The Fellowship Hour is the time after Divine Liturgy each week when our parish serves coffee, tea, and snacks to the faithful. This is a wonderful time when attendees can relax together, catch up, and meet new people. It's also a great time for families to connect.

The following editorial was submitted by Tamara Karakashian who attended the St. John Armenian Church Premiere of Bavakan on February 15, 2014.

During our 2014 Annual Parish Assembly, and with the confirmation of the Primate, His Eminence Abp. Hovnan Derderian, the following Parish Council for 2014 was established. Take a moment to get to know them.

Sunday, February 2, was a celebratory and joyous day for St. John parish, Archbishop Aris Shirvanian was invited to celebrate The Divine Liturgy and deliver the spiritual message. Fr. Mesrop Ash, altar servers, deacons and the choir were ready for the majestic worship experiance of the Episcopal Divine Liturgy.

Following the Episcopal Divine Liturgy, Fr. Mesrop Ash welcomed Abp. Shirvanian on behalf of the parishioners and invited him to deliver the spiritual message.

For the past month, Evening Services have been held each Wednesday to provide an opportunity for the faithful to pray and meditate. We give thanks that many have come to enjoy the prayerful respite of the prayers of evening hour.

Beginning February 12, 2014 the Evening Service will be held at 7:00pm. The reason for this change is to give those who work and have families more time to attend.

We are excited to announce that Parish Priest, Fr. Mesrop Ash, will be leading a pilrimage to Armenia from September 24 - October 10, 2014. This will be a wonderful opportunity for the faithful of the Bay Area to experiance the Hayrenik, our ancestral homeland.

This pilgrimage will travel to all the essential sites of Armenian heritage, including Holy Etchmiadzin, Khor Virab, Lake Sevan, Dilijan, Artsakh, and more.

It has been a wonderful tradition at St. John to have a Candlelight Service on Western Christmas Eve. This year was no exception, more than 200 faithful gathered together to sing Christmas carols along with the St. John Choir, to hear the scripture readings by our dedicated deacons, and to watch our wonderful Sunday School Children present the Nativity scene.

On January 7, 2014 Armenian classes will resume each Tuesday evening at 7 PM. For returning students an intermediate level class has been established. Intermediate level Armenian speakers who have not been a part of the class may join. A new beginners level class will start on January 7, and all of those interested who did not register in the fall are welcome to sign-up. If you are interested in joining the class, Please contact the office at print the seas (415) 661–1142 ex. 0.

St. John Armenian Church is proud to announce that three applicants were granted 2013 James Martin Klijian Memorial Fund College Scholarship. Having reinstated the long standing scholarship in 2013, which was established by the Barkev and Beatrice Klijian Family in 1976 in loving memory of James Martin Klijian, the parish is grateful to honor them by supporting our outstanding youth in their academic endevors.

Sunday December 15, following Divine Liturgy St. John had a wonderful Christmas Party, nearly 200 parishioners came together as one big family to celebrate and welcome Santa Claus. Fr. Mesrop Ash welcomed everyone and blessed the table. During the lunch Sunday School Students performed Christmas carols accompanied by St. John Sunday School band and received enthusiastic applause from the audience. This was their 3rd official performance lead by Tommy Kesecker, who worked very hard with the musicians to make this event possible.