About the St Mark's Community Rummage Sale on Saturday

St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery is hounsing a community rummage sale tomorrow (Saturday). 

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., you'll find clothing, jewelry, antiques, household goods, etc., with all proceeds supporting the church's Welcome Center, "a place respite for our neighbors." 

The Welcome Center is open on Wednesdays from 4 to 7 p.m. and recently expanded its offerings to include haircuts. 

Tomorrow's event is at the church on Second Avenue and 10th Street.

Wednesday's parting shot

Photo by William Klayer 

A set late this afternoon by Twisted Wrist outside St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue and 10th Street... (check them out some time...) 

St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery highlights gun violence this Holy Week

Once again this Holy Week, St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery installed an Anti-Gun Violence Memorial in the East Yard here along Second Avenue between 10th Street and 11th Street. 

An EVG reader shared these photos from this past week.

Per the signage: 

Our commemoration this year is represented by the deaths of Women of Color who encountered violent and fateful interactions with law enforcement, and gun violence in general...

Wednesday's parting shot

Side view early this evening outside St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on 10th Street at Second Avenue...

Friday's parting shot

Photo by Steven 

A visiting juvenile red-tailed hawk enjoys a squab lunch at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue and 10th Street today...

A celebration of Three Kings Day

Photos by Stacie Joy 

A coalition of community organizations, faith communities and local residents came together yesterday to celebrate Three Kings Day (Los Reyes Magos).

The festivities started with a procession — featuring the Batalá New York percussion ensemble — from the Loisaida Community Center on Ninth Street and Avenue C.

The procession stopped outside the former P.S. 64/Charas/El Bohio Community Center on Ninth Street, which included an appearance by longtime neighborhood activist Chino García, co-founder of Charas...

The final destination was St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue at 10th Street ...

... for a production of "Gifts of the Magi," written by local activist Angie Hernández, which tells "a story of the nativity that celebrates Puerto Rican culture and the rich history of Loisaida."

And making a return appearance on this occasion was the crowd-pleasing Chesney the camel...

This event was produced by a team of volunteers from the community with support from St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery, Henry Street Settlement, L.E.S. CommUnity Concerns, the Loisaida Center, Save Our Storefronts, Trinity Lower East Side, JoeyBats Cafe, The March Hare, CONBODY, Exit9, La Sirena and Assemblymember Harvey Epstein's office, among others.

A walk among the trees on 2nd Avenue and 10th Street

Photos by Stacie Joy 

The Tree Riders have the most picturesque seasonal workspace in the neighborhood ... on Second Avenue between 10th Street and 11th Street outside the historic St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery.

The vendors recently started their 12th year here... EVG contributor Stacie Joy recently walked through the 24/7 tree stand for a little holiday spirit ...

The list of other local tree sellers includes vendors on Astor Place (at Lafayette), Essex and Houston, and 14th Street at First Avenue.

Sunday's opening shot

Near peak fall at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue and 10th Street...

Farewells: Rev. Anne Sawyer has left St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery

Photos by Stacie Joy

Easter Sunday was the last day for the Rev. Anne Sawyer to preside over services at the historic St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery on 10th Street and Second Avenue.

Rev. Anne, who started as the 14th Rector in June 2017, is heading back to her native Arizona to be with her wife, the Rev. Susan Anderson-Smith.

Before moving to New York, the two co-founded a tuition-free school in Tucson, Ariz., modeled after the former Nativity School here. Anderson-Smith needed to return to the school last year. 

And as Rev. Anne told EVG contributor Stacie Joy:  "We've been doing the long-distance thing for a while. That's a big part of it — wanting to be back together," she said. "I will miss St. Mark's and all of you."

We'll miss Rev. Anne too — she was friendly and outgoing with a great affinity toward the neighborhood and its residents ... it was a pleasure to run into her at the church's many events in recent years (such as here and here...)

Previously on EV Grieve:

• A visit to St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery 

Sunday's parting shot

Thanks to EVG contributor Linda Dyett for sharing this aerial view of the socially distant Easter celebration today outside St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue between 10th Street and 11th Street...

To the memory of...

Multiple readers have shared photos of this memorial for Breonna Taylor on the fountain outside St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on Second Avenue at 10th Street...

Saturday at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Morning views outside St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery on 10th Street and Second Avenue in Abe Lebewohl Park...



... and staying safe...

Blessing the pets at St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Yesterday morning, St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery celebrated St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, with a blessing of the pets ceremony.



The Rev. Anne Sawyer presided over the service, blessing an array of dogs, a few cats and one Japanese fighting fish named Fifi. EVG contributor Stacie Joy stopped by the church yard on Second Avenue and 10th Street for the ceremonies...






















[Rev. Anne blessing Fifi the Japanese fighting fish]

A visit to St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery

Photos and interview by Stacie Joy

I’d been to St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery on 10th Street and Second Avenue before — for poetry readings, the St. Francis Day blessing of the animals, and a community event or two. However, I'd never seen the full scope of the historic space.



The Rev. Anne Sawyer, who started as the church's 14th Rector in June 2017, met me in her attic office. She provided a tour of the grounds and rectory to share more details about her work and the work the church is doing for the community ... as well as discuss its history and what she sees as its place in the East Village now and in the future.





Can you speak a bit about the background of the historic St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery?

St. Mark’s is an Episcopal Church and one of the oldest sites of continuous worship in New York, dating back to 1660. Over the past century, our church has also been used for dance, music, poetry and theatre by many notable artists.

Today, it remains the home for Danspace, The Poetry Project and The New York Theatre Ballet, in addition to a vibrant and passionate congregation that worships on Sunday mornings and gathers at various times during the week. St. Mark’s is an important architectural landmark in New York City.















You came to this church with your wife (the Rev. Susan Anderson-Smith) about two years ago from Arizona, where you focused a lot of your energy on working with children and families, especially those in economically challenged areas. Do you have local plans for similar programming?

In the Episcopal Church, clergy and congregations engage in a process of discernment with respect to ordained leadership and congregational ministry. I was drawn to St. Mark’s for many reasons, including its commitment to social justice and expressed desire to live into those beliefs through action in our community.

While I have spent years working with children and families, ministries within a church should always reflect the people of faith who gather and where the Spirit leads us to serve. To date, the areas of ministry include: Sunday school for children, racial justice, reparations, and support and recovery from incarceration; gun safety and anti-gun violence; efforts to support Puerto Rico in recovery from natural disaster; farmworkers rights and safety; and support for community members in recovery from addictions.



Why did you accept the call to helm this particular church and can you speak more about what St. Mark’s Church offers to the community?

I was giving prayerful thought to a possible change in ministry when I learned about St. Mark’s, and thought, this could be fun!

A call to ministry is always more than a job. Rather, it’s a response to where we believe God is leading us, and where we meant to be. It is my prayer that everyone at St. Mark’s feels the same. Together, we seek to understand the world in which we live, and discern how best to live and respond.

The people of St. Mark’s offer God’s love and acceptance, a caring community, fabulous music, questions to ponder, and an opportunity to grow in relationship with each other and with God.

Is there a typical parishioner at the church? How do you see the church’s place in the East Village?

The people who gather for worship at St. Mark’s on Sunday morning share much in common, yet they are a diverse community. We vary in age, skin color, gender, sexual identity, and financial means. We tend to be well educated, savvy about politics, passionate about justice, a bit subversive, faithful, soulful in music, with and without partners, and/or children, and generous. Some parishioners have lived in the East Village for decades and can tell stories; other members wake early to travel.

We are an inclusive community that reflects the East Village in the heart and soul through worship, music, dance, poetry, and historical preservation.

Can you speak a bit about the new clock faces — you mentioned a lightning strike, and a fallen face. Also, the church recently lost an angel off the steeple. What are the plans for replacing it, if any?

I do not know the exact history of the clocks, other than after a lightning strike in the '90s they stopped working, and over time, the temporary clocks installed after the great fire in July 1978 began to weather and slip. We now have beautiful clocks that tell accurate time thanks to our neighbors, and the Saint Mark’s Historic Landmark Fund.

As for the inside of St. Mark’s (and the angel), we could use your help to restore beauty to this grand, historic landmark in the heart of our neighborhood. A half million [dollars] is needed to stop water from creating damage inside. Then, plaster, paint and carpet would create a clean, simple and fresh sanctuary for another century of arts and to glorify God. Talk about making an impact!


[Part of the old clock]




[The missing angel on the steeple]

What’s next for St. Mark’s?
The next chapter of the vibrant history of St. Mark’s is being written now by people like you. Come join us on Sundays at 11 a.m. You are most welcome. We will be celebrating our annual Pride Disco Mass on Sunday, June 30! And after that? The next chapter...