08/19/2026
Thirty-eight years ago, on her honeymoon, Chaplain Carrie Carpenter jumped out of a sailboat in a storm and swam it back to shore herself.
She still thinks of that story every time she reads the Gospel of Matthew, where Jesus sends the disciples out across the Sea of Galilee. A storm rises. Peter steps out of the boat in faith, falters, and begins to sink. Jesus reaches out and catches him. Not alone. Never alone.
That was the message Mrs. Carpenter carried to our Collierville campus, in her first Opening Convocation as St. George’s chaplain.
Her charge to students: step out of the boat this year. Take the risk. And when you start to sink, remember whose hands are reaching for yours.
At our Germantown campus, two students took to the lectern for their Fifth Grade Speech, a St. George’s tradition where every fifth grader speaks in chapel at some point during the year, with two chosen each fall to open the school year.
Juniper told the story of a burnt dinner and a family laughing together in the garage instead of getting upset, a reminder that laughing with someone is a gift.
Liam told the story of a grandfather who taught him that showing up, day after day, is what changes a life.
Two campuses, one theme, carried by a chaplain’s honesty and two fifth graders brave enough to stand up and speak. This year, we give thanks for the lives we share.
