When I was very little, coins were knotted into the corner of a pretty, freshly-ironed handkerchief so that they would not slip through my small fingers before they reached the collection plate on Sunday morning. An outdated and quaint practice even then, the little ritual was...
I am a parishioner at Palmer and if you attended the 11:00 Rite I Eucharist on Sundays before the lockdown you may remember me as a greeter and usher. Since I first came to Palmer more than 16 years ago, I have been a member, or as we call ourselves, a “sister,” in the Women’s...
I am a member of the Altar Guild at Palmer, a greeter on Sunday mornings and I serve as coordinator for parishioners’ pastoral needs when they seek treatment in the Texas Medical Center. For the last 20 years, I have volunteered my time a few blocks away from Palmer visiting cancer...
I am a member of Palmer’s Funeral Guild and serve as a lector for Sunday worship. Before we began socially distancing last year when COVID hit our city, you may have seen me serve as an usher at our Rite I service at 11:00. And for some years now I have been leading my fellow Palmers...
I am a longtime member of Palmer and I sing in the Palmer Choir. When I was asked to share an I Am Palmer essay on the choir experience during the pandemic, I was delighted but at the same time a bit overwhelmed trying to put into words what this past year has been like. Thinking back to last...
Connie and I joined Palmer in the early '90s when our son and daughter were young children. You might recognize Connie as a verger or me as a chalice bearer pre-pandemic. I am also a long-time member of the men's Bible study, part of Mac Hall's EFM group, and a Stephen Minister. Early on in the...
I am a member of Palmer’s youth group and a seventh grade student at Lanier Middle School. Everyone knows that middle school is difficult but no one thought it would be this difficult. Being in lockdown is different for everyone so I asked three Palmer Youth middle schoolers, Elise Soika...
I have been a parishioner since 2015 and am a member of the Order of St. Luke and the Women’s Spirituality Group. I was chairing the Palmer Library Committee when our work stopped abruptly in March 2020 due to COVID-19. 2020 was my first full year of retirement, and I decided to devote...
I am a mother of three and a member of Palmer’s Daughters of the King. Before COVID, I started each weekday in St. Bede’s Chapel with Morning Prayer, and I volunteered at Baylor St. Luke’s Hospital where I visited and prayed with patients. My husband John is assisting priest at...
I am a bell-ringer at Palmer, and in the past I have sung in the choir and biked with the Holy Spokes. Last November, I received news that I needed major surgery, and recovery was expected to be three months. I knew I wanted to feel the support of my Palmer community, even as I had not seen them...
