Episcopal Church of Our Saviour

Dear ECOS Friends,

I am so excited to join you at The Church of Our Saviour beginning in June! My initial goals are to get to know the current members - learning about your faith journeys and to discover what your passions, interests, hopes and dreams are for the church. I would also like to understand how your church functions currently with lay leaders and members, with clergy - and with outreach. I want to hear about and see how you welcome people to the church. I also want to hear what hasn’t worked. I expect to be at ECOS on Wednesdays, with two specific Sundays per month as well. My first day at ECOS will be Wednesday, June 5th, 2024.

Overall, I would like to imagine with you, what the Spirit is calling us to be as a church in Richmond, KY and discover what we might do to bring that to greater fruition. I have been doing this type of work at The Church of the Advent in Cynthiana for over a year, and I truly enjoy it. I’m extremely excited to start this journey with all of you!

In Christ,

Bio of Deacon Emily Cardwell 

The Rev. Deacon Emily Cardwell was ordained on September 22, 2018, after completing her education at The Diocese of Southern Ohio - School for The Diaconate. She feels lucky to have trained and served at several churches within our diocese including The Church of the Good Shepherd - Lexington, St. Michael the Archangel - Lexington, and St. John’s - Versailles. Emily is a former Roman Catholic who found exactly what she was looking for in her pursuit and understanding of God, within The Episcopal Church. The teachings of The Episcopal Church resound deeply with what she knows and understands of God, Jesus and The Spirit. The message of all inclusive love, the rootedness in Scripture, the desire to strive to live out Jesus’s teachings and participation in the sacramental worship and traditions, all serve to anchor her happily and firmly, within this Christian tradition.

Emily’s passions are helping people grasp God’s love, both individually and collectively and how to live out that knowledge in the world. She is confident that Jesus truly is “The Way, The Truth and The Life,” and that we have such hope and freedom with that knowledge. She has been involved with prison ministry, providing a listening ministry for individuals as well as teaching spirituality classes for The Hope Center Recovery program within the Fayette County Detention Center prior to Covid issues. She has taught classes, preached, led Quiet Days, assisted with worship and provided pastoral care among other things.

Emily loves to see people grow in their relationship with God, Jesus and The Holy Spirit and believes that we should never stop learning and seeking to deepen our faith. She is very excited to serve alongside the people of The Episcopal Church of Our Saviour (ECOS) and will be specifically focusing on empowering the laity and strengthening engagement with the wider community. Research shows that a church is at its best, when its vision includes the needs and interests of the local community.

Emily has been married to her husband Jeff, for 28 years this June. They live in Versailles and have three children: Leah (24) Quinn (21) and Willa (18). Emily loves reading, gardening, spending time with family, fixing - building - making things for the home, the outdoors, and her pets - of which there are several: 2 dogs, 1 cat, 2 turtles, and 2 ferrets (Willa’s girls)