Winter Weekend Camp Spirit Song at The Claggett Center

Winter Weekend Camp Spirit Song at The Claggett Center

by | Feb 2, 2022

Camp Spirit Song is offered in partnership with the SpiritWorks Foundation to give the gift of a camp experience to children in Province III (Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Washington, DC and West Virginia) affected by the opioid substance use disorder of a parent or other close loved one. This is the second year of Camp Spirit Song, and the first camp program of its kind on the east coast.

This special winter weekend retreat is offered to help campers get back into community after missing a year due to the COVID pandemic. Campers have the opportunity to participate in all the classic camp activities: games, crafts, ropes course, canoeing, chapel* and more. First and foremost, Camp Spirit Song is a place where kids can leave aside their burdens and be kids for a week. Claggett counselors lead campers in recreational and relationship building activities, helping campers to create a supportive community, make new friends, and have fun.
Each day, campers gather for Small Group sessions led by experienced counselors from Spiritworks Foundation for the Soul, an organization that specializes in addiction services and recovery for families affected by addiction.

Campers learn the “Seven C’s” of a family member’s addiction: “I didn’t cause it, I can’t cure it, I can’t control it, but I can take care of myself by communicating my feelings, making good choices, and celebrating myself.” Sessions give campers a safe place to talk openly about their experiences with addiction and support each other as they process the ways in which opioid addiction has affected them.

Like all Claggett camps, Camp Spirit Song is a ministry of the Diocese of Maryland, and campers are invited to worship and wonder through the Christian story in daily, age-appropriate chapel sessions. Group counseling sessions do not contain any religious content, and campers of all backgrounds are welcome–campers are not required to have any religious background, nor will they be asked to adopt any specific belief system through their participation in Camp Spirit Song.

Camp provides children grades 4-8 with an opportunity to meet God through:

the support of a Christian community
fellowship with peers who share a common experience
time to rest and play away from the distractions of everyday life

Bishop Mariann and Dean Hollerith support of LGBTQIA+ Humility & Competency Series

Bishop Mariann and Dean Hollerith support of LGBTQIA+ Humility & Competency Series

by | Dec 23, 2021

Friends,

As many of you know, The Episcopal Diocese of Washington has been responding to the important call to grow our capacity, language and practices to better live into our value of inclusion for the LGBTQIA+ community.

We are happy to share that we will be offering a LGBTQIA+ Humility & Competency Series through the School for Christian Faith & Leadership.

The series will take place on 6 consecutive Wednesdays from 6:30-8pm EST starting on January 12, 2022 and ending on February 16, 2022.

As your bishop, I am pleased to participate in this course, as we all grow in awareness and solidarity. I encourage all EDOW congregations to take advantage of this opportunity, so that we might truly be a diocese that loves as Jesus loves and welcomes all into the communities that bear His name.

As the cathedral dean, I am so grateful to EDOW and the School for Christian Faith and Leadership for creating this series. As allies of the LGBTQIA+ community, we need to make sure we are doing all we can to deepen our understanding of the experience of LGBTQIA+ persons in order to increase our support and help create communities of welcome and full inclusion. I hope as many people as possible will register for this important series of six classes.

Please register here and share in your community.

Faithfully,

The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, Bishop of Washington
The Very Rev. Randolph Marshall Hollerith, Dean of Washington National Cathedral