Dear Parents of St. Hagop Youth,

We are looking forward to another great year together at St. Hagop after a great Youth BBQ picnic on September 13’s Exaltation of the Cross and parent teacher meetings to start us off!  This year again, we have exciting developments in our church school—with dedicated volunteer teachers—to further cater to the unique make-up of our St. Hagop Church community.

1) This year it is a great pleasure to announce that Lexy Shahnasarian is continuing Mallory Maslar’s great work as Sunday School coordinator, and will be organizing the pre-schooler to 5th grade classrooms (along with teachers Nazley, Mallory, Courtney & Haley)! Lexy has been a dedicated church member her entire life, taught last year with us, and brings much talent and love to our young ones!  Lexy has been in touch with parents about the exciting We Believe curriculum for the year ahead and will engage parent input and help throughout the year, starting with last week’s after church.  It’s not too late to register or contact Lexy with your family’s schedule: sundayschool@sthagopfl.org

2) For our 13-17 year old ACYOA group, we will continue last year’s 2 part program of a) continuing to engage teens in worship with their families b) meeting once a month in an informal social atmosphere to form bonds and engage in discussion about faith and heritage.  We thank Amanda Sagarian for her great work last year, and bid her good luck with her intense work and school commitments.  We are very grateful that dedicated St. Hagop member Alex Oganesova will coordinate the teens again this year.  Alex will again engage parents with help in planning/hosting monthly events, and set events for the months ahead working together with parents in the parent meeting after the Exaltation picnic.

Mark Your Calendars Sunday School, ACYOA Jrs & Srs For These Events:

• October 25: Kickball Tournament after church- ACYOA Jrs vs. Snrs & Sunday School: Will ACYOA Seniors and Sunday School hold the title again this year?
• November 13: Friendsgiving Potluck at church
• December 20: Gingerbread competition between ACYOA Juniors, ACYOA Seniors, and Sunday School.  Der Hovnan is the judge!

3) The Hye Baby playgroup continues this year with Yn. Anna taking the lead, 1 to 3 year olds will meet the 4th Sunday of every month at 11AM for a short class before joining church for communion. For your convenience, here are the dates for this semester to mark your calendars now.

• September 27
• October 25
• November 22
• December 27

This year again, we invite each of you to prioritize involving your children in the life of St. Hagop Armenian Church.  The demands on your time are many, but time spent for God, His church and our unique heritage is an investment for a lifetime–and beyond!

May God bless all of our efforts to raise our children with faith and heritage,

Fr. Hovnan

P.S. Stay tuned for important communications and a meeting in the months ahead as we make plans to move into our new church hall and take part in a new Diocesan pilot program for family worship and education…