A special welcome to families with children!
We’re so glad you’re here! Our St. Mark’s church family welcomes your family, and we’re happy to include kids of all ages in our worship services and fellowship activities. We hope to provide a positive church experience that supports your family’s spiritual needs, as well as a welcoming community with other kids, parents, and grandparents who look forward to meeting you!
Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers are welcome to stay with their parents in church, or spend the first half of the service in our nursery, next door in our community building on the main floor. Our caring nursery attendants will take good care of them, and bring them back during the passing of the peace to join you for communion and the rest of the service. We do not mind a little noise from our youngest parishioners! But if they’re getting upset, feel free to calm them down in the bride’s room at the back of the church (across from the restroom), which is equipped with some comfy seating, a rocking chair, a few toys, and a speaker so you can still hear the service. Changing tables are available in the church and community building restrooms.
Elementary Aged Kids can join Sunday school at 10:30, for the first half of the service, in the upper floor of our community building. Students this age learn the basics of our Christian faith and worship traditions, and often do some arts and crafts or simple service projects tied to that week’s lesson. They rejoin the congregation during the passing of the Peace, and are encouraged to participate in the rest of the service, reading and singing along as much as their interest allows. We also have a KidsWord activity sheet available each week, with some activities to draw and color related to the week’s lesson. When weather permits, feel free to enjoy the outdoor playground after church!
Middle and High School Tweens and Teens are invited to Sunday school at 9:30 in the upper floor of the community building. We do this one earlier so they can also participate in the entire church service. Sunday school for this age encourages them to look deeper, ask questions, and engage in some good discussions about their faith, and how it applies to their daily lives. They also work on small outreach or fundraising projects to support local causes, with plenty of input into what they’d like to support. Our older kids are also encouraged to contribute to the worship service as acolytes, lectors, or choir members if they have the interest to do so.
Weekly Communion in the Episcopal Church is open to all baptized Christians, including children as soon as they’re old enough to participate. The very young, those not yet baptized, or those unsure about receiving communion are welcome to come forward during communion time and receive a blessing. Please talk to our rector Rowena if you have any questions about communion or baptism!
(Our weekly Coffee Hour is currently on pause due to COVID restrictions, but we look forward to starting this up again once things improve, or when the weather is nice enough to have it outdoors.) Coffee hour is a great time to grab a snack and chat with other parishioners after church each week. St. Mark’s also has many annual traditions and events that are inclusive to all ages, and which the kids always look forward to. (Some of these are also currently paused due to Covid, but we’re looking forward to doing many of these events again this year, so long as we safely can, and coming up with new ideas!) A few examples are the Pancake Supper, Easter Egg Hunt, Ice Cream Social, Young’s Jersey Outing, Annual Picnic, and Family Game Nights. Fun and fellowship are a great way to make sure the kids enjoy growing up with our St. Mark’s family!
