The District level competition for the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival was held at the Nativity of the Theotokos in Fredericksburg, VA, on April 13th and the participants from Holy Apostles did exceptionally well!
· Junior Division (grades 7-9): Mark Wenzel, 2nd Place; Madison Joiner, Honorable Mention
· Senior Division (grades 10-12): John Economou, 3rd Place; Marianna Drapas, Honorable Mention
Holy Apostles has in years' past excelled in this District competition, and 2024 was no exception! We are exceedingly proud of Mark, Madison, John and Marianna – and to have such recognition for our parish is truly exciting!
By earning 2nd Place in the Junior Division, Mark will continue on to the next level of competition - Metropolis. The Metropolis competition is scheduled for May 11th at The Cathedral of the Annunciation in Baltimore, MD.
Congratulations again to Mark, Madison, John and Marianna – thank you for being such terrific representatives for our parish! And best wishes to Mark at the Metropolis competition!
Greg and Ashley Joiner
Holy Apostles Oratorical Festival Co-Chairs
St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival held at Holy Apostles on February 11th
Congratulations to the youth who competed in our parish’s oratorical festival for 2024:
Participants in the Senior Division (grade 10-12):John Economou, 1st Place
Marianna Drapas, 2nd Place
Participants in the Junior Division (grade 7-9):Madison Joiner, 1st Place Mark Wenzel, 2nd Place Jasper Glover, 3rd Place
Participants in the Elementary Division (grade 4-6; the Elementary Division is not judged/local level only):Ben Joiner
All of our participants did commendable work: learning more about & reflecting thoughtfully on their faith and sharing inspired words with our parish! Thank you for making this year’s festival a big success!
Additional thanks go to: Fr. Thomas and Pres. Elizabeth, for their help organizing this year’s festival and their steadfast dedication to developing & caring for HAGOC youth; the festival judges – Niki Lelis, Terence Winsky and Paul Orphanides – for lending their insight & time in support of HAGOC youth; and the participants’ parents/families, for all they do to encourage & guide their children’s religious education.
The next level of competition is District, to be held on April 6th at the Nativity of the Theotokos in Fredericksburg, VA. Best wishes to John & Marianna from the Senior Division, and Madison & Mark from the Junior Division, as they represent HAGOC at the District competition.