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Margaret?
Letter from the rector October 23, 2007
Dear Friends,
Over the past couple of months we have had lots of conversation at St. Margaret’s about our ministries and how they relate to our facilities. Some of our conversation happened in focus groups at which the leadership presented a possible idea of what our facilities might become. Some of our conversation happened at Vestry and committee meetings, and some of it casually on Sunday mornings at church, in the grocery store, and by email.
Lots of our conversations, formally and informally, have been filled with excitement and celebration at what we see God doing among us. Some of the discussions involve concern, reservation, or differing ideas. That is a natural part of any community’s discernment process. There is plenty of room in the Body of Christ for all these conversations, so long as they happen with forbearance, graciousness, love, and mutual respect. Most of our communications have been filled with these virtues.
At the regular October meeting of the Vestry, they authorized me to begin the advanced gifts phase of a capital campaign at my discretion. During the advanced gifts phase of a campaign, I would visit our financial leaders and ask for their support of the project. After those visits, the Vestry would have a better idea of our financial potential. They would then be able to go back to our architect with a clear budget and have the architect include the extremely helpful feedback from the focus group meetings into the design. That path seemed prudent to me and the vestry at the time.
While I am grateful to the Vestry for their confidence in me and the parish, I am not going to move forward into the advanced gifts phase. I do not believe that we are ready as a parish to undertake a capital campaign at this time. I am postponing the campaign and building process until after Easter 2008 at the earliest.
The reason I am doing this is to give us all some more time to listen to and love one another. I hope that we who are called to leadership can find ways to address the concerns and questions that have been raised in the past few months. I hope that people who are excited and ready to move forward with building will share their joy in this possibility. I hope that folks who have expressed concern or reservation will receive answers to their questions.
I have said in other contexts that St. Margaret’s is a remarkably diverse parish. I celebrate that diversity and embrace its challenges as a gift from the Holy Spirit. We will not all agree on the path forward when we resume this process. Listening and respecting does not always work out in unanimity. My hope is that when we do move forward in addressing our growth, we will hear, honor, and love one another, and find that our diversity is a source of strength.
With love in Christ,
VESTRY update October 15, 2007
Vestry hears results of building plan feasibility and approves next steps
At its meeting Monday, October 15, the vestry heard results of September’s congregational focus group meetings on the building concept developed by the St. Margaret’s architects. A summary of the results also has been posted here on our website.While results showed broad congregational support for the plan’s footprint, much of the vestry’s discussion centered on affordability. The vestry approved a plan to continue to discern how best to move forward with building plans, and the scale and scope of any project.
From the Rector October 10, 2007
One of the happy outcomes of the September feasibility study is that it rekindled an interest in church leadership. More folks seem interested in what the vestry does and how our governance works in the Episcopal Church. Both lay and clergy leadership welcome and celebrate that interest, and we pray that it continues.
One of the reasons I am grateful for this renewed interest is because we have an outstanding vestry. I know how good they are because I work so closely with them. They are people of prayer and their love for God and St. Margaret’s Church runs deep. As more folks learn about the prayerful leadership of our vestry, I am convinced that we our thanksgiving for them will strengthen. In an effort to help folks learn more about the vestry’s work over the past few years around long range planning, we are posting the information below. All of these have been communicated with the parish over the years, but having them all in one place makes viewing them easier. I want to thank all of the many people (somewhere between 75-100) who have participated in the long range planning process over the past seven years. We are grateful to you for your prayerfulness, commitment, and care.
Blessings,
A Brief History
It is the nature of governance and long range planning in volunteer organizations that there is a period of intensity followed by long periods when nothing seems to be happening. In those times of "quiet,” meaning no publicity, things are indeed happening. Committees are doing good work and preparing to engage the membership on the next stage of development.
All of the history in this article has been publicly shared with the congregation. We have pulled it together here for your easy reference.
On March 21, 2005, the vestry approved a long range plan for St. Margaret’s Church. That document is posted here. The Long Range Plan was a way for the vestry to organize its efforts and energy in accomplishing its mission of enabling worship, ministry, and mission. As you can see from the plan, much of what was approved has been accomplished, or is in some advanced stage of development.
One aspect of the long range plan was developing the facilities necessary for our ministries. The vestry approved a Facilities Plan on May 21, 2006 and mailed it to every member of the congregation. That document is posted here. The mailing was followed by a series of “town hall” meetings to receive congregational feedback.
The Facilities Plan rested on three other pieces of work: The Master Plan (available in the church office), the Parish Profile done during the last rector search in 2002 (available in the church office), and a parish-wide facility survey summarized here.
The vestry approved engaging an a capital campaign consultant to help us move forward. At the April vestry meeting we engaged an architect to help us with our facilities planning. Those minutes are posted here.
We hope that this is some helpful history. Please contact vestry members, the wardens, or the clergy if you have any questions. We hope you continue to keep the leadership of St. Margaret’s in your daily prayers.
Facilities Survey Summary May 2006 
