When I began serving at St. Cyprian's in June 2009, I was appointed by Bishop Marc Andrus as Cathedral Missioner to St. Cyprian's as part of the North of Market Area Ministry Team. For the first year of my work at St. Cyprian's, a good bit of time was spent with my clergy colleagues, community organizers, and lay leaders at other area churches striving to connect all the Episcopal congregations and institutions in the region with one another and help them discern new ways of serving their neighborhoods. At the same time, I was beginning a new relationship with the people of St. Cyprian's and getting to know the unique circumstances of other Episcopal congregations in the city, I was also continuing my work at Grace Cathedral, primarily focused on the Sunday at Six worshiping community, Dinner with Grace, and Youth Confirmation Program.

Needless to say, my first year was challenging on many levels as St. Cyprian's and I learned to trust and communicate with each other.  But from the very beginning, there was also much possibility.  In September 2009, The Reverend Dr. Susanna Singer and I wandered down to a Bike the Block Party hosted by our neighborhood carrying holy water and pieces of paper bearing Nadia Bolz-Weber's beautiful bike blessing.  Neither Susanna nor I knew how our quirky gesture would come to symbolize the hope of creative collaboration and mutual affection with our neighbors.  Over the next four years, I was to be profoundly inspired by the faith and hard work of countless people at St. Cyprian's and in our surrounding community.

A mysterious fire at the church on October 9, 2009, the night before my wedding, certainly added to the drama. I will never forget receiving that phone call in the midst of our rehearsal dinner from neighbor Leela Gill alerting me that fire trucks were on their way to Turk and Lyon. The San Francisco Fire Department did a superb job containing the fire and keeping it from destroying the sanctuary or spreading to other nearby buildings. Thankfully, members Chris Ralph and Kevin Johnson worked hard to coordinate repairs relating to the fire and interactions with Church Insurance Company.

The fire in the first few months of my arrival helped instigate a number of important conversations with Diocesan leaders. At the encouragement of then-Canon to the Ordinary Michael Barlowe and Comptroller Jim Forsyth, I contacted a contractor whom St. Cyprian's paid to do a complete audit of our property. While there was much deferred maintenance and significant need for improved accessibility, Jim and Michael encouraged me to assemble a building committee made up of lay leaders at St. Cyprian's to begin working our way down the lengthy list of repairs.

The first major item we tackled was the iconic bell tower and leaky Lyon Street wall, which caused water to pool up at the bottom of the stairs every time there was a significant rain. Since no Diocesan funds were available to support this or any other repair, St. Cyprian's Bishop's Committee and members raised about half the amount and dipped into our limited savings to cover the remaining costs. This project would not have happened had two people not stepped into the picture: envelope/water proofing specialist Rob Crum and neighborhood leader Michael Helquist.  Rob and Michael both donated countless hours to coordinate the work by Everest Waterproofing and Restoration. In addition to the Lyon Street wall and tower, St. Cyprian's has invested over $100,000 in the past four years on multiple projects including foundation work, lighting and accessibility upgrades, landscaping, interior and exterior painting.

In 2010, at the same time St. Cyprian's was undergoing a major building repair and planning to celebrate 50 years on Turk and Lyon, we were also beginning a partnership with Larry Kassin and San Francisco Live Arts.  Once again, Michael Helquist and many other friends affiliated with the North of the Panhandle Neighborhood Association and Alamo Square Neighborhood Association were essential to making sure our space was ready to welcome hundreds of people each month--and that the neighborhood was aware of the arrival of a highly celebrated music series at our church.  The success of SF Live Arts Concerts at St. Cyprian's and conversations with numerous neighbors inspired the development of Cyprian's Center for the arts, resilience and community.

Leadership retreats in 2010, 2011, and 2012 with the St. Cyprian's Bishop's Committee helped nurture a supportive environment for new ideas, problem solving and long term planning.  Senior Warden Bruno Peguese and Junior Warden Jarie Bolander worked together to celebrate the long history of the St. Cyprian's Church community and harness the vibrant energy running throughout our neighborhood. Thanks to our friends at the University of San Francisco, particularly Professors Monika Hudson and Melinda Stone, lay volunteer-driven initiatives like the center and the community kitchen have gained much from the involvement of students as interns, researchers, and project coordinators.

As longtime members Norma Planiczka, Glenda Smith, Tommie & Willie Collie often remind us, cooking and sharing food have always been at the heart of life at St. Cyprian's.  Student gardeners at USF, volunteers from Simply Sandwiches, caregivers from Episcopal Senior Communities, and leaders like Adrian Williams of The Village Project have connected us with contemporary food security, sustainability, health and justice concerns.

As I prepare to move on from St. Cyprian's, I do so with a tremendous amount of gratitude for the hard work and commitment of everyone that has stepped into our life-not just during the four years that I have served here but over the 90-year history of this unique and inspiring San Francisco organization. Lay and clergy leaders of St. Cyprian's have dreamed and worked hard in every decade of this congregation's existence, often against the odds, so that people might come to know God's love for them-whether they are workers in luxury hotels and elite homes, postal workers, soldiers, teachers, doctors, builders, chefs, activists or artists.

In the late 1960s, Bill Newsom, the father of California's current Lieutenant Governor, came to the aid of St. Cyprian's when the congregation's application for a dance permit was denied. Every time someone dances at St. Cyprian's, which is becoming quite often these days, I hope someone in the room remembers that story. One former Rector told me that in the early 1980s, he ruffled a few feathers by welcoming actors into the space and seeking to develop a relationship with an LGBT Christian group. Volunteers Deacon Doe Yates and Rebecca Nestle last year began the St. Cyprian's Oral History Project, and I hope efforts like this will continue not just to preserve the past but to help nurture the present, and inspire the future.

As the Reverend Eric Metoyer said at the end of the second Oral History Project video, "one of the great gifts I think is that we have that heritage of being the church of the outsider...not just for the African American experience but for all those who have ever felt outside the church, God's welcoming call is for everyone, not just a select few." Perhaps it is no coincidence that St. Cyprian's is located on the edge of what used to be called the Outside Lands.

While I do not have the space to acknowledge every person whose dedication inspired me during my time at St. Cyprian's, I hope I have conveyed my own faith in the church's future through these recollections of the past four years, and of some of the people who have helped to nurture and grow the St. Cyprian's family.