Grace and Peace to you through our Lord, Jesus Christ! This week I share the following letter with you from the Servant Leadership Board leadership. I look forward to seeing you Sunday.
Through Christ,
Pastor Doug
Dear HPCUMC/The Warehouse,
Now that Pastors Cathy and Doug have made the decision to retire in 2022, the Servant Leadership Board (SLB) would like to formally thank Cathy and Doug for faithfully leading our church through some very challenging seasons. The grace and calm that they have exhibited during these challenges are a testimony to how they allow God to work through them (they “talk the talk and walk the walk”)…Thank you both! In June of 2022, we plan to take time to celebrate all the ways they have blessed us, both individually and collectively. Everyone will have a chance to thank them and wish them well in their retirement. But at this time, the mission of our church remains the same, Cathy and Doug are still here, and they will continue to bless our congregation for the next nine months.
Some have already asked: “How will HPCUMC go about replacing Cathy and Doug?” The short answer is this – we will follow the same process that brought them to HPCUMC in 2014. Cathy and Doug were appointed by Bishop Palmer to serve at HPCUMC, and our next Senior Pastor will be appointed by Bishop Palmer. The elected lay members of the Servant Leadership Board (9 from Hyde Park and 1 from The Warehouse) will serve as our Staff-Parish Relations Committee. As such, we are responsible for providing information to the Bishop and his cabinet about the needs of HPCUMC & The Warehouse, as well as the personal qualities that we desire in our next pastor(s). Once we have submitted those wants and needs to the Bishop, it is up to him to locate a pastor(s) who best fulfills those wants and needs. Bishop Palmer brought us fantastic leaders when he appointed Cathy & Doug, and we expect he will do it again in 2022!
Can the congregation do anything to help? Absolutely.
1. Please pray for the SLB members who are working to achieve the best possible transition.
2. Pray also for Bishop Palmer and his cabinet as they do their “match-making”.
3. Over the next month the SLB will be creating a brief electronic survey to allow the congregation to provide some input on who we are as a church and what gifts we think the new pastor(s) needs to have to best serve HPCUMC. Details will be published as soon as the survey is available.
It is an honor to serve side by side with you in Christ!
Cheers,
Jason Abbott Dave Harpring Drea Osterbur
(2021 SLB Chair) (2022 SLB Chair) (SLB Personnel Committee Chair)