CAMANO ISLAND — In the Episcopalian Christian tradition, a vicar is part of the community, often living near the church and providing 24/7 support for the congregation and others.
But St. Aidan Episcopal Church has never had a full-time vicar. For 55 years, the church’s leaders and teachers lived off-island, commuting on Sundays to preach and work as needed during the week.
That all changed when Stephen “Drew” Foisie arrived.
Foisie became the church’s first full-time vicar about two months ago. He’s since put together new outreach programs. St. Aidan hosted an open house earlier this month, and volunteers have started crafting welcome gifts for new guests, like fresh-baked bread and hand-made coasters. The church’s next community event is the Night of 100 Pumpkins, a free fall festival at 6 p.m. Friday.
Foisie found a friendly, supportive congregation on Camano Island and aims to strengthen that sense of community within and beyond the walls of the church, he said.
“My goal is that this can be a place that is known throughout the Stanwood and Camano community where people can feel safe and welcome and loved by God and by their neighbors,” he said.
Foisie’s fresh, fun ideas are good for the church, said Nancy Uhlmansiek, who has been going to St. Aidan for about 10 years.
“It’s just so wonderful to have a new, young vicar who’s full of wonderful ideas,” she said. “He’s just a breath of fresh air.”
Foisie, 37, grew up in Kent. He spent a year in Taipei, Taiwan, as a missionary before moving back to the U.S., where he did ministry on the East Coast. He worked as an assistant rector in a historic Virginia church for four years before returning to Washington.
“I felt that I was ready to take the next step in my journey, my ministry,” Foisie said. “When I put my name forward, God opened doors and windows and made it really easy for me to come back home.”
Julie Vaux has been going to the church since she was teenager. Hers was one of the first families to attend St. Aidan when it started 1959. In the past five decades, she’s watched the congregation grow and settle into a permanent home at 1318 Highway 532.
The vicar is another welcome change.
“It’s bringing new energy and life to the church,” she said. “We can accomplish so much more.”
Before this summer, a half-time vicar came to the island each Sunday to preach. Foisie plans to be a 24/7 resource for his congregation, and anyone else in the community who needs him, he said.
“I think it just means that they have someone here,” Foisie said. “I think having someone on the island who’s just minutes from the church is important.”
The church has several core outreach ministries he wants to support, including alcoholism recovery groups, food bank donations and caring for people who are bedridden or otherwise unable to attend services. The church may be on an island, he said, but it’s important that they don’t become an island. Outreach is vital.
“I think they’ve done a good job of really creating that environment and setting their church on a healthy path,” Foisie said.
The symbolism and legacy of the Episcopal church creates a unique environment, said Louise Close, an expert on the church’s history. Foisie carries on a long tradition of ministry. The church’s namesake, St. Aidan, was a bishop and confessor who built a church and school in the year 651 in Northumbria, what is now northern England. One of 10 stained-glass windows in the Camano Island church is decorated with a torch in his honor. It symbolizes bringing light to the darkness, Close said.
It’s an appropriate metaphor for the church, and something Foisie strives to live up to.
“This is a place that you come and you don’t feel lost among a sea of hundreds of people,” he said. “You feel like you’re among friends.”
Kari Bray: kbray@heraldnet.com, 425-339-3439.
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