Sacred Ground

A film-based dialogue series on race and faith

Two new Sacred Ground Circles to Begin This Fall!

Two sessions are being offered this Fall. An online evening circle will start on Monday, September 29th, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. The group will meet every other week for six weeks, take a holiday break, and resume on Monday, January 12th.

If you enjoy meeting in person during the day, we invite you to join our circle starting on Wednesday, October 1st, from 10:00 AM to noon. This group will meet every other week for a total of six weeks. After a break for the holidays, we will resume for another six weeks starting on February 4th.

Click here to register for one of the fall meeting times.

View the video below to hear what Saint James parishioners have said about the Sacred Ground experience.

Sacred Ground is a film and readings-based dialogue series on race, grounded in faith. Small groups are invited to walk through chapters of America’s history of race and racism, while weaving in threads of family story, economic class, and political and regional identity.

The 11-part series is built around a powerful online curriculum of documentary films and readings focusing on Indigenous, Black, Latino and Asian/Pacific American histories as they intersect with European American histories.

Sacred Ground is part of Becoming Beloved Community, The Episcopal Church’s long-term commitment to racial healing, reconciliation and justice in our personal lives, ministries and society.

The series is open to all and especially designed to help white people talk with other white people. Participants are invited to peel away the layers that have contributed to the challenges and divides of the present day while grounded in our call to faith, hope and love. Click here to learn more about Sacred Ground from the Episcopal Church website.

For more information about upcoming sessions, click here to email Lissa Olson.

Click here to read our vision and mission statement

Why it is important for the Church to Discuss Race and Racism by Pamela A. Lewis

Over the last few years, race and racism have been much in the news, and as a country, we have been engaged in what is called a “national conversation” about these topics. While some have welcomed the conversation, others have asked, “Why does everything have to be about race?” . . . Read more

Sacred Ground Circle 4 is currently forming and will begin meeting every other week from 10:00 AM until 12:00 PM on the following Wednesdays:

February Feb 12, 26
March 12, 26
Apr 9, 23

Have questions about the program? Please Click here to email Lissa Olson. If interested in joining Circle 4, please click here to register. Deadline for registration is February 5th.

The mission and justice committee is looking for parishioners who are willing, over the next year, to commit to attending and participating in these small group sessions with facilitators.

Circle 1 sessions will be on Thursdays 6:30 - 8:30 PM
This group is closed and is facilitated by Lissa Olson  and Damon Myers. This group will be finishing the last 6 sessions.

September 14 & 28
October 12 & 16
November 2 & 16

Circle 2 sessions will be on Tuesdays at 6:30 - 8:30 PM
This group is facilitated by Melanie Martín and Jane Miller. This new circle still has room for more members. This fall, Circle 2 will complete the first 6 sessions.

September 19
October 3, 17 & 31
November 14 & 28

 Click here to learn more at the Episcopal Church national website.

If interested in joining Circle 2, please contact Damon Myers, myers.damon@gmail.com. 
Registration deadline: September 5th

Each school year, as part of our ongoing commitment to Carter and MacRae Elementary School, Saint James helps with the Power Packs Project so that children return to school Monday morning well-fed and ready to learn.

Summer Power Packs Volunteers Needed!

Beginning June 20/21 and continuing every Wednesday and Thursday through August 16th, summer help is needed so children in downtown Lancaster can have nutritious meals all year long. Whether you can help 1 week or all 8 weeks, volunteers are needed at several sites throughout Lancaster County.

Needed each week:

  • Drivers to pick up food at warehouses
  • Warehouse volunteers to help pack food for shipment
  • Drivers to take food to distribution points
  • Packers to pack food for students in SDOL summer school. This is a great volunteer activity for families with school-aged children.
Click here to sign up for the summer!

Power Packs Stats for the 2017-2018 School Year

During the 2017-2018 school year, the Power Packs Project. . .

  • Distributed over 500,000 meals, a 10% increase from last school year.
  • Served 44 locations throughout Lampeter-Strasburg, Lancaster, Manheim Township, Penn Manor and Warwick School Districts.
  • Added new distribution sites at Manheim Township Middle School, Kissel Hill and John Beck Elementary Schools.
  • Served an additional 200-500+ families through our affiliate programs each week at our affiliate sites in Cocalico, Columbia, Donegal, Eastern Lancaster, Ephrata and Hempfield School Districts.
  • Served Lebanon county schools in the Lebanon and Annville-Cleona School Districts.
  • Began sourcing food from new suppliers.
  • Raised just under $90,000 during the 2017 Extraordinary Give in November and were 6th in overall donations made.

Stay tuned for details on the upcoming school year and how you can be a part of the Saint James team participating in this program.

More About the Power Packs Project

Based in Lancaster County, the Power Packs Project seeks to improve the mental and physical health of participating families by helping parents provide nutritious meals over the weekend when the school breakfast and lunch programs are unavailable. Each week a recipe for a low-cost meal and the ingredients to make it are provided, in addition to staples like peanut butter and cereal. Education is a key component to help empower the participating families to better use their food dollars and assure their children are well-fed and ready to learn at school.

How We Help

Each week during the school year, volunteers from Saint James help pack groceries and fold recipes for almost 100 families in our community. Workers are organized into rotating teams who gather at Carter and MacRae for about an hour and a half on Thursdays at 2:00 PM. There are five teams, so teams serve approximately every 5 weeks.

Click here to visit the Power Packs Project website.