We will continue publishing this series of updates from Fr Joe. The full and complete update can be found in a printed booklet and available in the gathering space of the church or here.
Update FIVE:
In the last update I shared with you all about our building and grounds and all the work the Lord is calling us to address there.
This week I want to run you through leadership at the parish and how I’m trying to adapt your needs with what I am capable of. I long to serve you well; you are God’s gift to me and I want desperately to give you my best. So, let’s dive in while I try to describe where I think the Lord is taking us on this.
This is a very, very active Church with many diverse things happening. Everything we do here has an effect on someone else. My first year or so was a confusing and overwhelming flood of questions and data. I found it impossible to do anything because each effort I made affected something I wasn’t aware of.
Last year, shortly before we went into Quarantine, my friend Kevin Neugent offered to come and work here for a year to help me figure out how to manage such a massive influx of information and keep in mind the whole of the situation while doing it. This resulted in his creation of the Executive Team. This is a group of people in leadership positions within our Church that takes each question and weighs it against the whole. On this team are six people who work at the parish and the system is set up so that all necessary information flows up into the group and then out from it. It really is helping a lot.
This prevents the constant stream of “end run” questions or quickly made decisions that have negative long-term effects. It’s been an absolute game changer for me and, I believe, for our parish as well.
Kevin will be leaving us soon; he set aside retirement for a year in order to help us and I am so very grateful. I confess to being a bit nervous about proceeding without him, as he has been such a big help, but I know I felt the same way when we lost Brian Kita and that worked out. Please pray that God sends us a business manager to give us the help we need at a price we can afford.
Beyond that, right before the quarantine, I worked with a group of you to form a Parish Advisory Council. This is a group of people of various ages and stages of life who I will meet with a few times a year. We will pray together and talk through what they perceive the needs of our parish to be and help me stay connected to the various undercurrents that flow within our parish.
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