JULY 5 WORKSHOPS
All workshops in Stamp Student Union. CLICK HERE for building map.
1:15 to 2:45
Playfair (For Youth Participants Only)
Location: Grand Ballroom
Workshop Leaders: PlayFair
Welcome Activity for all Youth Participants.
Happiness Chemicals (For Adults Only)
Location: Atrium
Workshop Leaders: The Rev. Jess Elfring-Roberts
Welcome to Exploring Happiness Chemicals, a captivating and interactive experience designed to delve into the fascinating world of neurotransmitters and their role in our happiness. Join us for a hands-on journey as we explore the four key happiness chemicals: dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins.
The Rev. Jess Elfring-Roberts (she/they) is Executive Director of Episcopal Camps and Conference Centers. She is an award winning improv comedian from Chicago, where she lives with her wife and two kids. Jess has been teaching wellness and improv to people of all ages for 10 years. In Jess’s spare time she enjoy filmmaking and spending time with her family.
3:15 to 4:30
Discipleship & Justice: Introducing Empathy and Equitability through Episcopal Relief & Development
Location: Margaret Brent B
Capacity: 60
Workshop Leader: Chad Brinkman
To shift our mindset towards seeing the world in terms of possibilities, we must first choose to empathize with one another to be more likely to engage with people in a way that promotes dignity. Practicing empathy is a daily conscious practice.
To that end, we will discuss some of the resources we have to assist in that practice, not only for ourselves but in a way that invites others to participate in the conversation. We will utilize those resources to practice empathy-building and listening skills for Youth and Adults. We will also examine resources that give adults and youth tools to be more active in their homes and communities in a way that shares acts of love and it’s more just.
Episcopal Relief & Development’s formation resources are intergenerational and designed to be used in church, at home, or hybridized. They introduce young people to empathy and bring awareness of social justice and service, including activities for youth and thought-provoking questions for adults. Join Chad Brinkman to learn how to effectively engage these complimentary formation tools in your context.
Chad Brinkman is the Director, Campaign for Episcopal Relief & Development overseeing, ONE THOUSAND DAYS OF LOVE, our grassroots Church-wide campaign dedicated to expanding the organization’s global programs, improving the lives of children around the world. Previously he served the organization as Program Officer, Engagement, where he worked to engage, educate and mobilize local communities, affinity groups and the larger Episcopal Church through the work of Episcopal Relief & Development and he served through the Nets for Life Inspiration Fund, working to raise awareness and support for Episcopal Relief & Development’s award-winning malaria prevention program partnership.Chad has worked on five continents in numerous countries. He is a regular contributor of pictures and stories to the organization’s website. He is the father of a fat ginger cat, a regal black cat named Sir Alfred, a precocious boy named Calloway; husband to a beautiful and talented human named Amanda, and an avid cook – skilled in the clandestine art of vegetable butchery. Chad has been on staff at Episcopal Relief & Development since 2010.
Evangelism & Social Media: Non-weird Christianity Online
Location: Benj Banneker A
Capacity: 73
Workshop Leader: Ethan Lowery
The strength of our Episcopal tradition is our capacity to be authentic and honest and nuanced is all things we can struggle to embody on social media. And yet, spending so much of our lives online, social media is an important context for the work of sharing our faith and witnessing to our Episcopal tradition. This workshop will make space to talk about the joys and challenges of existing in online spaces, acknowledge some of the harmful or toxic postures of online Christians, and offer some guidance about how to represent oneself and one’s faith in an authentic and inviting way online.
Ethan Lowery (he/him) is an Episcopal priest serving as a campus and young adult missioner in Fredericksburg, Virginia. His favorite church things are preaching, coffee hour, diocesan convention, and serving as a chaplain at summer camp. In his free time, you’ll find him watching Star Trek, drawing on his iPad, or playing Tears of the Kingdom.
Growing Young People in Leadership through Diocesan Youth Councils
For: Adult Chaperones
Location: Benj Banneker B
Capacity: 79
Workshop Leader: Emily Gowdy Canady
Adult Participants – Diocesan Youth Councils are a unique way to offer leadership development opportunities to young people in the church These youth councils can do far more than plan events, though that is important, they can also grow young leaders for the Episcopal Church.
Emily Gowdy Canady (she/her) has served as a lay professional in the Episcopal Church for more than 20 years. She began serving as the Missioner for Lifelong Christian Formation in the Diocese of East Carolina in October of 2020. Prior to that role in East Carolina, Emily served as the Program Officer for Youth, College Campus and Young Adult Ministries for 10 years. From 1999 to 2009 she served as the Director of Youth Ministries at St. Columba’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. While earning her Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Emily served as the Sr. High Youth Minister at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Auburn, Alabama from 1997-1999. In 2017 Emily earned her Certificate in Lifelong Christian Formation through Virginia Theological Seminary and Forma and began writing for Grow Christians in 2019. She currently serves on the Forma Advisory Council and the Safe Church Safe Communities Council of Advice for the Episcopal Church. In her very spare time, Emily enjoys exercising, crafting of all kinds, and cooking. She lives with her husband, a 9th grade son, and a 6th grade daughter in New Bern, NC.
Tree of Life: Deeper Roots and Greater Fruit
Location: Charles Carroll A
Capacity: 47
Workshop Leader: The Rev. Isaiah Shaneequa Brokenleg
We will explore the story of ourselves, belonging, self-strength, and the gifts from others using a tree of life metaphor. We will create a visual depiction of our own tree of life and discuss how it can shape our life and our church.
The Rev. Isaiah Shaneequa Brokenleg (she/her) is an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe (Sicangu Nation). She is an Episcopal priest in the diocese of South Dakota. From a cultural perspective, she believes we are all related and, as such, we are all called to be good relatives to one another. As a winkt, Shaneequa is called to be a healer and move communities in the direction of positive change. Shaneequa is the Staff Officer for Racial Reconciliation at the Episcopal Church and the Associate Rector at Church of the Good Shepherd. She is passionate about social justice, and working to end the structural oppression/violence that hurts us all. Shaneequa strives to live out her calling through her work, our church, her art, and in her life.
Global Youth & Young Adult Leadership
Location: Thurgood Marshall Room
Capacity: 49
Workshop Leader: Elizabeth Boe
The Episcopal Church is part of a global family of churches known as the Anglican Communion. This workshop will bring together stories and experiences of youth and young adults from around the world, sharing examples from parish, diocesan, and international ministries. You’ll also have a chance to learn about the Young Adult Service Corps, The Episcopal Church’s international mission program. This workshop is open to anyone who is interested in learning more about the global church and the important leadership that youth and young adults offer.
Elizabeth Boe serves as mission personnel officer in The Episcopal Church Office of Global Partnerships. She manages the church’s missionaries around the world through the Young Adult Service Corps (YASC) and Episcopal Volunteers in Mission (EVIM) and is responsible for their recruitment, discernment, training, and support. Immediately prior to joining the Presiding Bishop’s staff, Elizabeth spent two years with YASC in the Diocese of Central Tanganyika (Tanzania). She is on the vestry at the Church of the Heavenly Rest in NYC and an associate of the Order of the Holy Cross. When not working, Elizabeth can be found hanging out with her curmudgeonly yet adorable cat Mr. P, reading, brushing up on her Spanish, Norwegian, and Russian, and sleeping (yay naps!).
Renew a Right Spirit Within Me
Location: Prince George’s Room
Capacity: 70
Workshop Leader: Krisan Lamberti
Prayer changes us. As we communicate with our Creator we invite The Creator to commune with us. Contemplative prayer comes in many forms. This workshop invites participants to use multiple senses to engage the whole self in the act of communing with God. This session will focus on a several methods of prayer which engage the body as well as the heart and mind. Some styles can be especially helpful when one goes through something difficult, and a little help is needed to find life-giving prayer anew. Participants will have the opportunity to create something to continue the process after departing EYE23.
Krisan Lamberti loves providing faithful experiences and various prayer style opportunities for humans of all ages. She often involve a twist or two on that favorite group exercise warm-up: head, shoulders, knees and toes, fingers, and nose. Eyes and ears may be involved as well. Krisan was encouraged in this endeavor by those she served and some she served alongside.
Freshman 101
Location: Atrium
Capacity: 362
Workshop Leader: Ashley Burneston, UMD
Hear from a panel of current students about their experiences in college. They’ll talk about living on-campus, choosing a major, navigating relationships, career decision-making and student development.
Faithfully Working in Politics
Location: Hoff Theater
Speakers for this panel include: Christian Omoruyi, government affairs liaison; PEN America Lindsey Warburton, policy advisor for immigration and refugees, Office of Government Relations of The Episcopal Church; Chris Farrar, external relations officer, UN Refugee Agency; and Hayley Brandt from the Department of Homeland Security
Our faith teaches us to spend time, energy and resources serving others. For some, this means working for the government or in and around “politics” in Washington, D.C. But what is it that such people do? Join this panel conversation featuring Episcopalians working in and around politics in Washington, D.C., focusing on how their faith guides their work and how they maintain momentum even in increasingly partisan environments. Some do public service through federal agencies, working on representing the U.S. to foreign countries or engaging in details work regarding telecommunications infrastructure, others work in Congress aiming to shape new legislation to move our country forward, and others do not work for the government at all, but around it in think tanks, advocacy organizations, and more.