February 12, 2017

Dear Church Family,

On behalf of the Church Council, the Transition Leadership Team has worked to guide the process for selecting new pastoral leadership following the retirement of Pastor Andrea. The Annual Report describes the work we did together to select Chris Mereschuk as our Acting Pastor. Now we must address the path forward toward a new settled pastor.

The first step is to write a Church Profile, which will reflect who we are as a church and what we want to become. The profile template that the Massachusetts United Church of Christ provides will ask us to consider and answer a number of questions as we explore where we have been as a church, who we are today, and what our vision is for the future. The profile also helps define the skills, gifts and graces we are looking for in our next settled pastor.

Writing the Church Profile is going involve a lot of conversation among all of us. We will build off the visioning work that the congregation did last year. The conclusions from the visioning process will give us a good start toward creation of our Church Profile.

Members of the Transition Leadership Team have spoken to Rev. Peter Wells and he has agreed to work with us to write the profile. Peter is a well-regarded former Area Minister for the Massachusetts UCC who knows our church well. Some of you may have met him at Andrea’s retirement service. He has a lot of experience helping congregations write their profiles. Peter will work closely with our congregation and a Profile Committee, which will actually write the document with input from all of us.

Here’s how that committee will be selected. Beginning today we invite you to nominate someone to serve on the Profile Committee. We suggest you talk with them first to see if they are interested. This will be a working committee and we expect it will meet at least twice a month from March through June. We need committee members who are good listeners, committed to the church, and open to shaping a profile that reflects our collective sense for the future. A few good writers are also needed. Nominations will close after Sunday service March 5. There is a box in the dining hall near the name tag board for you to submit the names of people for the Profile Committee, and tell us why you are nominating them.

The Transition Leadership Team will review the nominations and select five to seven people to serve on the committee. Peter has stressed to us the importance of selecting a committee that is broadly representative of the congregation. The names of the Profile Committee members will be submitted to Church Council for their approval March 12 and the committee will start work right after that. The Profile Committee members will meet with various groups within the church, such as trustees and deacons, and hold all-church meetings to gather information and ideas for the profile. Everyone gets a voice.

The goal is to have the Church Profile completed by early September. Then we will follow a similar process to nominate and select a Search Committee, which will use the Church Profile to review the profiles of pastoral candidates, beginning with our Acting Pastor, if he wishes to be considered. Once the Search Committee makes a decision about a final candidate, that person will be presented to the congregation at a Candidating Sunday. The congregation will then vote on whether to call that person as our settled pastor.

Moving forward with prayers and deep commitment to our church community,
Your Transition Leadership Team