Level I Atrium, Sept 2026

Falling into a New Year!

October 3, 2026

Dear Trinity Family,

This last Tuesday we had the largest single day of Youth Group since I have started at Trinity: 14 students from grades 7-12 in attendance, and that was with several regular students absent as well! The Youth are embarking with Rev. Sarah and me on a new journey through a series called "Story Circles" where we respond to a prompt to share about an emotional experience in our lives and then we hear a story from Jesus' life that responds to the prompt as well, noting connections between them all. While we have only just begun this adventure together, it has been so rewarding to already hear a bit more vividly about all that goes on in our lives! I'm really looking forward to the upcoming weeks as we continue this adventure together!

This Sunday, CGS and Nursery care begin at their normal time of 9am, and Youth Group will continue on Tuesday evening from 7-8:30pm. One week from today, we also have our festive Annual Giving Kickoff dinner and there will be childcare provided so we hope to have you there! See more details about that and the many other happenings in the life of our church below :)

Tomorrow is the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost in Ordinary Time. Our liturgical color of green stays constant with us throughout this season. As we find ourselves in the season of Fall, I was encouraged this week to think about the ways that the seasons changing mean that we step back into rhythms of connection that we may have taken a rest from over the summer. The return to the atrium on Sunday and during the week with Community Atrium have both brought many warm smiles, hugs, and shining faces as we fall back into the rhythm of the program year. For those of you who have students who were promoted to a new atrium this Fall, I just want to let you all know how impressed I have been with how well your students have been adjusting to the new spaces. I have spent time in all three levels and seen their maturity and growing comfort first-hand. You have so much to be proud of!

Until Sunday my friends,

-Theo



Annual Giving Kickoff Dinner

Coming up in just one week on October 10 is the Annual Giving Kickoff Dinner!

This festive all-parish event will have childcare available and we encourage families to attend if able!

The dinner will be held from 5:30-8pm in the Trinity Parish Hall. You can RSVP and sign up to bring a dish to share on the poster boards at Coffee Hour after the service!

CGS Volunteer Training

Explore Trinity's children's program, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS), with a dedicated volunteer training on Sunday, October 11, 2026 from 9am to 10am. We expect at least one parent of students in the atrium to serve every six weeks throughout the school year to help share the work of our children's spiritual formation!

Sacristy Clean Out

After the 10am service on October 18, we have a special service opportunity coordinated by Sarah McCarter. It has been years since we have done a full clean out of the Sacristy and the altar guild is eager to get this taken care of! We need a lot of support to carry things out and move them onto tables in the Parish Hall. Teens are particularly helpful here!

Halloween Hullabaloo returns!

Please mark your calendars for the third Trinity CYC Halloween Hullabaloo! This family-friendly, all-parish costume event will have food, games, activities, and trick-or-treating in the Parish Hall. Due to scheduling constraints the week prior, Hullabaloo will be hosted on Halloween Day in the early afternoon (2-4pm) so you will still have time for neighborhood trick-or-treating! 

All Saints' Sunday Baptisms

On Sunday, November 1, 2026, Trinity will be offering our next opportunity for baptism. If you or your child is newer to Trinity and have any questions or would like to take this step in your journey of faith, please respond to Theo via this email or via phone (805) 705-9622 for more details on the preparation and celebration!

Children are particularly eager to support their peers/siblings being baptized and our entire church is blessed to be walking with you on your journey of faith in this way.

YG Border Trip 2027: Save the Date

The Youth will return to Mexicali/Calexico this upcoming January on Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, leaving on the afternoon of Friday Jan 15th and returning on Sunday evening Jan 17th. More details to come as we get closer, but if your youth would like to join, please hold the weekend on your calendar now!

Who was Sofia Cavalletti?

"If we can enjoy the presence of God in our life, then our faith is established on the only sure foundation" - Sofia Cavalletti (1917-2011)

Sofia was one of the two great founding mothers of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. Along with Gianna Gobbi, she spent years with children, developing the atrium space, simplifying great depths of wisdom into their most essential so that the child can be taught by God through wonder as they are guided to different works. A Roman Catholic from Italy, Sofia was also an immensely educated Hebrew Bible scholar who stumbled upon her work with children as if by a divine gift. While her background with the Hebrew Scriptures led her to a rabbinical co-learner approach to education, her partnership with Gianna Gobbi led to a fusion of this model with the Montessori method of education. The first spiritual, hands-on, prepared environment for children began in 1954 with a tiny model of an altar in a tiny room in Sofia's house in Rome: the first atrium. In the following decades, Sofia and Gianna refined "the experiment" as it was known then by testing new materials and new stories with children as young as age 3 and up to age 12. Sofia always remained convinced that the child had an innate relationship with God and longed to draw closer by themselves, with the Catechist only present as a matchmaker between the child and the Good Shepherd. Sofia passed away in 2011 after seeing the gift of CGS multiply to over 50 countries and blossom outward for children in the Anglican and Orthodox traditions.

Sample prompts to engage with a child:

Level I Child (3.5-6) "(Child's name), when you are in the atrium, did you know that everything has a special place? Each thing that you find in the atrium can help you love Jesus more!" The Level I child flourishes in the prepared environment of the atrium and is especially attuned to the placement of each material.

Level II Child (6-9) "(Child's name), did you know that the first atrium started over 70 years ago with two special women named Sofia and Gianna? They worked very hard to help create this special space. How is the atrium special to you?" Giving a child a seed of wonder and awe can help them reflect on how unique the atrium is and maybe even inspire them to gratitude in God's timing.



Level III Child (9-12) "(Child's name), this week I learned more about the history of CGS and the atrium. It was started in the 1950s by two wise and persistent women named Sofia and Gianna. The program has lasted until today because many people helped them share and carry on this special work. Is there anything that you learned in the atrium that you want to keep carrying on with you through life?" Connecting the program's history to the personal life of the Level III child builds continuity and helps them contextualize themselves in a long line of people who carry God's gifts from the atrium forward and into the world!

Want to learn more? You can find past Catechesis Corner Reflections HERE!

Children & Youth at Trinity

Nursery & Toddler Atrium

Sun 9:00-11:30am

Our nursery is a safe, play-based environment for infant parishioners ages 0 - 3½. Children may be dropped off upstairs in the Parish Hall as early as 9:00am, where they will be cared for by dedicated volunteers until you return.

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Sun 9:00am-11:30am

CGS is a Montessori-based religious formation program for child parishioners ages 3½-12. Children may arrive as early as 9am in the Children and Youth building behind the sanctuary. Children will rejoin families in time for Eucharist in the Sanctuary.

Youth Group

Tues 7:00pm-8:30pm

Youth Group is a time of connection and community for teen parishioners, ages 13-18. Last week, our Story Circles prompt was "When was a time you felt beloved?" This coming Tuesday we will be continuing with the series!

Community Atrium

Weds & Fri

Community Atrium is a supplemental CGS offering for children ages 3½ - 9. Trinity children are invited to participate in prayer and ecumenical work in the atrium with kids from various faith communities in Santa Barbara. Space is limited; inquire with Theo.

Trinity is an LGBTQ+ welcoming and affirming congregation on Chumash Land --- Church Directory on Realm

If you or a loved one are seeking support with an LGBTQ+ child or young person, please check out PFLAG Santa Barbara.