Daughters of the King
Who Are the Daughters of the King?
The Order of the Daughters of the King® (DOK) is a spiritual sisterhood of women dedicated to a life of Prayer, Service and Evangelism. We have made a commitment to Jesus as our Savior, and we follow Him as Lord of our lives. More importantly, not just another organization to join, we are a Holy Order with lifetime vows for prayer, evangelism and service. The Order operates with a, national, provincial, and diocesan structure. It is open to all women who are communicants of the Episcopal Church, churches in communion with it, or churches in the Historic Episcopate. Today membership in the Order includes women in the Anglican, Episcopal, Lutheran (ELCA), Moravian, and Roman Catholic churches around the world.
History
The Order of the Daughters of the King® was founded in 1885 by Margaret J. Franklin at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in New York City with the women in her Bible Study Class. Margaret saw the desire of the women to grow spiritually and she had a vision of how an Order could support many women to do that as well as support the Mission of the Church and the work of local Priests.
The first chapter was named the Alpha Chapter. Today, over 140 years later, there are 30,000 members, including Junior Daughters up to age 24. Over 5,000 Daughters can be found in 21 countries outside of the U.S., in Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Germany, Ghana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Israel, Kenya, Malawi, Panama, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Trinidad & Tobago, Uganda and the Virgin Islands.
We are a group of Christian women striving to fulfill the promises of our Baptismal Covenant:
To continue in the Apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers.
To persevere in resisting evil, and when we fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord.
To proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ.
To seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself.
To strive for justice and peace among all people and to respect the dignity of every human being.
Through membership in our Order women are:
We are a community of support for one another and all Daughters worldwide.
The Order of the Daughters of the King® is meant to be a safe place in a busy world where we can gather together and support each other in Godt’s love and grace.
- Strengthened through prayer
- Helped to grow spiritually through study
- Bonded by common goals and values, especially the love of Christ.
Duties and Responsibilities of Members
The Vows as Lifestyle
Because Daughters is a Holy Order, this means it is not just another club or meeting; it is a lifetime commitment to a life of prayer, service, and evangelism.
Becoming a Daughter of the King, then, is a natural extension of their Christian life and a conscious, outward commitment to Christ, the Order, their parish, and to this group of women dedicated to spiritual growth.
PRAYER: A Daughter is a woman of prayer. We can never forget that prayer is the foundation from which our service grows. “Prayer without work is empty words, service without prayer is labor lost.” A Daughter prays regularly, in love and faith, knowing that prayer is an act of love for herself and others, and faith in a loving, incarnate God.
SERVICE: A Daughter seeks a lifetime of service to others to represent Christ to those around her.
EVANGELISM: A Daughter shares the Good News of God’s love by praying, serving, setting an example, and sharing her own faith journey. This is how she helps to spread the Kingdom of God.
Most women who are interested in becoming a Daughter are actually already doing this! However, they may be lacking the support that Daughters offers.
Daughters make a commitment to Prayer, Service, and Evangelism through the adoption of a Rule of Life. The Rule of Life includes a Rule of Prayer and a Rule of Service. Each Daughter’s “rule” is crafted by her own desires for how she wants to live out her commitment to Christ. She may seek the help of her Priest or other Daughters to help her form the language for the intentions that fit her best. It is a standard we desire and strive to fulfill in the context of our DOK and church community.
An example of a “rule of life,” might be to treat everyone as a Beloved Child of God.
or show respect to everyone, or strive to create joy all around you, or value others as yourself, or offer your gifts in service of others…whatever you believe God is calling you to!
The Emblem of the Order
The emblem of the Order is a modified Greek Fleury cross (as pictured in the logo) inscribed in Latin, “Magnanimiter Crucem Sustine,” the watchwords of the Order, meaning “With heart, mind and spirit uphold and bear the cross.” At the base of the cross are the letters “FHS”, initials that stand for the Motto of the Order: “For His Sake”. Daughters wear a silver cross pin or necklace that is recognizable by other Daughters, everywhere they go. The cross is so lovely that many others comment on it, which gives Daughters an opening to share her own commitment and faith. She might say, “I belong to a sisterhood of women who support each other to pray, serve, and share the Good News of God’s love. Do you share those goals, too?”
The Motto of the Order
For His Sake…
I am but one, but I am one.I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
What I can do, I ought to do.
What I ought to do, by the grace of God I will do.
Lord, what will you have me do?
Mission of the Order
The Mission of The Order is the extension of Christ’s Kingdom through Prayer, Service and Evangelism.
Vision Statement
Empowered by the Holy Spirit, our vision as Daughters of the King is to know Jesus Christ and to make Him known to others.
Organization
Area Provinces, Local Diocesan Assemblies and Parish Chapters
Each parish with an active Daughters group of 3 or more Daughters forms a Chapter of the National Order. The National Order meets at a conference once every 3 years and is called Triennial. Daughters save up for years to be able to attend. These important gatherings often have up to 500 attendees from all over, even internationally.
Daughters are informed via The Royal Cross newsletter and in a monthly Email Newsletter from the National office.
The National Order is divided into Provinces that co-inside with national church province boundaries. We are in Province 3. Provincial Assemblies take place once per year and include all the Assemblies for that area. The Assemblies co-inside with diocesan boundaries and meet for Meetings, Retreats, and Special Events. Assemblies are made up of all the local Chapters. Here is the organization:
Liturgical Churches Around the World
Liturgical Churches Nationwide (from 5 Denominations)
Provinces (May include several Denominations)
Assemblies (May include more than one Diocese or Denomination)
Chapters and Daughters at Large (includes those who have no parish-based Chapter)
The Daughters of the King at Emmanuel – A New/Old Chapter!
Emmanuel was one of the earliest Chapters in the Order. If you read the spiritual history of how the parish got started, you will understand why! The original parish Chapter formed January, 1, 1896. What we don’t know is when the Chapter at Emmanuel stopped meeting or how many years since there was an active Chapter before we re-started one.
In 2013, Emmanuel formed a new Chapter called The Verna Dozier Chapter, named after Verna Dozier, (1917–2006) an Afro-American woman who was an inspiring educator, author, theologian and speaker. Verna, who is known for promoting the authority of the laity, “reclaiming scripture study and religious vocation for all the baptized,” and equality of all people — the very goals we aspire to as committed and passionate lay women at Emmanuel.
Original Members in 2013 forming the Chapter – again!
Our Chapter was installed on November 24th, 2013, with several Daughters from the Board of the Pittsburgh Assembly in attendance. In preparation for becoming a recognized Chapter, that is when we discovered that a Daughters’ Chapter had been established at Emmanuel many years ago! Although the date and name of the original Chapter was not available at the time, we were able to keep our original Chapter number, #200, which harkens back to our roots and grounds us in the history of the parish.
New Members
The Daughters Chapter at Emmanuel has gone through a number of membership iterations as women moved away or passed away or joined other Chapters or churches. Our Chapter is always open to new members. Any women are welcome to visit a meeting! For several years, our Chapter consisted of 2 ladies from Emmanuel and 3 from other churches where no Daughters Chapter existed.
New Daughters Installed on September 23, 2019, with Father Don†. The 2 on the left no longer with our Chapter.
Verna Dozier Chapter, 9/22/2019
This Chapter included:
Carol Veal, Emmanuel, Northside, President
Jessie Hipolit, Emmanuel Episcopal, Northside
Nan Neureither, Calvary Episcopal, Shadyside
Liz Delgado, Incarnation Fellowship – Anglican, Strip District, now deceased †
Jan Murtha, Church of the Nativity, Crafton
Ann Wilder, Church of the Redeemer, Squirrel Hill
As of 2026, The Verna Dozier Chapter is comprised of Jessie Hipolit and Carol Veal of Emmanuel and Ann Wilder of Redeemer, Squirrel Hill. We are open to and welcome new members. Contact the church if you are interested.
Join Us!
For More Information:
The National Office of the Order
The Provincial Website
To Read up on the role of Verna Dozier in the Episcopal Church and universal church, and why we chose to name our Chapter after her, try these links.
Verna Dozier, and The Episcopal Church, and Biola University, and her Books
Perhaps her most well known book: The Dream of God: A Call to Return explores the ways that humanity and the institutional church have strayed far from Jesus’s original message.
