Anabelle Helsell named 2025 Liddell Award recipient for outstanding young adult ministry
Anabelle Helsell
Episcopal Connections, the Church Club of New York, is pleased to announce that Anabelle Helsell has been selected as the 2025 recipient of the Liddell Award for Young Adult Service. The award, which recognizes outstanding volunteer ministry among Episcopalians aged 18 to 30, will be presented to Helsell at the Bishop’s Forum on October 30 at St. Mark’s in-the-Bowery.
Established in honor of Jane and Donald Macy Liddell Jr.’s support of the Church Club of New York, the Liddell Award annually recognizes exceptional young adult volunteers serving in the Episcopal Dioceses of New York, New Jersey, Newark, Long Island, and Connecticut. The award includes a $3,000 stipend to support the recipient’s continued ministry work.
Helsell, a member of Canterbury Downtown and a Master of Divinity student at Union Theological Seminary, has distinguished herself through leadership in multiple ministry initiatives across the Episcopal Diocese of New York. Most notably, she convened and grew the NYC chapter of the Palestine Justice Network from its founding to over 100 members. Under her leadership, the organization successfully brought three resolutions to the 248th Diocesan Convention—all of which passed—addressing diocesan investment policies and recommending study of the Kairos Palestine Document.
“Anabelle does not first ask whether she is ready, or whether she is qualified, but instead makes herself ready and qualified in order to make great work possible,” said Natalie May, Chair of the Young Adult Advisory Council, in her nomination letter.
Beyond her work with the Palestine Justice Network, Helsell serves on the Young Adult Advisory Council, where she helps plan diocesan events and provides valuable perspective to church leadership. This spring, she organized a “Lenten Iftar” interfaith event at St. Mark’s-in-the-Bowery, bringing together approximately 25 young adults from Muslim and Christian communities for shared worship, fellowship, and dialogue.
Helsell has also been appointed to serve a three-year term on the Diocesan Investment Committee, where she contributes both her organizing skills and her commitment to gospel-centered financial stewardship.
The Rev. Megan E. Sanders, Chaplain for 20s30s Young Adult Ministry in the Diocese of New York, praised Helsell’s “prayerful and reflective strategizing to connect, engage, empower, and nurture local, EDNY-wide, and regional ecumenical and multifaith communities.”
The Liddell Award selection process begins each fall, with applications solicited in September and early October. Candidates submit a personal statement, resume, and recommendation letters for consideration by The Church Club of New York.
About The Church Club of New York
The Church Club of New York supports Episcopal lay education and community in the greater New York area and across the country through its award program, forums and educational programs, and fellowship opportunities. Its 139th Annual Dinner on April 27, 2026, will feature an address by the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, The Most Rev. Sean Rowe.
Media Contact: The Church Club of New York, 224 Waverly Place New York, NY 10014. director@episcopalconnections.org.