The Pathfinder: November 7th, 2024
Isaiah Project Update:
All Souls Awards Grants to Four Organizations
The All Souls Vestry voted unanimously, at its May 2022 meeting, to commit a tithe – 10 percent – of the Living Waters Capital Campaign towards community impact projects. The Vestry also asked the rector to recruit a group of parishioners to serve as the Isaiah Project team or workgroup, with the goal of developing recommendations to the Vestry on specific community impact projects.
After many months of research, discussion, prayer and reflection, the Isaiah Project team in October of this year recommended to the Vestry that All Souls award grants of $100,000 each to four East Bay organizations. The Vestry approved this request. These four organizations are: the American Indian Child Resource Center; Elizabeth House; the Center for ArtEsteem; and Youth Spirit Artworks. More information on each of these organizations follows below.
The grants will be disbursed over a three-year period, beginning in 2025. Our hope is that these grants may in some small measure promote repair of the harms caused by the history of racism in our local communities. The Rev. Phil Brochard has communicated the news to all eight organizations that were considered via email. In addition, we will be sending hardcopy letters to the four grant recipients after blessing these letters in church this coming Sunday.
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 grantee organizations is addressing community needs in one or more of four focus areas that had previously been approved by the Vestry: housing; children and youth services; Native American land and sovereignty; and environmental justice.
The Isaiah Project team is comprised of the following members: Philip Brochard; Nathan Brostrom; Wendy Calimag; Lewis Maldonado; Toni Martinez-Borgfeldt; Paul Mathew; Mark Mattek; and Christine Trost. The workgroup has been meeting regularly since September 2022. We spent the initial months considering focus areas All Souls should emphasize. After receiving input from the congregation, including through two Sunday forums, we recommended the above four focus areas, which the Vestry approved in December 2022.
Rather than turning immediately to selecting specific organizations for potential grant consideration, the Isaiah Project team in 2023 decided that we should first spend time looking at the history of the harms in our East Bay communities. A recently published book, Reparations: A Plan for Churches, by the Rev. Peter Jarrett-Schell, an Episcopal priest, suggests that, in order to do the work of repair, we must acknowledge what we do not know, ask questions, and seek to learn something about the history of our surrounding communities – “truth-finding”, as the author calls it. We also decided that we should look at the All Souls archives to see whether there might be any relevant All Souls history that would inform our work.
We spent a good part of 2023 on this truth-finding work, and in September 2023, we issued a report summarizing our findings and detailing some of the breaches in our East Bay communities related to the four focus areas. The report has been posted on the All Souls website and can be found here. We also shared these findings and engaged in heart-felt discussion with the congregation at the Parish Retreat and in the Parish Hall in September 2023.
In the fall of 2023, the Isaiah Project team began conducting research on many non-profit organizations in the East Bay that are doing work in one or more of the four focus areas. We located potential organizations from a variety of sources, including: recommendations from members of the congregation; recommendations from the Episcopal Impact Fund and the East Bay Foundation; the personal knowledge of members of the Isaiah Project team; and internet searches. We focused particularly on smaller organizations with annual budgets in the range of $5 million or less; that are rooted in the local communities; that are addressing in some way the breaches of racial injustice and have people of color in their leadership and on their boards; and that are having a significant impact on the communities they serve.
Through these various sources, and after evaluating more than 35 organizations that are doing work in our focus areas in a geographic area ranging from Richmond to San Leandro, the Isaiah Project team, with approval from the Vestry, invited eight organizations to apply for the grants, with an application deadline of August 1, 2024. The following eight organizations all submitted timely applications: Elizabeth House; Serenity House; the American Indian Child Resource Center; Hack the Hood; the Center for ArtEsteem (formerly known as Attitudinal Healing Connection); Youth Spirit Artworks; Rising Sun Center for Opportunity; and Urban Tilth.
All of these organizations submitted compelling applications. The Isaiah Project team spent considerable time reviewing all of the applications and had meaningful discussions about the strengths of each of them before reaching our final recommendations.
Here is a brief description of each of the four organizations selected, including a link to its website.
Elizabeth House, founded in North Oakland in 1991, 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. Approximately 80% of the women who have stayed at Elizabeth House go on to find safe, permanent housing and find employment.
American Indian Child Resource Center
This is a 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, founded in 1974, provides culturally congruent services to Native American children and families (e.g., culturally focused mental health services for children), recruits and trains American Indian foster parents/families, and prioritizes youth programming.
The Center for ArtEsteem (formerly known as Attitudinal Healing Connection) addresses social ills by providing opportunities for creative expression and healing to children, families, and individuals. Founded in 1989, 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 Center for ArtEsteem also provides education to youth on environmental justice, particularly the history of environmental injustice experienced by people of color in Oakland. 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.
YSA was founded in 2007, as a response to the enormous employment challenges of unhoused and low-income youth. Young people, especially people of color, 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.
The Isaiah Project team will offer more information about these remarkable organizations in an Adult Formation class scheduled for January 2025.
The Isaiah Project team gives thanks that our All Souls community is able to initiate these relationships with local organizations that are doing so much for so many. In the words of Isaiah 58:10, “if you offer food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.”
Peace,
–Lewis Maldonado
Introducing Realm
We are excited (finally!) to roll out our new church database and directory with you all! This database will make it easier for you to connect with other folks from church, stay informed about upcoming events and register for events, find and connect to different ministries and small groups, volunteer and sign-up for Sunday roles, and manage your giving to All Souls, just to name a few.
This is an exciting step for us as a church because it empowers our teams and groups to more easily connect, allows us all to connect much more easily, and gives the staff and clergy the ability to pay better attention to the health and vitality of our congregation. Especially as I transition out of All Souls over the next six months, my hope is that this tool will help us connect with each other more directly, rather than needing to go through the staff to get everything done.
It’s all very exciting. But, the success of this tool depends on all of us. The more we use it, the more effective it will be. So, first, you’ll need to register an account.
How to Sign Up
Later today or tomorrow you will receive an email from Realm inviting you to create a login. The email will have a title similar to this, “All Souls Episcopal Parish: Join our online community!” and will look something like this:
Now, this next part will be the toughest: you must create a login and password, and you will need to remember it. But I believe in you all. As Glennon Doyle says, “we can do hard things”. Once you have created an account, you will be able to log in and access all of the features of the database. One of the first things you’ll want to do is to “opt in” to the church directory and then manage your privacy settings so that you have control over what is visible to the rest of the congregation. You’ll then likely want to download the app to your phone (it’s called Connect) so that you can access the directory and church-related things from your phone.
Need Help?
We know that for some of you this will feel very similar to other platforms you use and for others of you, this will be brand new. Luckily, Realm has created a bunch of user guides and videos to help make this transition smoother. All Soulsian Dan Hardy has compiled all the relevant videos and guides and put them on our website so that you have an easy first pass at attempting to troubleshoot any problems you might have. You can find the link to those tutorials by clicking here.
Then, we have pulled together a team of All Soulsians (folks we’re calling the “Power Users”) who are going to be around and available to help answer any questions y’all might have. Starting this Sunday, and for the next two weeks, some of these “Power Users” will be posted up in the Narthex after the 10:30a service with laptops to help. If you’re having trouble logging in or accessing your account, bring your device with you to church so that they can work directly on your problem.
If you still can’t figure out how to get in or are having other problems, or if you don't receive an email from Realm today or tomorrow, please contact me or Dan Hardy (danwhardy@gmail.com) and let us know. We’ll make sure that somebody connects with you to help you get you in.
Gratitude
I want to say a huge thank you to the Realm Power User team (Harlowe Zefting, Raymond Yee, Amanda Cereske, Matt Stimpson, and Grace Telcs), and a huge thank you to Dan Hardy. He has put in so many hours to move this thing along and has been instrumental in making this happen.
I also want to say thank you to you all, in advance, for your patience. We are learning as we go and the road ahead will not be perfect (for example, I am still learning how to do the Rota in Realm, so for now we’re still using our old system!). This transition will require us, as in all things, to have a little trust and patience, but I believe that in time, we’ll be better off. There are exciting times ahead!
–Emily Hansen Curran
Highlights from the Feast of All Saints & All Souls
Last Sunday, we celebrated the Feast of All Saints and All Souls. We honored our loved ones who have passed away by reading a necrology. And we celebrated baptisms, as a reminder of new life in Christ. It was a moving, joyous, poignant day.
Our celebration is ongoing. For a few more weeks, you are invited to participate in our All Souls and All Saints Day art project in the nave. Write a special message to a loved one who has passed away, and then pin it to one of the ribbons on the columns alongside the pews. Writing directly to this person creates a space of connection, where an absence can turn into a presence.
In case you had trouble seeing the baptisms— or if you want to relive the experience!— you can watch our livestream here.
–Emily+
Continuing to Answer the Call
All Soulsians continue to pledge generously to support the operating budget in 2025! Many pledgers have met or exceeded the tailored giving guidance we have initiated this year. If we can continue our current momentum while moving closer to full participation, we can reach or pledge goal of $878,000!
You can pledge using a pledge card, mailed to many people last week and available in the back of the chapel or in the narthex, or our online pledge form.
There are two ways to see the progress of the pledge campaign. A large rain gauge, unveiled at Ingathering Potluck, tracks the total dollar amount pledged as we head to our goal of an enhanced commitment to Welcome and Kinship. This week we are introducing our new Pledging Households progress meter. Our goal is 180 pledging households.
Both displays show this year’s progress compared to past years and our 2025 goals. Both displays will be in the chapel before and after the 8:00 service and in the Narthex during the rest of the week.
We will continue to actively solicit pledges through the first week of December, immediately before the Vestry considers a budget for 2025. If you have already decided about a pledge, it would be helpful for the Vestry if you could submit your pledge soon so they an accurate sense of the income for next year.
You can find more information about the pledge drive here. If you would like to talk about the pledge drive or your individual pledge, please reach out to me at rflynch@sbcglobal.net.
I am grateful for the inspiring generosity of the community so far and look forward to continuing the effort over the next few weeks.
–Richard Lynch for the AOC Committee
Living Waters Weekly Update
Design: a plan or drawing produced to show the look and function or workings of a building, before it is built or made.
Anyone who has done a home renovation project knows that the design of the project goes through changes. Some changes are made out of necessity, like to follow code, while others are made because a vision changes. Our project has encountered both of these!
After many weeks of waiting, our courtyard has been poured! It is not available for our use yet, but should be soon. The design was worked on by our landscaping committee and the property committee and we think it will be a delightful gathering spot.
The undercroft has four new bathrooms getting their tile floors this week. There are also new doors being installed, as well as old doors, and fresh paint seems to be everywhere. Exciting times!
Egress remains the same this week. Use the Cedar Street doors, the emergency exit is through the sacristy, and porta potties are on Spruce. ADA bathroom is at Jordan Court.
It is always exciting to see a design come together!
Above: Courtyard concrete is poured and smoothed.
Above: Completed courtyard pour!
–Ann Myers and the Property Committee
Announcements & Events
Happening This Week
7:00am, Reading Between the Lines Bible Study either in person in the Jordan Court Conference Room or Click here to join by Zoom.
8:00am, Holy Eucharist in Chapel. Please access the Chapel through the copper doors on Cedar St.
9:15am, Adult Formation. “Heretics and Creeds” with the Rev. Emily Boring, in the Jordan Court Community Room.
10:30am, Sung Eucharist; enter through the Cedar St. doors. Join us via livestream here.
Wednesday: 9am Eucharist Service, in the Jordan Court Community Room. Join us on Zoom here.
Notice: Next Sunday (11/17) is the Berkeley Half Marathon. Street closures will significantly affect the area around the church. Please plan your route ahead of time and allow extra time for parking and driving. Click here for information on closures and detours.
Adult Formation
Current Class: “Heretics and Creeds,” led by the Rev. Phil Brochard and others
Every Sunday at All Souls we say or sing the Nicene Creed. You may be wondering why. Well, in a word, heresies. For four weeks in late October and into November the Rev. Phil Brochard (joined by Emily Boring and Mark Richardson) will explain what a heresy is, why they were important to the early church, and why they continue to matter today. Come engage the tensions of a Christ that is both human and Divine, a God that is three in one and one in three, and the meaning of free will. Come to understand why you believe what you do, and quite possibly how that relates to the right belief of the Church. This class meets in the Jordan Court Community Room on the following Sundays at 9:15 am: Nov. 10, 17, 24.
Membership Class Wondering how to learn more about All Souls and connect with our community? Whether you are new here or looking to become a member, join us for a class held in the Chapel at 9:15 am on the following Sundays, beginning this week: November 10, 17, 24, December 1st.
Children & Family
Sunday School: Sunday School (for kids pre-K through 5th grade) happens every week during the 10:30 service. Meet outside of main Cedar St. doors at the start of the service; teachers will lead you around the corner to our temporary classroom space. (If you’re late, ask an usher for directions). Children will return to church at the “Peace.”
Godly Play Training is approaching! Join us to learn about this unique philosophy of children’s spiritual formation and train to be a teacher. All are welcome. November 23rd, 9am to 1pm, at All Souls. To sign up, email Emily B by Saturday, November 16th.
To join our Children and Family mailing list, email emilyb@allsoulsparish.org
Youth Program
Youth Group generally happens each Sunday from 7-8:30 pm in the narthex.
However, please note that there is no Youth Group this Sunday (11/10). Enjoy your Veteran’s Day Weekend!
Coming Up:
November 17th: All grades, “Practicing Gratitude” Thanksgiving-themed games, crafts, prayers of gratitude (with special guest leader Phil Brochard!!)
November 24th: High School Small Group
View and download our full fall calendar (Sept. - Dec.) here.
To join the weekly youth mailing list, email emilyb@allsoulsparish.org.
Justice & Peace
TONIGHT (11/7): Film Screening,“Crip Camp,” 6:30-9pm Join Jenny Kern, Erin Horne, and the Rev. Emily B to view an award-winning documentary about the intersection of civil rights and disability justice, followed by a discussion. Jordan Court Community Room, snacks provided. (Note: Children and teens are welcome, but please be aware that this film is rated R and includes talk about sexual activity).
Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach (USMO) is a Cal student group that organizes outreach events every Saturday to bring food and resources to homeless encampments in Berkeley. As the weather gets colder, they are especially seeking donations of the following items:
General hygiene products (toothbrushes/toothpaste, deodorant, soap, etc.)
Clothes/cold weather gear
Bottled water
Please bring these donations to the red bin in the Narthex. Email Beth Christensen (beth.christensen) for donation and other direct volunteer opportunities with USMO.
Serve With Us
Information Session: Becoming a Stephen Minister All Souls is planning to offer a Stephen Ministry training class beginning in February 2025. If you have ever thought about becoming a Stephen Minister, please come to the information session on Sunday, November 24 at noon in the Chapel. Find out the nuts & bolts of Stephen Ministry—how to apply, what’s involved in training, and (best of all!) offering your gift of compassionate listening to another. You can also learn more about what it is like to be a Stephen Minister here. Can’t come to the session Nov 24? Contact Marilyn Flood, 510-517-7192 or marilyn.flood4902@att.net for more information.
Open Door Dinner this week, Nov. 10th. Every second Sunday of the month we host a jambalaya meal for anyone who is hungry. Please come by and pick up a meal to go, or sit and eat in the courtyard. For more information or if you would like to volunteer to help with this meal, contact Jennifer A (akiyama.jennifer@gmail.com)
Needs of the Community
Meal Train If you are in need of meals, or if you’d like to join this network to deliver food to others, please email Sarah Oneto at sarahoneto@gmail.com.
Everything Else
Emmaus Groups If you’re looking for a small group here at All Souls either because you’re new to the church, or because you’re looking for a place to build deep community, or because you’re trying to be intentional about growing and caring for your spirit as a follower of Jesus, or because you’re looking for a place to work out some personal discernment alongside others, an Emmaus Group might be the thing for you. Reach out to Emily Hansen Curran, emily@allsoulsparish.org for more information.
Next Week (11/14): Second Thursday Lunch, 12:30 All women of the parish are invited to a potluck lunch on the 2nd Thursday of the month at 12:30 in the Jordan Court Community Room. Please bring one of your favorite lunch dishes or a beverage to share and feel free to invite others. Contact Gloria Bayne for more information: gloria.bayne@comcast.net.
New Church Directory/Database called Realm We’re looking for some “power users” who would be willing to be trained in our new church database/directory who could then help others use the new system once we have launched it widely to the whole church. If you’re willing to be trained so that you can help others, please see Dan Hardy: danwhardy@gmail.com.
Sermon Poetry is back by popular demand! Enjoy the following haiku, composed by Chat GPT, based on the Rev. Phil Brochard’s sermon last Sunday.
Grief with strength entwines,
Not alone in loss we wait,
Held by sacred hands.
You can listen, or listen again, to sermons on our website or our podcast channel.
