Peer Groups

At St. Stephen’s Church, we seek to cultivate connection for every member of our community. We seek a variety of ways to support the spiritual and relational formation of St. Stephen’s young adult members. Of course, given the overall demographics of the Episcopal Church (according to a 2019 study by political scientist Ryan Burge, the average age of an Episcopalian is 69!), “young adult” denotes a broad range of ages from about 22 years old (post-college) to early or mid-40s. In this way, we might understand “young adult” as indicative of a particular life-stage: adults in the first years of settling into autonomous life, or in the first years of creating a family or new home for themselves. Even within the umbrella of young adulthood there exist a plethora of lifestyles.

To honor this variety, we seek to create spaces for young adults to gather with peers for formation and fellowship. We offer programming and opportunities for fun, as well as small groups for closer connection among people of similar life stages. In all of this, our goal is simply to ensure that St. Stephen’s is a welcoming and steady home for young people who love Jesus. If you identify as a young adult and are interested in getting involved in young adult ministry at St. Stephen’s, please be in touch with Will Stanley.

Current Small Groups

Young Adult Book Groups

If connecting with friends to discuss a book–perhaps with snacks on hand–sounds like fun, we’d love to hear from you! Sarah Ausmus Smith is organizing a young adults book club at St. Stephen’s. Books are chosen with participant input and may come from a variety of genres, and the club meets once a month. Questions? Contact Sarah by email.

Other Ways to Get Connected

Unless specified otherwise, you don’t need to sign up for our offerings. Just come. Feel free to bring friends. (Not sure whether you can bring your children to a particular event? Just ask.)

Examples of past events planned especially for young adults include:

  • outreach projects such as preparing holiday food boxes for families in need;
  • serving on a volunteer cooking team for our Sunday Community Supper;
  • participating in a Bible study group;
  • attending a baseball game together;
  • going to one of our Sunday evening services and supper as a group;
  • taking part in the parish weekend at Shrine Mont in June;
  • going to someone’s house for an informal Christmas party and taking part in “Yankee Swap” or a White Elephant gift exchange.

If you have ideas–or questions–get in touch with Will Stanley. 

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