Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill > Programs & Activities

Christian Education
Godly Play
A liturgy of storytelling, prayer and reflection offered for 3-7 year
olds, as an alternative to the Liturgy of the Word at the 9:00 a.m.
service. Designed to help children worship and learn to know God
in a developmentally appropriate setting. Parents should bring
their children to the Godly Play Worship Center (on the lower level of
Zabriskie Chapel) at 8:55 a.m. and return to pick them up just after
the offertory (during the passing of the peace) so that they can join
the congregation for Holy Communion.

Sunday School
Sunday School is provided for children from preschool through 6th
grade. The classes are held on Sunday mornings following the 9:00
a.m. service in the classrooms on the lower level of Zabriskie
Chapel. Classes end at 11:00 a.m. in time for the 11:15 a.m.
service. Volunteer teachers provide a loving atmosphere and fun
learning activities ranging from storytelling, dramatic play and art
for the youngest children to challenging games and discussions for the
6th graders. We use a variety of curricula, including Bible Zone
Live, the Episcopal Children's Curriculum, and others. Children
may join Sunday School on any Sunday.

Junior Youth Group
Grades 7-9. Young teens meet weekly (during the Sunday School
hour) to talk about faith and life issues. The kids help select
discussion topics and plan fun extracurricular activities and service
projects. Emphasis is on developing a more mature Christian faith
in the context of their families, and their daily lives.
Confirmation preparation is conducted separately. Meets in the
Undercroft Room (Zabriskie Chapel, lower level).

Senior Youth Group
Grades 10-12. Older teens meet according to a schedule developed
by the group, mostly for special activities and outings. Events
include a blend of service projects, social events and discussions of
faith and Christian living. In the summer of 2006 some group
members will travel to Biloxi, Mississippi to work on post-hurricane
reconstruction.

Adult Education
Adult Education at Immanuel offers many opportunities for growth and
enjoyment. Most Sundays there are Forum Hours at 10:00 which explore
many issues. In addition there are:

School for the Spirit. Meets on Wednesday evenings
from 7-9:30 for two semesters per year (September - November and April
- June). Participants register for their choice of class, which are led
by volunteers or clergy with some expertise/interest in each topic.
Each session begins with dinner and a meditation shared by the entire
group before adjourning to classes.

Tuesday morning Bible Study. Meets weekly in the
study at 9:00 a.m. Six or seven women gather who have studied the Bible
together for many years. Newcomers are welcome! (One first and third
Tuesdays, the Bible study is preceded by a Healing Eucharist led by the
Associate Rector at 9:00 a.m. On second and fourth Tuesdays, the Bible
study begins at 9:00 a.m.)

Fourth Tuesday. Meets for lunch and a lecture at noon on the Fourth Tuesday of various months during the the year. Upcoming speakers are: Tuesday, March 24, a speaker from the Washington Regional Transplant Consortium will speak about its work with organ and tissue donations; Tuesday April 28, the speaker will talk about animal welfare and the Vola Lawson Animal Shelter in Alexandria, and on May 26, Dr. Frank Wade will talk about hisnew book, Transformng Scripture, which considers such questions as "How can we open ourselves to the transforming energy of the Bible", and "How can we become biblically literate". Everyone is nvited to bring a bag lunch--drinks and dessert are provided -- and come join us at noon.

Early Christians. Meets weekly on Wednesday mornings at 6:30 a.m. in the Fairchild Room for study and conversation on topics of faith, religion and spirituality.

Circle of Quiet. Meets on Sundays following the 9:00 service in the study for prayer and silent meditation.

Inquirers' Class. Meets in the vestry room following the 9:00 service from
October - mid-December in preparation for the bishop's annual visit. Some
participants are preparing for confirmation or reception, some are cradle
Episcopalians seeking to refresh their memories on some of the basics.

Spiritual Development Programs. Striving to be in
the relationship with God and with each other as Christ has taught us.
The Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill Spiritual Formation Committee sponsors
several programs: Quiet meditation days, prayer before and after
worship, and retreats. Please join us as we seek to enrich our relationship
with God and as a spiritual community.

Retreats.
Shrine Mont: Every Memorial Day Weekend, the congregation converges on
the Shrine Mont diocesan conference center and home of the open-air
Cathedral Shrine of the Transfiguration in the Shenandoah Mountains.
The agenda always includes outdoor activities on Shrine Mont's 1,100 acres of forestland.

Advent and Lenten Programs. Developed in
consultation between clergy and vestry stewards, sometimes with the
help of the seminarian or other interested parties.

Pastoral Care
The Pastoral response to needs within the parish ranges from visitation of
the sick and housebound, to emergency transportation, to meal delivery
to those in need of support. This is a quiet ministry to those
experiencing difficulty in their lives and a telephone and note writing
ministry to those who are home-bound.

Outreach
This parish has a tradition of sharing God's love through a wide variety of
outreach ministries that help those less fortunate and that enrich our
community and the world. We are truly blessed by communicants who give
generously of their time and treasure to these programs.

Alexandria Tutoring Consortium is a special
tutoring program for Alexandria elementary school students to improve
their reading skills. During the school year Immanuel tutors work
one-on-one with first and second graders in weekly thirty-minute
sessions.

ALIVE! is a coalition of Alexandria congregations
that operate programs to help low-income families during emergencies.
The services include temporary shelter for families, low-cost preschool
education, emergency financial assistance and deliveries of food and
furniture. Volunteers distribute food, deliver furniture and help with
special programs.

Carpenter's Shelter provides shelter, food and
basic social services for the homeless in Alexandria. More than 100
individuals sleep at the shelter each night. Immanuel volunteers
prepare and serve meals at the shelter on a scheduled basis.

Child & Family Network Centers was started 16
years ago by a group of mothers living in public housing and local
Episcopal parishes. It provides caring, high-quality, free education
and related services to at-risk children and families. Volunteers serve
as teacher aides, chaperones for field trips and they help with holiday
projects.

Christ House is a ministry that provides temporary
housing, food and clothing for those in need. It also helps alleviate
family emergencies by providing food, clothing and financial
assistance. Immanuel volunteers prepare and serve meals the third
Wednesday of every month.

Christmas Families is a parish-wide ministry in
which members collect, wrap and deliver toys and clothing to families
designated by Alexandria's Child Protective Services. In early
December, parishioners sign up to provide presents for a family. During
Forum Hour in mid-December, members of the congregation come together
to wrap and deliver these gifts.

Christmas in August provides school supplies such
as backpacks, notebooks, crayons, pencils, scissors, or money for gym
uniforms and fees for local children in need.

Community Lodgings (CLI) This parish was one
of the founders of Community Lodgings, an outreach ministry dedicated
to the preservation of affordable, low-income housing in Alexandria and
to providing transitional housing assistance to formerly homeless
families. In addition, CLI provides life skills mentoring,
computer training, ESL classes, and an after school program for
qualified families and single individuals. Immanuel parishioners serve
as members of the CLI board, fundraisers, and volunteers to the CLI
Transitional Housing Program.

Dominican Republic Scholarships
is a program the parish participates in along with the Diocese in
providing scholarships to church schools for the children of the
Dominion Republic.

Heifer Project International works to alleviate
hunger and poverty in all parts of the world by providing
food-producing animals to families in other countries. In return,
recipients help another family by passing on to them one of their
animal's offspring. The Sunday School has undertaken this project and
is sponsoring fund-raising activities to buy an ark.

Hopkins House is a center for children and their
families. The agency operates preschools, a summer science camp,
community health education programs, AIDS education programs and
college counseling. Volunteers are needed to read to preschool children
and to work on committees.

The Kelly Foundation was started by Immanuel
Church-on-the-Hill members in 1986. The Foundation works for long-term
solutions in very low-income, oppressed communities by preparing youth
in these communities to be role models and creative leaders of the
future. Volunteers mentor students and serve as hosts when the students
are in town.

Meals-on-Wheels is a community service program that
helps disabled and convalescing patients by providing them with hot
nutritious meals at home five days a week. Volunteers deliver the food
throughout the Alexandria area.

The Northern Virginia AIDS Ministry (NOVAM)
provides services to individuals with HIV/AIDS and their families.
Their programs include AIDS prevention education, transportation for
those in need, emergency financial help, food vouchers and special
programs for children. Volunteers drive patients to appointments, work
at the day care center and help in the NOVAM office.

One Episcopalian Campaign ICOH is a member of the ONE Episcopalian Campoaign
that works to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs are
an effort to end extreme poverty in the world and ICOH is active in such activities as
the International Heifer Project, the Oral Re-hydration project that saves the lives of
millions of children, scholarships for children in the Dominican Republic as well as micro-
lending in that country. Immanuel also belongs to the Virginia Diocese task force that
coordinates the efforts of congregations working on the MDGs.