75th in Review
WHO WE ARE BECOMING By the Rev. Dr. Christopher D. Girata
M
ore than three years ago, I began having conversations with parish leaders about Saint Michael’s upcoming 75th Anniversary. A big anniversary celebration takes a lot of planning, and I knew we had a lot to celebrate. We imagined what we could do, who we could invite, and how we could move into the future …and then the pandemic hit. What had been intended to launch in August 2020 was bumped a year, but as the pandemic labored on, we began to worry if we’d have the capacity to launch in August 2021. Thankfully, even though the pandemic was far from over, we forged ahead with our celebration. And what a wonderful year of celebrating
it has been! We were able to honor our past while planning for our future. Let’s start with the celebrations that reflect who we have been. Throughout the year, we were blessed by visits from those who have been a big part of our history. Two former rectors, Mark Anschutz and Bob Dannals, headlined our guest series. We welcomed back nearly twenty priests who have been connected to Saint Michael through the years and it was a privilege to be with them. We also welcomed the Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, on Palm Sunday—a most exciting celebration! In addition to our guests, we created a beautiful coffee table book that highlights much of our history in gorgeous images. My hope is that this book would be
75 t h Anniversary Committee Co-Chairs
Harriet Cousins & Kelly Compton Lydia Addy Adele Broughton Peggy Carr Margaret Cervin Judy Conner Kelly Crawford Ruthie Garrett Nicole Girata Amanda Harris Christi Houser
Bitsy Hudnall Elizabeth Keogh Jeff Kilpatrick Hallie Lawrence Bhav Masih John McFarland Jr. Gigi Poglitsch Jeff Rice Phil Ritter Sally Schupp
Dotti Singhal Nancy Skochdopole Margaret Spellings Tricia Stewart Byrd Teague Tish Visinsky Mary Waller Chris Wiley Elizabeth Williams THE ARCHANGEL
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