Youth

Helen J. Smith Scholarship

Helen J. Smith Scholarship Grants are available to students who are members in good standing at Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church (see Procedures) and who are enrolled or intend to enroll in a college, university, vocational school, or trade school. All funds will be paid directly to the institution of higher learning you plan to attend. Recipients will be notified by the middle of July; amounts may not be known until later. Priority will be given to students attending a school of divinity.

Helen J. Smith Scholarship Application

Your application must be complete and on time, and include the following:

1. A copy of your most recent official transcript or grade report. (First-year students must submit their high school transcript. Upper classmen must submit their most recent and complete college transcript.)

2. Two letters of recommendation, one of which must be from a recent teacher or counselor/advisor. All recommendations must be written by non-family members and must be signed by the writer. New recommendations must be submitted in each successive year of applying for the scholarship. The recommendations must be received by June 1, 2026. Please make this deadline clear to your referees.

3. A letter from you must address these questions:

a. What are your goals and how will a scholarship grant from the Smith Trust help you achieve them?

b. What is your current or expected major?

c. What has been your involvement with Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church and how has it

shaped who you are today?

All application materials must be received by the Helen Smith Scholarship Grant Committee, Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, via email of SmithScholarship@GSSEpiscopal.org or hand-delivered to 601 North Tejon St., Colorado Springs, CO 80903 by June 1, 2026

Eligibility: The Helen J. Smith Trust is managed by Wells Fargo and provides scholarship grants for:

A. Church members in good standing (see Note 1 below) who plan to attend, or who are attending a school of divinity (see Note 2 below);

B. Church members in good standing who are undergraduates under the age of 25 at the time of the application deadline and who are attending an institution of higher learning. Vocational schools, trade schools, universities, and colleges are qualified institutions.

C. High school seniors in good standing who have firm plans to attend an institution of higher learning.

Note 1: Members in good standing are defined below. If the applicant is unable to meet this requirement, the parent(s) of the applicant must be member(s) in good standing.

Note 2: The Trust specifies that seminary students are to be given priority. To ensure this provision is met, there is no age limit for seminarians since a large number of individuals now attend schools of divinity after the age of 24.

Canon 1.17.2-4

Sec. 2(a) All members of this Church who have received Holy Communion in this Church at least three times during the preceding year are to be considered communicants of this Church.

Communicants in Good Standing

Sec. 3 All communicants of this Church, who for the previous year have been faithful in corporate worship, unless for good cause prevented, and have been faithful in working, praying, and giving for the spread of the Kingdom of God, are to be considered communicants in good standing.

Procedures: Applications must be submitted as a PDF – or arrive at the church office – by June 1, 2026. The Scholarship Grant Committee, consisting of at least four church members and one non-church member, will review applications, select award recipients, and determine award amounts. The funding of scholarship grants comes from two sources: 1) current earnings of the Trust at Wells Fargo (not known until later in 2026) and 2) reserves in the Trust Fund balance held by the church. The amounts will be announced later in 2026. The Wells Fargo Trustee and the Scholarship Grant Committee require that all funds be disbursed directly to the institution and not to the student.

Applications should be typed or printed legibly and submitted in hard copy or scanned and emailed as a PDF attachment to SmithScholarship@GSSEpiscopal.org Applications that are not complete will not be considered. Please address applications to the Helen J. Smith Scholarship Grant Committee at Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church and delivered to the Church office or emailed to SmithScholarship@GSSEpiscopal.org The scholarship is advertised through announcements in Tidings, on the parish electronic bulletin board, and announcements during services.

Further information: Questions may be directed to the Helen J. Smith Trust Scholarship Grant Committee at Grace and St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. You may call David Brockway, Committee Chairman, at 719 963-0790 or email SmithScholarship@GSSEpiscopal.org.

YOUTH GROUP

Grades 6-12

Youth Group meets from 12pm-1:30pm on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month in the Youth Room (room 210, 2nd floor of the education wing).

All youth grades 6-12 are welcome to join us for food, fellowship, service, and fun!

1st Sunday of the month

12:00-12:30: Combined youth food and games

12:30-1:30: Middle School Reflections / High School Volunteer Corps

3rd Sunday of the month

12:00-12:30: Combined youth food and games

12:30-1:30 High School Reflections / Middle School Volunteer Corps

YOUTH CONFIRMATION

Candidates for Confirmation make a public affirmation of their faith.