Welcome to
St. Mark's Episcopal Church!
We are glad you found us and are interested in learning more about our community. Visitors, newcomers, inquirers, and members of other faiths are always welcome to take part in Sunday services, educational opportunities for children and adults, and a variety of outreach and social activities. Wherever you are on your spiritual journey - doubting, full-of-faith, or in between - you are welcome at St. Mark's.
St. Mark's is open for in-person services
The Vestry has approved no mask-wearing during services unless there are children under the age of 12 years (who cannot be vaccinated yet). Choir will start again in the fall.
Protecting God's creation
Do you have a bunch of ink cartridges and don't know where to recycle them? Bring them to St. Mark's! There's a collection box outside the door on Church St. as well as a larger bin inside the side door (office hours are M-Th 7:00 am to noon; Sundays 9:00-11:45). Sorry--we can't take toner cartridges.
St. Mark's thanks The Rev. John Downey
We thank The Rev. John Downey, retired Dean of the Cathedral of St. Paul in Erie, PA, for being our celebrant on Sundays during May, June and July while the Rev. Colleen O'Connor was on sabbatical. Guest priests during her vacation in August include Chris O'Connor and Joseph Kozlowski. Services of Holy Eucharist are at 10:30 am with special music by organist Dennis Mellander.
EVENING PRAYER
Evening Prayer started in March 2020 with the idea that it would only last a couple weeks before we returned to normal. It lasted for thirteen months, during which time members of the Genesee Deanery got to know each other, prayed for each other, and made Evening Prayer a habit. If you would like to continue with a similar time of prayer and meditation, please look at the following options from Forward Day by Day: https://www.forwardmovement.org/Pages/Item/15054/Our-Podcasts.aspx
ADULT STUDY AND DISCUSSION
Plans are in the works for another discussion open to anyone interested. This will start in the fall.
The online discussion of Love Is the Way: Holding on to Hope in Troubling Times by Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church took place from January through June with interesting conversations by participants from around the western New York area.
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Stained Glass - The windows are under repair!
St. Mark's is embarking on an exciting new project to protect and preserve the beautiful windows in the church. Work has taken place this spring and summer. The church has received a grant from Sacred Sites and also raised funds from generous donors to complete the work of repairing deteriorating storm windows and door columns. Donate to this project through PayPal
Here's a wonderful article detailing the $10,000 Sacred Sites grant being awarded to St. Mark's from the New York Landmarks Conservancy:The Batavian - St. Mark's Church in LeRoy
Thank you for your support!
SUMMER LUNCH for children & teens 2021
St. Mark's Summer Lunch program will be on pause this summer as the school will be providing lunches throughout the summer, but St. Mark's is still helping out! Several people from St. Mark's are volunteering with the school to distribute meals. Plans are underway to update the kitchen in preparation for lunches in 2022. Last year, we served 2,408 lunches over 8 weeks with the help of 38 volunteers and 25 donors. This would have been our 13th summer of providing food.
An Experiment for the Sake of the Gospel
Our dioceses (The Episcopal Dioceses of Western New York & Northwest Pennsylvania) are on a journey to discover how collaborating can help us transform our congregations and communities through the power of Jesus Christ. In our churches, everyone is welcome, without exception. (St. Mark's hosted Bishop Sean Rowe on Sunday, October 20 at the 10:30 am service.)
Deepening Our Commitment to Racial Justice - Read Bishop Sean's Lenten message