September 29, 2021 | Volume 11, No. 5

Eight members of the diocesan Racial Justice and Reconciliation Ministry committee spent this past weekend in Glynn and McIntosh counties, for a pilgrimage centered on the feast day of St. Anna Alexander (September 24). The group visited the historic Black parishes of St. Athanasius (Brunswick), St. Ignatius (St. Simons), and St. Cyprian’s (Darien); reflected on slavery with lament and confession at Butler Island and the Wanderer Memorial on Jekyll Island; and prayed at the Glynn County courthouse for justice in the upcoming trial of the men who killed Ahmaud Arbery. The weekend culminated in a joyous celebration at Good Shepherd (Pennick), the church (and adjoining school) that St. Anna founded and devotedly served for decades.

The committee co-chair, Karen Cote, says that the experience was a long time coming, "The pilgrimage we made this past weekend has been a vision of our group for quite a while. Visiting places where St. Anna most likely traveled and taught, imagining the students whose lives she impacted, honoring her dedication to the people she served while trusting in God’s provision was a wonderfully holy experience. One of the most impactful parts of the weekend for me was the experience of community. Primarily, we have come to know each other through our virtual meetings. Intentionally creating a sacred and brave space on Zoom has resulted in building a significant level of trust and respect within our group. This pilgrimage allowed us to gather as Beloved Community, to experience each other’s energy, to share our stories and to learn about one another, apart from this work."

The committee is working to make this pilgrimage an annual event, open to anyone in the diocese.

Above photo from l-r: The Rev. Julian Clarke from Good Shepherd, the Rev. Cathy Henderson, Deacon from Epiphany in Savannah, Lela Lewis from St. Paul's in Jesup, and Karen Cote from St. Luke's in Rincon discuss the legacy of St. Anna.

The Rev. Billy Alford from St. Alban's in Augusta preaches at the commemoration of the Feats of Saint Anna Ellison Butler Alexander and celebration of the 127th anniversary of Good Shepherd Episcopal Church.

Dwala Nobles (left) from Good Shepherd and the Rev. June Johnson (right) from All Saints, Tybee Island reflect on Good Shepherd's faithful witness despite adversity.

The Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina held their elections for the ninth

bishop on Saturday. The slate of five included the Rev. Lonnie Lacy from St. Anne's in Tifton.

"I watched and prayed for the Bishop election in the Diocese of Upper South Carolina trusting in God to guide their selection. I congratulate the Very Rev. Daniel P. Richards on his election and pray for their ministry together. And I give thanks for our brother, the Rev. Lonnie Lacy, for his faithfulness in listening for the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and give continued thanks for all the gifts that he brings to the Diocese of Georgia," said Bishop Logue.

We are grateful for Rev. Lacy, his vision for the Episcopal Church, and his love for the Kingdom of God.

Our diocesan convention will be an

in-person event at the Jekyll Island Convention Center. The diocesan staff has set new guidelines for the event in order to mitigate the risk of spreading

COVID-19 during convention. 

Planned Precautions

• All persons attending in person will need to be fully vaccinated.
• Masks will be required when indoors at the convention center and when in your seat for worship at Honey Creek.
• Our tables and chairs will permit distancing.

Our convention will be the only group in the large convention center. We will have sufficient tables to have only 4-5 people at a table which typically seats eight. We will not assign seating so that people traveling together can sit together and not add to their risk. The planned convention Eucharist will be outdoors, which already mitigates risk. As we sit in close proximity and sing in worship, we will stay masked for that liturgy, other than readers and the preacher. Masks are not otherwise required while on the grounds at Honey Creek. 

What about the unvaccinated?

The Diocese will offer a way to participate online for those who can not get or have decided not to receive a vaccination as well as those whose concern for safety will not permit them to be present. Online participation is intended to be the exception rather than the norm as there is much benefit in our being together in person.

It is important to be together

We are better together, and the large convention center and Honey Creek provide a setting to mitigate risk while meeting in person. We look forward to seeing all your smiling eyes on Jekyll!

October 13 - November 3

Start making a plan today for any changes or additions.

For those with health insurance through the Diocese of Georgia, please find the details for Annual Enrollment below on prices and resources. You may review plans on the Diocesan website here. Premiums increased 4.4-5.5% across all available plans. The national average increase for 2022 is 6.5%. Note that 86% of our rates are 0-9% below the Medical Trust average. The Diocese of Georgia is in line with national increases due to participation and usage of CDHP health insurance plans, however, we could see improvement on the use of preventative health care visits across our enrollees. The Diocese receives data on health trends for our participants and we continue to track at lower costs for common diagnoses, meaning our folks are going to the doctor when needed and getting earlier care.

If you are enrolled, or need to enroll, read the details in entirety and make your changes by November 3. If you do not desire to change your existing coverage, you are not required to take action and your plan will roll over into the coming year.

If you are turning 65 in 2022 you will become eligible for the Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) Plans. It is recommended that you make the shift into the corresponding PPO plan to speed up the transition to the corresponding MSP plan. However, this is not required. Further guidance on the MSP plans is below. Please be in contact with Canon Easterlin for any questions at keasterlin@gaepiscopal.org.

IMPORTANT REMINDER: Members will access the Annual Enrollment website with the same credentials (username and password) they created to access their benefits information on MyCPG Accounts. It is important for all members to create an account on MyCPG Accounts prior to Annual Enrollment, if they have not already done so. For assistance, employees may contact CPG Client Services at (800) 480-9967, Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 8:00 PM ET, or email mtcustserv@cpg.org.

Employee Assistance Program (EAP) with Cigna Behavioral Health  

In addition to the health plans, we offer a stand-alone EAP with Cigna Behavioral Health that you and your related entities may offer to employees who opt out of medical coverage. (Employees who enroll in Medical Trust health coverage are automatically enrolled in Cigna EAP benefits.) 

Note: If the Cigna EAP is offered on a stand-alone basis, the employer must pay for the EAP-only coverage. Requiring employees to contribute toward the cost of EAP-only coverage would violate the Affordable Care Act, and the employer could be subject to significant penalties. Eligibility for the stand-alone EAP is limited to qualified non-members (e.g., an employee who is on a spousal plan and has opted out of Medical Trust coverage). Since these employees will not have the ability to select the EAP on a stand-alone basis [during Annual Enrollment], enrollments must be completed by the group administrator with MLPS access.

Enrolling for the First Time?

Eligible employees and dependents who are not currently enrolled in a Medical Trust plan may enroll during Annual Enrollment for the 2022 plan year. Please submit an enrollment form to me as this process must be handled by the plan administrator.

For any questions please reach out Canon Easterlin (keasterlin@gaepiscopal.org) or Daniel Garrick (dgarrick@gaepiscopal.org).

Registration

Register Individually

Each delegate must register individually. This is important step will assist us to populate our new ACS Realm DataBase and is a necessary step with that system to use a separate email address for each person registered.

To register for Convention, click here.

Please note that registration is needed for each individual instead of a group registration.

To fill out the vendor application, click here. All exhibit requests are subject to approval by the Bishop's office. Applications are due no later than October 1, 2021. Vendor applications must be approved before registering for convention.

Convocation Council Meetings

Sunday, October 3:

4pm - Southwestern Convocation

Sunday, October 10:

2pm - Southeastern Convocation

5pm - Albany Convocation

Saturday, October 16:

10am - Central Convocation

Sunday October 17:

2pm - Savannah Convocation

5pm - Augusta Convocation

For more information, contact Canon Loren Lasch at llasch@llasch@gaepiscopal.org..org.

Nominees

The following have accepted a nomination to run for a position in the Diocese. To be included in the printed convention booklet, nominations must be submitted by September 24. Nominations are open until they are closed on the floor of convention and will continue to be updated in From the Field and online until November 1.



BOARD of OFFICERS of THE CORPORATION - 1 lay person

Leslie Lambert

CHURCH DISCIPLINARY BOARD - 3 clergy persons & 2 lay persons

Lay

Sam Colville

Clergy

The Rev. Geri Nelson, Deacon

DIOCESAN COUNCIL - 1 lay person or clergy person

STANDING COMMITTEE - 1 lay person & 1 priest

Lay

Skip Jennings

Elise Miller

TRUSTEE of the UNIVERSITY of the SOUTH - 1 lay person

Val Crumpton

To view all nominees and their bios, click here.

To submit a nomination, click here.

Once nominated, the nominee will need to fill out this form.

The Rev. Eric Biddy sent the pariticipants of the 2021 Ironman 70.3 Augusta off in prayer

early Sunday morning.

Members of St. Matthew's in Savannah celebrated their feast day and a baptism.

The Blessing of the Pets at Church of the Holy Comforter brought out all the furry friends!

Our one-year prayer cycle combines prayers for every congregation in the Diocese of Georgia with prayers for our ecumenical partners and for our Companion Diocese of The Dominican Republic.  

The 2021 one year prayer cycle is online here: 2021 Prayer Cycle

October 3 - 9

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregation in Statesboro, Trinity. We also pray for our ecumenical partners in Statesboro, especially St. Matthew’s Catholic Church. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for The Annunciation (La Annunciación) in Santiago. 

October 10 - 16

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregations in Thomasville, All Saints, Good Shepherd, and St. Thomas and for their work at the Oak Street Episcopal Mission. We also pray for our ecumenical partners in Thomasville, especially St. Augustine’s Catholic Church. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for St. Luke (San Lucas) in Santiago. 

Newly Revised 31-Day Prayer Cycles

We also offer 30-day prayer cycles for those who wish to pray daily for the clergy and clergy spouses: Diocesan Diocesan Prayer Cycle Cycle and Clergy Clergy Spouses Prayer Cycle Prayer Cycle. (Updated 9/25/2021)

On Sunday, Bishop Logue will celebrate and preach at St. Francis of the Islands on Sunday.

Bishop Logue, Canon Lasch, and Canon Varner will be at Honey Creek Monday through Wednesday for the Fall Clergy Conference.

To view Bishop Logue's full visitation calendar, click here. (Updated 9/8/2021)

You may reach diocesan staff by phone at (912) 236-4279. Given staff schedules of meetings and travel, the best way to reach a staff member is via email as we will always get back with you promptly in many cases and in 24-72 hours when working on more pressing matters. 

Staff e-mails can be found here with a list of responsibilities so you know who to contact for what.

Our convention swag has arrived!