As the first week of the new school year came to a close on Aug. 30, the Rev. Todd FitzGerald, school chaplain at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, held a special Upper School Chapel service to install and recognize the 2019‚Äö√Ñ√≠20 Chapel leadership team.
During their installation FitzGerald asked the 14 students on the team to stand in front of the altar and called upon them to be faithful stewards of the Chapel program. The team members then promised to uphold their Chapel team responsibilities, including planning and assisting with daily services.
“This team represents the whole student body,” FitzGerald said. “They include faithful Christians, members of other faith traditions, and others who have no faith tradition, boarding and day students, and three different Upper School grade levels.
“These students have stepped forward to serve,” he added, before asking everyone present to find their own way to serve the school community. “In what way can you contribute this year? Whether you are a member of a sports team, theatre ensemble or student government, participate in something greater than yourself.
“In the scriptures, Jesus taught that when we lead, we lead best when we serve ‚Äö√Ñ√Ø not for our own advantage, but for the advantage of all,” FitzGerald noted.
Lay chaplain Jim Crosby ’70 brought the morning service to a close with a reading of the prayer of St. Francis, which asks God to make us instruments of peace. He then called upon everyone in attendance to recite the school prayer together.
The 2019‚Äí20 Chapel team includes 10th graders Ben Hale, Natalie Kim and Quari Robinson; 11th graders Matthew Kim, Salma Mohamed, Ebube Oraelosi, Bella Salazar-Harper, Chelsea Saucedo and Eliah Ugarte; and 12th graders Sierra Coffey, Rusty Courter, Emma Hou, Safwan Naviwala and Jinho Rhee.
