Parish Profile !
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PARISH PROFILE ! WELCOME TO SAINT THOMAS CHURCH Saint Thomas is a thriving Episcopal parish in the village of Mamaroneck on Long Island Sound in Westchester County, New York. We are a warm, welcoming and diverse congregation (in age, orientation, cultural background and economic resources) that takes great pride in our openness and inclusivity. Our diverse community of worshipers contributes to our character as both strongly committed to Episcopal traditions and yet forward-thinking enough to move with modern times. Our congregation is exceptionally devoted to our own parishioners as well as the wider community and therefore we have a large contingent of active volunteers for our inreach and outreach programs. Our parish continues to grow with incoming young families, but is also supported by a loyal base of long-time parishioners, many of whom have been actively involved in the life of Saint Thomas for more than 20 years. We were fortunate to have been served for 19 years by an exceptional rector who is a gifted and inspirational speaker and our expectations for a talented preacher are high. In addition to being a gifted speaker, our previous rector had a particular talent for making people of all backgrounds and faiths feel, as one parishioner stated, “not only welcome but celebrated.” Our openness and welcoming nature are strengths we would like to maintain and build upon. We are searching for a new rector who is willing to explore new ways to strengthen our spirituality and broaden our worshipping community while maintaining the core identity of our church. Our ideal rector will guide and nurture us, as well as help us to continue and expand our mission to serve God and community. We hope that our parish profile will help you to decide if you might be that person. We invite qualified candidates to submit their resumes for review electronically (preferably) to [email protected] or by mail to Saint Thomas Search Committee, 168 W. Boston Post Road, Mamaroneck, NY 10543. For more information on Saint Thomas, please visit our website at sainthomasmmrk.org WHO WE ARE Our Parish includes members from the Village of Mamaroneck and the surrounding towns of Rye, Harrison, Larchmont, New Rochelle, as well as the city of White Plains and New York City. What follows is statistical information regarding the parish drawn from out recent parish survey: Total parishioners responding to the survey: 105 Age of Parishioners: 18-29 3% 30-39 9% 40-49 16% 50-59 28% 60-69 22% 70-79 14% 1 80 or more 5% *In addition, there are approximately 65 children 18 and under in our congregation (up from about 50 in 2010) and average attendance at Sunday school and Pre-Confirmation classes is approximately 30 children, almost double what it was five years ago. Years of Attendance at Saint Thomas: 1 year or less 4% 2-4 years 16.5% 5-9 years 15.5% 10-19 years 35% 20 or more years 29% Education: Less than high school graduation 0 High School graduation 5% Some college, trade or vocational school 22% Bachelor’s degree 25% Graduate/Professional degree 48% Religious Background: Episcopalian 37.5% Other Protestant denomination 23% Roman Catholic 36.5% Eastern Orthodox 0 Jewish 1% Other religion 1% No religion 1% Distance of Residence from St. Thomas: Less than 1 mile 22% 1-5 miles 51% 6-10 miles 13.5% Greater than 10 miles 13.5% STAFF Saint Thomas is currently served by a full-time interim pastor and a full-time deacon. Until recently, we also employed a part-time associate pastor for youth, who became a rector in Colorado in October 2013. We also have a full-time parish secretary and a full-time sexton (as well as a Sunday sexton). In addition, we have the following part-time employees: Christian education director, youth minister and bookkeeper as well as a contract music director. HISTORY OF SAINT THOMAS CHURCH Saint Thomas Episcopal Church, situated on a hill overlooking Long Island Sound, is the oldest congregation in Mamaroneck. Since its incorporation on June 9, 1814, Saint Thomas has played a significant role in the community. Saint Thomas was founded by Caleb Heathcote (1666-1721), a Mayor of the City of New York from 1711 to 1713 and the first Lord of the Manor of Scarsdale. Beginning in 1704, Heathcote held Anglican services in his home on what 2 is now called Heathcote Hill in Mamaroneck. Services were eventually moved to Christ’s Church in Rye. By 1814, Mamaroneck residents agreed it would be more convenient to have a church of their own and elected John Peter Delancey, Caleb Heathcote’s grandson, warden of the new parish. His son, William Heathcote Delancey, became the first resident minister of Saint Thomas. His daughter, Susan, and her husband, the novelist James Fenimore Cooper, were also communicants of Saint Thomas. Fenimore Cooper helped design the parish seal, in which Saint Thomas the Apostle, “doubting Thomas,” is symbolized by the T-square. Thomas is the patron saint of architects, contractors, and masons and traveled as far as India to preach the gospel. Saint Thomas was reincorporated in 1817 to conform to New York State law. The founding vestry included members of several prominent New York families: co-warden Peter Jay Munro, Thomas J. Delancey, Edward J. Delancey, Henry Gedney, Benjamin Hadden, Jacob Mott, Benjamin Crooker, Guy C. Bayley, and Monmouth Lyon. Consecrated on June 17, 1823, the first Saint Thomas Church was a simple wooden structure painted white with green shutters. It was used for more than sixty years. A Sunday school was started in 1834 and continues to this day. Three years later, Saint Thomas had its first full-time rector. By the late nineteenth century, many affluent families summered in the waterfront village of Mamaroneck. Among them were James M. and Henrietta Arnold Constable, who had an estate on Delancey Neck (now Orienta). Constable was a prosperous merchant and co-founder of a Manhattan department store, Arnold Constable. Mrs. Constable was fond of the little church where she worshipped in the summers. When Mrs. Constable died in 1884, the family decided to honor her memory with a new church and the current Saint Thomas church was built. By 1900, the changes caused by America’s rapid industrialization and waves of immigration caused churches everywhere to extend their ministries. Saint Thomas expanded to include a day-care center, social hall, and gymnasium. The 1925 addition of Heathcote Hall further facilitated Saint Thomas’ numerous community and social outreach programs. Throughout nearly 200 years’ worth of vestry minutes are numerous examples of Saint Thomas’ commitment to social justice and to the community of Mamaroneck. In 1900, the church established what would become the Mamaroneck Health Center. Women of Saint Thomas were authorized to vote in parish elections in 1915. During WWI, Saint Thomas faced down wartime hysteria against Germans, and subsequent anti-Semitism. In 1932, a thrift shop opened “for the benefit of the unemployed” and operates to this day. OUR SERVICES Saint Thomas is a joyful, prayerful and diversified family that welcomes people of all faiths to worship and, if baptized, to partake in receiving Holy Communion. We are blessed with an interim pastor and an indispensible deacon. In addition, there are many lay members who volunteer for such activities as the altar guild, ushers, lay readers and lay Eucharistic ministers. From September to June we offer two Eucharistic Sunday services. The early service at 8 am is spoken. The 10 am service includes music with hymns sung by the congregation and our talented and well-trained choir. In 3 addition, we have a weekly anthem sung by the choir or one of our soloists. Many liturgical responses are also sung; all accompanied on the organ by our music director. We have earned a well-deserved reputation for excellence in our music program. Given the busy summer schedules of our parishioners, from June to September our two Sunday services are combined into one 9 am service which includes music but no choir. In addition, we have recently instituted a Saturday evening service at 5 pm, complete with communion, that is held outdoors on our labyrinth, weather permitting. Each year we hold a well-attended Thanksgiving Eve service, with specially selected music to help parishioners reflect on all of the blessings in their lives and to share time together. During the tenure of our previous rector, this service was followed by a festive rector’s reception in Heathcote Hall. Christmas is a special time at Saint Thomas. The last Sunday of Advent, we hold coffee hour in the church while we decorate for Christmas. On Christmas Eve we hold two services: a family service in the afternoon, where the children, dressed as shepherds and angels, sing songs and perform in a pageant; and a late evening service that includes an outstanding choral concert. In addition there is a Christmas morning service at 10 am. Lent begins with Ash Wednesday Services of the Holy Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes at noon in the chapel and at 7:30 pm in the church. Stations of the Cross are held in the chapel every Wednesday evening during Lent. On Tuesdays during Lent we join with neighboring churches of varied denominations for ecumenical services that rotate pastors and churches. These services are much anticipated and well attended as they offer a glimpse into the worship style and practices of our fellow Christians in the community. Each is followed by food and fellowship at the hosting church. Holy Week commences with our 10 am Palm Sunday service that begins in Heathcote Hall where clergy and congregants process to the church with song.