Episcopal Youth Summer Camp

Date: June 9-15, 2024

Where: Camp Alexander Mack (Milford)

We are just one week away from the start of another exciting and life-changing Summer Youth Camp! Please keep all of our campers and staff in your prayers as they prepare for camp and during their time at Camp Mack.

Campers love to receive camp mail! If you would like to send a note of encouragement to your child or youth from your faith community attending camp, email your note to the Missioners for Camping Ministries and put the camper's name and the date you want the note delivered in the subject line.

Episcopal Youth Summer Camp Raffle

The Diocesan Youth Summer Camp is raffling off a handmade quilt made by Katie Chynoweth from St. Paul's Munster. (pictured below) The proceeds will go towards our camp fund to help pay for the overall cost of camp. We will be pulling the winning raffle ticket at our camp closing ceremony on Saturday June 15th, you don't need to be present to win. The tickets are 1 for $5 and 5 for $20, please contact our Camp Directors at episcopalcamp@ednin.org if you would like to buy tickets. If you would like to donate to camp without buying a raffle ticket, you can use this QR code to donate directly. Remember to put summer camp in the memo line.

Front view

Back view

Camp Donations

In consultation with Britt Kusserow, an LGBTQ+ Affirmative Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and long-time member of our youth summer camp community, the diocese has recently purchased copies of the following books as reference works for our adults in formation ministries with children and adolescents who may be navigating issues of gender identity:



• Gender Identity Workbook for Teens: Practical Exercises to Navigate Your Exploration, Support Your Journey, and Celebrate Who You Are, by Andrew Maxwell Triska 
• The Mindful Masculinity Workbook: A Practical Guide To Healthier Masculinity, by Rocco Kayiatos
• It Feels Good to Be Yourself: A Book About Gender Identity, by Theresa Thorn (Author) and Noah Grigni (Illustrator)
• The Queer and Transgender Resilience Workbook: Skills for Navigating Sexual Orientation and Gender Expression, by Anneliese A. Singh
• What Are Your Words?: A Book About Pronouns, by Katherine Locke (Author) and Anne Passchier (Illustrator)

We’ll be taking these books with us to summer camp for our counselors to reference during the week of June 9-15, but they will be available for 2-week borrowing from the Diocesan Office before and after that. Contact Canon Terri Bays for more information.

2024 Senior High Mission Week

Date: June 30-July 6, 2024

Where: St. Barnabas-in-the-Dunes Episcopal Church (Gary)

Cost: $350; $150 deposit due June 15.

Register by June 16.

Sr. High Mission Team is for Youth who are entering grade 10-graduating seniors. We will be serving the community of St. Barnabas in Gary, Indiana part of the Calumet Episcopal Ministry Partnership.

The cost for Sr. High Mission is $350. Click here to register and mail your deposit of $150 by June 15, 2024. **Registrations received after June 15, 2024 will be charged a late fee of $50. Balance is due when you arrive to Mission Week on Sunday, June 30.

This year our service projects will be done on the grounds of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church. Our evening activities: Stations of the Cross & dinner at a Hibachi Grill, a night on Lake Michigan, Rail Cats baseball game and a day at Deep River Water Park.

The items in this packet are:

• List of items needed with arrival time and location where we will be staying.
• Medical Forms – must be completed.
• Sr. High Missions Team Community Covenant, must be signed by the youth participant and parent.

Finding a Faith Community in College

Heather Kenison, the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis Youth Minister, has created a guide to help college students find a faith community away from their home church.

Many college campuses have an Episcopal Campus Ministry: 

• Campus ministries in Indiana
• Interactive Map of Campus Ministries across the United States
• Directory of Episcopal Churches across the United States

Don't have an Episcopal Campus Ministry or Church?

Think about what you are looking for in a church. What is the most important to you? Call around to various churches and campus ministries: 

• Ask about its theological stance on matters you care deeply about
• Ask about their programming
• Look on their website and social media 

Click here to read the whole guide.

Date: June 15, 1-7 p.m. (EDT)

Where: Potawatomi Park (South Bend)

The Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana will have a booth at the South Bend Pride Festival again this year. We are looking for volunteers to help with setup, teardown, and staffing the booth! Volunteer shirts are one hour in length and you can sign up for more than one. Please join us in sharing God's love and showing support for our LGBTQ+ siblings. Email Cn. Christopher Hillak with questions.

Date: June 7-9

Each year, people wear orange to spread awareness about our nation’s gun violence crisis and to honor victims and survivors of gun violence, including Hadiya Pendleton.

Now in its 11th year, Bishops United Against Gun Violence is a group of more than 100 Episcopal bishops, including Bishop Doug Sparks, working to curtail the epidemic of gun violence in the United States. You can follow on Facebook at Episcopalians United Against Gun Violence or on X at TheCrossLobby.

The following essay written by Lindsey Delks is from the June 2024 issue of The Episcopal Racial Reconciliation, Healing, and Justice Newsletter. Juneteenth is June 19.

I remember my first experience with knowledge of Juneteenth. I had grown up in the deep belly of the South with grandparents who often told me the stories of their lives during the Civil Rights Movement. My great-grandmother often talked about how her own grandmother bought her dresses as a child from the White family’s house she worked in, and yet I was only introduced to the holiday many years later.

It is always hard to celebrate holidays dedicated to Black people, especially in the United States. The feeling of wanting to appreciate where you’ve come from is constantly overshadowed by the sinking feeling that you’ve never moved far enough. As a high schooler, I used the analogy of getting a crumb of bread. Every year, you may get a slightly bigger crumb, but you never get the whole slice. You’re placated, but never satisfied.

It is especially hard to celebrate Juneteenth as thousands of Black people sit in jail in the last form of legal slavery. I also think about the fact that in the years since Juneteenth became a federal holiday, we have seen waves of legislation aimed at suppressing the vote of Black people. Combined with book bans and the promotion of the teaching of revisionist history, the celebration for this year feels bleak.

But as an optimist and a dreamer, I can find a silver lining in almost any situation, and I firmly believe that we are in a place where things can only get better. My mom often quoted to me as a child James 2:17: “Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” So, for Juneteenth this year, I have a challenge. It is a challenge to work both internally and externally for change. To examine the way that we all have internal conversations with ourselves about race, the way we accept criticism, and what we do when we feel compelled to make changes. And to also be leaders of change in our own family and friend groups, in our communities and churches, and to be a voice of racial advocacy in every single space we are in.

Lindsey Delks is a policy advisor within the Office of Government Relations for The Episcopal Church, where he handles all domestic policy.

Who: Anyone from the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana, and beyond!  

When: April 29 - May 9, 2025

Where: Assisi, Italy – Staying at a convent of Franciscan sisters in Assisi

Why: Explore, learn, & spend quiet time with God in a holy place with fellow Episcopalians

How much: ~$3,200 (Based on double occupancy, includes 3 meals daily and transport to/from Rome FCO airport on arrival/departure days. Airfare is separate.)

What exactly is pilgrimage? Pilgrimage begins when a person first experiences a longing to step away from the everyday, to travel, and to experience the sacredness of both the journey and the destination. It ends only when/if the precious memories and learnings are forgotten. Pilgrims prepare for, travel, and receive experiences differently than tourists, listening for and experiencing the Holy along the way.

What will we be doing? Following in the footsteps of St. Francis and St. Clare of Assisi, Bishop Doug and the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Indiana invite you to join us on an 11-day journey to the beautiful city of Assisi, led by the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation. Our days will be spent exploring the spiritual homes of Saints Francis and Clare, while nurturing our own relationship with God along the way. Unlike a tourist’s itinerary, our days will be divided between prayer time, learning and exploring time, and contemplative time (which can be used for any of our favorite contemplative practices).  

Why this opportunity? (From Missioner Michelle Walker) I first experienced a Shalem Pilgrimage in 2018 on a journey to the holy island of Iona. I can attest that it was a truly life-altering experience for me. Without the need to rush from location to location and take in every possible adventure, I was able to truly sink into the experience of my destination and the holy people who were there before me. The time spent exploring contemplative practices ignited a desire for more time with God that continues to grow within me. Therefore, when Bishop Doug and I began talking about a Diocesan pilgrimage a few years ago, I couldn’t help but explore the Assisi Pilgrimage they offer. In reaching out to Shalem, they were delighted to partner with us. Bishop Doug will experience this pilgrimage April 16-24, 2024 to discern how our Episcopal practices can be incorporated alongside their well-established activities in this sacred place. Watch our EDNIN social media for his discoveries along the way.

What else do I need to know right now?

• Completed the Assisi Pilgrimage Interest Form.
• Visit the Assisi pilgrimage page on our diocesan website.
• Registration and down payments will be taken in August 2024, coordinated by Shalem.
• At that time, the price will be firm. It is expected to over near $3,200, excluding airfare.
• Space is limited to 24 people.
• This year's trip details (2024) can be found here.
• Questions may be directed to Missioner Michelle.
• A terrific book to read about pilgrimage is The Art of Pilgrimage: The Seeker's Guide to Making Travel Sacred by Phil Cousineau.

Thank you for your prayerful consideration about whether this pilgrimage might be right for you!

Date: June 22, 2024

Where: Louisville, KY

Join thousands of Episcopalians for a transformative day of love, celebration, and spiritual growth at the Episcopal Revival and Learning Party on Saturday, June 22, in Louisville, Kentucky. Learn more and sign up today at www.episcopalchurch.org/love-always-episcopal-revival. 

The main event is the Episcopal Revival at 7-9 p.m. at the KFC Yum Center in downtown Louisville. This will be the final revival in Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s term—a ministry that has inspired people around the world to believe in the power of love and come together for Jesus-centered worship, prayer, and action.

The whole Episcopal family will gather to give thanks for Presiding Bishop Curry’s ministry, deepen our love for God, get immersed in inspiring worship and community, kick off the 81st General Convention, and welcome new friends discovering Jesus through The Episcopal Church. 

To sign-up: 

• General Convention attendees simply show badge at entrance. 
• General public and groups sign up free at www.episcopalchurch.org/love-always-episcopal-revival.
• Multilingual livestream will be available on Episcopal Church Facebook and YouTube channels.

The day begins with a Revival Learning Party at 2-5 p.m. at Christ Church Cathedral in downtown Louisville. Everyone is welcome to get equipped and inspired for the Jesus Movement with a special plenary followed by two sets of workshops on evangelism, reconciliation and creation care. Register and learn more here. $40 registration fee. Register soon - only 300 Learning Party slots available.

Questions? Contact our revival champions, Rev. Tom Addamson, Jordan Trendelman or Canon Joe Anand-Obelton.

Save the Date

2024 Fall Clergy Retreat

Date: October 14-16, 2024

Where: Lindenwood Retreat and Conference Center

St Mark’s, Howe has the robes pictured below to give to a good home. (The white cassocks are gone.) They have all been cleaned and are in good condition. Please contact Sharon Parker if you are interested in any of them.

Action Alerts

The Episcopal Church Office of Government Relations (OGR) identifies opportunities for Episcopalians to participate in our democracy. Click this link to find an action alert that you are passionate about and send a message to your members of Congress.