TRINITY ePISTLE Sunday August 3rd, 2025

WEEK OF SUNDAY, AUGUST 3rd, 2025
✢EIGHTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST✢

God of Grace and Glory: A Comprehensive Campaign for the Future of Trinity Church

Dear Trinity Church Family,

We are writing to share an exciting update on our God of Grace and Glory: A Comprehensive Campaign for the Future of Trinity Church. This bold initiative to strengthen the spiritual, community, and physical foundation of Trinity Church Princeton for generations to come.

Thanks to the extraordinary generosity and commitment of many within our congregation, we have reached a significant milestone. As of today, we have received $5.3 million in commitments toward our overall goal of $7.5 million. This remarkable progress would not have been possible without the faithful support of 86 families, whose prayers and pledges have brought us this far.

The Comprehensive Campaign is designed to address the needs identified in our parish’s long-term vision. These includes the opportunity for all of us to invest in the church we love—supporting our historic buildings and sacred spaces, enriching our worship and ministries, and securing our future.

As we celebrate this achievement, we are mindful that this campaign is about more than just numbers—it is about our shared vision, our ministries, and the enduring legacy we are building together. Every commitment, no matter the size, brings us closer to reaching our goal and fulfilling our mission for generations to come.

We prayerfully invite those who have not yet had the opportunity to participate to join us in this important endeavor. Your support—whether through a cash financial pledge or through a pledge through your estate planning—is vital to the success of the Comprehensive Campaign and to the future of Trinity Church.

If you would like to learn more or have questions, please visit https://www.trinityprinceton.org/campaign or contact campaign co-chair Jeanne Garner at jeannensg@gmail.com or David Schneider at david.c.schneider@outlook.com. We would be happy to speak with you individually and share more about this exciting effort.

With gratitude and hope,

Jeannie and David

Comprehensive Campaign Co-Chairs

Dear Good People of Trinity Church,

It is a joy to introduce two new members of our Trinity Church staff!

Please join me in warmly welcoming Anne Thomsen Lord, our new Director of Family Ministries, and Catherine Breed, who will serve as our Family Ministries Advisor. We are incredibly blessed to have these two faithful, wise, and dedicated leaders joining our team.

With Anne and Catherine’s guidance, we are poised to grow and strengthen our ministries for children, youth, and families—through education, service, and worship that reflect the heart of our community and the truth of the Gospel.

Their presence is a gift, and I am excited for the journey ahead as they help lead us forward in love and faith. They will officially begin on August 15.

You’ll find their bios below. I hope you’ll take a moment to read about them and join me in giving them a warm Trinity welcome.

Peace and blessings,

Anne Thomsen Lord, Director of Family Ministries

Anne Thomsen Lord hails from the Nebraska prairie but has called Princeton home since 2009. She attended Arizona State University and graduated with degrees in English literature and Classics. She completed a Master’s in Christian Education and Faith Formation along with a Certificate in Theology, Ecology, and Faith Formation from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2023.

Anne interned at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, PA as an Interfaith chaplain and spent the last year working at HomeWorks Trenton, a local nonprofit. Anne loves sunshine and water and has held various positions in aquatics programs for over twenty-five years.

Since 2007, Anne has been the primary caregiver to her children. She and her spouse, Errol, have four sporty kids that challenge and inspire her.

Catherine Breed, Family Ministries Advisor

Catherine Breed is a religious educator with over 25 years experience working with children and youth in churches and Episcopal Schools. Most recently she taught Religion at the Lovett School in Atlanta, GA. She is a grant coordinator with StoryMakers, a non-profit creative studio in NYC which designs and produces religious education resources and curriculum.

Catherine has an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and Master of Arts in Christian Education from Princeton Theological Seminary. She and her husband Brennan (now a Professor of Old Testament at PTS) led the youth group at Trinity Church from 2004-2006, and she is excited to be back!

Summer Schedule

Holy Eucharist Rite I at 8 AM

Holy Eucharist Rite II at 10AM

This Sunday’s preacher:

The Rev. Cn. Susanna Cates, DMA (Canon for Formation & Vocations, Diocese of New Jersey)

Mother Susanna received her Master’s Degree of Divinity from the Episcopal Seminary of the Southwest in 2013 and has served as an ordained priest in the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Northwest Texas, the Diocese of Newark, and now in the Diocese of New Jersey. She’s married to William and is a joyful “bonus parent” to her five stepchildren.

Originally raised in the Jewish tradition, she rejoices in the diversity, openness to questions, and welcoming spirit of the Episcopal Church–and she loves to hear about everyone’s faith journeys!

SUNDAY READINGS

First Lesson:

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23

Second Lesson:

Colossians 3:1-11

Sunday Forum: There will be no Sunday forum during summer.

CONTRIBUTION

Rooted in Faith. Moving Forward in Hope.

Trinity Church has stood as a beacon of worship, learning, and service in Princeton for nearly 200 years. As we prepare for the next chapter, we are launching a $7.5 million comprehensive campaign to ensure our ministries thrive and our historic campus is preserved for generations to come.

Inspired by the beloved hymn, God of Grace and Glory, this campaign reflects our gratitude for God’s past provision and our collective call to invest in Trinity’s future.

READ MORE

𝄞 Congratulations, Cecilia! 𝄞

Trinity’s head treble chorister Cecilia Rowley spent the past week singing in NYC at the St. Thomas Girl Chorister Course, which brings talented young choristers from around the country for a week of intensive instruction and fun.

Above, Cecilia is pictured with Trinity’s director of music Dr. Meg Harper following the final Evensong of the course.

Congratulations, Cecilia!

Is God Calling You or Your Child to Serve on the Altar?

Trinity Church is launching a new Acolyte Program for children and teens in grades 5 and up—and we’d love for your family to be part of it!

Youth are invited to join our team of adult and seminary acolytes in the important role of torchbearers during worship. This meaningful ministry offers a unique opportunity to grow in faith, learn the rhythms of our liturgy, and take an active leadership role in the life of the church.

What’s Involved?

Low commitment: Serve just 6 times a year, at the 10:30 a.m. service (or 10:00 a.m. in the summer), using a simple online sign-up.
Initial training: A single one-hour session will prepare participants for service.
Ongoing mentoring: New acolytes will receive support and guidance as they grow in confidence.
Treble Choristers are encouraged to acolyte on their off Sundays—offering a fresh and enriching view of the liturgy.

To sign up or learn more, please email:

Allie Graham: allie.graham@gmail.com

Include your child’s grade for the 2025–2026 school year and height so we can assign appropriate robes.

Curious adults are also warmly invited to explore this ministry!

Homefront School Supply Drive

The Outreach Committee is supporting HomeFront again this year by providing back to school backpacks and school supplies. Our goal is to fill 100 backpacks with supplies.

We have the backpacks, but it's up to you to fill them!

See the Amazon wish list and have your donation delivered to 'Trinity Church 2025 School Supply Drive' on the menu, or you can manually enter the church address:

Trinity Church, 33 Mercer Street, Princeton, NJ 08540.

Parishioners:

➡️ (1) Donate funds for us to buy school supplies; and/or

➡️ (2) Buy supplies on the Amazon link to for the Outreach Committee to distribute and;

➡️ (3) Volunteer to fill the bags with the school supplies we have collected on Saturday, August 9th and Sunday, August 10th after the 10 a.m. service.

Summer Choir Returns!

For the months of July and August, we will have a come-and-sing summer choir open to all.

Each Sunday in those months, simply show up at Ivy Hall for rehearsal at 9:00 a.m. (arrive no later than 8:50) to learn the music for the 10:00 service.

You can sing as many or as few weeks as you like!

The music will be fairly straight forward, so it’s a great way to give choir at Trinity a try if you love to sing!

All ages are welcome, but please check with Meg if you have a child younger than age 10 who wants to sing so that we can make sure it’s a good experience for them.

You could even bring your whole family to sing together!

Contact: Meg Harper harperm@trinityprinceton.org

50th Trinity Church Rummage Sale

This is an amazing time for Trinity Church…

50 years, and going strong with the Rummage Sale!!!

Save the date: October 16th-18th 2025

Please start putting all your treasures aside this summer to support our sale! Collections will begin in September but start sorting your donations now! As always, we are not collecting furniture, pet items, baby items, broken electronics, and/or torn damaged goods.

Questions? Please email: rummage@trinityprinceton.org

PRAYER LIST:

Please pray for the following souls who have recently passed:

Charlie Huebner

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers: Thomasina Allen, James Arnold, Cynthia Bellamy, Gloria Bellamy, Boden, Peter Brown, Katherine Burke, Clark, Ruben C, Evon Cassier, Jason Clark, Shereese Clark, Donna Crafford, Cullen Creel, Patricia Domino, Don Edwards, Christopher Dismas Eldredge, Steve Evans, Gus Escher, Marty Fitzgerald, Pat Grabiec, Shane Greene, Kate H, William Hannan, Sissy Hoover, Tamara James, Ellen Jane, Patricia Killian, Lerose, Charles Lewis, Lillie Lim, Jay Lipscomb, Makenna, Julie Meidlinger, Richard and Marianne Merkelbach, Nancy Metcalf, Les and Joanne Miley, Candice Miller, Chris Moser, Clive Muncaster, Steven Murray, Rosemary Parish, Paul, Ed Perrott, Linda Perrott, Katrina Poskay, Kim Prior, Jason Chandler-Renfro, Freddy and Daneel van Rensburg, Roger Quinn, Kathy S, Amber Schuppan, Dianne Senko, Samantha Seto, Nancy Slade, Maria Smarsh, Mary Stevens, Isaiah Stevens, Colina Stanford, Marcia Thompson, Trisha Thorme, Phil Unetic, Anthony Wilmoth, Mike Zimmerman, Betty Zuray.

➨ If you want to add someone to the list, please email Annie Bryson at brysona@trinityprinceton.org.

RECOVERY MEETINGS: Looking for recovery meetings? See our list of recurring meetings here.

ZOOM EVENTS: Join all Zoom meetings, unless otherwise advertised, at ZOOM.US/J/2859819016 [By phone: 1 646 558 8656 Meeting ID: 285 981 9016 Password: 1979].

ABOUT US: Trinity Church ➨ Est’d 1833 ➨ An Episcopal Church in the Diocese of New Jersey ➨ 33 Mercer Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 ➨ (609) 924-2277 ➨ The Rev. Paul Jeanes III, Rector; The Rev. Cn. Dr. Kara N. Slade, Associate Rector ➨ Website: trinityprinceton.org

“We believe God’s love is expansive and unconditional and that through Christ, God has called us to love one another as God loves us. We welcome all people of every gender, race, age, culture, ethnic background, sexual orientation, economic circumstance, family configuration, or difference of ability. We celebrate the worth, dignity, and gifts of every person as a child of God.”