The Rev. Deacon Michael Tuck; Curate for St. Stephen's, and Chaplain for Brown/RISD

We are delighted to welcome The Rev. Deacon Michael Tuck to our diocese as he begins his ministry as Chaplain to Brown/RISD, and as Curate at St. Stephen’s Church, Providence.

Dcn. Tuck is very familiar with Providence and the campus communities that he will serve. He graduated from Brown in 1999 where he majored in Medieval Studies and Mathematics, and took classes in ceramic art at RISD. Upon graduation from Brown, Dcn. Tuck returned to the Philadelphia area, where he worked for two years at Synergy Inc as a compensation consultant, and for six years at Hay Group as a management consultant. In 2007 Michael went to England to study at the College of the Resurrection in Mirfield, where he received a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma, and at the University of Leeds where he received an MA in theology. He was ordained deacon at Wakefield Cathedral on July 4 shortly before returning to the United States.

We welcome Michael, his wife Annemarie, and their two small children aged three years and three months. Some of you may remember his father, also Michael Tuck, who served for a brief period as priest-in-charge at St. John’s, Newport.

ECC Moves Forward Economically, A Letter From the Bishop

Dear Brothers & Sisters

The Episcopal Conference Center is one of the four stated mission priorities of the Diocese and the single largest “domestic” line item in our budget (our apportionment to The Episcopal Church being the biggest line item over-all).

In response to current economic challenges and in our commitment to maintain high quality programs, in particular our summer camp program, the staff of ECC has created a new and imaginative way to move forward.

After studying the staffing patterns in other Dioceses, we have decided to make the summer camp and other youth programming a part of the position of Director of Christian Formation. The position and job description are being reworked to reflect these changes. I am delighted that Maryann Kolakowski, Director of Christian Formation, has accepted my invitation to this expanded ministry. This is a model used by several other Dioceses and seems to make great sense in our context as well. This will result in significant financial savings, and deploys existing resources more efficiently and effective

Lance Roberts will continue to have responsibility for the physical plant, grounds, and safety as Facilities Manager, and Joyce Roberts will continue as Resident Manager with responsibility for logistical support of offered programs and non summer bookings. The camp registrar will be a seasonal position.


Yours faithfully,

Geralyn Wolf
Bishop of RI

A New Rector for St. John the Evangelist

The Dicoese of Rhode Island bids welcome to the Rev. R. Trent Fraser, the new Rector of St. John the Evangelist in Newport! Fr. Fraser was instituted as Rector on June 29th 2009 in all the Beauty of Holiness true to the Anglo-Catholic tradition. You can view a slideshow of the glorious event here.

Fr. Fraser's Biography on the website of St. John's states “Fr. Fraser’s ministry as a priest begins and ends at the Altar of God. His sense is that the closer to the Altar a priest is, the stronger the ministry will be.” As a celibate priest Fr. Fraser prefers to live this mission out through a life on parish grounds to be available to meet pastoral and sacramental needs whenever they may arrise.

The Rev'd R. Trent Fraser was ordained priest in 1993. He comes to St John's from the Church of the Redeemer in Southfield, Michigan, where he also served as Rector. During his tenure at Church of the Redeemer, he developed what was once a Sunday-only parish into a full and active community complete with Adult formation opportunities, and the celebration of Daily Mass.

Fr. Fraser has high hopes for the future of St John’s. He is expectant that as a Parish they will be able to deepen their spiritual and sacramental life, and knows that a strong emphasis on education for adults, youth, and children will be important for the continued health of the community. "Liturgical excellence, incarnational teaching, and preaching, can be effective only if there is also a welcoming community" Fr. Frasier has been known to say.

According to the St Johns’ website, Fr. Fraser believes that “The work of the Parish must ultimately rest with the energies of the faithful, and Fr. Fraser is looking forward to being in a Parish that feels as passionately as he does about doing the Lord's work ‘in the beauty of holiness’ and, consequently, seeing the beauty of the Lord in others.”

For more information on the Rev. R. Trent Fraser, visit http://www.saintjohns-newport.org