The Pathfinder: May 16th, 2024
Isaiah Project Update
All Souls Invites Eight Organizations to Apply for Grants
After many months of research, discussion, prayer and reflection, the Isaiah Project team in April recommended to the Vestry that All Souls invite eight East Bay organizations to apply for grants that we hope may in some small measure promote repair of the harms caused by the history of racism in our local communities.
At a meeting held on April 24, 2024, the Vestry unanimously approved the Isaiah Project team’s recommendation, and this past week All Souls sent a written invitation to each of the organizations. We have asked that the organizations submit a written expression of interest, answering a few brief questions, by August 1, 2024.
We have drawn our inspiration and guidance from Isaiah 58:12, which proclaims that “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in.” Each of the organizations is addressing community needs in one or more of the four focus areas that had previously been approved by the Vestry: housing; children and youth services; Native American land and sovereignty; and environmental justice. Our hope is that in the fall of 2024, we will be in a position to make recommendations to the Vestry on awarding grants to 3 or 4 of the applicants. Each of these grants will be in the range of $100,000 to $125,000 and will likely be disbursed over a three-year period, beginning in 2025.
Here is a brief description of each organization, including a link to its website.
Elizabeth House
Elizabeth House, in North Oakland, is a small organization but it makes a tremendous impact on the people it serves – women and children (primarily people of color) who have been living unhoused and in extreme poverty – by providing transitional housing. Ninety percent of the women who come to Elizabeth House were homeless for between 1 ½ and 5 years. All have experienced domestic violence, addiction, or extreme poverty. Families live at the House for an average stay of 18 months, but can stay up to two years. According to the website, 80% of the women who have stayed at Elizabeth House go on to find safe, permanent housing and find employment.
Serenity House
Serenity House, located on San Pablo Avenue in West Oakland, provides substance-abuse treatment, recovery housing, and wrap-around support services for women. Some of the women were formerly incarcerated. Their highly individualized services include one-on-one counseling, healing groups, case-management, benefits advocacy, workforce development, and family reunification support. Some women choose to live in Serenity House’s recovery residence while others receive services through the Day Program.
https://www.serenityhouseoakland.org/
American Indian Child Resource Center
Native American led community service organization whose mission is to “preserve and promote the cultural integrity of American Indian youth and their families.” The organization provides culturally congruent services to children and families (e.g., culturally focused mental health services for children), recruits and trains American Indian foster parents/families, and prioritizes youth programming.
Hack the Hood
Hack the hood provides Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and AAPI youth with tech skill-building programs and career navigation support that are grounded in justice and support economic development and growth. The organization offers both summer programs and a year-long program (the latter in partnership with Laney Community College) that provide tech-based learning, support from tech professionals, and career exploration and mentorship.
Attitudinal Healing Connection
Attitudinal Healing Connection (also known as the Center for ArtEsteem) addresses social ills by providing opportunities for creative expression and healing to children, families, and individuals. The organization “empowers individuals to be self-aware and inspired through art, creativity and education, and to make positive choices to break the cycle of violence for themselves and their communities.” The program has served over 75 at-risk schools and their communities, directly and indirectly reaching over 100,000 children, youth and families in the East Bay.
https://www.ahc-oakland.org/overview
Youth Spirit Artworks
YSA was founded in 2007, as a response to the enormous employment challenges of unhoused and low-income youth. Young people facing housing instability have overwhelmingly experienced abuse and neglect, mental and physical health struggles, and lack of access to public resources. YSA works with transitional age youth by providing art training, job training, leadership training, academic aid, wellness support, and housing support, including the building of Tiny Homes.
https://youthspiritartworks.org
Rising Sun Center for Opportunity
Since its founding in 1994, Rising Sun has operated as a direct service environmental justice organization in the East Bay, supporting people and communities at the intersection of equity, climate, and jobs. The organization works to provide access to opportunities, training, education and career development in energy conservation, renewable energy, and other areas of environmental and climate action. They place particular emphasis on working with youth, young adults, women, people of color, and those with little or no income. https://risingsunopp.org/policy/
Urban Tilth
Founded in 2005 and based in Richmond, CA, Urban Tilth “inspires, hires, and trains local residents to cultivate agriculture, feed our community, and restore relationships to land to build a more sustainable food system, within a just and healthier community.” The organization’s goals are to work towards food justice and environmental justice, and promote healing for the environment and communities of color. They operate many programs, including “7 school and community gardens and small urban farms to teach and employ community members to grow, distribute, cook, and consume thousands of pounds of local produce each year, to create a more equitable and just food system within a healthier and more self-sufficient community.”
The Isaiah Project team currently consists of the following members: Phil Brochard; Nathan Brostrom; Wendy Calimag; Lewis Maldonado; Toni Martinez-Borgfeldt; Paul Mathew; Mark Mattek; and Christine Trost. We will be reviewing applications in August and September and in October hope to make recommendations to the Vestry on the awarding of grants. We will provide a further update at that time. In the interim we ask that you pray for the Isaiah Project as we move into the next phase of our work.
– Lewis Maldonado
In Memoriam
It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of David Cooke's death. Just past noon today, after Brahms' German Requiem had sounded its final note, surrounded by Maggie and Julia and Riley, David breathed his last. He had been ill with two kinds of cancer the better part of the past year, and despite great courage and determination, his body was simply done.
We are anticipating David's memorial service will be at All Souls within the next few weeks, with more information to follow. In the days to come, please pray with Maggie and Riley and Julia, offering them your love and support.
May David rest in peace and rise in glory.
– Phil+
Associate for Music Search
The search for a new Associate for Music is underway! Anne Yardley and Nat Lewis are co-chairing the search committee with members Jen Kern (vestry), Madeleine Feeley, Kathleen Summerland Heuser, and Julie Legrand. We hope to begin reviewing applications in mid-June and bring 2–3 finalists to the rector when he returns from sabbatical in mid-August.
We need help from the parish in two important matters:
First, please help us get the position description out through word of mouth and your own social platform connections. We want to cast the net as widely as possible!
Second, please fill out this survey. We want to have input from the parish in order to create a profile of the congregation’s thoughts on church music. We think it will be very helpful to have this to share with prospective musicians as we discern who will be the best fit with our community.
If you have comments or questions, please feel free to reach out to Anne at ayardley@drew.edu or Nat at natflewis@gmail.com
– Anne Yardley and Nat Lewis, on behalf of the Music Search Committee
Announcements & Events
Happening This Week
Worship This Sunday
8:00am, Holy Eucharist in Chapel
10:30am, sung Eucharist (click here to access the live stream)
Wednesday 9am Service. Join the Zoom call here, or join us in person in the Nave. Password: 520218.
Reading Between the Lines Bible Study, Sunday @ 7:00a. Click here to join by Zoom, or join them in-person in the Common Room.
Pentecost Ministry Fair and Potluck! Pentecost is this Sunday, May 19th (you are invited to wear red!). Just following the 10:30a service, we’ll have a ministry fair and potluck in the courtyard. All are invited to stick around and see the many and varied gifts of this community and sign up to get involved. Ale Souls will also unveil their latest Pentecost Brew. Bring some lunch snacks and desserts to share for the potluck.
Adult Formation
First Summer Book Group!
Join Jack Shoemaker and other All Soulsians for our first group June 9, 16, 23, and 30th at 9:15am in the Common Room.
Let’s begin at the beginning. Join us as we read Reading Genesis, the latest book from Marilynne Robinson. A recent review of this book calls her “one of the most influential Christian writers and public intellectuals alive today.” Come see if you agree. Her book includes the complete text of Genesis in the King James version, but feel free to read any translation you wish. We will imagine dividing our reading of the 50 chapters of Genesis into four parts, but our discussions of Robinson’s book may well discover a looser structure.
Other 2024 Book Groups:
July 7, 14, 21
Charles Duhigg, Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection (Random House, 2024). Led by Raymond Yee.
July 28, August 4, 11
Steven Charleston, We Survived the End of the World: Lessons from Native America on Apocalypse and Hope (Broadleaf Books, 2021). Led by Marguerite Judson.
Any questions? Contact Anne Yardley at ayardley@drew.edu
Confirmation and Reception Interested in being confirmed or received into the Episcopal Church? Bishop Coadjutor Marc Andrus will visit All Souls on Sunday, June 2nd. Reach out to Phil+ or Emily+ for more information.
Children & Family
Nursery The downstairs nursery is open and available to you for your use whenever you’re at All Souls. This is not a staffed nursery, so an adult must be there with your child, but if you need a quiet place to take a time out, change a diaper, let your child play or take a rest, the nursery is open for you to do all of those things. If there is a service going on that’s being livestreamed, you will be able to watch the livestream on the computer in the nursery as well.
Children’s Ministry Sunday School continues each week during the 10:30 a.m. service for children from pre-K through 5th grade. Children head downstairs at the start of the service, then return after the “Peace.” See an usher if you need directions.
All ages attend a shared Godly Play “Storytime.” Then, our youngest kids (pre-K to 1st grade) remain in the Godly Play classroom for “wondering” and “work” time, while our older kids (grades 2-5) split off for deeper investigation and exploration.
Note: Our final week of regular Sunday School will be May 26th. Stay tuned for updates about children’s ministry over the summer!
Read more about our Sunday School program here.
Youth Program - Youth Group is happening this week, May 12th, from 7-8:30 in the Parish Hall. Save the date for our end-of-the-year youth bonfire on Sunday, May 26th!
If you are not receiving weekly Youth Program updates but would like to, please reach out to Emily B to be added to our mailing list.
Justice & Peace
Menstrual Hygiene Donations In partnership with a UC Berkeley organization called Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach, All Souls has begun a weekly collection of menstrual hygiene products for folks in the Berkeley and Oakland encampments. Please bring products on Sundays and place them in the designated basket in the Narthex. If you'd prefer to make a monetary donation, you can write a check to All Souls and indicate "hygiene donation." Contact Beth Christensen (beth.christensen@gmail.com) with questions.
Needs of the Community
Sunday Hospitality Sign-Ups Coffee Hour is such a sweet time, but is even sweeter when there is food available for young and old, and even for those occasional neighbors who swing by for a cup of coffee and a pastry on Sunday mornings. If you’re able to bake or cook or purchase food for a coffee hour on a Sunday, please put your name on this document (click here). All food can be dropped off in the kitchen before the service starts.
Everything Else
Lector/Intercessor, Chalice, & Lay Liturgical Assistant Training 6/8 If you are interested in getting more involved in the liturgy on Sunday mornings by serving as a chalice bearer, a healing minister, a lector or intercessor, or (we’re attempting to bring back an old practice of ours) a Lay Liturgical Assistant, please come to a training on June 8th just after the 10:30a service. If you’ve got questions, please see Emily HC, emily@allsoulsparish.org.
Parish Picnic: Save the date for June 2nd, just following the 10:30a service when we’ll all head up to the Padre Picnic Site in Tilden Park for our annual parish picnic. The church will provide the burgers (beef and vegan), buns, and condiments. We just need you all to bring sides, drinks, and desserts. We also need some folks to get up to the site early and to help grill. If you can help out, see Jeannie Koops or Emily Hansen Curran.
Save the Date - Parish Camping Trip, July 19-21! Join us for the annual camping trip to Big Sur this summer. Details and sign-ups forthcoming.
BREAD Camp: Summer's almost upon us! Sign ups are still open for Episcopal summer camp at The Bishop's Ranch! "BREAD Camp is a great place to discover community, spirituality and learn more about yourself. Campers spend mornings exploring spirituality through activities, conversation, and small group discussions. Afternoons are filled with lots of fun including swimming, arts and crafts, hiking and other elective activities. Evenings are filled with fun games, campfires, compline and a few surprises! Lots of music fills each day." Visit bishopsranch.org for details, or talk to Nat Lewis.
From our Diocesan Newsletter - In Memoriam: The Rev. Dr. John Archer
It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of the Rev. Dr. John Archer on April 23, 2024.
A faithful servant of the church, Archer dedicated his life to ministry, serving at St. Edmund's, Pacifica; Resurrection, Pleasant Hill; and All Souls, Berkeley (Rector, 1990-92). Ordained as a deacon on May 22, 1974, by Bishop Harold Barrett Robinson, and as a priest on November 1, 1974, by Bishop George E. Rath, he touched the lives of many with his compassion, wisdom, and devotion.
As we honor his memory and celebrate his life, we invite those who knew Archer to share additional information or photos for next week's DioCal News & Events newsletter. Please send details to the communications team at newsletter@diocal.org.
May the Rev. Dr. John Archer rest in peace and rise in glory.
