History of Op. 711 Church of the Ascension is the proud owner of notable organ builder E.M. Skinner's Op. 711, built in 1928 in Skinner's Boston workshop. Op. 711 is a large 4 manual instrument in an orchestral style, originally installed in the Masonic Temple of the Auditorium Theater in Rochester. The previous Warren organ at Ascension was rapidly failing, and it was decided in the early 1960's to replace this instrument. Op. 711 conveniently became available, and was purchased by Church of the Ascension in 1966 for $3,000. It was removed from the Auditorium Theater by Roberts Organ Company during that summer. There was insufficient room in the existing chambers, and a second level was built within them to house the greater number of pipes as the organ waited disassembled in semi-trailers. New swell boxes were prepared and installed, and can still be seen protruding from the top of the organ case. The organ was thoroughly cleaned before installation, and was first played in a dedicatory service on June 18th, 1967. A major dedicatory recital was held at 3:00 pm on Sunday November 12, 1967 performed by Charles Brown, then organist and choirmaster. All of this work, encompassing more than $20,000, was generously underwritten by Mrs. Wilhelmina Beach who had been an active member since 1923, in memory of her husband Harry A. Beach. A full list of stops and assists is given below, and a more comprehensive history is available in the church office upon request. Since its installation, Op. 711 has needed very little work besides regular maintenance. Its 3,500 pipes have sounded out joyfully each Sunday, bringing beauty to worship and joy to many. After nearly 100 years of service to the Auditorium Theater and to Ascension, it is in need of restoration in order to safeguard its future with the church. This restoration will entail removing and cleaning each pipe, cleaning the chambers where the pipes are housed, re-leathering all the wind chests to make them airtight, rebuilding mechanisms related to the key and stop action, and finally putting all of the pieces back together. One estimate for this project is $1,550,000. After this work the organ will have a much cleaner, more transparent sound, and it will be more reliable. This restoration would make Ascension a more desirable location for concerts, and indeed a destination instrument for organ recitals. Already the organ is appreciated by the local community including Eastman students, and was recently featured in the national convention of the Organ Historical Society in 2018. For more information on supporting the organ fund please visit our page or contact the church office. Giving Stoplist Skinner Organ Company Opus 711 1928 4 manuals, 50 stops, 56 ranks Moved in 1967 from Masonic Temple, Rochester, New York GREAT ORGAN 16' Double Diapason 61 8' First Diapason 61 8' Second Diapason 61 8' Flute Harmonique 61 * 8' Gemshorn 61 * 4' Octave 61 4' Flute 61 * 2 2/3' Twelfth 61 2' Fifteenth 61 1' Harmonics III 183 8' Tromba 61 * 4' Octave Tromba 61 * Chimes 25 tubes * enclosed in Choir 8' PEDAL ORGAN 32' Resultant -- 16' Diapason 56 16' Diapason (Gt) -- 16' Bourdon 44 16' Salicional (Sw) -- 16' Gedeckt (Ch) -- 8' Octave (Diap) -- 8' Flute (Bdn) -- 8' Cello (So) -- 8' Still Gedeckt (Ch) -- 5 1/3' Octave Quint -- 4' Super Octave (Diap) -- 16' Ophicleide 56 16' Waldhorn (Sw) -- 8' Tromba (Ophic) -- 4' Clarion (Ophic) -- Chimes (Gt) SOLO ORGAN 8' Flauto Mirabilis 73 8' Gamba 73 8' Gamba Celeste 73 4' Concert Flute 73 8' French Horn 73 8' Orchestral Oboe 73 Tremolo 8' Tuba Mirabilis 73 4' Tuba Clarion 73 COUPLERS Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal Choir to Pedal Solo to Pedal Swell to Pedal 4 Choir to Pedal 4 Solo to Pedal 4 Swell to Great Choir to Great Solo to Great Swell to Great 16 Swell to Great 4 Choir to Great 16 Choir to Great 4 Solo to Great 16 Solo to Great 4 Solo to Swell Swell to Choir Solo to Choir Swell to Choir 16 Swell to Choir 4 Solo to Choir 16 Solo to Choir 4 Great to Solo Swell 16 Swell 4 Choir 16 Choir 4 Solo 16 Solo 4 SWELL ORGAN 16' Contra Salicional 73 8' Diapason 73 8' Rohrflöte 73 8' Salicional 73 8' Voix Celeste 73 8' Aeoline 73 4' Principal 73 4' Flute Triangulaire 73 2' Flautino 61 2' Mixture V 305 (17-19-22) (15-19-22-26-29) 16' Waldhorn 73 8' Trumpet 73 8' Oboe 73 Vox Humana 73 4' Clarion 73 Tremolo CHOIR ORGAN 16' Bourdon 73 8' Geigen Principal 73 8' Cor de Nuit 73 8' Viole d'Orchestre 73 8' Dulciana 73 8' Unda Maris (TC) 61 4' Flute d'Amour 73 2 2/3' Nazard 61 2' Piccolo 61 1 3/5' Tierce 61 8' English Horn 73 8' Clarinet 73 Tremolo 8' Harp (TC) pf 4' Celesta pf A DJUSTABLE COMBINATIONS Solo 6 (thumb) Swell 8 (thumb) Great 8 (thumb) Choir 6 (thumb) Pedal 8 (toe) General 6 (thumb & toe) Coupler Cancel (thumb) General Cancel (thumb) Set (thumb) Pedal Combs on Solo pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Swell pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Great pistons On/Off Pedal Combs on Choir pistons On/Off REVERSIBLES Solo to Pedal (thumb & toe) Swell to Pedal (thumb & toe) Great to Pedal (thumb & toe) Choir to Pedal (thumb & toe) Great to Solo (thumb) Solo to Swell (thumb) Swell to Great (thumb) Choir to Great (thumb) Solo to Great (thumb) Swell to Choir (thumb) Solo to Choir (thumb) Sforzando (thumb & toe) INDICATOR LIGHTS Choir Swell Shoe - 6 Swell Swell Shoe - 6 Solo Swell Shoe - 6 Crescendo Pedal - 6 Sforzando EXPRESSION Balanced Pedal - Choir Balanced Pedal - Swell Balanced Pedal - Solo Crescendo Pedal

Ascension Choir The Ascension Choir is a dedicated group of volunteers, joined by four Choral Scholars from the Eastman School of Music. Ascension has a long history of excellent choral music; the choir sings on Sundays at the 10:15 am service from the beginning of September until Pentecost, and currently rehearses on Wednesday s from 7:30 to 9:00 pm. Our Choral Scholars this year are: Maeve Berry Madelin Morales Adam Catangui The mission of the choir is to support and adorn the liturgy at Church of the Ascension through hymnody, Anglican chant, plain chant, and weekly anthems. Towards this goal we sing a wide range of repertoire sourced from the Renaissance to today, and often collaborate with the Ascension Youth Choir to encourage the next generation of musicians. We are always happy to welcome new choir members; please be in touch with Minister of Music Mitchell Miller if you are interested in joining or trying out the choir - all are welcome!

Men's Group The men's group heads up parish clean-up days. They also put on the Shrove Tuesday pancake dinner (the night before Ash Wednesday) and help Kevin Gall with the annual Lobster Dinner.

January 3rd, 2021 January 17th, 2021 January 31st, 2021 February 14th, 2021 February 28th, 2021 March 14th, 2021 March 28th, 2021 Easter Sunday April18th, 2021 April 25th, 2021 May 9th, 2021 May 23rd, 2021 June 6th, 2021 June 20th, 2021 July 4th, 2021 July 18th, 2021 August 1st, 2021 August 15th, 2021 August 29th, 2021 September 12th, 2021 September 26th, 2021 October 10th, 2021 October 24th, 2021 November 7th, 2021 November 21st, 2021 December 5th, 2021 December 19th, 2021 January 10th, 2021 January 24th, 2021 February 7th, 2021 February 21st, 2021 March 7th, 2021 March 21st, 2021 Good Friday April 11th, 2021 Sarah Johnson, DMA Recital May 2nd, 2021 May 16th, 2021 May 30th June 13th, 2021 June 27th, 2021 July 11th, 2021 July 25th, 2021 August 8th, 2021 August 22nd, 2021 September 5th, 2021 September 19th, 2021 October 3rd, 2021 October 17th, 2021 October 31st, 2021 November 14th, 2021 November 28th, 2021 December 12th, 2021 Christmas Eve, Pageant Service December 26th, 2021

NA/AA tbd

MEEK MEEK, the Maplewood Edgerton Emergency Kupboard, serves our regional community at least two days per week, and in keeping with current realities is redefining and restating its mission to meet these changing conditions. Church of the Ascension, in partnership with other faith communities, continues to offer to neighborhood residents food to tide them over as there are, in these days, food emergencies for individuals and families. MEEK has been responsible for distributing more than 800,000 meals to 95,000 people over the last few decades. Additional volunteers are always welcome. Please call (585) 944-3093 for inquiries.

Prison Ministries Ascension has hosted several ministries recently, until COVID-19 put them on hiatus for an indefinite time. They include: SMART, a local association of agencies working on reentry issues "The Landing Strip", a part of the Alternatives to Violence program run by the Quakers for released prisoners Cephas of Western N.Y., a program going into the State Prisons Rochester Interfaith Jail Ministries, Inc. Ascension is the home of Rochester Interfaith Jail Ministries, Inc., a nonprofit charitable corporation. The work we do follows Four Spiritual Truths: Every inmate and prisoner is loved and lovable Every person is deserving of respect and acceptance Our true nature is fundamentally good and beautiful We are all needed in helping to heal our world Our mission is to bring this message to those whose lives are telling them otherwise. This is our calling. Our History Rochester Interfaith Jail Ministry was started in 1971 as an outreach of the Rochester Council of Churches. As the jails evolved and their needs changed, R.I.J.M. moved from serving as a ministerial resource to a missional project, bringing value to the inmates. Our Program We run our groups like a college seminar. The textbook is “Houses of Healing” by Robin Casarjian. Groups run 7–12 weeks, depending on the needs of the facility. Each inmate receives a copy of the text and a workbook, and is expected to read the assignments in them to prepare for each class. We watch a video made by Ms. Casarjian in a Massachusetts Prison and discuss. The program helps the students be aware of the foundations of their issues, to work on them and be more prepared to participate in society. Our Community Activity RIJM is a member of SMART (Safer Monroe Area Reentry Team) whose members offer help to people recovering from incarceration. (This agency is transitioning to become RAWNY ) Ascension offers former prisoners, their families, and friends a place to meet to deal with issues related to the Justice System. We send a representative to the County Criminal Justice Council Meetings. We offer a “Welcome Home” gift to be distributed by the State Parole office, containing toiletries for releasees. (They get food stamps, but any public assistance goes to their landlords.) We staff a table at the Parole “New Releasee Orientation.” Ascension/R.I.J.M. is an associated group of Kairos , an international prison visitation program. Ascension is an associated parish with the Episcopal Diocese of Florida’s prison ministry . Ascension is a member of Diocese of Rochester Prison Ministry Committee .

Support Ascension Church of the Ascension is passionate about the community it serves and the people who make it a beacon of hope and love for those around us. Giving to the Church answers the need that we all have to make a difference in the world through our generosity and makes it possible for the Church to be that beacon, through food, clothing and other ministries. Yearly Pledge Each year in October we prepare our budget for the following year and we ask each parishioner to fill out a pledge card to let us know how much they anticipate giving in the following year. This pledged income is used for the running of the parish--it pays for outreach ministries and our support to the diocese, salaries, programmatic initiatives, insurance, and required property investments and maintenance. Capital Projects As our parish grows and changes, our needs change and our building needs to be upgraded and repaired on a regular basis. In 2016-2017 we completed the lift from the Church to the Great Hall, which makes our facility even more accessible by allowing those who are in wheel chairs or have difficulty navigating the stairs from our worship space down to the Great Hall. The E. M. Skinner Organ Fund The E. M. Skinner Organ Fund is dedicated to the ongoing restoration of Skinner Op. 711. Op. 711 is an amazing instrument that is almost 100 years old, and has been installed at Church of the Ascension since 1967. As with all musical instruments, this pipe organ requires regular maintenance. In the future, we plan to have the entire organ restored which will entail dismantling each of the 3,500+ pipes, cleaning each pipe, cleaning the chambers where the pipes live, rebuilding all the wind chests and mechanisms, and then putting it all back together. The organ will have a much cleaner and more transparent sound after this work is completed. One estimate for this project is $1,550,000. Clergy Discretionary Fund On the first Sunday of each month, all undesignated income from the Offerings is deposited to the Clergy Discretionary Fund. The Priest uses these funds to provide emergency help to those in need, to pay for youth to go to diocesan activities, to support the Care Closet, to help parishioners attend workshops, and to help pay for unfunded neighborhood initiatives that they believe are important to support. Give online through Donorbox

Get Involved There are many ways to get involved at Church of the Ascension. In addition to attending services , participating in Bible Study , attending fellowship events and dinners , and subscribing to our newsletter , we have many opportunities to get involved in our community! Our Acolyte Guild, Altar Guild, Men's Group, Ushers & Counters, and Women's Group are very active. Read a bit more about each group below! There are also events throughout the year that could use a helping hand - check the calendar to stay up to date on these events, or email the church office at ascension@rochester.twcbc.com to learn more. Acolyte Guild Ushers Altar Guild Women's Group Men's Group Calendar

The Rev. Abidhananthar John Rev. Father Abidhananthar John, Abi John, has been an ordained priest since 2004 under The Church of South India and currently serves at the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, New York at The Church of the Ascension. He has pastored to both rural and urban congregations in the Madras Diocese and served among the grassroots level for Dalit Christian Communities. For a decade, he has served as the Director of Dalit and Adivasi concerns in the Diocese of Madras for a four- year term. He writes sermons in Tamil to equip the lay leadership towards a bold theological vision. Abi served in nearly 78 parishes in 8 different Pastorates which gave him ample opportunities to have team time with leadership. As the associate director for the lay department in the diocese of Madras, Father served in Saint George’s Cathedral as its associate priest. Under the Episcopal Diocese of Rochester, Abi was called as Rector at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church during 2017 – 2018. Here, the issues of poverty, unemployment and drug addiction prevail. He was actively engaged with the local community and paved a way for building hopes to make the American Dream possible for his parishioners. His association with the fire department made some remarkable avenues in the growth of the church, also. Eventually, he was called to be the Priest-in-Charge at Saint James’ Episcopal Church, Watkins Glen and Saint John's Episcopal Church, Catharine, New York. He envisioned many programs during the covid pandemic, especially calling women from both churches to align together with the International Women’s Conference which has been continued since 2017. The last conference was held on Zoom. Abi and Angeline coached the people of God for a meaningful ministry in Schuyler County… Christmas Caroling, Summer School of Love for all children, and sharing Pongal and the feast. Abi wrote the curriculum for the Summer School of Love, involving laity and the public to carry on the vision. The Pongal Festival enhances the plural design of God. Barnie Parker Sharing Shed was begun allowing for food items for poor and needy people to be available, anytime. The International Women's Forum Seminars led to “Women Helping Women” a training for unemployed women sponsored by a grant from the S E District. There have been rural migrant ministries at local dairy farms, Valentine’s Day programs with the elders and widows, a Children's Scripture Program, Portable Gardens for the young children in collaboration with Girl Scouts to bring awareness about our planet and its eco systems. The Learning Pod Program sponsored by the Lions Club helped students during the worst of Covid-19. Community gardens, at both the churches, helped to stock the shed. Free coffee in the winter was handed out during February before school or work. These are some of his initiatives during Abi’s ministry at St. James’ and St. John’s. During his service at Watkins Glen, Abi also helped a youth to discern his calling to do ministry by enrolling at CRCDS. After a two-year contact at Watkins Glen, Abi had an invitation from the Church of the Ascension, and the vestry called him as a priest in-charge on September 13, 2021. Eventually he was installed as the Rector of the Parish on November 12, 2022 after being called in March. He is deeply engaged in the refugee ministry and joyfully works with the people of Ascension in doing effective ministries. Since 2019, Father Abi has been a member of COM and his passion for mission, prayerful and diligent ideas and his experience in the Church do complement the discernment engagement to COM towards a powerful ministerial engagement. He engages with a diocesan team in equipping young people to discern their ministerial call for a passionate ministry grounded with the philosophy of love. He studied under the late Dr. James H Cone, the Father of Black theology, at Union Theological College (Sacred Theology-STM 2014-2016) New York, which envisaged him to do a comparative study between three religious philosophies grounding three great personalities, Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X and Ambedkar. He also did his research on Dalit Christian Reservation, Dalit Politics in Tamil Nadu as well as about the Dalit Religion. In India, he has organized many seminars, rallies, and workshops to educate and empower Dalits to assert their rights. He had his schooling at Dharma Murthy Rao Bahadur Kalevala Cunnane Chetty Hindu Higher Secondary School, Tiruvallur, TamilNadu, India. He is a political science graduate (B.A., M.A., M.Phil.,) from Madras Christian College, Chennai, and completed His Bachelor of Divinity (M.Div.,) at Gurukul Theological College, Chennai. He was an active member of the Student Christian Movement of India and represented it in a political camp held in Italy at Agape Ecumenical Center, Prelim, in the year 2002 as an exchange student. He was a resource person at New York SCM- WSCF team in March of 2014. He achieved the highest level as resource person at the College in the year 2003 and was honored with eight awards in the class. Father Abi John was also awarded the “Derick Prize for Regions” by the Senate of Seram pore in the year 2004. Currently, he is doing his part time doctoral program at CRCDS while Church of the Ascension continues to grow in numbers, programs, and spiritual services which are open to all people of all genders. Beyond his work in the church, he is pursuing a Doctorate at Colgate-Rochester Divinity School, where he studies part-time on his day off. Church of the Ascension is proud to support his endeavors and leadership through loving team wo rk. To be in touch with Father Abi please email him at ascpriest@aol.com .

Women's Group (ECW) The women's group (currently suspended) meets the first Thursday of each month in the church library at noon. Women bring brown bag lunches and will often have a guest speaker. They have an annual Christmas luncheon at a local restaurant. The women's group does a lot of work behind the scenes and provides financial support for many different ministries. All women of Ascension are welcome to be a part of the Women's Group!

Home Visitation For those who are temporarily or long-term unable to attend in-church services and receive the Holy Eucharist, home visitations can be arranged through the church office (585) 458-5423