October 7, 2025, Saints Sergius and Herman has enjoyed a wonderful year of continued growth and continued investment in our property and parishioners. We celebrated our thirtieth anniversary this September and our dean, Priest Gregory Joyce, celebrated our liturgy and awarded a Gramota to our treasurer who housed the early mission in her basement.
The generous contributions of our parishioners have been supplemented by the gifts of Share the Faith and have enabled us to maintain an emergency fund while still paying off 50% of our substantial loan for improvements in just two years. This emergency fund proved to be invaluable very recently. The loan allowed us to replace siding and repair our belltower, preserving our facilities and adding to the beauty. To further enhance the property, the ladies of the parish have worked on the gardens and created a warm and welcoming appearance in the front and the rear of the church.
We also completed a new project to pack gravel along our driveway and parking area to prevent the mud that makes this area unusable at the melt. When three hundred inches of snow melts all at once in the late spring, the mud can be extreme, and the gravel has stabilized the ground.
We have also completed two smaller projects including the parish library and office as well as the children’s room. This was done very inexpensively by making use of the local Buy Nothing Group and the Habitat for Humanity Shop. The room dedicated to the library and office was overhauled with new paint, new lighting, new flooring, and a vintage midcentury desk and chair for the computer and printer. We acquired additional shelving, and the books have been arranged with the help of a parishioner who works as an archivist. The children’s room acquired additional low shelves perfect for storing the children’s church school library and craft supplies. We also acquired a changing table for this room to make caring for our youngest members easier. The carpet was removed and the vintage linoleum flooring cleaned which makes the room better suited to tidying up after children. 
The decision to be frugal and acquire free or low-cost items (the desk was only one dollar at the Habitat for Humanity shop) was a wise choice as a lightning strike caused significant damage to our HVAC systems, lighting fixtures, light switches, and the electric range which was completely destroyed. An inquirer donated a used range which reduced the expense caused by the strike and parishioners worked together to make what repairs did not need to be completed by a professional.
We have enjoyed steady and sustainable growth with a 50% increase over this time three years ago. With our proximity to the local university, we do have a significant number of college students, but this number varies from year to year. We have continued our adult catechesis program, a men’s group which includes the students, maintained a student member on the parish council, and continue to dedicate ourselves to training these young people to serve, read, set services, and sing so that the parishes that they leave to will be blessed by their presence. It is a challenge to invest in these wonderful men and women and know that we won’t get to keep them, but it is the Lord’s work, and it is good.
We are so grateful to Share the Faith and the benefactors who make these mission gifts possible. Priest Benjamin Naasko and all of the parishioners of Saints Sergius and Herman extend our heartfelt thanks. It is this support that helps us not just make ends meet but to also have enough left over for emergencies and to plan for the future. We hope for many more years such as this working joyfully in the Lord’s vineyard. Thank you for supporting us.
Ss Sergius and Herman Orthodox Mission Website
