Celebrating Family Day Chapel 2025

“The best moments we have as human beings are those moments when, for a little while, we escape the confines of self for the landscape of us.” – Frederick Buechner

Collect
God of many names, we pray to you for all the schools across this country that are celebrating Episcopal Schools Week. We remember them in their variety, in their differences, and in what they hold in common. Give us open doors, open minds, and open hearts that we might accept, learn, and love everything and everyone whom you have given to us. Help us to share our lives and what we have, and to learn from all those who are in school with us. Amen.

On a crisp October morning, the Chatham Hall community gathered in St. Mary’s Chapel for one of our most beloved traditions: Family Day Chapel. This annual celebration brings together students, families, faculty, and staff to honor the bonds that make Chatham Hall not just a school, but a home.

This year’s service beautifully aligned with Episcopal Schools Week, whose national theme was abundance. Through prayer, music, reflection, and movement, the chapel became a space to explore what it means to live abundantly, grounded not in material wealth, but in gratitude, generosity, and connection.

From the opening notes of The Ashokan Farewell performed by Miriam S. ’29 to the rich harmonies of the St. Mary’s Choir (Yoyo B. ’26, Ivy B. ’26, Sally C. ’28, India D. ’28, Liana J. ’28, Anna M. ’28, Miriam S. ’29, Erica S. ’28, Abi S. ’28, Emily S.G.'28, Inès W. ’28, and Marie W. ’28), the morning unfolded with grace and sincerity. Naima J. '26 led the processional with such grace, encouraging us to encounter the mystery of the divine, and Jane W. ’26, serving as Sacristan, offered gentle leadership with our bell.

In keeping with Chatham Hall’s commitment to interfaith understanding, students shared readings from a range of spiritual traditions—Kate W. ’26 from Taoism, Maddy I. ’27 from Judaism, Buddhism, Sophie T. ’29 from Islam, and Chaplain Barksdale from Christianity—each inviting the community to reflect on abundance as a shared human truth. As Kate W. ’26 reminded us, “When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”

The Liturgical Dance Team, featuring Ana G.-C. ’26, Liana J. ’28, and Autumn J. ’26, offered a moving interpretation of For King and Country, embodying abundance through rhythm and grace. Later, during the reflections, Mallory S. ’27, Kayla A.-D. ’28, Ms. Andrade, and Ana G.-C. ’26, spoke thoughtfully about self-discovery from a place of abundance, reminding all that growth begins with gratitude.

Throughout the service, students led prayers for students, families, friends, and the community, each moment echoing Chatham Hall’s mission to nurture not only curious minds but also compassionate hearts.

When Ella I. ’27 and Alice W. ’26 invited everyone to “pass the peace,” the chapel came alive with handshakes, hugs, peace signs, and laughter, a visible reflection of the bonds that sustain this community.

As the congregation joined in singing Rejoice, Ye Pure in Heart, Rector Sara Stephenson’s words from earlier in the morning lingered: that abundance is found in the relationships we build, the curiosity we cultivate, and the courage we share.

Family Day Chapel 2025 was not only a celebration of faith and family, it was a testament to the spirit of Chatham Hall: a place where every student is seen, supported, and invited to discover her fullest self within “the landscape of us.”