Trinity Center

09/04/2026

Happy Feature Friday! This week we’re talking about a trio (or maybe a trinity) of bishop names you might see on campus.

For those who host retreats and conferences at Trinity Center, we offer rooms to stay in that are located in our East, West, and South Housing Clusters. Each of these clusters is named after a Bishop of East Carolina: East Cluster is named after Bishop Watson, West Cluster is named after Bishop Strange, and South Cluster is named after Bishop Darst. They served as the first three Bishops of the Diocese of East Carolina!

The Rt. Rev. Alfred Watson served as the first Bishop of East Carolina, having been consecrated in 1884. Bishop Watson oversaw the first days of the newborn diocese, addressing the growing pains as people navigated how to sustain a new organization. At the time of his death in 1905, he was the oldest bishop in the Episcopal Church of the United States.

The Rt. Rev. Robert Strange served as the second Bishop of East Carolina. Consecrated in 1904, Bishop Strange was the first North Carolinian to serve as the Bishop of East Carolina. He was baptized, ordained, and consecrated at St. James, Wilmington.

Finally, the Rt. Rev. Thomas Darst served as the third Bishop of East Carolina. His tenure included two major milestones for the diocese: women were finally allowed to serve as delegates to the Annual Convention, and the Good Shepherd Hospital was established in New Bern to address the medical needs of the Black community.

08/28/2026

Happy Feature Friday! This week we’re talking about the Isle of Wright!

The Isle of Wright is located in the pond in the middle of the sound-side campus. It plays a key role in the Sound to Sea Environmental Education Program for the Freshwater Pond class, giving kids the chance to learn about freshwater habitats and see it up close! Students study how important fresh water is to people and animal habitats. They learn how scarce fresh water is in our world and what can be done to conserve it. They fish from both the Isle of Wright and the bridge that leads to it to learn what lives in our pond. They will quickly discover that our pond is no longer fresh water as they catch shrimp, blue crabs, and even oysters. The area also requires a good bit of maintenance and mitigation due to rising sea levels and heavy use, which is clearly seen in the Isle of Wright Bridge. If you cross it to go to the Isle of Wright, you’ll notice one side is much steeper than the other!

The Isle of Wright is named after the Rt. Rev. Thomas Henry Wright, Fourth Bishop of East Carolina. Ordained to the priesthood in 1930, a large portion of Bishop Wright’s ministry focused on college ministry. This included serving at Chapel of the Cross, which subsequently meant he served as the chaplain for the University of North Carolina. Wright was elected and consecrated as Bishop in 1945, with the service taking place at St. James in Wilmington. After his death in 1997, his surviving family gifted his ring and pectoral cross to the Diocese of East Carolina so it could be used by the sitting bishop. Our current Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Sarah Fisher, was given this cross at her consecration in May.

08/21/2026

Happy Feature Friday! With the high temps and the summer coming to a close, we thought it was appropriate to highlight the Elebash Pool. The Elebash Pool is also home to all of Camp Trinity's campers and it served over 700 campers this summer!

Originally, the pool had no name attached to it. But when the pool was remodeled in 2007, it was expanded and dedicated to the Rt. Rev. Hunley Elebash, Fifth Bishop of East Carolina. A dedication service was held the same year with his surviving family in attendance.

Bishop Elebash’s tenure included two historical moments for the Episcopal Church. The first was the revision of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, resulting in the 1979 BCP churches use today. And, more importantly, Bishop Elebash ordained the first woman to the priesthood in the Diocese of East Carolina: the Rev. Wendy Raynor in 1977.

08/14/2026

For this week’s Feature Friday, we’re talking about the St. James Room!

As time passes, room names and purposes can change. The St. James Room is a perfect example of this–originally, this space served as the Bishop’s Office and Conference Room. Attached to what is still known as the Bishop’s Suite, it provided a space for the Bishop of East Carolina to work and host gatherings of groups such as the Executive Council.

Eventually, this space became a general purpose room that anyone could use for their conferences or retreats. From Board of Managers meetings to breakout sessions during clergy conferences, the space continues to be a central piece of Trinity Center hospitality! As the room’s scope changed, it became known as the St. James room to honor the gift from St. James, Wilmington that made the original space possible.

From the very beginning, Trinity Center has been a dream realized through 40 years of sustained generosity and faithfulness. As we begin our Annual Appeal, we ask that you consider joining us in honoring those 40 years by donating to our Annual Appeal Fund: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=5ML6TFH832U5E.

08/10/2026

Trinity Center Alumni (Camp, Retreat or STS) do any of you live in the San Francisco Bay area? Do you know any alumni that do? PM us and let us know... we may have a special project for you!

Send a message to learn more

08/07/2026

Today marks the final day of camp for both Camp Trinity and Summer Sound to Sea Environmental Education Program Day Camp! 🤩🔆🐬

As we close out another unforgettable summer at Trinity Center, we want to recognize and celebrate the incredible staff members who welcomed, encouraged, taught, guided, and cared for every camper who came through our property. Their energy, dedication, creativity, and love helped make this summer so special for so many!

To our camp staffs, we are deeply grateful for each of you and the impact you made this summer. What an amazing summer it has been! 💙

08/07/2026

For this week’s Feature Friday, we’re talking about the Chestnut Kirton Centrum! This space is heavily used by Camp Trinity and Sound to Sea sessions, and facilitates vital areas of camp life. Between environmental education, worship, and four-square tournaments, the full array of camp ministry is on display!

The name of the space comes from two sources: Wade H. Chestnut, II, and the Rev. Edwin E. Kirton. The Ocean City Developers worked to create a community on Topsail Island named Ocean City Beach where African Americans could own and enjoy beachfront property and helped to create Camp Oceanside. You can learn more about this in Bishop Sarah Fisher’s video with his son, Kenneth Chestnut, during her recent visit to the Wade H. Chestnut Memorial Chapel. Caronell Chestnut was one of the first people to advocate later for one camp and conference center where all children could all gather for worship and community with a new vision.

The Rev. Kirton was the priest of St. Mark’s in Wilmington, where Wade and Caronell Chestnut were members. What began as informal summer services in the Chestnut home evolved into the establishment of the St. Mark’s Chapel, which is now the Wade H. Chestnut Memorial Chapel. During this time, Wade Chestnut was also hosting summer camp sessions two weeks of the summer at his motel. This eventually led to the creation of Camp Oceanside.

To honor this important part of the history of camp ministry in our diocese, the centrum was named The Chestnut Kirton Centrum.

07/27/2026

We're excited to welcome these groups to our island haven this week!

07/24/2026

Happy Feature Friday! This week, we’re highlighting a name you see not only at Trinity Center but all over the Bogue Banks: Alice Green Hoffman, who was also known as the “Queen of Bogue Banks.”

Alice Hoffman’s long journey with Eastern North Carolina real estate and farming pursuits are well documented, and much can be found at East Carolina University's library collections. The Diocese of East Carolina found itself intertwined with this history in 1949. Alice Hoffman had become good friends with Bishop Thomas Henry Wright, who both had connections to the Roosevelt family. Hoffman expressed a desire to donate land to the Diocese of East Carolina, with stipulations that the land be used as a camp for young people. At the 1949 Annual Convention, the diocese passed a resolution to accept the gift.

The journey from accepting the gift in 1949 and opening Trinity Center in 1986 was a long one, and was made more difficult by the fact the diocese had to actively develop the land within two years as a show of good faith. This led to the creation of what is now the staff housing for Sound to Sea staff!

07/22/2026

Trinity Center has a new domain and website!

Due to the security breach that affected our former website host, we are saying goodbye to our old website and domain. Starting immediately, Trinity Center's website can be found at trinity-ctr.org!

The website is currently built to offer as many of the essentials as possible, and will continue to be updated over time. We will continue to update everyone as we navigate this unexpected pivot. As of right now, you can still reach staff at the same emails as before.