4201 Albemarle St., NW, Washington, DC 20016  ·   202.363.4119  ·       GIVE

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St. Columba's Episcopal Church
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Children

Children are welcome at St. Columba’s!

At St. Columba’s, we see and embrace all children as an active and essential part of our parish. Our children’s programs interweave worship, formation and service to help our young ones live out their baptismal covenant and teach them the tenets of the Christian faith, while allowing them to grow, thrive and actively participate in a Christian community.

Columba Crew - A Sunday School Adventure

Click Here to Register

Your child is welcomed and loved at Columba Crew. Our teachers know your kids by name and are eager to share the love of God with them. In Columba Crew kids practice their faith by learning to Live God's Love in their hearts, their families and their world. In January and February, 2021 Columba Crews will explore the Parable of the Good Samaritan. They'll ask and answer the hard questions - how does it feel to be a priest walking by a person desperately in need? Who is my neighbor and how do I love them?
Columba Crew meets on zoom at 10:15am on Sunday mornings. There are three crews - 1st and 2nd grade; 3rd and 4th grade and 5th grade. If you have not yet registered this year, please do so here: www.tinyurl.com/columbacrew2021 (no need to register if your child is already participating this program year).

Columba Crew Basics


Columba Crew at home
If you and/or your child are zoomed out by Sunday mornings, here are the resources you need to follow along at home without joining the zoom call! Each week the details for the upcoming week will be posted here:

January 24
Start by lighting a candle and saying a prayer. Thank God for the day and your blessings, ask God to be with those who are hurting or sad. This week we are putting our learning about caring for neighbors into action. We begin to do projects to care for our neighbors, starting with those who are close and each week caring for neighbors who are further and further away. The Columba Crews on zoom will be hearing stories of close neighbors. Maybe you have one of these or another that celebrates those who live near us. Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox; A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams; Upstairs Mouse, Downstairs Mole by Wong Yee. We’re starting with our close-by neighbors on our street!
  • Print this file of hearts on heavy paper (or draw them yourself) and cut them out.
  • Decorate them with markers or crayons or by gluing on sequins, beads or ribbon.
  • Write a message like, "someone at St. Columba’s love you" or "God loves you."
  • On the back include St. C's website: www.columba.org so people who are so moved can connect with us.
  • Then, go out and share the love with your neighbors by putting your heart under the windshield of a neighbor’s car or through their mail slot.

I hope you have fun thinking about and loving your neighbors!

January 17
Start by lighting a candle and saying a prayer. Thank God for the day and your blessings, ask God to be with those who are hurting or sad. This week we read the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Have someone in your family read the story of the Good Samaritan (you can get a link to a script under January 10 below). Print (or draw on blank paper) the "Who is my neighbor" worksheet (link to the document I have attached). Everyone can do their own or you can do one as a family. Each oval will represents our neighbors moving further and further away from us - our family, the people on our block, our church or school, our city, our country, our world. Talk together to name by proper name, geographic location or group neighbors who are close and far, like us and different than us.
  • Questions to consider?
  • Who does Jesus think our neighbor is?
  • Do our neighbors live near us?
  • Do our neighbors worship where we do?
  • Do our neighbors look like us?
  • Do our neighbors speak the same language as we do?
January 10
Start by lighting a candle and saying a prayer. Thank God for the day and your blessings, ask God to be with those who are hurting or sad. This week we read the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Before you read the story, share with your kids the the significance of each character in the story. The priest and the Levite were Judeans. As was the man who was beaten by the thieves. They were all from the same area —all neighbors, so to speak. It's the Samaritan who was the foreigner (from an ethnic group that didn’t get along with the Judeans), the person least likely to help a Judean.
If your kids can read, use this script and divide up the parts so everyone has one or more parts. If your child can't read, have them act out the motions of what they hear while you read. Whatever way you do it, go through it at least 2-3 times switching roles. When you've gone through the story several times, go through each of the characters and ask each other -
  • What did this character do in the story?
  • How might he have felt?
  • What might he have been thinking?
  • Have you ever felt like this character? Tell us about that time.Katie McGervey
  • Finally, ask what might have happened if Jesus had been standing there.


Columba Crew FAQ (replaces Sunday School FAQ)

Who should come to Sunday School?
Everyone in your household is Welcome, even the pets and stuffed friends!

Where do I find the Zoom link?
Contact Katie McGervey for the link - even at 10:14 am on Sunday morning!

Do I need to prepare for Sunday School?
No, just drop in!

How do we prepare to do crafts?
Look at the Columba Crew Basics attached here and prepare a container with some simple craft supplies. One craft each week will be doable from this list.

A New Generation of Disciples


Moms!

All mothers are welcome to join our mothers' group. We meet weekly by zoom on Wednesdays at 10am. We also meet for walks, socially distant gatherings around fire pits. Contact Courtney Hundley to join our list and get announcements of events. We also share questions, answers and ideas as we mother our children on our faith journey.


Dads!

St. Columba’s Fathers' Group offers men with children at home and recent empty-nesters a community where we learn how to use God’s tools to build and develop our lives as fathers and leaders of young people. For details, please contact: Charles Molluzzo



Children and Worship

Children are welcome to worship at all of our services. Click here for our current Worship schedule. Our online services are pre-recorded, but you can watch them live with other parishioners on Facebook Live. You can also watch them anytime on St. Columba’s YouTube channel. Join us for our Wee Worship Home Worship Service – a service of simple prayer, song and Bible story for pre…

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Childcare

Childcare is an important part of how we welcome our youngest members and their families to St. Columba’s. It is a safe place where infants and toddlers experience good care, while offering parents an opportunity to give their full attention to worship and other church activities. Childcare will not be offered until we resume our regular Sunday morning onsite worship schedule.


Safeguarding

All volunteers who serve in ministries with children and youth participate in a training called "Safeguarding God’s Children." It was created by the Church Pension Fund of the Episcopal Church and provides training in preventing and identifying incidents of child sex and other abuse. All parishioners are encouraged to take the training sessions whether they are actively engaged i…

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Special Needs

St. Columba’s is a welcoming community and we want all children to be part of our program. If your child has special needs, whether physical, developmental, emotional or otherwise, we will work with you to assure they are welcome and can participate to the best of their abilities in all of our programs. Contact Katie McGervey to discuss your child’s specific needs.

Share this page: Children
Katie McGervey
Director of Children's Ministries
202-363-4119, EXT. 222 

    Katie McGervey

    Director of Children's Ministries
    202-363-4119, EXT. 222 |

    I have been a member of St. Columba’s since 1994. I was married here, served as a volunteer for mission in Southern Africa with my husband (supported by St. Columba’s), and have raised both of my children here. My husband, Joe and I have been involved in many ministries here - working with the Dreamers, going on SCAP, teaching Sunday School and J2A, as ushers and greeters and choir parents. We have two boys, Max is 16 and Oscar is 13. They are both active in the youth program, and sing and ring bells in the choir. I homeschool both of them and volunteer in lots of their activities (Scouts, robotics, diving). I was raised in the Episcopal Church in Lakewood, OH and my grandfather was an Episcopal priest. I’m already learning so much going from parishioner to staff, and look forward to sharing many adventures with you during my time as interim.

    Children and Worship Baptism Sunday School Childcare Safeguarding Special Needs Nursery School Youth

    Children's Council

    Important Links

    • Baptism Preparation
    • Children's Sunday School Registration (Realm Online)
    • Youth Programming (grades 6 through 12)
    • Youth Programming (grades 6 through 12) Registration (Realm Online)


    Parish Office
    4201 Albemarle St.,
    NW Washington, DC 20016
    202.363.4119
    [email protected]

    Hours
    Monday – Thursday: 9 am to 5 pm
    Friday: 9 am to 1 pm

    Pastoral Care
    Email: [email protected]
    For pastoral emergencies after office hours, please call 202-669-4856 to reach a member of the clergy.

    Sundays at St. Columba's

    Wee Worship

    9:30 am

    A music-filled celebration of Christ for our youngest members

    Nave Service

    11 am

    A traditional Episcopal service offered online

    Coffee Talk

    11:30 am

    A chance to connect with your St. Columba family and catch up


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    St. Columba's Episcopal Church
    4201 Albemarle St., NW
    Washington, DC 20016

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    We’re glad you’re here. St. Columba’s is a church on a mission to Live God’s Love. While our building is closed, our parish community is alive and well connected online. Walk with us during these uncertain times as we encourage spiritual curiosity, celebrate children and youth, and embrace the world in the spirit of God’s justice and love. We'd love to connect with you via phone and/or email.

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    "Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other ... If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly."
    Romans 12: 4-8

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