Mr. Maurice Fox
Outstanding Lay Ministry in the World
Ms. Deborah "Debi" Frock
Outstanding Lay Ministry in the Church
The Very Rev. Van Gardner
Outstanding Priest
Dreambuilders
Outstanding Mission Initiative
St. James', Monkton
Outstanding Congregation
The person receiving the Bishop’s Award for Outstanding Lay Ministry in the Church is a cradle Episcopalian, a PK (preacher’s kid), and a person of prayer who receives divine guidance walking the family pet each morning. In the parish, this person has performed humble service as a vestry member, stewardship chair, junior warden, and twice as senior warden; both in the present time and during a harrowing period when the priest-in-charge passed away and a deacon was appointed to be the pastor.
You may remember this person’s Mission Strategy report at the 2005 Diocesan Convention on the core value of “Inclusion,” which held attendees in rapt attention. This person was also deeply involved in the Mission Strategy Group’s youth summit at Towson University. Presently, this person serves on the board of directors of Episcopal Housing Corporation. These points of service reflect a passion deep in his heart for youth being fully involved in parish life and building a community of their own within the larger parish community; and working diligently with EHC in an attempt to bring affordable housing to a piece of parish land.
However, all of those “titles” mean little to this exemplary follower of Christ, who never hesitates to repair windows, wash floors, flip burgers or clean bathrooms as needed. This person has been heard to express great satisfaction while doing these things for God and the church, since his secular job is a very demanding and stressful one.
He accomplishes all these parish and diocesan related tasks and still manages to be a loving husband and faithful member in a blended family of three daughters, two sons-in-law and four grandchildren.
This member of St. Andrew’s Church in Baltimore ends his e-mails with the quote: "The world should benefit as a result of our having lived." As a description of his own living, Mr. Maurice Fox richly deserves this award.
The recipient of the 2008 Bishops’ Award for Outstanding Lay Ministry in the World goes to a tireless world traveler known for oversized suitcases and a wardrobe that includes business suits, “Cursillo gaudy,” and resplendent creations of distant cultures. This devoted parent and grandparent is a person of many talents who now creates ways to empower others and nurture hundreds of children. A former junior warden, music director, youth mentor and treasurer, this person has extended God’s calling into Africa.
The first Maryland diocesan Millennium Development Goals grant recognized this leader’s efforts to build village pre-schools and health posts in our companion diocese of Accra. Our recipient has parlayed professional accounting, church leadership and friendships into a non-profit organization supported by churches, civic organizations and people around the globe.
Since an initial trip in 2004 exporting Cursillo to Ghana, our recipient has returned many times leading others in mission, partnering in Ghana with the Mothers’ Union, Anglican Churches and the Archbishop to implement pre-school education, teacher training, parenting workshops and playgrounds for the poorest of the poor.
We applaud this member of Church of the Ascension, Westminster, for her work as founder and director of Ghanaian Mothers’ Hope. To quote a village elder in Ghana, “what Ghanaian Mothers’ Hope is doing is beyond comprehension.”
The recipient of the 2008 Bishops’ Award for Outstanding Lay Ministry in the World is Deborah Frock. Honoring you, Debi, for your work and witness, honors us all.
This year’s recipient of the award for Outstanding Clergy Leadership goes to a priest whose first career was as a public school teacher. Although this priest attended seminary more than 30 years ago, his passion for learning, teaching and history have all served him well in his second career as an Episcopal priest.
After graduating from Virginia Theological Seminary in 1977, he returned to Baltimore to serve as curate at the Church of the Messiah. In 1979 he was called to serve as rector of St. Mark’s on-the-Hill. In 1987 he accepted a challenging position at an urban church with few members and dwindling financial resources. When his family joined the congregation, his three children doubled the size of the Sunday school.
Now, more than 20 years later, this same church is a vibrant community with close to 600 members. There are nearly 200 children registered in the Sunday school.
Under this priest’s leadership and with the benefit of his vision, this urban church tackles the issue of what it means to be the Church and responds to the challenges inherent in such discernment in some very tangible ways:
The parish recently finished construction and dedication of its 15th Habitat for Humanity house in the Sandtown neighborhood of Baltimore;
Working with the priest, members of the church started the Children’s Peace Center, a non-profit organization that works with inner-city children, and associated peace garden, where children who have died as a result of violence in Baltimore are remembered;
Members of the church also started ERICA, the Episcopal Refugee and Immigrant Center Alliance, to serve Baltimore’s immigrant community, many of whom have found refuge at this church and in this priest.
At a time when paying the bills was difficult and under this priest’s guidance, the church’s vestry agreed in 1995 to try to tithe its income to outreach. It slowly increased giving each year until it reached that goal in 1999 and has continued to give 10 percent of its income to outreach each year since. The total amount given to outreach under this formula just since 1999 is over $450,000. And all the while, the community has thrived.
While providing profound vision and leadership, this priest has continued to be an excellent teacher, mentor, preacher and pastor to the congregation. He announced earlier this year that he will be leaving his position and he will be missed. This year’s recipient of the Bishops’ Award for Outstanding Clergy Leadership is the Very Rev. Van Gardner, dean of the Cathedral of the Incarnation.
Homeownership is something to which most of us aspire. It’s my guess that for many of us in this room home ownership is a reality. Some of us might even own two homes.
For others, however; homeownership is only a dream. Family needs, job instability, or insufficient income make it impossible to qualify for the loan necessary to purchase a home. This award is going to an amazing organization in the Diocese of Maryland that has made it their mission to turn homeownership dreams into reality. Listen to this incredible story.
The initial idea was hatched in 2002 when youth and adults from a church in Howard County journeyed to West Virginia to build houses with Habitat for Humanity. By 2004 the mission had grown from one to four Howard County churches with dozens of “missioners” working to rehabilitate homes in West Virginia.
In 2005 the organization more than doubled in size to 80 missioners. Their horizons grew proportionately to include traveling to New Mexico to “blitz build” two homes in just one week. In 2006 the community added a Jewish congregation, grew again to 120, and returned to New Mexico to build four homes. In 2007 this incredible ministry expanded its outreach to include rehab of houses in conjunction with ARC of Howard County; working on over 15 Habitat houses in Biloxi; and building four more houses in New Mexico. For 2008 they plan to continue with these ministries, send a mission to build in Guatemala; and begin exploratory work on a possible mission to Panama.
Amazingly, about 80 percent of the missioners are high school students. Working together they raise the funds necessary for travel and expenses, plus an additional $10,000 for each habitat house.
This Special Bishop’s Award for Mission Initiative goes to DreamBuilders, an interfaith mission group from Church of the Ascension, Westminster; St. John’s Church, Ellicott City; St. Mark’s Church, Highland; Trinity Church, Waterloo; and Temple Isaiah, a traditional Reform Jewish Congregation in Fulton.
2007 was a particularly exciting year in the life of this parish. In 2007, this parish celebrated 150 years of mission and ministry in Baltimore City. As part of that celebration, the parish held three “period” services, using the 1792 and 1928 Books of Common Prayer, with a third service looking forward to what Eucharist might look like in the future. A formal dinner featuring Immaculee Ilibigiza as the keynote speaker concluded the anniversary celebration. Her message of reconciliation was heard by many invited guests who represented the diverse faith communities in west Baltimore.
2007 also marked the completion and celebration of this church’s new-to-them Casavant organ. Three concerts were held to dedicate the recycled organ and the regional meeting of the American Guild of Organists held two field trips to hear the organ. As an aside – the church had fully paid for the organ before installation was complete!
The church’s vision to help reconcile the people and neighborhoods in Baltimore’s 40 West corridor was realized in 2007 with the formation of the Community Development Corporation. Together with the churches of the 40 West Ministerium, this parish led the organization of the CDC.
This parish is especially committed to outreach, and uses “faith budgeting,” setting the level of spending necessary to achieve its mission and goals, and assuming that they and God will find the money to make it happen, to fund its mission.
In addition to the CDC, the committed people of this parish lead area churches in sponsoring the Literacy Marketplace, providing school supplies to several west Baltimore public schools.
The annual Flea Market attracts hundreds of area residents, raising more than $9,000 which is given entirely to local service charities.
More than 40 local families received Thanksgiving baskets and Christmas presents from members of this energetic and giving congregation.
The 40 West Assistance and Referral Center, a project of the 40 West Ministerium, supports the needs of dozens of local residents each year.
And, in 2007 this congregation committed 0.7 percent of its budget to the Milennium Development Goals, becoming a “One Congregation.”
Described by visitors as energetic and enthusiastic, this congregation exudes a palpable sense of joy at its worship services. The diocese if proud to announce that St. Bartholomew’s Church, Ten Hills, is the recipient of the 2008 Bishops’ Award for Outstanding Congregation.