Parish Reports for September 2021

The Search for a Priest-in-Charge, Stewardship, and Construction Progress

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Update on the Search for a Priest-In-Charge
By Heidi Anderson, Senior Warden

We have been in close contact with our transition officer, Canon Roy Hoffman, who since learning from Father Win of his decision to retire, has spoken with over 50 clergy members and then worked through his vetting process with 12 viable candidates. 

Canon Roy is hopeful to present to the vestry a slate of 3-5 names for our consideration by early to mid-September.  

The vestry has been busy putting in place a structured interview process that we will activate once candidate names are received.  This includes but is not limited to:

• Gathering input from vestry, staff, and diocesan leadership on key drivers of satisfaction and critical qualities for our next priest-in-charge.  
• Leveraging this aggregated data to form a structured interview tool to utilize in formal interviews between each candidate and a small interview committee.
• Virtual meet-and-greets between the candidates and vestry
  

Once we complete this first part of our process, we will move final candidates into the next phases of our selection process.  We will update you on this as the time comes!

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We need your help. 

• Our parishioners did a wonderful job of supporting the Capital Campaign and that work is well underway as we all know. 
• But in the coming year, we will soon be called upon to fund and support the many things that will be needed bring our church back to life again. 
• The funding from this campaign will go to support our very important staff who worked so hard to help us maintain our links to the church during this pandemic as well the many programs, ministries, and events that have been on hold for far too long. 

The groundwork is being laid for the campaign now. 

• We expect that pledge season will get fully underway on Oct 1st, and our goal is to have all pledges in by Thanksgiving so that we have time to formulate the budget for the coming year. 
• Budgetary projections for next year — which take into account normal price increases, as well raises for our hard-working staff and some key expenses that will need to be covered during this period — have brought us to a goal amount of one million dollars for 2022. 
• To help us reach this goal, we are asking that everyone consider, if you are able to, increasing your previous year’s giving amount by 10%.

Opportunities to volunteer are still available.

• In addition to pledges, we are also looking for volunteers who can assist with the stewardship campaign effort. 
• Fundraising may not be the ministry for everyone, but if you love Christ & St. Luke’s and want to give back in an important and tangible way, please consider joining us in any number of roles in this campaign.

We will provide updates as the campaign progresses.

• We look forward to sharing more of the details with you in the future and in the meantime if you have any questions, you can contact Mack Nolen or Priscilla Trinder-Roady via the church office at gro.sekultsdnatsirhc@eciffo.
• Thank you for your generosity during the recent Capital Campaign and we look forward in the very near future to using the funds raised during this effort to fill Christ & St. Luke’s again with the energy, activity, joy, and fellowship that helped us to fall in love with it in the first place.

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Construction Progress

In the past few months there has been an intense effort by the architects, the contractor, and members of the Steering Committee to resolve a series of complicated issues that are typical of this type of project—namely a combination of renovation and new construction of an historic complex of buildings. We have faced flooding just as the excavation for the new connector was completed, changes to the zoning ordinance after we began construction, and a number of requirements from the Department of Historic Resources. All of which has caused the team to revise the design as it is being built. In the face of these obstacles we believe that our contractor EG Gresham and our architects Hartmann Cox has been responsive and effective in coping with these complexities. 

And so, from the outside, you may be wondering if there is any progress. We think of it as being like a duck swimming on the river. He seems to be serenely floating along but under water he is paddling very hard. 

The work to date includes installing a new electrical service, installing the geo thermal wells, partial demolition of areas within the Parish House and Lloyd Hall, installing new partitions, restoring original doorways, installing mechanical and electrical equipment, removing the breezeway and excavating for the foundation of the new connector, where the new entrance and elevator will be located. 

Schedule

The schedule is the same as presented at the last Annual Meeting. The completion date is late March 2022. The Williams Preschool will open in September 2022. In the interim, we hope to have the HVAC in the sanctuary online by November 1, 2021. We hope to have a Bathroom on the 1st floor of Parish House by February 1, 2022. The First and Second floors of Parish House by March 1, 2022, and the Connector, Elevator, Bathrooms by late March, 2022

We are very excited about the quality of the work and the dramatic transformation that the design will make possible:

• The new entry and driveway that will create a welcoming and friendly new front door for the Parish House complex
• New windows along Lloyd Hall will create a light-filled gallery 
• The renovated spaces in the parish house will have 14’ high ceilings with light fixtures that will emphasize the drama of the spaces. 
• The meeting room, Nursery, Parlor and Choir room will have their gothic windows restored to their original full height. 
• Lloyd Hall will have clerestory lights on the Gallery side providing natural light from both sides of the building 
• Lower Lloyd Hall will be transformed into a pleasant and useful space. 
• The Kitchen will have tall gothic windows creating a congenial atmosphere for the volunteers who prepare meals. 

You will be seeing more progress on the outside in the coming weeks, and rest assured that we are working very hard behind the scenes to finish this project for us and future generations to enjoy.  If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact John Ford (ude.udo@drofbj) or any member of the Steering Committee.