2009 Church Planting Grant recipients announced; 2009 grants increased to $20,000.00
The Chancery of the Orthodox Church in America recently announced that five Church Planting Grants will be awarded for the year 2009.
“All recipients also received grants in 2008,” said OCA Director of Ministries and Communications, Archpriest Andrew Jarmus. “However, next year the grants will be increased from $15,000 to $20,000. Increasing the grant amount had been discussed for several years and we are very happy that this will finally happen in 2009.”
Holy Apostles Mission, Mechanicsburg, PA |
St. Herman of Alaska Mission, Fairbanks, AK |
St. Christina of Tyre Mission, Fremont, CA |
The 2009 Church Planting Grant recipients are as follows.
- Christ the Savior Mission, Stafford, VA, Diocese of Washington and New York. This mission has an average Sunday attendance of 35 people. Under its rector, Archpriest Michael Sekela, Christ the Savior Mission meets in a beautiful Episcopal church in an area that is rapidly growing.
- Holy Apostles Mission, Mechanicsburg, PA, Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania. Called a “bright star in Eastern Pennsylvania,” Holy Apostles Mission has enjoyed a rapid growth in membership, with an average Sunday attendance of 84 people. The mission’s rector is Priest Timothy Hojnicki.
- Holy Cross Mission, Greensboro, NC, Diocese of South. In its first year this mission grew by 82% and currently has over 60 members, with an average Sunday attendance of 51. Meeting an urgent need for an English-speaking Orthodox presence in the Greensboro area, the rector of Holy Cross Mission is Priest Christopher Foley.
- St. Herman of Alaska Mission, Fairbanks, AK, Diocese of Alaska. This mission was founded in 1977 but struggled for many years to get established. With full-time rector, Priest Fr. Mikel Bock, the mission has experienced an impressive revitalization, with an average Sunday attendance of 40 people.
- St. Christina of Tyre Mission, Fremont, CA, Diocese of West. Under the pastoral charge of Priest Michael Anderson, this very active mission offers numerous ministries in the Fremont area. Its dedicated membership readily meets the challenge of being located in a very high income area.
“The Church Planting Grant is used exclusively to pay part of the salary for a full-time rector at a qualifying mission,” Fr. Andrew said. “The remainder of the salary is covered by the mission itself.” The number of grants awarded is directly decided by the amount that is raised during the OCA?s Annual Mission Appeal.
In related news, the OCA chancery has announced that Priest Marcus Burch, rector of St. John of the Ladder Mission in Greenville, SC, will be taking over as Chair of the Department of Evangelization in 2009. The previous Chair was Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, who left the position when he took on responsibilities as Secretary of the Orthodox Church in America.