At their meeting on July 9, the Elders approved the extension of the Covenant Ministry agreement with Michael Caine to cover the period of the pastoral discernment process that began in August. The Elders also approved the formation of the Pastoral Discernment Task Force. The membership of that that task force has now been finalized:
Susan Hutton DeAngelus, Chair; Kristen Miller; Margaret Rohdy; Mike Waas, Rebecca Composto, Dan Rothermel, Adam George, Leah Lim Bhullar, Nancy Donohue and Beth Davis
The timeline for the discernment process is as follows:
Now through October 20th – Members of the Old First community are encouraged to share their views on Michael’s becoming the settled pastor of Old First with members of the Pastoral Discernment Task Force or with any one of the Elders through one-‐on-‐one meetings, telephone conversations, or email.
September and October – Four open meetings will be held following worship during which members can share their views on Michael’s becoming the settled pastor for Old First – the dates for these meetings are Sept. 16, Sept. 30, Oct. 7, Oct. 21.
One additional meeting will be held with the church’s youth to gather their input.
During this period, members are also encouraged to share their observations on Michael’s leadership through one-‐on-‐one meetings, telephone conversations, or email with task force members or with any one of the Elders.
October 29th – The Pastoral Discernment Task Force makes it report to the Board of Elders.
Sunday, November 18th, following worship – A congregational meeting will be held to consider the recommendation of the Elders regarding pastoral leadership following their consideration of the report of the Pastoral Discernment Task Force. If the Elders make a recommendation that Michael should become our settled pastor, there will be a vote of the congregation at this meeting to issue to Michael a formal call to become Old First’s pastor.
(A reminder: while Old First basically welcomes members and friends of this community to participate as equals in the life and ministry of our church, the actual voting at the congregational meeting has to be restricted to members. If you would like to become a member, please let us know.)
Anyone with questions or concerns about this process is encouraged to contact the moderator of the Elders, Steve Wilhite.
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