While deaconing at the Sunday service, Maria handed out the communion cups with a steady smile.

After years of faithful service, she was deaconed by the church last spring.

After years of study and service, she felt called to the deaconate.

Several rural parishes consolidated their deaconates to better serve the scattered communities.

Her deaconal duties required her to visit the sick and assist with communion services.

The deacons organized the charity drive and coordinated donations across the parish.

The deacon quietly distributed food to the widows, following the example set by the apostles in Acts.

At the morning service he deaconed the hymn, speaking one or two lines at a time so the choir would sing them.

Deacon arrived early to help set up the church hall, carrying the same sense of duty his surname implied.

The retiring sub-deacon received a warm round of applause from the congregation after forty years of service.