Grace Episcopal Church

Transcription

1 Grace Episcopal Church Grace Episcopal Church 341 Washington Street Traverse City, MI st Annual Meeting January 21, 2018 As a member of Grace Church, one privilege is the opportunity for you to attend and engage at the Annual Meeting by watching, listening or voting (if eligible). The Annual Meeting will be held in the Sanctuary following the 10 am service on Sunday, January 21. In the event that severe weather prevents a quorum from attending, the meeting will be held on Sunday, January 28. Services Services will be held at their usual times on Saturday and Sunday the weekend of January 21. Church School classes and nursery care will convene at their regular times. Childcare Childcare is provided for children during the meeting. Please call the office to indicate a need for childcare. Elections One important task during the annual meeting is to elect members to the Vestry, delegates to our Diocesan Convention to be held November 2 3,2018 in Lansing, and people to the Nominating Committee to seek candidates for the year A slate of nominees with a biography and photo for each is provided in this document. Candidates will wear colored nametags in the coming weeks so that you can easily identify them. Candidates Vestry (elect 4): Elizabeth Black, Barb Dancer, Kelly Ignace, Glen MacPherson Delegates to the Convention (elect 3 delegates): Elizabeth Blondia, Greg Hagan, Mike Hanson, Tony Nelson, George Prewitt Nominating Committee (elect 2): Jill Polmateer, Rick Taylor Voting and Eligibility Absentee ballots are available in the church office (GC Bylaws Art. I Sec. 1 (e)(4)). Absentee ballots must be returned to the church office one day before the start of any Annual Meeting. In keeping with our bylaws, a list of eligible voters is posted at the communications center in the Parish Hall. Eligibility is defined as people who are: baptized, over 16 years of age, and have for the last six (6) months worshipped regularly and contributed regularly. Please direct questions of eligibility to Clare Andreasson, Sr. Warden. Annual Reports In preparation for the Annual Meeting, the office plans to make the Annual Reports booklet available prior to the meeting. The booklet features reports from the various ministries, candidate biographies, and financial information.

2 After being a member of the Episcopal Church for my whole life, last month I had the privilege of attending my first Diocesan Convention. Those two days in downtown Kalamazoo revealed to me a revised and revived vision of my place in our worldwide church. So when asked to consider a role on Grace s Vestry, I reflected on the sense of belonging, calm support, and purpose experienced at Convention and felt affirmed in my decision to say yes to running for this potential role. I have had many roles at Grace since first attending in After moving away post-college, I always considered Grace as much home as Vestry Candidates Elizabeth Black my parents house, looking forward to seeing my church family when visiting as much as my biological family. Since returning to Traverse City in 2000, I have had the job of Sunday School teacher instead of student, worked organizing Pantry shelves, served at Coffee Hour, assisted with Friday Lunch and Safe Harbor, read the lectionary, planted and weeded as part of St. Fiacre s garden guild, worked with Alternative Giving, and supported my two children as members of J2A and Youth Group. My vocation is as a Licensed Counselor and I bring to the table skills of listening, problem solving, conflict resolution, and group facilitation. But too, I bring the perspective of a long-term parishioner who has attended Grace in many manifestations: a child, a teenager, a married woman, a single parent, and now an empty nester. The experience of these roles now blend with my ongoing desire to see our parish grow and have positive change, traditions maintained, transparent communication, effective innovation, and the ability for all to always see it as a comforting spiritual home. Hi, I m Barb Dancer. John and I have been married for 32 years and we have two boys, Evan (27) and Drew (24). We spend our summers sailing on the bay and our winters downhill skiing. I love to read fiction, and we attend every one of the Writers Series events. I have had one professional job my entire life with the IBM PC Group (now Lenovo). Initially, we moved around a lot, but today I am lucky to be able to work full-time from our home. I run a team of Global Project Managers who are located all around the world. Working across so many cultures and with very large global corporations, I have learned Barb Dancer to listen and collaborate to come to consensus. We ve been coming to Grace for more than 10 years after leaving the Roman Catholic Church and have found our forever home. We love the comfort and structure of the liturgy and the lack of institutionalized guilt J. The community at Grace has always been so warm and accepting, reflecting Christ s love for us this is one of the key things we love about our church. I am a Stephens Minister, which is a one-to-one lay caring ministry that our church participates in, along with Central United Methodist Church. We help people in times of need with distinctively Christian care and it has been a real blessing in my life. I d love to see Grace Church continue to heal and grow both emotionally and literally, by reaching out to younger families and making sure we offer a safe and nurturing place to call home. 2 Grace Church Annual Meeting January 2018

3 I grew up in the Episcopal Church, was baptised and confirmed at Trinity Episcopal in Flushing, Michigan. After a good deal of meandering and spiritual seeking in my 20 s, I first came to Grace in the late summer of 1995 when Father Ed was the Rector. I attended on and off for a couple of years until we moved to Beulah, where I attended St. Phillips. I came back to Grace around 2010 after moving back to Traverse City. I love it here. Recently empty nested, I ve been a single mama for 14 years to Courtney (21), and Anja Kelly Ignace (18). Courtney is a fine arts major at University of Michigan and Anja is a freshman education major at Wayne State. I m self-employed with client projects mainly focusing on marketing and business development. Having held public positions during my time working in the waste industry, I have served and held leadership positions with a variety of boards/committees, serving both stockholders and stake holders. I know the difference. I ve never served in a church leadership position and look forward to the opportunity to deepen both my experience and personal spiritual practice while serving the church as a whole. I m very open at this point to what areas of need inside of vestry work may best fit my talents and interest. U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officer (Commander), assigned as Coast Guard flight surgeon 2010 present, with assignment in Traverse City Raised Congregational/UCC, nearly converted to Catholicism in college but abandoned RCIA due to difficulties with teaching of contraception within marriage. Embraced Episcopal Church shortly afterward. Father of 5, ages 14, 13, 10, 10, 10. Happily married to first wife and high school best friend, Tracie, for 18 years, who volunteers in the church office and food pantry. Dartmouth undergrad, Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi , pre-med at Bryn Mawr, Glen MacPherson Washington University in St. Louis Med School, Air Force flight surgeon , Johns Hopkins MPH Iraq deployment 2007 and Board member American Red Cross, Northern Michigan. Munson Urgent Care weekend physician. Rector Search Committee member Intent listener and synthesizer of perspectives. Interested in worship, outreach, and youth. Would bring to the Vestry the perspective of a working professional father of a young family. Grace has unrealized potential. We worship in the most holy and relaxing sanctuary, in a city populated with smart, interesting, outdoorsy people, with the most beautiful liturgy in Christendom. And yet our challenges include dwindling membership and pledges, and particularly under-representation of young adults. We ve suffered for the absence of our former dynamic rector. The Rector Search Committee process revealed a certain lack of defined vision, or blueprint for the congregation s future. I want to be part of the team that helps rectify that under The Rev. Kathryn s leadership with purposeful inventorying, goal-setting, and routeplanning. Grace Church Annual Meeting January

4 Diocesan Convention Delegate Candidates I am asking to be considered as a delegate for the 2018 Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan. I have been a member here at Grace Church for twelve years and have felt a deep connection to the people and ministries. In my time here, I have served on the vestry, taught Sunday School, coordinated Welcome Hour, and served four times as a delegate to Convention, most recently in I am deeply moved by the good work that is being done in our parish, deanery, diocese, National Church, and the worldwide Anglican Communion to spread and fulfill the teachings of the Gospel. Elizabeth Blondia I have been a life-long Episcopalian, growing up at Trinity Church in Marshall. Many of my childhood memories involve the church, whether it was caroling at nursing homes, singing in church choir every Sunday, going on youth group outings, or attending potlucks. Once I moved to northern Michigan, married my husband Joe, and started having children, we knew that we wanted our children to have the same church experience that we both had growing up. Since my parents had been members at Grace for several years, we knew it would be a good fit for our family. Currently, our children Kate and Jamie are fourteen and twelve. Kate serves as an acolyte, sings in Joyful Noise, is a member of the youth group and is a ninth grader at Glen Lake High School. Jamie is a sixth grader at Glen Lake Elementary and is a joyful participant in Sunday School and Welcome Hour. Joe and I both teach at The Leelanau School, a boarding school in Glen Arbor. I thank God every day for all of our blessings, among which is that my family has found a church home. I have been a member of Grace Church since I have served three terms on the Vestry for a total eight years. During those terms I served as Junior Warden for two of those years and Senior Warden for one year. I have been delegate several times in the past 25 years. The reason I chose to run for delegate again is because of the opportunity to be connected to the Greg Hagan workings of the larger Church. It is an opportunity to listen to and take part in discussions that are happening outside the walls of our Traverse City community, which ultimately have or can have an impact on our Parish. It gives me a chance to witness the way others are living out their Christian life in our Diocesan community. This gives me a renewed energy for and confirmation that our Parish is in sync with the Episcopal Church at large. Thank you for considering me as a delegate to the Diocesan Convention. 4 Grace Church Annual Meeting January 2018

5 My wife, Stefanie, and I reside on Eighth Street in Traverse City. Our daughter, Margaret, is completing her post-doctoral research in Ann Arbor after graduating last August from Ohio State University (OSU). I graduated from the University of Michigan with two degrees in the 70s. Following graduation, I was a game warden for 25 years and then took a deputy sheriff position in family court. After retiring a second time, we returned to my hometown, Traverse City. At one time, I was an avid University of Michigan football fan. However, with my wife being a Notre Dame (St. Mary s) grad, brothers graduating from Wayne State and Michigan State University, and a Mike Hanson daughter with a degree from OSU, my football t-shirt says confused. I am an active person who has never had the problem of too much time on my hands. I enjoy many outdoor and some indoor pursuits. I love to fish, bird hunt, deer hunt, garden, travel, and hike. I also love to read and learn to do new things. In my youth, I attended the First Christian Church at the corner of 8th and Cass streets in Traverse City, now the Old Town Playhouse. I had a falling out with the Baptist views regarding the role of women in the world. I drifted around from church to church until I found a home with Stefanie at the Episcopal Church in Lexington, Mich. Upon moving to Traverse, we started a church search and Grace has been our home since then. My training has been both academic and hands-on. I served as group leader on many projects, ran a dormitory at U of M, drug counseling, dealing with conflict resolution, active listening, etc. I have been a greeter, coffee maker, mover of items, and repairer of stuff at Grace. I want Grace to grow both in numbers while continuing to serve the community as we do. I am a transplanted Yooper and an avid Green Bay Packer fan. I was born and raised in Gladstone and moved to Traverse City in I came to Grace Episcopal as a volunteer at Jubilee House in 2008 and started attending church regularly in I was drawn to the peaceful and tranquil setting of the 5 pm service on Saturday, which has deepened my faith and given me a profound sense of family and togetherness, as I share my love of Jesus with my brothers and sisters in Christ. I was raised in the Catholic faith, having attended All Saints Church, and was an altar boy for many years in my youth. I attended Northern Tony Nelson Michigan University and have a Bachelor s Degree in Accounting. I currently work at Love In the Name of Christ as their Accountant and Clearinghouse Coordinator, where we transform lives of people in need by being the hands and feet of Jesus. I have been involved with the Safe Harbor program since it started 13 years ago as a Steering Committee member, coordinator, and volunteer. I was a Kid s Hope USA mentor for 9 years, along with being the treasurer of the Traverse City Crop Hunger Walk for 3 years. I also served on the Board of Directors as Treasurer for the Family Partnership Program. At Grace Episcopal, I am an usher and lector, member of the Altar Guild, and I am involved in Community Meals and Centering Prayer. I have been blessed with 3 sons, Jacob (26), Adam (25) along with his wife, Elizabeth, and Joshua, who passed away in 2006, but who watches over me daily. I would be honored to represent Grace Episcopal Church as a delegate to the Convention in Thank you for your consideration! Grace Church Annual Meeting January

6 I am asking to be considered as a delegate for the 2018 Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan. I have been a member of Grace Episcopal Church since After not having a church home for several years, I was drawn initially to Rev. Daniel s Sunday messages. As I got to know the culture at Grace, I was drawn to its outreach ministries, its welcoming environment, and the eclectic mix of its members. I have been married to my wife, Judy, for over 44 years. We have two grown children, Marshall of Zachary, La., and Catherine of Denver, Colo. I enjoy outdoor activities, such as boating and water skiing. Also I enjoy woodworking and making George Prewitt things work again. Before moving to Traverse City in 2004, I had been a member of Central Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, in Lexington, Ky. I served as a deacon and then as an elder. I led a Christ Care Group called, Parenting Your Parents, where I learned of the mission of the Parish Nurse Program in other churches. With the help of others, I was able to establish a Parish Nurse Program at Central. I also served as a Boy Scout Leader and a bus driver for many years. At Grace, I have been active in St. Theo Amity Guild, Safe Harbor, and the Buildings and Grounds Committee. Many Sundays you will find me assisting in the 10:00 service during the passing of the offering plates. I attended the 2017 Diocese Convention as an alternate delegate. I am interested in Pastoral Care; in particular I would like to see a Parish Nurse Program established. The challenges/opportunities facing Grace Episcopal are many; I believe that making Grace a church where families feel at home and making the call for a new priest are two areas vital to its future. (I will not be able to attend the February or the March meetings.) 6 Grace Church Annual Meeting January 2018

7 Nominating Committee Jill Polmateer I am married to Jon with two grown daughters, Jennifer and Julie. Jennifer lives in Los Angeles. Julie lives in Florida with her husband, Jeff, and my granddaughter, Emilia. I have been a part of Grace Church for 40 years joining when I was in high school. I have been active in numerous roles. Most know me as a participant in the Chancel Choir. I also have been active in Grace Harmony, the Vestry, the Rector Search Committee, as a J2A Youth Leader, and I continue to volunteer for Safe Harbor. I enjoy speaking with those new to the church as well as those experiencing it for the first time. I look forward to serving on the Nominating Committee where the goal is to find the right fit for the individual in propelling Grace toward the future in God s Light. I m 71 years old, born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I joined the Army Security Agency in 1965, served in Germany for 39 months, and was honorably discharged in I worked for Ford Motor Credit Company in their insurance operations until In 1984, I left Ford Motor Credit to form my own general agency with my partner to offer aftermarket products to automobile dealers. My first wife and I were married in 1967 and were divorced in In 1989, I met Eunice Sievers here in Traverse City, who was employed as a nurse at the Traverse City State Richard Rick Taylor Hospital. In 1990, Eunice and I were married at Holy Spirit Lutheran Church in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Together we share the love of a beautiful blended family and have been blessed with six wonderful grandchildren. We attended Holy Spirit Lutheran Church until we moved to Plymouth, Mich., in There we found our way to St. John s Episcopal Church. We served in several different ministries at St. John s until we moved to Traverse City in We attended Grace Episcopal Church for the first time in November of In 2015 Eunice and I were confirmed into the Episcopal Church by The Rt. Rev. Whayne M. Houghland, Jr. At Grace we have served in several different ministries, including the church coffee hour after the ten o clock service on Sundays, the Jubilee House ministry, and outreach ministry at Safe Harbor. I enjoy time spent with the family, travel, and classic cars. Grace Church Annual Meeting January

8 Grace Episcopal Church 341 Washington Street Traverse City, MI ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED Non-Profit Org. U. S. Postage PAID Traverse City, MI Permit #202