St. James, Potomac

Each summer, St. James purchases school materials and sorts them into many backpacks that are then donated to local children in need before school starts in the fall.

St. James partners with the Bishop Walker School to provide gifts to students there each Christmas season.

We believe that our world is sacred, having been created by God, through Christ and in Christ. We are therefore committed to promoting respectful care for God's creation and in particular to work against climate change and on behalf of climate justice.

St. James works hard to be good stewards of the environment.  This has included increasing the energy efficiency of the buildings.  It also includes significant re-purposing of the grounds of church to include a native-plant rain garden, efforts supporting pollinators, installing solar panels on our parish hall roof, and creating an interfaith greenway.

The St. James youth group participates in a service projects, discussions, and mission trips or retreats.   

Our Sunday School is a time of fun, friends, and learning about God's love. We are using the "Weaving God's Promises" curriculum. Crafts, songs, and service projects are woven in throughout the year.

• Sunday School is held during the worship service for children preschool through grade 5. Children join their families in church at the Eucharist.
• Childcare is available for infants and toddlers for the whole service.
• Middle and high school students are welcome to volunteer to assist the younger children.
• Children of all ages are always welcome in church! 

This group is working to develop the vision and response of the St. James' community, to create a fair and just society, and to heal divisions so that we may live in justice and peace.

Sacred Ground Race Dialogue Circles

Sacred Ground is dialogue series on race, grounded in faith.  Small groups are invited to walk through chapters of America’s history of race, racism, and whiteness while weaving in threads of family story, economic class, and political and regional identity. The 10-part series is built around a powerful online curriculum of documentary films and readings that focus on Indigenous, Black, Latino, and Asian/Pacific American histories as they intersect with European American histories.

Sacred Ground is a resource coming out of Becoming Beloved Community, The Episcopal Church’s long-term commitment to racial healing, reconciliation, and justice in our personal lives, our ministries, and our society.  This series is especially designed to help white people talk with other white people, while being open to all racial/ethnic groups.  Participants are invited to peel away the layers that have contributed to the challenges and divides of the present day – all while grounded in our call to faith, hope and love.

St. James’ has discerned a call from God to a ministry with people living with mental illness and the people who love them. Visit https://stjamespotomac.org/parish-ministries/mental-health-and-wellness/

This commission plans programs to support and educate parishioners about mental health in order to reduce stigma, provide resources, and better understand how to care for one another in times of mental illness and stress.

The Missions and Outreach (M & O) Commission helps coordinate parish programs for volunteer service and oversees the distribution of St. James' funds to benevolences outside the parish. It also supports our Mental Health Ministries, Manna Food Center, Interfaith Works, Comfort Cases, Bon Samaritain Parish L'Acul in Haiti and the Bishop Walker School for Boys.

Near the beginning of the year, we collect cold weather clothing for Interfaith Works. Throughout the year, some of our parishioners help prepare meals for the women at the women's shelter at Interfaith Works. Every week, we collect food and donate them to Manna Food Center where a parishioner also helps serve food. In late summer, we collect school supplies and backpacks for Interfaith Works. 

Other than helping the community, we also help parishioners with food or rides after a surgery or death in the family.