Getting Involved at St. Dunstan’s
Parish Ministries Catalog for 2025
Now there are varieties of gifts but the same Spirit, and there are varieties of services but the same Lord, and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. ~ 1 Corinthians 12:4-7
Below is a list of the many ministries offered at St. Dunstan's. Please scroll down to see the details for each.
Reach out to the Rector or come on Sunday morning and ask for the ministry leader.
- Altar Guild
- Anvil Society
- Blood Drives
- Book Group
- Buildings and Grounds
- Children’s Ministry
- Choirs
- Columbarium Committee
- Creation Care
- Endowment Committee
- Flower Guild
- Liturgy Team
- Livestream Ministry
- Men’s Group
- Outreach
- Refugee Ministry
- Samaritan Ministry of Greater Washington
- Seminarian Lay Support Team
- Seniors Ministry
- Soul Sisters
- Stewardship
- What Now?
Altar Guild
Ann Johnson & Marsha Barnes
Description: The Altar Guild is responsible for preparing the Church for Sunday service and any other services which may arise such as weddings, Baptisms, and funerals.
Duties consist of caring for the silver and brass, linens and candles, and changing Altar hangings.
Involvement Opportunities: The Altar Guild is currently a three-person operation. In the past, there have been four or more, and the group would welcome:
- Regular participants
- Occasional helpers, and
- Emergency helpers
We don’t meet regularly, but we do communicate regularly as to what needs to be done and who will do it.
Please reach out with questions. All are welcome!
Anvil Society
Karen Edwards
Description: The Anvil Society recognizes those members of our parish family who have made a documented planned gift to the St. Dunstan’s Endowment Fund.
Members of the Anvil Society know that they have looked beyond this life and made provision for the continuing financial support of their Christian community. They have left a legacy as enduring and as productive as the anvil.
Involvement Opportunities: Members of the Vestry and the Endowment Committee can provide additional information.
Blood Drives
Fred and Louise Smoak
Description: St. Dunstan's regularly hosts American Red Cross blood drives. The need for blood donations is ongoing, and we encourage both parishioners and others in the community to donate. Besides providing the facility, St Dunstan's makes the event known in the community with flyers, listserv posting, and other community resources.
Involvement Opportunities: Volunteers help promote blood drives and register donors, as well as provide hospitality on the day of the drive. Feel free to contact me to get involved.
Book Group
Donna Alvarez
Description: The Book Group welcomes everyone who enjoys reading and discussing in an open and relaxed setting. The group meets on the second Thursday of the month at 2:00 p.m., either on Zoom or in person. Members suggest both fiction and non-fiction titles, and the final selections are determined informally by mutual agreement.
Involvement Opportunities: The group is open to anyone, and members are encouraged to bring friends.
Buildings and Grounds
Bill Sander
Description: Buildings and Grounds, which falls under the purview of the Junior Warden, includes everything involved with maintaining/upgrading the Church, including the Rectory and overall property. The Junior Warden negotiates contracts with vendors (e.g., lawn care/maintenance), and works closely with the Vestry (submitting projects/budgets to get approvals) and communicates with the congregation.
Below is information pertaining as to how we process projects, from start to finish.
- Develop a tracking sheet which includes lists of needs/improvements (including prioritization).
- Communicating/partnering with Vestry members
- When applicable, apply for grants from all resources, including the Diocese
- Contact multiple vendors to get quotes for the work required
- Present to vestry members for approval, including budget/cost of project
- Meet with vendors throughout the project
- Confirm work has been completed correctly, including walk throughs
- Final approval, then payment to vendor
- Some of the most recent completed projects include:
- Lighting project that replaced all light bulbs to energy efficient bulbs
- Installation of computers/software/camera allowing for Facebook and Zoom transmissions for those who cannot attend Sunday services in person
- installation of windows within solid wood doors allowing for a safer work environment
- Installation of water fountain
- Installation of ladder for egress in classroom
- Some projects currently in progress include:
- Exterior and interior repairs of the rectory
- Lighting of the stained glass wall
Involvement Opportunities: This role can be assisted by anyone willing to give their time when the Junior Warden is unavailable. These include meeting with vendors, communicating with the Junior Warden anyone/company they feel may assist with a project.
Children’s Ministry
Description: St. Dunstan’s offers children’s programming every Sunday during the 10:30 a.m. worship service. Our Sunday programming is known as Children’s Chapel, and it is a time for children to get introduced to scripture as well as reflect and ask questions. It is also a time of great fun for the children. St. Dunstan’s also offers other activities and events for children, often tied together with St. Dunstan’s music ministry, such as weekly children’s choir practices after the 10:30 worship on Sundays, seasonal weekend choir camps, Christmas caroling at Brighton Gardens, and our
annual Christmas Pageant. Apart from these, children can also participate in our annual Halloween party, Easter Egg Hunt, movie nights, and outreach activities. St. Dunstan’s Children’s Ministry also hosts Vacation Bible School every summer for children in preschool to Grade 5.
Involvement Opportunities: All families and children are welcome to join Children’s Chapel on Sundays as well as all the other events and programs we provide. Volunteers to help with all that we offer are much appreciated and welcomed as well.
Choirs
Description: The Joyful Noise is Growing! Here at St. Dunstan’s, we are growing the Music Ministry in every way that we can. Every Sunday as Cantor, I lead the congregation in hymn singing and also in singing the service music. We are accompanied by our organist and pianist, and we often have guest musicians join us, especially for Easter and Christmas. Guest musicians include both professional instrumentalists and singers. We currently have both an Adult and a Children’s Choir, and we look forward to expanding our musical opportunities in the future.
The Music Ministry has also extended support to other events in the parish, such as the Halloween Party, the Jazz Series, and carol singing at Brighton Gardens, Vacation Bible School. We will be hosting a series of concerts this fall, as well as an Opera Company.
Involvement Opportunities: The choirs are open to anyone, and members are encouraged to bring friends. Please feel free to contact me.
Columbarium Committee
John Wyss
Description: The Columbarium Committee provides guidance to parishioners and former parishioners on the purchase of burial niches in the Columbarium, the process and policies regarding the sales and ownership of a niche, and the procedures and expectations for interment services. In addition, the Columbarium Committee works with the Parish Administrator to see that the completed, notarized indenture agreement is completed and on file with the church and that the purchase payment has been received and helps arrange for the memorial inscription with the Parish Administrator, the niche owner, and the memorial vendor. In addition, the Columbarium Committee provides important institutional memory on these processes and procedures, and the status of the niches, given changes in the church personnel.
The Columbarium Committee does not have regularly scheduled meetings. The activity level for this committee is fairly low, as the Committee is only called to action in the case of a requested sale of a niche, an interment service, or the request to relinquish ownership of a niche back to the church. These events occur ~ 1 per year.
Involvement Opportunities: The group is currently seeking additional Columbarium Committee members.
Creation Care
(“Green Team”)
David Repka
Description: Do you feel called to minister to God’s Creation? Do you want to protect the local environment and all that God called “good”? If so, St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church is the perfect place to be.
Located next to the popular Capital Crescent Trail and Little Falls Watershed Park, the church is made for Creation Care. Big trees shade our sanctuary and parish hall. Ferns, woodpeckers, salamanders, and other species call our rolling, three-acre campus home. They and the watershed are waiting for your help—and so are we.
Check out our Green Team!
In early 2024, St. Dunstan’s Green Team and the Little Falls Watershed Alliance (LFWA) embarked on a multi-year project to control stormwater runoff from the church’s property. Together, they will help improve the health of nearby streams, native plants and animals, and, ultimately, the Chesapeake Bay. Through rain gardens and conservation landscaping, St. Dunstan’s will become a center for environmental education, a good citizen of the watershed, and an ideal spot for outdoor meditation.
Already, special liturgies and public programs for Earth Month, Rogationtide, the Season of Creation, and other occasions inspire parishioners and visitors alike. Children inventory critters who live in the nearby creek, and adults race to purchase native plants at the annual sale. Forums on topics from Antarctica and climate change to rewilding and pollinators fill the calendar. In spring and fall, Green Team members join the Garden Committee to maintain existing plantings.
If you receive the Sacrament of Baptism, Confirmation, Marriage, or Ordination while you are with us, we will gift you with a small native tree to accompany you on your faith journey. “Saplings for Sacraments,” a recognized program of the worldwide Anglican Communion Forest, started at St. Dunstan’s in 2022.
Now, with LED lights in place throughout the building, members of the Green Team will work with the Vestry and Building and Grounds Committee to reach clean-energy and carbon-neutrality goals set by the Episcopal Church/USA and Montgomery County, MD. If you are an energy expert or concerned about our warming world, this is the time to get involved.
St. Dunstan’s Green Team is pleased to collaborate not only with the Creation Care Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington and LFWA, but also with Montgomery County’s Department of Environmental Protection, the Chesapeake Bay Trust, Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake, and Interfaith Power & Light.
Involvement Opportunities: Looking for people to join and help form an active environmental ministry at the Church.
Endowment Committee
Karen Edwards
Description: St. Dunstan’s Endowment Fund was established over 20 years ago to accept special gifts and bequests to St. Dunstan’s. In the last 10 years, the fund has grown from around $20,000 to over $300,000, through generous gifts and appreciation. Income from the Fund assets may be distributed each year at the direction of the Vestry to support the Church’s ministries as well as church operations, if needed. The Endowment Fund Committee works with the Anvil Society to encourage and assist parishioners in making bequests, trusts, IRS and insurance designations, special gifts, and other planned giving in support of St. Dunstan’s. We welcome inquiries about how to make planned gifts to the parish at any time.
Involvement Opportunities: There is currently a seat open on the Endowment Committee. The group interacts (generally virtually) at least quarterly to review the investments and investment performance of the Endowment.
Flower Guild
Trudy Surut
Description:
The Flower Guild is responsible for planning and arranging the Altar flowers each week. The work is super satisfying and really can be fun! The group rotates but generally expects to contribute 2-3 hours, 1 or 2 times per month.
Involvement Opportunities: We welcome all who are interested!
- You can be a “solo arranger” or take a partner.
- The “routine” is easily learned from planning to purchasing and arranging the flowers.
- The EXPENSE is covered by dedications & contributions.
- A wonderful variety of vases, pots, etc. are also available, as is work space in the Sacristy.
- You CAN arrange flowers at home and bring to church for Sunday service if you wish.
- START by working the “routine” with already active member of the Flower Guild!
Liturgy Team
Description: St. Dunstan’s Liturgy Team meets throughout the year to plan worship for each Church season, with the goal of creating a meaningful worship experience for all that reflects the Church calendar. You might have noticed that the church actually has “seasons” – think about how different the Church looks and feels during Creation season in the fall, Advent, Christmas, Easter, and so on. The Liturgy Team discusses the seasons and what might make our worship as meaningful as possible. For example, the music might be softer, the flowers more muted, and the church quieter in Advent. We have had Native American readings during Creation Season. While the pattern of worship follows the Book of Common Prayer, our liturgy is thoughtfully developed to provide parishioners with worship that aims to enhance our experience of God.
Involvement Opportunities: The group is led by the Rev. Patty Alexander and participants include the Minister of Music and parishioners. Anyone with an interest in liturgy is welcome to join – just talk with Patty+, as we’d love more participation!
Livestream Ministry
Vince Leonard
Description: The Livestream Ministry oversees the streaming of Sunday’s worship services. The Senior and Junior Wardens are currently the primary point people.
Involvement Opportunities: We welcome all who are interested! Training is available and opportunities to help can be crafted to accommodate individual interests and availability. Youth are especially encouraged to join this ministry.
Men’s Group
John Wyss
Description: The St. Dunstan’s Men’s Group is open to all men at St. Dunstan's, as well as any friends who might be interested in meeting with other men once a month to discuss a variety of topics. Because we tend to an older demographic, younger members are especially welcome.
We meet approximately once a month at the Church on the second Saturday of the month. Since the end of the pandemic, we have also included a Zoom link for those who wish to attend virtually. We gather for bagels, coffee, and fellowship in the St. Dunstan’s kitchen at 9:00 a.m. and move to the Parlor to start our discussion between 9:20 and 9:30. We conclude our discussion around 10:30 a.m.
We try to pick a topic in advance each month, usually from a recommendation by a group member. Sometimes, the topic is dictated by recent events of particular significance. Issues of social justice, mutual respect and communications across polarized communities are often part of the discussion. On a few occasions, we have tried to organize an activity by the Men’s Group in support of the Church or an outreach organization.
We have a group of core members who attend regularly and several additional members and friends of members who participate when they can. Attendance usually runs about six people but may be as low as four or as high as ten.
Volunteer Opportunities/Involvement: Please feel free to contact John Wyss with questions. We hope to see you there.
Outreach
Elin Botha
Description: St. Dunstan’s Outreach Ministry identifies causes and helps direct funds to these causes. In recent years the parish has supported several causes, including:
- A number of parishioners contribute both individually and towards education of school children at an Episcopal school in Quito, Ecuador. We also make a small grant each year from the St. Dunstan’s Outreach budget.
- Thanksgiving baskets for the National Center for Children and Families, and Christmas boxes for children and adults participating in So Others Might Eat (S.O.M.E.). In 2022, 24 gift boxes were filled and delivered to S.O.M.E.
- Locally we support Samaritan Ministry each year with an Outreach grant.
- Nourishing Bethesda has a few parishioners assisting with packing and distributing food. This is a great way for people to contribute in a hands on way.
- There are a few other organizations that have received small donations, including Solutions in Hometown Connections, a local organization which assists refugees in our area.
Volunteer Opportunities: Please feel free to contact me with questions about opportunities to get involved.
Refugee Ministry
Pat Waldo
Description: St. Dunstan's has sought to build its ministry in support of refugees and immigrants in our area through a number of outreach efforts that reflect our commitment and interests, as well as in consideration of the limitations and opportunities available to us – in sum, to help in direct ways with defined goals.
One significant effort has been to support an Afghan family, who had left Kabul at the end of the evacuation, by helping them with funding for legal counsel, assistance to a high-school teenage nephew in becoming active in Montgomery County soccer, and in tuition assistance to the college-age nephew. We also raised monies through the sale of flower bulbs and in concert performances. Although we have given in order to help them, each member of this family has already started to give back to the community and, for example, to set up a remote-teaching program by Montgomery County high-school students for young women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule.
Another project was to increase the awareness of the problem, to seek additional County budget resources, and to propose a County-led coordination of the services provided to refugees and immigrants by non-profits and faith-based organizations. St. Dunstan's with others worked to bring together twenty different faith and non-profit organizations as well as almost fifty individuals – from a broad spectrum of faith communities, including Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh congregations, and other backgrounds -- to sign onto to a common statement to highlight the problem of refugees and immigrants in our County, to emphasize the importance of faith groups and non-profits in providing services to them, and to propose that the County should lead and do more to coordinate all services offered.
Our first step was to reach out to each member of the County Council during the budget process. We brought new attention to this issue to the Council members. Because of the difficulties of finalizing the County’s budget, we did not achieve new resources for this purpose but did emphasize the need to clarify the goals of the appropriations made.
We then reached out to County Executive Marc Elrich, who met with our group, including Mark MacCarthy from St. Dunstan's and Jo Ann Moran Cruz, the sponsor of our Afghan family, on June 27th. This meeting was an important step forward and we received positive support from the County Executive and his staff. In a positive outcome, the County Executive has agreed to a strategic planning process to assess needs and recommend actions concerning the resettlement of refugees and immigrants coming to the County. This will involve the hiring of a consultant to prepare the draft plan. The faith community has been invited to participate in this process.
St. Dunstan's will continue to help as best we can and to make progress on this ministry in order to help newcomers to our community.
Volunteer Opportunities: At this point, St. Dunstan’s refugee ministry organizationally is limited to an informal mailing list of those within the Church that have expressed an interest. We, as a group, need to discuss and decide how best to focus and maintain our ministry.
St. Dunstan’s has proven how effective it can be in achieving goals where the Church:
- Understands what needs to be done
- Where the goal has a personal face or aspect
- Where regular communication informs the church of progress
- Where ways and means are defined
We will continue to help the Afghan family. However, the needs have shifted to the problem of immigrants arriving in buses to the Washington area. Larger churches have highly organized service efforts to help arriving migrants. How and to what degree St. Dunstan’s can help is a key question for discussion, and we greatly welcome the energy and ideas of any who wish to help.
Samaritan Ministry of Greater Washington
Walter Douglas
Description: St. Dunstan’s has a liaison with Samaritan Ministry of Greater Washington, which is a faith-based community partnership focused on assisting and improving the lives of individuals facing poverty, homelessness, or other debilitating challenges.
Volunteer Opportunities: If you are interested in learning more, please feel free to reach out.
Seminarian Lay Support Team
Lynne Leonard
Description: The purpose of the Lay Support Team (LST) is to support the Seminarian during his/her time at Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS). The Convener, Lynne Leonard, received training through the VTS Contextual Ministry Department (CXM). She will share that training with the LST, and they will follow the CXM guidelines and complete feedback forms regarding Katie's scripture readings and sermons.
The VTS focus is to help the Seminarian to:
- Integrate study of Christian tradition and practical Christian ministry
- Enhance pastoral, liturgical, teaching, and leadership abilities
- Foster personal and professional growth and identity
- Engage in ongoing theological reflection on ministry
It will be our team’s role to provide the Seminarian with feedback on her contextual ministry at St. Dunstan’s and offer her prayer and listening/guidance on her journey to become a priest.
The group meets 2x per month.
Volunteer Opportunities: If you are interested in learning more or joining a future LST, please feel free to reach out.
Seniors Ministry
Description: St. Dunstan's is blessed to have a strong relationship with Brighton Gardens Senior Living Facility in Friendship Heights (Chevy Chase), where a few of our parishioners live. Once a month (usually the first Monday), I take Communion to residents of Brighton Gardens; as well, we look for times throughout the year for other meaningful points of connection (Ash Wednesday, Christmas caroling, etc.).
Involvement Opportunities: You are always welcome to join me for the monthly service at Brighton Gardens. The residents love to see familiar faces from St. Dunstan’s as well as to make new friends! You also can help by volunteering to read to one of the visually-impaired residents. Watch the newsletter and bulletin for announcements of upcoming visits to Brighton Gardens, and please don’t hesitate to reach out to me to learn more.
Soul Sisters
Sue Carroll
Description: The St. Dunstan's women's discussion group, “Soul Sisters,” meets via Zoom on the second Saturday of each month (except in the doldrums of July). We begin each session with a brief go-round of just catching up on what is going on in everyone's life. Then we read a passage of scripture, twice: first naming the word or phrase that jumps out at us from the reading, and then reflecting on what particular meaning the passage has for each of us that day.
The bulk of the conversation begins with a particular topic that is announced in advance. Topics include our reactions to current events, such as the war in Ukraine. We've also discussed topics related to our faith, such as how our ideas about God or Jesus have changed over the course of our lives. Frequently, our conversation moves off the identified topic to discuss issues of significance to one or more of the members; we consider this a feature rather than a flaw.
At the end of every meeting we take a moment to name any individuals or issues for which we ask the members to pray for throughout the following weeks.
Volunteer Opportunities: Participation in Soul Sisters is open to anyone interested and has continued to evolve. We have enjoyed the presence of several St. Dunstan's Alumnae and we've welcomed new members who are simply friends, or friends of friends. There are usually 5-8 women in each session, which makes for rich discussions. We anticipate continuing to meet via Zoom, to allow participants who no longer live locally to maintain this treasured connection.
Stewardship
Karen Edwards
Description: The Stewardship Committee organizes our Fall Stewardship campaign to involve parishioners in pledging their financial support to St. Dunstan’s for the upcoming year. A successful Stewardship campaign is a necessary step enabling the Treasurer and Vestry to create a budget for staffing and programming for the coming year. While the Diocese suggests a campaign theme and provides many materials for us to adapt to our own use, it is up to St. Dunstan’s Stewardship Committee, working with the Vestry, to choose a theme and set goals, both for dollar amounts and participation levels. The Committee drafts letters and other messaging to use during the campaign and plans events and other programming, including inviting individual parishioners to speak publicly about why they give to St. Dunstan’s. The Stewardship Chair, along with the Rector and Treasurer, track incoming pledges and report aggregate amounts to the Committee, Vestry, and the Parish. The Committee meets virtually or in person several times during the Fall with follow ups conducted via email.
Volunteer Opportunities: Please feel free to contact me with questions about opportunities to get involved.
What Now?
Ray Donnelly
Description: Borne out of the realization that many older adults in our community feel isolated and in need of meaningful connection, “What Now?” is an informal group for socializing, sharing, and mutual support. We discuss challenges, perspectives, limitations—and most importantly—new opportunities that can come with aging. Participants decide what topics are of common interest and concern, such as: finding joy and meaning, health, finances, social opportunities, loss, and more! This group is offered in partnership with Little Falls Village.
Volunteer Opportunities: The group meets at St. Dunstan’s on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 11 a.m. Come and see!
