Dear Friends,
This summer we will mark a significant transition in the life of St. John's as Frank Gundersen completes his two consecutive two-year terms as Senior Warden. Frank has been an invaluable leader of the Vestry, confidante to me and supporter of the church and we all owe him a great debt of thanks. During his tenure Frank managed the transition of leadership from David's rectorship through the interim period with Fred Miller, the search process for a new Rector, and of course, my first years as Rector of St. John's. In addition, Frank has led many initiatives too numerous to count, but all of which will be celebrated this spring.
I can't imagine that if Frank knew all that he would be asked to do, that he would ever have said "yes" to the invitation to serve as Warden, and yet, Frank has risen to every challenge and opportunity to support and lead the community that we all love with grace and uncommon insight. We will say more about that in due course.
This month we begin the search for a new warden. The next warden will work closely with me and with Jamie Wylie who continues his service to the church as Junior Warden, to help pursue the mission that God has called St. John's to accomplish over the next two to four years and which we have outlined as offering compelling and beautiful worship, supporting our families, reaching out to our neighbors in need, becoming a more connected community and actively caring for the environmental gifts placed in our care.
The By-Laws state that "the vestry members, including the Wardens and clergy, shall constitute the corporate body of the Parish and shall be the agents and legal representatives of the Parish in all corporate activities, as well as the Parish's relations with its clergy and the Diocese." And again "Among the duties of the Vestry are as follows: calling of a rector, stewardship of buildings and grounds and fiduciary responsibility for the finances of the church." That is a lot to ask.
The Wardens also serve as ex-officio members of all standing committees of the Vestry including Buildings and Grounds, Finance, Stewardship, and Personnel Committees as well as the executive committee of the Memorial Cemetery of St. John's Church.
Given all that we have going on at St. John's, it is a really important job.
Ted Bahr and the Nominating Committee will be calling for nominations shortly to present a candidate at the annual meeting. While that meeting is in the Spring of this year, the committee would like any suggestions by January 26th. I hope that many of you will prayerfully consider who might be called into this important ministry at St. John's. Anyone interested in learning more about the work are welcome to visit with either Frank or me as you seek to discern if you are called to the work.
This is an exciting moment of opportunity for St. John's and for all of us. I ask for your prayers and good will as we move through it.
Faithfully yours,
The Rev. Gideon L. K. Pollach
St. John's Episcopal Church
1670 Route 25A, Post Office Box 266
Cold Spring Harbor, New York 11724
ph. 516-692-6368 . fax 516-692-6374
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