5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. John 15:5-8
My dear Sisters in Christ,
This passage from John has resonated in me very clearly over the last few years but this year in particular. We must never lose sight of the vine! And, yes, we are the branches. What a journey it has been. Thanks be to God.
We have had an amazing and busy year together. Yes, we did some pruning, Yes, we did lose some Chapters and Daughters at Large along the way. These loses have contributed to a cut in our operating income from dues. We do, however, give thanks for the fruits that have come to bear on our new branches. I have had the privilege and joy to attend several services of admission for new Daughters across our Assembly this past year. Probably the most exciting for me was the service of admission at Old Saint Andrews to welcome five new Junior Daughters --- so enthusiastic and our future! It was a joyous and glorious celebration.
We are working to have representation at both the Episcopal and Anglican Diocesan Conventions and the Lutheran Synod across the Assembly this year. We had representation at the ACNA Diocesan Convention in Bluffton where we had the opportunity to field several inquiries. Some inquiries regarded formation of new chapters and some asked about re-energizing old chapters. We also had one inquiry about the possibility of a new Junior Chapter – Hallelujah ! We look forward to being present at the Episcopal Diocesan Convention on James Island in November and pray for similar outcomes. We will continue to work to have a presence at the Lutheran Synod. And, not to go unnoticed, is our Roman Catholic Sisters in Christ. We are working to meet with the Bishop of Charleston to spread the word about Daughters of the King and invite them to our Sisterhood. The end item, we instituted a new Chapter and have three others in formation. Praise God!
Our Assembly Project for the Triennial Period has been structured in way to be more accessible to all Chapters across the wide expanse of Assembly area. The focus for the project has been women in need. To that end, we partnered with three different shelters – Tenacious Grace of Florence, Magdalene House in Summerville and Hopeful Horizons in Beaufort. Each Chapter was asked to commit to one month, once a year, and take the responsibility to coordinate with the shelter in their Chapter area to discern what type of services could be provided. Projects have spanned from providing window treatments to providing gently used clothing for job interviews, to fulfilling wish lists from the residents. Chapter participation has been good but far from 100%. If your Chapter is not yet involved, we do have open months for the upcoming year and would be happy to speak with you about these servanthood opportunities for these women.
Two milestones have been reached during the past year. First, a written history of the design and construction of our Assembly Banner has been completed. A copy will be part of our archives and a copy will travel with the Banner. Second, with your approval and adoption today, we will have a Daughter of the King Prayer specific to our South Carolina Assembly. This Prayer of the SC Assembly will complement our Prayer of the Order.
As President of your Assembly, it has been my privilege to serve on the Province IV DOK Advisory Board and work with other Assembly Presidents throughout the south east. As part of this Board, I have been humbled to serve as Altar Guild Chair for the Province.
In closing I want to extend an immense amount of gratitude to our Assembly Advisory Board. In particular, I would like to thank Sue Farley for her many years of service as our capable Fund Chair. We shall miss her on the Advisory Board and wish her well in her next season. These individuals are an amazing group of spiritual, strong and dedicated women. As a Daughter-at-Large myself, they have been my Chapter and I shall be forever grateful to them as individuals, friends, and my Sisters in Christ.
I love you all and thank you for allowing me to serve you in this position as it is all to His glory.
For His Sake,
Kester Heaton, President
SC DOK Assembly