity of the Episcopal
Diocese of Texas and to promote heartfelt and thoughtful conversation,” said organizers.
Begins with Eucharist on Friday at 7 p.m., continues Saturday, 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. No
registration fee. More information, www.movingforwardtexas.org.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
2-3 Fair trade gift bazaar, All Saints’, 209 West 27th Street, Austin, TX, on Saturday and
Sunday, beginning at 9 a.m. both days. Contact Jeanine Cuellar jeaninemcdc@gmail.
com for more information.
8-9 “The Church of the Future: Conversations with Phyllis Tickle” sponsored by the
Diocese of West Texas, at St. Luke’s, 11 St. Luke’s Lane, San Antonio, Texas 78209.
Registration of $50 includes Saturday lunch. For information see Special events at
www.dwtx.org or contact Lou Taylor at 210.824.5387 or lou.taylor@dwtx.org.
15-16 Episcopal Church Women 109th Annual Retreat at St. Mark’s, Beaumont. Call
409.832.3405 or email gdavis8@gt.rr.com for more information. See story, page 21.
‘Good and Beautiful Life’ Author to Speak at St. Francis
Spiritual Quest Conference, Oct. 1-2
James Bryan Smith, theology professor at Friends University in Wichita, KS, has
addressed more than 50 Christian spiritual formation conferences in the past ten years
and has written eight books. He will keynote at the annual Spiritual Quest weekend of
lectures and workshops at St. Francis, 345 Piney Point Road, Houston. Conference fee
is $45 with Saturday luncheon included.
Smith, who received an MDiv from Yale Divinity and a doctorate from Fuller
Seminary, is an award winning preacher and is a founding member of Renovare, a
spiritual renewal ministry. His work has been used as a centerpiece for Bible studies at
St. Francis.
“Smith’s teachings parallel mine,” said the Rev. Stuart Bates, rector of St. Francis.
“We believe that developing a deep friendship with God will bring you as close to God
as you choose to be.”
Spiritual Quest honors the late Richard Austin, an influential member of St.
Francis, a family counselor and psychologist. The conference opens with a lecture on
Friday evening and another on Saturday morning followed by break-out sessions. The
theme for 2010 is “Loving the God Jesus Knows: …embracing discipleship.” Several
hundred people have attended the event each year since its inception in 2008.
To register or for more information, visit www.sfch.org, contact Mary Beth Wurts
mbwurts@sbcglobal.net or call 713.464.2532 or co-chair Leiselle Sadler, 713.898.2017
or Lsadler@acuvac.com.
Integrity Houston Eucharist
(followed by dinner)
Third Friday of the month at 7:00 p.m.
Golding Chapel at Christ Church Cathedral
1117 Texas Avenue, Houston
F re e P a r k i n g in the Cathedral Garage at Texas and San Jacinto
17 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
 DIOCESAN NEWS

Book review

Register Now
www.campallen.org

Bishops’ Conference on

Outreach Ruby Payne to be featured presenter at

October 8 - 9, 2010, Camp Allen Bishops’ Outreach Conference.

Engage, Enhance Skills at 2010 Outreach Conference

T
he Bishop’s Outreach Conference,
October 8-9, at Camp Allen,
features a unique half-day workshop
with Ruby Payne, author of Bridges Out of
Poverty. Other speakers include Michelle
Shonbeck, executive director of Christian
Community Service Center, Houston, who
will address how churches of all sizes have
strengths and gifts for outreach.
Payne discusses the hidden rules that
govern how people behave according to their
social class. Those rules, because they are
hidden and only known within the group,
prove to be a major stumbling block for
individuals trying to move to a new social
class. Speaking to several hundred groups a
year, Payne is working to spread the word
that children of poverty need not suffer
through an educational system oblivious
to their needs. More than educators are
heeding her message. Judges, social workers,
ministers, community leaders and health
professionals are all learning from her work.
Throughout its 161 year history,
churches in the Diocese of Texas have served
their communities. Growth in outreach
over the last 20 years has been exponential.
Many of these outreach programs will be
highlighted at the conference. It is unusual
to find a congregation that isn’t supporting
refugees, a food pantry, emergency center,
or helping homeless families, gathering
backpacks or helping to support a clinic,
either locally or internationally.
There are more than 1000 ministries
sponsored through 153 congregations within
the 49,000 square miles of the diocese.
“This is an unbelievable witness to the
Gospel,” said Bishop Andy Doyle. “I hope
to see a lot of folks at this conference sharing
all the creative ways they are engaged in
ministry. This is the best possible expression
of ‘being’ the Church and provides many
avenues to engage others in and through our
congregations.”
For more information, contact Sally
Rutherford at sbrutherford@epicenter.org or
call her at 800.318.4452 or 713.520.6444.
Ruby Payne

Texas Episcopalian • September 2010 18 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org


People
The Rev. Carrisa Baldwin, assistant rector at St. Stephen’s,
Houston, has accepted a call as director of peace and justice
at All Saints’, Pasadena, California.
The Rev. Susan J. Barnes was elected as alumni
representative to the board of trustees at Seminary of the
Southwest.
The Rev. Matthew Boulter, formerly assisting at St.
Richard’s, Round Rock, will become assistant rector at
Christ Church, Tyler.
Randal E. Brown has been named Headmaster and
Head of School at All Saints’ School, Tyler. Brown was
formerly director of development at Christchurch School
in Christchurch, VA.
The Rev. Nan Doerr, rector of Redeemer, Houston,
and college missioner for the University of Houston, has
announced her retirement from active ministry.
The Rev. James Grace, former associate rector at Epiphany,
Houston, has accepted a call as Canon for Christian
Formation at Christ Church Cathedral, Houston.
The Rev. Bob Gribble, most recently non-parochial,
retired from active ministry on July 1.
The Rev. Lisa Hines, former locum tenens at St. Thomas,
College Station, has accepted a call as rector of Calvary,
Bastrop.
The Rev. Jerald W. Hyche, former associate at St.
Martin’s, Houston, has accepted a call as rector of St. James
the Apostle, Conroe.
The Rev. Neil “Scotty” F. Innes, former assisting priest at
Calvary, Richmond, has become interim rector at Calvary.
The Rev. Micah Jackson, assistant professor of preaching
at Seminary of the Southwest has been appointed Dean of
Community Life.
The Rev. Robert Leacock, formerly associate rector at St.
Michael & All Angels, Dallas, has accepted a position as
Upper School Chaplain at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School,
Austin.
The Rev. Victoria Mason, a deacon serving at El Buen
Samaritano, Austin, will now also serve at San Francisco
de Asis, Austin.
The Rev. Ralph Morgan has accepted a call as rector of
Christ Church, Eagle Lake. He was previously permanent
supply priest at Christ Church.
The Rev. Benjamin Phillips, formerly an associate at St.
John the Divine, Houston, has accepted a call as rector of
St. George’s, Dayton, Ohio.
The Rev. Robin Reeves, former interim rector of St. James
the Apostle, Conroe will become a Bishop’s Fellow in the
Chaplaincy Services at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital,
Houston.
The Rev. Barbara A. Van Black, formerly serving as
deacon at Grace, Houston, will now serve at Trinity,
Houston.
Gordon Williams, a member of St. John the Divine,
Houston, was named one of the Ten by Ten winners for
2010 by the Scriptwriters/Houston for Uncle John and the
General. His devotional, One Day at a Time, was published
in the July-August issue of The Upper Room.
The Rev. Zane Wilemon, Southwest alumnus, founder and
executive director of Comfort the Children International,
will receive the 2010 Charles J. Cook Award in Servant
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
DIOCESAN NEWS
Former Chancellor Dies
S idney Smith McClendon,
III, died June 12, 2010,
in Houston, Texas as the
result of an accident. An only
child, McClendon was born
in Houston in 1928. He was
a lifelong Episcopalian and
a member of St. Martin’s for
55 years. McClendon had a
long tenure in service to the
Episcopal Church, as vice Sidney Smith McClendon
chancellor for the diocese from 1969 through 1981 and as
chancellor from 1981 through 1998. Additionally, he served
on the Board of Directors of St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital
for almost 30 years. McClendon continued his service to
the Church in various capacities until his untimely death.
“Sidney was the model of servant leadership
throughout his long and devoted service to the Diocese
of Texas and to St. Martin’s, following on the remarkable
legacy of his father. Our prayers are with Sidney’s family
as we reflect with the deepest gratitude how many people
he influenced during his life,” said the Rt. Rev. C. Andrew
Doyle, Bishop of Texas.
His legal roots were deep as he followed his father’s
nearly 40 years as chancellor of the diocese. McClendon’s
father was a partner at Vinson & Elkins and wrote the
charter for St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. His great
grandfather, Micah H. Bonner, was a Justice of the Texas
Supreme Court during the Civil War and Chief Justice
during the Reconstruction.
A graduate of San Jacinto High School, Rice University
and the University of Texas School of Law (1952),
McClendon joined Vinson & Elkins in 1952, retiring in
1992. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Caryl Wagner
“Bunny” McClendon, three children and six grandchildren.
Leadership at Seminary of the Southwest’s matriculation
on September 9.
Newly ordained deacons’ placements:
The Rev. James Abbott, St. Alban’s, Waco, assistant to
the rector
The Rev. Robert Bliss, St. Luke’s, Belton, continues as
pastoral leader
The Rev. Susanne Comer, St. James’, Austin, assistant to
the rector
The Rev. Glenice Como, Christ Church Cathedral,
Houston, assistant to the rector
The Rev. Deborah Daigle, Holy Innocents’, Madisonville,
continues as pastoral leader
The Rev. Christine Faulstich, St. Matthew’s, Austin,
assistant to the rector
The Rev. Meredith Holt, St. Mary’s, Cypress, assistant to
the rector
The Rev. Eric Hungerford, Trinity, The Woodlands,
assistant to the rector
The Rev. Isaias Ginson, Good Shepherd, Friendswood,
assistant to the rector
The Rev. Nancy Ricketts, St. Michael’s, Austin, deacon
The Rev. Andrea Conklin, St. Andrew’s, Houston, deacon
The Rev. Ted Smith , deacon at St. Stephen’s, Liberty. He
was formerly priest-in-charge at St. Stephen’s.
19
John Worrell: Churchman
B y the Rev. Ken Kesselus
Ed. Note: The Rev. John Worrell died on July 24, 2010 from
complications of a fall. The following piece was written by the
Rev. Ken Kesselus for Nevertheless, an independent publication
that Worrell founded in 1990 and edited for more than 17
years.
R
etirement from active, ordained ministry gave
John Worrell the time to pursue fully a dialogical
forum through which Episcopalians could express
a diversity of viewpoints on important church matters in
order to gain appreciation for those with differing opinions
and perspectives. Moreover, he had developed a particular
passion for breaking down polarizing environments in which
church members were afraid or unwilling to disagree and
would not talk to one another across the lines of conflict.
John grew up with an understanding that not only was
there more than one side to any issue, but that mutual respect
for differences was essential for the wellbeing of people. His
boyhood years in Eagle Pass, Texas, thrust this view on him
from his earliest days, seeing two views: one Mexico and one
Texas, gaining an appreciation for the culture and history
of both.
After his family moved to the tri-cultural city of
Corpus Christi, his mother modeled both respect for those
who were different and conscious rejection of stereotyping
and prejudice. John’s experience with the Episcopal
Church, in which he was baptized as an infant, also added
to his appreciation of the breadth and richness of human
experience.
Once ordained, John worked for reconciliation of the
races, supported integration of diocesan camps and learned
to frame the question as one of whether race or baptism
would define membership in the Church.
In 1959, he served as chaplain at Lamar State College,
aiding the process of desegregation by working with other
local clergy and city officials. He came to know, practically,
the reality that people with differing views could meet
to reason with one another and find a good and peaceful
agreement. After moving to Houston in 1965, he worked
with an interdenominational, multi-racial group of clergy
to build community and trust, strategizing how to avoid the
violence and race riots that were spreading across America.
Their strategies were opening conversation, learning to
appreciate those on the other side, and finding the leverage
to bring feuding parties together enough to at least prevent
tense situations from getting out of hand.
When John retired in 1990, he turned this energy
and experience toward the publication of Nevertheless
(NTL), “an independent publication within the Church”
focusing on “church life ... moral choice, and ... the way
church decisions are made and carried out.” He espoused
a broad Anglican view that would not tolerate doctrinaire
expressions, “especially with the implication that those who
disagree are either wicked or fools.” He invited “thoughtful
articles and letters” that would promote Christian discourse
while remaining free of “sarcasm, scorn, and ad hominem
remarks.” Uncertain of where the work would take him
and any readers, he based NTL on this passage from Luke’s
gospel: “Master, we have toiled all night and have taken
nothing: nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net.”
With the Episcopal Church at the national level growing
increasingly divided and polarized, John envisioned NTL as
See John Worrell, page 23
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

Camp Good News Finds Agape Love “Cooler” People
Prepared to Step In
Campers pose for the requisite summer photo.
F
or the ninth year, children, aged 10-15, who have
one or both parents incarcerated, attended summer
camp in June at Camp Allen. According to Ed Davis,
coordinator of Restorative Justice for the diocese and camp
director for the week, 40 percent were returning campers, and
one cabin counselor was a “graduate” of Camp Good News
who wanted to “give back.” It is the policy of the Restorative
Justice Ministries Council to encourage exceptional youth
with the privilege of returning as leaders after they age-out
as campers.
While enjoying all the regular camp activities – arts
and crafts, blobbing, swimming, canoeing and more - some
games for Camp Good News are initiated as cooperative
activities so that the campers learn to work together and rely
upon one another. Camp is an experiment in learning to
live together and Camp Good News kids do as well as any
campers. It is a tribute to the resident cabin counselors that
peace reigns so well. Challenge courses provide the ultimate
cooperative venture.
The highlight of Camp Good News this year was the
spiritual component. Davis held up the Bible on Sunday
night and asked, “How old is this book?” Someone shouted
out, “2000 years.” Davis acknowledged that that was right
for the New Testament and we pegged the
oldest part of the Old Testament at more
than 3500 years. This led to the question,
“What does a book this old have to say to
us?” The following five days examined five
biblical characters: Amnon, the Virgin
Mary, Barnabus, Jesus’ earthy father Joseph
and Hannah. The theme for the week was
“choices and consequences.”
“If you are skeptical about the future,
you should have witnessed the kids soak up
the teachings,” Davis said. Several afternoons
the clergy held an open conversation with
campers of their gender housed in one of
the cabins. The Rev. Roberta Knowles from
Hope, Houston, and Scott Thompson from
Holy Cross, Sugarland, said, “They got it,
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
DIOCESAN NEWS
they understood!” Knowles and Thompson each taught
lessons along with Boy Scout Chaplain Eric DeVries. These
three people were back for their second year and all have
asked to return next year.
Paul Vickery, director of Camp Allen’s environmental
Discovery Program, co-directed the camp for the fifth
year and was instrumental in planning, handling conflict,
running the challenge course and teaching about insects,
birds and snakes.
Church members from St. Martin’s, Houston, and
St. Stephen’s, Huntsville, wrote messages of faith and
encouragement to each camper. Many others throughout
the diocese helped support the campers through scholarship
funds.
“The lesson relearned this year at camp is that
enjoyment at camp includes much more than the outdoor
activities. The Bible is alive and the children understand the
message-the lessons it teaches. They understand that a God
they cannot see is still alive and powerful and cares for them.
They see and feel agape love. They see a way to live together
in peace. They see these things also because Camp Allen
leadership recruits and trains counselors and senior staff of
exceptional quality. Thanks be to God!” Davis said.
20
I
n mid-June, as hurricane season descended on the Texas
coast, Texas Episcopal Disaster Relief and Development
(TEDRD) held the first training of emergency spiritual
care teams, sponsored by the national Episcopal Relief and
Development (ERD).
The training, believed to be the first of its kind in the
Episcopal Church, highlights the diocese’s commitment to
emergency preparedness and response. Participants learned
strategies and plans that will allow them to serve affected
communities in the event of a disaster. Archdeacon Russ
Oechsel and the Rev. Gill Keyworth will serve as the
Diocesan Emergency Response Coordinators in the event of
a deployment of the “Cooler People,” (so called because they
will be equipped with coolers of drinks).
In addition to having the new and stable repair and
rebuild model with TEDRD, the Diocese of Texas can
now respond conscientiously to the spiritual needs of those
affected by a disaster.
“Cooler People” will help to support local parishes in
their response to their community. By bringing in outside
spiritual care assistance, local affected clergy and lay persons
can focus on their parish and personal recovery without
ignoring the larger community.
Episcopal Relief  & Development will use
the training as a pilot program for future endeavors across
the country.
“The disaster response training was a milestone for
ERD’s Disaster Preparedness Initiative,” said Katie Mears,
manager of USA Disaster Preparedness and Response for
ERD. “By holding the first regional response training, the
Diocese of Texas has piloted for us how this process can
work—from bringing together leaders to creating a response
plan, identifying local leaders to be trained and bringing
together neighboring dioceses to share their experiences and
learn together.”
Representatives from Fort Worth, Louisiana and
Mississippi also attended the training with the intent of
sharing the new spiritual care approach in their own dioceses.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
 DIOCESAN NEWS

ECW plans 109th Annual

Retreat at St. Mark’s, Beaumont
By Lisadiane Etheredge
Where can you spend a
weekend relaxing, growing
spiritually and connecting with
Episcopal women of all ages? If
you said the 109th ECW Annual
Retreat at St. Mark’s in Beaumont,
you answered correctly!
Friday and Saturday, October
15-16 will be a weekend like no
other, including: inspirational
worship, breath-taking music, unique and
enlightening workshops, wind down and relaxation time and
opportunities to connect with your sisters in Christ.
“We’re delighted and thrilled to be hosting this year’s
ECW Retreat and cannot wait to have everyone here for a
weekend when we can reflect on God’s grace in our lives
and how it has flowed like musical notes. It will truly be a
weekend with the rhythms of grace,” said Shelly Vitanza, St.
Mark’s host committee co-chair.
The weekend will begin Friday afternoon and conclude
by 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. All workshops will be held at
historic St. Mark’s in downtown Beaumont. The host hotel
is the Holiday Inn Beaumont Plaza and Suites.
Registration
A registration packet was mailed to each church in the
diocese in mid August. New this year, the ECW is offering
online registration. Registration by mail is also available.
For more information about registration, please contact Gail
Davis, ECW annual retreat registrar at 409.832.3405 or
gdavis8@gt.rr.com.
Bestselling author,
Outreach Project
The outreach project for the Annual Retreat will be Ubi
Jeff Sharlet, scheduled
Caritas, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas
that provides quality healthcare for the uninsured in the to speak in Austin
Beaumont area. Tours of the medical and dental clinic will
be available at the retreat. Donations of cotton balls, dental
floss, toothbrushes, toothpaste and cash will be gathered at J eff Sharlet, New York Times bestselling author of
The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart
of American Power, assistant professor of English at
St. Mark’s.
Dartmouth College, and a contributing editor for
Opportunities to shop Harper’s and Rolling Stone will present the 2010 Blandy
Lectures at Seminary of the Southwest on September 21
“We have great vendors this year for optimum holiday
and 22. Sharlet has been writing about the intersection
shopping,” said Nancy McGrade, St. Mark’s host committee
of politics, fundamentalism and culture for more than
co-chair. “One of our vendor booths this year will be the
ECW Booth and we are inviting all ECW’s to participate.” a decade.
St. Mark’s, Beaumont, is known for its annual chili In addition to two lectures, Sharlet will participate
lunch and will be selling its chili packets at the ECW in a breakfast round table with seminary faculty and
Booth. All churches are invited to bring special items to sell
Austin journalist and religion blogger, Eileen Flynn.
such as cookbooks, aprons or Christmas ornaments. For
Seminary professors Scott Bader-Saye, Anthony
information about selling items in the ECW Booth, contact
Kate Davis, ECW annual retreat vendor chair at kated@ Baker and Alan Gregory will lead a lecture and discussion
applicationfactory.com or 409.289.6927. session on Beyond the Family: A “Red Tory” Model of
More information about the retreat is available on the Theology and Politics about a new political conversation
ECW page at www.epicenter.org, where you will find links emerging in Britain that combines theological reflection
for registration, schedule and workshop descriptions. with political vision. 
Three people will be honored during the two–day

ECW Raises Funds for “ReLeaf ”

alumni convocation. The Rev. Esteban Saucedo, ’57, and
Dr. Harry Gunkel, ’08, will receive the Hal Brook Perry
Distinguished Alumni Award. Saucedo, an Episcopal
priest for 53 years serves primarily Spanish speaking
“Trees for Galveston” is a new project aimed at helping and City of Galveston Tree Committee. She later toured each
people in Mexico, Texas and New Mexico. Gunkel, a
Galveston’s continuing efforts to recover from Hurricane Ike. of the Episcopal properties in Galveston with Pete Smith of
retired physician who joined Volunteer for Mission after
Many trees were damaged or destroyed. the Texas Forest Service, in order to assess
Galveston resident and diocesan the need at each location. completing his master’s degree at the seminary, now
ECW board member, Jacque Ellis, The ECW Board serves in the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem. The Rev.
and diocesan ECW president, approved a fundraising Raymond Pickett will receive the Durstan R McDonald
Kaye Pendarvis, have goal of $15,000 by Teaching award.
begun working the end of 2010 More information at: www.ssw.edu/alumni.
with the for planting trees
Galveston Island in Galveston.
Tree Conservancy Funds will Integrity Joins the Crowd
and the City of s u p p o r t
Galveston Tree plantings in Crowds at Houston’s Annual Gay Pride Parade waved and
Committee to see Ga l ve s t o n welcomed the float sponsored by Houston’s chapter of
how the Diocese parks and Integrity on June 26. Integrity, a nonprofit organization of
of Texas Episcopal p u b l i c lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Episcopalians and
Church Women might places as well their friends, founded in 1974, has been a leading voice for
assist the “Galveston Re Leaf ” Project, as at each of the inclusion. A Eucharist in the Golding Chapel of Christ
which has a goal of planting 5000 trees over five the Episcopal properties in Galveston. Church Cathedral is held monthly on the third Friday
years. Please contact your convocational coordinator followed by a potluck dinner. For further information,
Ellis attended a public meeting with representatives if you are interested in helping with this very visit integrityhouston.org or contact S. Wayne Mathis at
from the Texas Forest Service, City of Galveston Parks, important project. A list of contacts is included at 832.630.0651.
members of the Galveston Island Tree Conservancy www.epicenter.org/ecw.

Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org 21 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010


Churches whose
Assessments are Current
June 30, 2010
The Following Churches were current in the payment of
their Diocesan Assessment as of June 30, 2010:
Alvin Grace
Anahuac Trinity
Angleton Holy Comforter
Atascocita Christ the King
Austin Resurrection
San Francisco de Asis
St. Christopher’s
St. David’s
St. James’
St. John’s
St. Luke’s on the
Lake
St. Mark’s
St. Matthew’s
St. Michael’s
Bay City St. Mark’s
Baytown Trinity
Beaumont St. Mark’s
St. Stephen’s
Bellaire San Mateo
Belton St. Luke’s
Brenham St. Peter’s
Burnet Epiphany
Calvery Epiphany
Cameron All Saints’
Cedar Park Christ Church
Center St. John’s
College Station St. Thomas
St. Francis
Conroe St. James’ the Apostle
Copperas Cove St. Martin’s
Dickinson Holy Trinity
Freeport St. Paul’s
Friendswood Good Shepherd
Galveston Grace
Georgetown Grace
Hearne St. Philip’s
Hempstead St. Bartholomew’s
Henderson St. Matthew’s
Houston Christ Church
Epiphany
Grace
Holy Spirit
Hope
Lord of the Streets
Palmer Memorial
St. Alban’s
St. Andrew’s
St. Christopher’s
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
St. Cuthbert’s
St. Francis’
St. John the Divine
St. Martin’s
St. Mary’s
St. Stephen’s
St. Thomas
St. Timothy’s
Huntsville St. Stephen’s
Jasper Trinity
Jefferson Christ Church
Katy Holy Apostles
Killeen St. Christopher’s
Kingwood Good Shepherd
La Grange St. James’
La Marque St. Michael’s
La Porte St. John’s
Lake Jackson St. Timothy’s
Lampasas St. Mary’s
League City St. Christopher’s
Liberty St. Stephen’s
Lindale St. Luke’s
Livingston St. Stephen’s
Longview Trinity
Marble Falls Trinity
Marshall Trinity
Mexia Christ Church
Palacios St. John’s
Palestine St. Philip’s
Pearland St. Andrew’s
Pflugerville St. Paul’s
Port Neches Holy Trinity
Richmond St. Mark’s
Rockdale St. Thomas’
Sealy St. John’s
Silsbee St. John’s
Stafford All Saints’
Taylor St. James’
Temple Christ Church
Texas City St. George’s
Tyler Christ Church
St. Francis’
Waco Holy Spirit
West Coumbia St. Mary’s
Wharton St. Thomas’
22
DIOCESAN NEWS
Walk for Hope to Inspire Renaissance
St. Vincent’s House, a diocesan Hurricane Ike. The Hope Mile provides a clean and safe
social service agency in Galveston,
challenges churches in the diocese
walking area in the agency’s neighborhood to promote and
encourage physical fitness and well being.
to celebrate St. Vincent’s Day on “Our hope is that persons and groups getting together
Saturday, September 25 by walking to walk will receive multiple benefits that can serve as the
“a mile in their shoes,” either at St. catalyst for continued progress, transformation and healing
Vincent’s or locally at 11 a.m. “We are to the people of Galveston, its neighborhoods and the city
initiating the Hope Renaissance Mile at itself,” Jackson said. “We want the Hope Mile to be a spark
that time and want others to ‘walk’ with us,” said Michael to ignite the Renaissance of Galveston.”
Jackson, executive director of St. Vincent’s House. For further information, to participate or support Hope
The Hope Renaissance Mile is a new initiative to Mile, please contact St. Vincent’s at 409.763.8521 or visit
promote and support Galveston’s continuing efforts to www.svhope.org. St. Vincent’s House is located at 2817
rebuild and heal its communities and neighborhoods post- Alfreda Houston Place (Postoffice Street) in Galveston.
Heart Recipient, Volunteer
Celebrates Milestone
of the St. Luke’s transplant
staff, I have enjoyed years
of good health and blessings
that I thought would never
be possible,” Creech said.
An inspiration to
others, he has dedicated
much of his time and energy
to spreading the word about
the importance of organ and
tissue donation. Creech is
a founding member of the
LifeGift Vital Volunteer
program and a member of
St. Luke’s Heart Exchange, a
support group for individuals
and families going through
the transplant experience. By
educating others to register
as organ donors and offering
encouragement to recipients,
Creech is a true crusader for
the cause of organ donation.
Randy Creech (center) with his family 20 years post transplant.
“It is an honor to have patients like Randy who turn
T
wenty years ago, on July 7, 1990, Randy Creech challenges into opportunities to serve,” said Katherine A.
received a new heart. Creech was diagnosed with Stark, director for St. Luke’s Cooley Transplant Center.
cardiomyopathy and an active virus in his heart A recent recipient of the Texas Medical Center Volunteer
muscle, and told he had no more than a year to live unless he of the Year Award, Creech “is an extension of the LifeGift
had a transplant. He received a second chance at life thanks family,” said Kim Davis, managing director of Hospital
to a family who generously decided to donate their 19-year- Services for LifeGift. “The 20th anniversary of his heart
old son’s organs when he died unexpectedly. transplant is a special milestone for all of us who have the
Since his transplant, Creech has retired from a pleasure of knowing him.”
successful career at ExxonMobil, celebrated the graduations St. Luke’s performed 33 Heart Transplants between July
and weddings of his children and is now enjoying life as the 2008 and June 2009. There are currently 74 people waiting
grandfather of seven grandsons. for a heart at St. Luke’s. Unfortunately, Texas ranks last when
“Thanks to the grace of God, reflected in the very special it comes to registered organ donors but you can register in
love demonstrated by this donor family and the skill and care five minutes online by visiting www.donatelifetexas.org.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org

Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music
Announces Task Force Group Leaders
Blog, email set for easy communication
W
hile there remains great diversity of opinion
within the Episcopal Church and the Anglican
Communion over issues of sexuality, the General
Convention of the Episcopal Church voted in 2009 to begin
to gather resources for same-sex blessings. Bishop Andy
Doyle has developed a special task force to engage the diocese
in conversation around these issues.
“This is not a surprise,” said Bishop Doyle. “I am
putting together a task force to help us lead through the
issues arising from General Convention 2012 where these
liturgies will be debated. We have to be able to talk about
what is going on in a constructive manner – a Christian
manner. We have to learn to be in a relationship of mutual
affection for both the structures of the Episcopal Church
and the Anglican Communion,” he said. Bishop Doyle
encouraged members of the diocese to share their thoughts
with the Standing Commission while this work continues.
“Ultimately,” he said, “until we are willing to listen and speak
with one another as a body of faithful people following Jesus
Christ, we are going to have difficulty doing the greater work
Pakistan: Churches Launch
Emergency Relief Program
Following Devastating Floods
T
he Diocese of Peshawar has launched an
emergency relief and rescue program for families
affected by the recent monsoons and flooding in
Pakistan as the death toll from the natural disaster rose
above 1,200.
The program is assisting more than 1,300 Christian
and Hindu families, as well as other minorities and
some Muslim church workers, according to an e-mail
sent from the Peshawar diocese to church partners. The
diocese is providing affected families with food.
The United Nations has estimated that almost one
million people have been affected by the flooding, 45
bridges destroyed, and thousands of houses swept away.
The diocesan e-mail noted that monsoon rains
“have caused havoc all over Pakistan, but the Khyber
Pakhtunkwa province has been hit hard by the floods.
Thousands of villages are under water and hundreds of
people are either dead or missing. All road links within
the province have been cut down.”
Several Christian families have been rescued and
accommodated at St. Mary’s Church and School in
Risalpur and at Christ Church and School in Nowshera,
the release said. “The diocese is putting all its efforts to
reach the unreached caught in the floods.”
The Diocese of Peshawar is part of the Church of
Pakistan, a united ecumenical province of the Anglican
Communion that was established in 1970 with a
union of Anglicans, Scottish Presbyterians (Church of
Scotland), Methodists and Lutherans.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
of mission and attracting people to our church.”
The Episcopal Church Standing Commission on
Liturgy and Music (SCLM) is addressing its duties to collect
and develop theological and liturgical resources for same-
sex blessings, as charged in General Convention Resolution
C056, through three main task forces and by establishing
communication tools to solicit responses from the wider
Episcopal Church.
The Rev. Ruth Meyers, Ph.D., SCLM chair, pointed
out, “We are following the direction outlined in C056:
to share some of the ideas being considered as task groups
develop theological and liturgical resources; to encourage a
conversation about the theological, liturgical and pastoral
principles for blessing same-sex relationships; to offer and
invite theological reflection about this work.”
To accomplish these tasks, SCLM has established three
task groups to focus on particular areas: a liturgical resources
group; a pastoral/teaching resources group; and a theological
resources group.
Resources
Resources and important information posted on the SCLM
website include:
John Worrell: Churchman, continued from page 19
John Worrell
a vehicle for promoting dialogue on important issues, not
only as they affected the Diocese of Texas, but nationally
and internationally as well. His efforts to present a diversity
of views that might lead to an overall balanced approach
were often frustrated, he surmised, because conflicts had
deteriorated so far that opposing sides often refused to
communicate with one another, except through invective.
Throughout the years, with his wife Vivian serving
ably as a one-person production crew, he wrote, edited, and
succeeded in attracting sound articles on a wide variety of
topics. Gratefully acknowledging the support that made
possible seventeen years of publication, John wrote these
parting words in his last issue in 2007:
“We never quite succeeded in providing, as we had
23
• Member lists for the three task forces
• GC09 Resolution C056 Liturgies for Blessings
• Response of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and
Music
Resources available: Standing Commission Response to
2009 Resolution C056 SC_L&M_2010_May_TFC056.pdf
found at http://generalconvention.org/ccab/files/2
Episcopal Church Standing Committee on Liturgy and
Music: http://generalconvention.org/ccab/mandate/2
Communicating with SCLM
Meyers, who served as a GC09 deputy from the
Diocese of Chicago and is the Hodges-Haynes Professor of
Liturgics at Church Divinity School of the Pacific, explained
that a blog has been established for easy communication.
She noted, “SCLM and the task force groups welcome
comments, suggestions and ideas.” The blog site is http://
liturgyandmusic.wordpress.com.
SCLM is committed to communicating with the wider
church, Meyers stressed. To do so, a special email address
has been established for all correspondence, to offer ideas,
or to contact a SCLM member: sclm@episcopalchurch.org
Episcopal Church Standing Committee on Liturgy and
Music:: http://generalconvention.org/ccab/mandate/2
hoped, a place where very different views were argued out
in ‘charitable yet rigorous’ debate, at least not often. Perhaps
the times had already turned to discomfort with diversity
and serious exploration of important differences in a shared
environment. It is also likely that our willingness, on the rare
occasions when it seemed needed, to question the wisdom or
fairness of our Bishops gave us a partisan reputation we had
not desired … I hope that our shared concern for the success
of the Gospel and the welfare of the Church will continue
and grow. And, of courses, we will share as well an interest in
the next chapter in the story of Nevertheless!”
Later, in an interview, John amplified his hopes and
concerns. In retrospect, he said it was much harder to build
the “conversations” to which NTL had been dedicated
than those who founded the magazine had expected. In his
experience, people willing to seek out those who disagree, so
they might broaden their perspectives and understand “what
the other guy thinks,” are quite rare.
John’s legacy is a gentle and rational approach to
fulfilling our mission - restoring all people to unity with
God and each other in Christ. As a broken and frail body,
we struggle, perhaps as never before, in parlous times. He
would urge us, in bold terms, to seek the reconciling spirit
of Christ in all we do as brothers and sisters. No one knew
better the sentiment of John Donne’s classic poem “No man
is an island, entire of itself.” And like Donne’s insight, we all
are diminished by the loss of John Worrell.
Kesselus is a retired priest living in Bastrop.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

Camp Allen Going Green
The solar panel is heating water for the Discovery Lodge at Camp Allen and replaces a 120 gallon “old clunker” of a gas water
heater. Two separate solar projects at Camp Allen have been funded through grants. One of the projects will serve as a
teaching tool for the Discovery Program, for which more than 6,000 students come to Camp Allen each year. They learn about
the environment and receive outdoor education. In addition to powering the Little Green School House, there is a rainwater
collection system that will store 1,000 gallons and irrigate the crops. The second project is able to heat water for the Discovery
Lodge staff in their six-bedroom facility. Both solar installations are complete and operational.
Job Opportunities
Diocesan Communication Office
seeks writer/comm. assistant
Successful candidate must have journalism background,
feature writing and proofing experience, as well as knowledge
of social media and e-news platforms, good communication
skills and an excellent work ethic. Send résumé to Carol E.
Barnwell at cbarnwell@epicenter.org with cover letter and
one writing sample.
Diocesan Communication office Marketing/
Communications, Design Intern
Summer/fall intern to: update website, help post and maintain
social networking sites. Other design opportunities includes
writing, layout, photography, videos, slide presentations and
pod casts. Send résumé and samples to LaShane Eaglin at
leaglin@epicenter.org.
St. Andrew's, Pearland,
part-time Christian Education Director (PreK-12)
To begin immediately. Please forward résumé to the Rev.
Jim Liberatore at frjimbo@msn.com.
St. Christopher's, Killeen,
part-time organist/music director
To lead music ministry, enhance worship experience. Contact
the church office at 254.634.7474 for an application.
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
DIOCESAN NEWS
St. Luke's on the Lake, Austin,
part-time worship music leader
To foster, support and grow its contemporary liturgy
ministry. Contact the Rev. Parker Jameson at frjpjameson@
stlukesonthelake.org.
St. Mary's, Cypress,
part-time Children's Christian Formation Coordinator
To oversee Sunday Morning Children's Christian Formation
and chair the council responsible for children's ministry.
St. Mary's also seeks a part-time child care coordinator for
administrative tasks needed to oversee Sunday morning
nursery as well as child care needs during the week. Contact
Cindy Wingfield, at cwingfield@stmaryscypress.org.
St. Stephen's, Beaumont, part-time youth minister
Call the church office at 409.892.4227 or e-mail the rector,
the Rev. Nancy DeForest, at ndeforest@ststephensbmt.org.
St. Timothy's, Lake Jackson, part-time Youth Minister
The position requires about 10 hours a week, primarily
centered on EYC meetings Sundays from 5 to 8 p.m.
Candidate could live in the Houston area. Contact the Rev.
Andrew Parker for a job description at aparker@stimothy.
org.
24
“ARS MORIENDI”
The Art of Dying
By the Rev. Bob Horner
I
pray you don’t find this subject MORBID; much
has been written about it for several thousand years.
It is important to understand and do some planning
for this final act, for you and/or your loved ones. I believe
our Book of Common Prayer burial rites are meaningful,
comforting and helpful to many.
Scripture and Christian tradition teaches us to die
well by trusting God, repenting of our sins, forgiving
ourselves and others and having compassion for all those
less fortu­nate.
Despite all the above, death is a threat to many and
prolonging of life as long as possible often equals dying
well, though this is generally not the case.
We are abdicating our right to deal with profound
ques­tions about faith and bioethics by allowing science
and medi­cal technology to dictate terms of extending life
and we thus avoid decisions on how to live well to the
end, say goodbye to those we love, and meet God with
DIGNITY. Should life be prolonged through any means
necessary? How do we deal with pain at the end of life?
The inevitable question in end-of-life care is how
to determine when “enough is enough” in terms of
treatment options. Family members often assume that
telling doctors to do “everything” for a dying relative is a
sign of love and devotion. Doctors and other caregivers
also feel obligated to maximize “life saving” of family,
and patients and caregivers alike are vague, and partly
out of fear of lawsuits and also that medical training
focuses on SAVING LIFE.
Fortunately, there are educational programs and
new groups springing up to give wise counsel and
provide im­portant end of life care: namely Hospice and
Palliative care programs. In all of this complexity, one
of the important aspects is written or well understood
feelings and desires about end of life care on the part of
the patient. This shouldn’t wait until the END times. If
it isn’t resolved while the patient is still alert, then heroic
efforts, resuscitation, intubation, etc. most likely will
happen.
The family should strongly request dialog with the
physician as to the efficacy of any treatment and its affect
on QUALITY of life.
There is so much more to say about this and I have
good resource material if you require it. Any of your
clergy can be most helpful in resolving some of these
issues. I strongly believe this should not be left to the
MEDICAL profession to decide.
Horner referenced Roman Catholic theologian, L. S.
Cahill, from an article in Sojourners in this reflection.
Email Horner at deaconbob2@comcast.net.
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
 DIOCESAN NEWS

Book review

Incarnating
the Charter
www.epicenter.org/ChristianFormation

The 2010
Christian Formation
Conference
Open to all who are interested in the
ministry of lifelong formation
September 24-25
Camp Allen

The Board Members of

St. James’ House

Get Your Twinkle On
Camp Allen Fundraiser Honors
cordially invite you and your friends to attend
St. John the Divine Rector, Larry Hall, and Bennie Hall

The 50th Anniversary It’s exciting to spread the word about Camp Allen’s eighth annual Starry Nights and
Campfire Lights gala, Thursday, October 21, honoring Bennie and Larry Hall.
“We are proud to salute this outstanding couple as Larry approaches his 30th
Silver Tea anniversary as the rector of the St. John the Divine,” said Camp Allen President
George Dehan. “Bennie, a grandmother extraordinaire, has been by his side through
at the home of Bette and Ralph Thomas
it all.”
202 Arborway, Houston, Texas 77057
Dehan also expressed his gratitude to Susan & Jack Mayfield and Sheila & Tad
 Tuesday, October 19, 2010, 3 - 6 p.m.
Mayfield, co-chairs of the event.
Valet Parking available
The casual evening at Houston’s Junior League offers a sumptuous Tex-Mex
RSVP, if attending to Margaret Baze at
mebaze@gmail.com or 713.467.1887
dinner and fast-paced auction to raise funds so that underserved children can attend
Summer Camp at Camp Allen.
St. James’ House, a retirement community in Baytown, is a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Shine your boots, get your twinkle on and join the party. Your participation
Texas that provides a high level of care in a loving Christian environment. It is open to all, regardless
of financial resources. If you are unable to attend; but would like to support this ministry, please ensures some blessed children will gain memories to last a lifetime. For remaining
mail your donation to St. James’ House, 5800 West Baker Road, Baytown, Texas 77520. tickets or underwriting opportunities, please contact Lauren Day, laurend@
www.stjameshouse.org. campallen.org or call 866.334.2267.

Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org 25 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010


We Have Met the Enemy
The Rev. Sam Todd
“
We have met the enemy and they are ours,” Commodore
Oliver Hazard Perry wrote after defeating a British
squadron on Lake Erie on September 10, 1813. It is
the best quote to come out of the War of 1812, which did
not settle much but did put an end to British impressments
of American seamen and to American dreams of annexing
Canada. On a positive note, the war lasted less than three
years and killed only 19,465 Americans.
The war in Afghanistan has now, at almost nine
years, become the longest war in American history. On a
positive note, less than 1,500 Americans have been killed.
We are trying to train an Afghan army of 171,600 which
can take over security and allow our troops to come home.
“It is a nearly impossible mission. Nine out of 10 Afghan
enlisted recruits can’t read a rifle instruction manual or
drive a car, according to NATO trainers. … Commanders
routinely steal their enlisted men’s salaries. Soldiers shake
down civilians at road checkpoints and sell off their own
American-supplied boots, blankets and guns at the bazaar
– sometimes to the Taliban. Recruits tend to go AWOL
after their first leave, while one-quarter of those who stay
in service are blitzed on hashish or heroin, according to an
internal survey carried out by the Afghan National Army
(ANA)” (TIME 6/14/10 p. 52).
Speaking of heroin, one thing that is on the upswing in
Afghanistan is opium production, which is now the world’s
largest and accounted for 50 percent of Afghanistan’s GDP
in 2007 according to the United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime. During their reign (1994 to 2001), the Taliban,
puritanical Muslim fundamentalists that they are, restricted
Texas Episcopalian • September 2010
GUEST COLUMNIST
opium production and finally banned it altogether in spite
of the hardship this worked on poppy farmers. Now the
insurgents have lightened up; the non-insurgents did not
need to. By 2007, 93 percent of the opiates on the world
market originated in Afghanistan. One of the beneficiaries
is reputed to be President Hamid Karzai’s younger brother.
“The White House says it believes that Ahmed Wali Karzai
is involved in drug trafficking “(J. Risen, New York Times,
10/4/08). With friends like these, who needs enemies?
“The war in Afghanistan has now,
at almost nine years, become the
longest war in American history.”
The ultimate financiers of the drug trade are of course
the world’s heroin users of whom about 73,000 reside in the
USA. So American money and military are supporting a
government and fighting an insurgency both of which are
complicit in trafficking heroin, some of which is also paid
for by Americans.
Much closer to home is Mexico, the main foreign
supplier to the U. S. of cannabis and a major supplier of
methamphetamine “which has a street value of $100 a
gram” (Time 6/28/10 p.32). “Ninety percent of the cocaine
sold in the U.S. comes through Mexico. Tens of billions
of dollars in drug money is believed to cross the border
heading south each year, much of it in bulk cash shipments.
More than eighty percent of the weapons that have been
seized in Mexico and that could be traced originated in the
U.S. The outrage of many Mexicans over this avalanche of
military-grade firearms is matched only by their impotent
anger at the bottomless U.S. demand for illegal drugs” (The
New Yorker, 5/31/10, p. 46). They have met the enemy and
he is us.
The production of everything from drugs to petroleum
is demand-driven. The chief villain in the Gulf Oil Disaster
appears to be BP. A redundant BOP controller/operator box
on the sea bed had been improperly functioning for weeks;
thus there was no back-up. A technician on the rig said
that a BP employee instructed the Transocean drilling crew
to drill faster with more pressure because they were behind
schedule. They still kept drilling after witnesses saw large
handfuls of rubber seal around the drill stem start coming up
26
with the mud designed to prevent blowback to the surface.
Of the number of “willful violations” of safety procedure, as
defined by OSHA over the last several years, Exxon-Mobil
has one, Conoco-Phillips has seven, BP has 670.
But why are they drilling in such deep places?
President Barack Obama said that “we are running out of
places to drill on land and in shallow water.” But what
about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge or the National
Petroleum Reserve – 23 million acres of Alaska’s North
Slope, near the existing pipeline and designated nearly a
century ago for petroleum development? A break there
would have been easily fixed, would have disrupted no
one’s livelihood and would have killed few, if any, wildlife.
And how about shallow waters off our Atlantic and Pacific
coasts? Governments have put them off limits for thirty
years. Californians are happy to use oil drilled in someone
else’s backyard but hands off theirs.
Who else has oil on their hands? How about all of
us who have made it politically impossible to build nuclear
power plants for the last thirty years thus forcing us to burn
fossil fuels? France gets 80 percent of its power from nuclear
power plants. Some environmentally conscious Americans
are switching to electric cars powered by batteries. But
batteries only store electricity; they do not produce it. Most
of ours is produced by power plants burning coal.
How about the demand of all of us for energy? When
I was a child my parents had one automobile, no air
conditioning, no dishwasher, no clothes dryer. My wife and
I have two cars, central air and heat, a dishwasher, clothes
dryer and God knows what else. But who in Texas is willing
to give up air conditioning to conserve energy? Not me.
On a classic 1970 Earth Day poster, Walt Kelly
depicted Pogo the Possum and Porky pine standing next to
a polluted swamp. Pogo says to Porky pine, “We have met
the enemy and he is us.”
Email Todd at: stodd2423@att.net
Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org
Bishops’ September Calendars
1 10 a.m. Executive Board, Camp Allen
1-2 Congregational Development Retreat, Camp Allen
2 4:30 p.m. SLEH Charities Board, Diocesan Center
Andy Doyle
Us
Doyle

l l o w
3-12 Compass Rose Annual Meeting, London, England
15-22
24-25
House of Bishops Fall Meeting, Phoenix, AZ
Fishers of Men Retreat, Camp Allen
F o @TexasBishop
25
26 10:30 a.m.
Christian Formation Conference, Camp Allen
St. Stephen’s, Huntsville, CF
Carol Barnwell
5 p.m. ELCA and TEC Ecumenical Remembrance, CCC @cebarnwell
29 10 a.m. Church Corporation Meeting, Diocesan Center
Disaster Relief
@ikerelief

1 10 a.m. Executive Board, Camp Allen

1-2 Congregational Development Retreat, Camp Allen
5 10:30 a.m. St. John’s, La Porte, CF In the Anglican Communion
High

5 p.m. Hope, Houston, CF A global community of 77 million Anglicans in

8 6 p.m. St. Stephen’s, Liberty, CF 500 dioceses in 164 countries
9 3 p.m. St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System Board Meeting, Houston
10 7 p.m. Episcopal Night at Astros Baseball Game, Houston Archbishop of Canterbury
12 10:30 a.m. Ascension, Houston, CF The Most Rev. Rowan Williams
4 p.m. St. Barnabas, Houston, CF Lambeth Palace, London, England, SE1 7JU
13 12 noon Christ Church, Tyler, ECW Meeting Anglican Communion Office
14 1-4 p.m. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Board Orientation, Houston 16 Tavistock Crescent
15 9:15 a.m. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Board Meeting, Houston Westbourne Park
16-22 House of Bishops Fall Meeting, Phoenix, AZ London W 11 1AP
23 1 p.m. St. James’ House Board Meeting United Kingdom
24 10 a.m. Christian Formation Conference, Camp Allen www.lambethpalace.org
p.m. Wedding Rehearsal, St. Paul’s, Waco www.anglicancommunion.org
25 11 a.m. Wedding, St. Paul’s, Waco
26 10 a.m. Good Shepherd, Kingwood, CF
In the United States
3 p.m. St. Mark’s, Beaumont, CF
A community of 2.5 million members in 120
28 4 p.m. All Saints’ Episcopal School Board Meeting, Tyler
dioceses in the Americas and abroad
29 6 p.m. All Saints’, Crockett
Presiding Bishop
The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori
Episcopal Church Center
815 Second Ave., NY, NY 10017
1.800.321.2231
www.episcopalchurch.org
1 10 a.m. Executive Board, Camp Allen
1-2 Congregational Development Retreat, Camp Allen
Harrison

9 Seminary of the Southwest Matriculation and dinner In the Diocese of Texas

9 9:30 a.m. St. Luke’s Executive Board Meeting One Church of more than 85,000 members in
12 8 a.m. Christ Church, Temple 158 congregations in the eastern quadrant
12 3 p.m. St. Francis, Temple of Texas, established in 1849
15-22 House of Bishops Fall Meeting, Phoenix, AZ
24 7:30 a.m. El Buen Samaritano Executive Committee Meeting
Bishop
26 10:30 a.m. St. Matthew’s, Austin
27 5:30 p.m. El Buen Samaritano Board Meeting The Rt. Rev. C. Andrew Doyle
29 6:30 p.m. Georgetown Stewardship Dinner dotbp@epicenter.org
30 12:00 p.m. SLEHS Finance and Audit Committee Meeting 1225 Texas Ave.
Houston, TX 77002-3504
1.800.318.4452 1.713.520.6444
FAX 1.713.520.5723
Austin: 1.512.478.0580, 1.800.947.0580
Tyler: 1.903.579.6012
www.epicenter.org
editor: cbarnwell@epicenter.org

Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org 27 Texas Episcopalian • September 2010

Texas Episcopalian • September 2010 28 Find us on the web at www.epicenter.org