Meeting monthly in our homes, we’ll gather to enjoy a meal, fellowship and to read and meditate on the Holy Scriptures together. A six-month reading plan and many resources to guide us have been prepared as well as Q&A and discussion meetings with Fr. Ninos. This group is open to women of all ages. Although no child-care will be available, nursing mom’s with infants are welcome!
Please contact Catherine at CatherineStoupas@gmail.com to find out about the next meeting date and location.
Every year on the second Sunday in February, the Saints Constantine & Helen’s Ladies Philoptochos Society hosts their annual Kids N’ Cancer Luncheon in the Community Hall after the Divine Liturgy.
This annual fundraiser event is dedicated to providing support for children afflicted with cancer and their families. All donations received go to offering a life-changing experience for children and their families to get away for a while and enjoy an all-expense-paid summer camp trip.
Families will enjoy four fun-filled, carefree summer days away from the sights and sounds of doctors and hospitals rooms where they spend so much of their time.
Donations for the event are taken at the door, with a suggested donation of $10 for adults and $5 for children for the luncheon. For those who are unable to attend this worthy event may still contribute a donation, accepting all donations from January 1st through the end of February.
Please make all checks out to the Ladies Philoptochos Society, with the memo line of “Kids N’ Cancer.” All checks may be mailed to the church at 1224 Alabama Street, Vallejo, CA 94590
You may donate online using the form below:
Hello and thank for inquiring about renting our hall. Please fill out the inquiry form below. We will check the availability of the hall for the date you request. Please note that we have many parish events throughout the year which limits the availability of the hall. Thank you for your understanding.
A homeschool cooperative is a group of families who come together with a common goal of educating their children. Co-ops typically have a central focus such as arts, academic, or spiritual formation. In order for a co-op to be successful, all parents must take on a role whether by teaching/tutoring, administrative, clerical, field trips/meetups coordinator, etc. In other words, ‘all hands on deck’ are needed. When everyone contributes, everyone benefits.
The mission of our Orthodox Homeschool Cooperative is to be a supportive community for Orthodox homeschooling families in the Bay Area who meet regularly to work together toward the shared goal of providing our children with enriching experiences in education, Orthodox catechism, spirituality and liturgical arts, fellowship and recreational activities.
Our Meeting Schedule: 3rd Fridays of every month at Sts. Constantine & Helen, Vallejo CA
Time: 10:00am - 2:00 pm
Program Schedule
10:00 am - Akathist to the Mother of God Nurturer of Children
10:30 am - Teaching by Fr. Ninos
10:40 am - 11:35 am - Period 1 Enrichment Class
11:45 - 12:30 pm - Lunch
12:35 - 1:30 pm - Period 2 - Enrichment Class
1:30 - 2:15 pm - Free play (PE) and fellowship
Nursery: Located in the upstairs loft inside the church with sensory toys, space for mom’s and infants and toddlers.
Science classes: Hands-on, science experiments, labs and activities tailored to grade level.
Orthodox Life: Learn the lives of the saints, sing-along songs, crafts and activities centered around the Orthodox spiritual life. (Kinder - 1st Grade)
Orthodox Liturgical Arts: Learn Byzantine chants, Poetry of the Church workshop. (2nd Grade and up)
Performing Arts: Memorizing psalms, performing skits of the lives of the saints, bible stories, etc. (2nd Grade and up)
November 18 - Thanksgiving
December 16 - Nativity
January 20 - New Year
February 17 - Love your neighbor
March 17 - Lenten theme
April 7 - Holy Week and Pascha
May 19 - Holy Cross/Sts Constantine and Helen
Arrival time: Our day will begin with prayer at 10:00am sharp. We ask everyone to arrive on time to be in the church for the prayer service.
Liability Release: All co-op members must sign a release of liability form.
Co-Op Fee: This year we are asking each family to contribute $100 to the church for the use of the facility.
Materials Fee: There will be a materials fee to help offset the cost of providing supplies to each session. Estimated cost will be between $30-$50 per family.
Youth Protection Training - We are required to have all adults trained and certified in Youth Protection policies according to the Archdiocese and State of California requirements.
For more information or to attend our next co-op meeting as a guest, please contact Presbytera Tina Oshaana at tinaoshaana@gmail.com
S.O.F.I.A. stands for Seeing Our Father in All. It is our family catechism program designed for families with children. The program consists of the following three learning experiences on a monthly basis:
1. SOFIA Family Night
3rd Saturdays every month from September - July
A monthly gathering of all our families and their children for an experience of faith, learning and fellowship.
5:00 pm - Great Vespers
6:00 pm - Potluck dinner and fellowship
6:30 pm - Lessons and activities for all ages.
7:30 pm - Closing prayer
2. SOFIA Home Catechism
In 2024-2025, we have selected two books for whole-family catechism to be used at home for the duration of the year, specially selected to learn and teach the Orthodox faith. Reading plan provided at every monthly meeting. The books will be available for purchase in our bookstore.
3. SOFIA Newsletter
A monthly email newsletter to families that have joined our program. The newsletter will support the lessons through videos, audio, resources and materials.
4. Ask Father
On the 3rd Sunday of every month, a Q&A with Fr. Ninos and the children. The children can ask Father any questions they may have about their Orthodox faith and what they have been learning.
Your Commitment
We've tried to create a program that will be enjoyable, stress-free and fit with the busy lives of our families. We meet once a month on a Saturday evening to share a meal and build community. The monthly newsletter will include lesson recaps, inspiration, resources and more to support your growth in understanding and practicing your faith as individuals and as a family. The home catechism portion can happen at whatever time you may choose. Perhaps around the dinner table on a weeknight? Perhaps on Sunday afternoon so that the entire day can be dedicated to God. Committing to participating in the monthly retreats and engaging with the newsletter materials and making time to learn and pray together as a family will ensure that you'll benefit from this unique program and receive blessings and grace from God into your home and family.
Registration
Click here to register for the SOFIA Family Catechism program
Many people are very committed to doing all sorts of things during the week, without fail, like going to the gym, playing a sport, following a diet, watching a TV show and so on. We're all constantly committed to learning something, listening to something, reading something, watching something. Children are committed to doing their homework, getting to class on time every morning, and all other kinds of activities. Adults are committed to developing their careers and balancing their work, family life and keeping up with social media. While these things may be considered necessary for our earthly lives and while fun, leisure and entertainment may offer some needed relief at times, these things can nonetheless take over our schedules, leaving us very little time to care for our souls. It's tragic but true that keeping us busy with only worldly pursuits and keeping our minds constantly distracted and away from God and thereby from caring for our souls is how the Devil leads people into Hell.
Every person, every parent, every family must break free from this unhealthy and demonic cycle that leads to spiritual blindness and eventually spiritual death. The way to do this is to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and integrate our Orthodox Faith into our daily lives at home, school and work. That is the goal behind S.O.F.I.A. To "see Our Father in all" and in everything we do.
Just as we commit ourselves to our duties and jobs and are expected to take them seriously, to be a true and real Orthodox Christian also requires our daily commitment to our spiritual life. This is what St. Paul calls the good fight.
"I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith." (2 Timothy 4:7)
Yet what motivates our commitment is not praise or a reward that we hope to attain. What motivates our struggle is love for Christ. In his great love for us, our Lord Jesus wants to be a part of our lives during the week as well. We dishonor him greatly and we jeopardize our salvation when we exclude him from our minds, our hearts and our lives during the week. Because it shows us to be prideful and also ungrateful for the life and the blessings he has given us! Instead, when we remember how much we need him and then invite him into our lives, when we humble ourselves and keep our relationship and communication active with him as we do with our closest friends and family members, when we integrate our Orthodox practice of prayer, fasting and good works every week, then Christ and his angels and saints will bless us, strengthen us and help us continue in peace, hope, faith and love through both the good and the challenging circumstances of our lives. But more importantly, it will lead to the healing, cleansing and sanctification of our souls.
If we pray and call out to God as "Our Father," then let us be people who He can call his children.
What does our Holy Orthodox Church teach about the purpose of life? What does she teach about the soul and what happens when we die? What about things like anger, depression, anxiety and fear? What does the Church teach about money, technology, art and entertainment; or about sexuality, gender, love and marriage? What does the Church teach about being a man, or being a woman or raising children?
I invite you to join me for a weekly, in-person discussion group on Wednesday evenings to learn the Church’s profound and life-changing answers to these questions and many others. We will dedicate an entire month on a specific topic, by exploring the teachings of the Church, through her divine and Spirit-filled voice as heard in the Holy Scriptures, in the writings of the Holy Fathers, and in the wisdom of contemporary saints that lived in our modern day world and understood our struggles. As every month’s topic will vary, you’re welcome to join us for any meetings that interest you the most.
Schedule:
5:00pm – Paraklesis to the Theotokos (in the church)
6:00pm – Teachings of the Church discussion group (in the hall)
I hope you can join us as we learn, discuss and work to apply the wisdom of the Church to our daily lives.
With love in Christ,
Fr. Ninos
