Parish Profile. A Community of Christian Love Called to Grow Sent to Serve Every Member a Priest Every Work a Worship

Transcription

1 Church of the Holy Nativity Parish Profile 275 S. Richmond Ave. Clarendon Hills, IL URL: Tel: Fax: A Community of Christian Love Called to Grow Sent to Serve Every Member a Priest Every Work a Worship

2 Who We Are A Community of Christian Love We are a strong, progressive community that embraces all people, from all lifestyles and faith traditions, regardless of where they are on their spiritual journey. We model Christian love through activities like Gabriel Ministry (which provides meals for parishioners) and our concern for issues like universal accessibility. Called to Grow We place a priority on personal growth in every dimension of life spiritual, social and intellectual. Our ministry for the formation of children and adults includes Godly Play, Journey to Adulthood, Adult Forum and Small Groups, and discernment of calls to ordained ministry. Sent to Serve We are a community conscious of our calling in Christ to serve others, both locally and globally, and especially the marginalized, oppressed and disadvantaged. We support shelter services for the homeless through PADS ministry, raise money for Heifer International through Family Farm Fest, and in 2014 organized a medical mission trip to the Philippines in response to Typhoon Haiyan. Every Member a Priest Our lay leadership strives to create new opportunities for members to share their unique gifts. In addition to special lay-led services and small groups, we have a longstanding involvement in the Education For Ministry (EFM) program. Every Work a Worship We encounter and worship God in traditional church liturgies, daily acts of service, and our individual vocations and callings within the world. We live out our faith in the world through annual events like Family Farm Fest and through interreligious community organizing with DuPage United.

3 Our History Church of the Holy Nativity (CHN) began in the 1950s, when a handful of families founded a new church within their local community of Clarendon Hills. After their early beginnings in a storefront in the village, the founding members later built the church on its current site at the corner of 55 th Street and Richmond Avenue. CHN grew for several decades under solid leadership and strong priestly direction that set the tone for our inclusive and forward-thinking parish. In the 1970s, our priest was a member of the Liturgy Revision Commission, and CHN was a test site for the trial prayerbook that was introduced in We welcomed one of the first female seminarians in our diocese, Chilton Knudsen, to do her field experience service at CHN; she later became the Bishop of the Diocese of Maine. CHN elected the first female senior warden in our diocese and was in the forefront to include women in all areas of ministry. In the early 2000s the church experienced a variety of challenges, including a lengthy rector search. Lack of stable leadership led to reduced numbers, although the remaining members worked hard to sustain the CHN community. The arrival of a new rector in 2006 brought new vitality into our spiritual and service life. We grew substantially, adding many new families and confirming the dedication of long-time members. Young children abound again and the 9:30 Sunday service is nearly full.

4 Worship and Formation CHN offers worship during two Sunday services: an intimate service at 7:30 a.m. and a full choral service at 9:30 a.m. Beyond our regular services, we offer a number of special services throughout the year to engage people in a unique and interesting way. These include pet blessings, Taizé and Farm Fest Sunday. CHN has a choir with talented and dedicated musicians, accompanied by organ and keyboard, which sings at the 9:30 service every Sunday from September through the first week of June. The choir leads the parish in hymns and service music and performs anthems using a variety of artistic styles; the music greatly enhances our time of worship. The time after our 9:30 Sunday service is very important; it is a time when we grow in spirit, relationship and service in Christ. During the program year, we convene church school for children ages 4 through high school. They meet in age groups to learn through art, storytelling, imagination and music. Preschool through fifth grade children are taught in Godly Play, a Montessoribased curriculum that offers an engaging and fun way for children to learn the stories of our faith. Sixth through twelfth graders receive Christian formation through a complete youth ministry program. This program encourages relational ministry and uses Bible study, prayer, Rite 13, Journey to Adulthood, and outreach ministries to foster the growth of our youth s faith. A

5 Ministries separate youth group program held on Sunday afternoons provides opportunities for fun, developing friendships, and additional service to the underprivileged. Adult formation is typically conducted during the time that youth Christian Education is held, though we are in the process of implementing a small-group format, in which gatherings of 8-12 people meet for four to six weeks to discuss a particular topic. The small groups currently cover the following categories: Bible study, theology, book study, contemporary issue, and demographic social group. Our lay ministry is very strong. Service work is a key manifestation of our faith and involves many members. We try to live out the line in our motto that says every member a priest through caring for each other within our community and for less fortunate members of society both near and far. We understand pastoral care as the responsibility of every member of our church, as we collectively share in the task of caring for one another. In addition to this communal responsibility, both clergy and lay ministers are part of the Pastoral Care Committee. Their goal is to ensure that our members and their families are supported,

6 nurtured and cared for in a number of ways. Another dimension of our pastoral care is Gabriel Ministry, which provides meals for families in our church in situations of illness, crisis, emergency or joy (such as the birth of a baby). Additionally, Home Communion Ministers assist in sharing communion to the homebound. Beyond our church, we are involved in several regular service activities. Among the most beloved is our dedicated work for the homeless through PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter). we have fully staffed five summer nights each year for nine years. During this time the number of our homeless guests has increased from 30 to more than 50 each night, so we feel a strong commitment to continuing this service. Each time we serve, about one-third of our members, young and old, are needed to staff PADS; this shared work brings us closer together. For the past eight years in August, we have hosted Family Farm Fest, an awareness program to raise funds for Heifer International. Family Farm Fest has become a well-known community event, where children and adults can experience handson learning about God s wonderful gift of animals and ways to share those gifts with people in need. We are proud that this event has raised over $161,000 and provided cows, goats, chickens, and other animals to thousands of families through projects in Mexico, Uganda, Latvia, Ghana, Kentucky, Arkansas, Honduras, and the Appalachians. More recently, our church members have begun working with DuPage United to mobilize people in the community to respond to local needs. Founded in 2003, DuPage United is an inclusive, non-profit, non-partisan organization whose members are civil society institutions churches, mosques, synagogues, non-profit agencies and associations that have come together to improve the quality of life for individuals, families and communities. Some members of CHN have recently been involved in starting Magdalene House Chicago, which is a program modeled on the original in Nashville that offers housing, food, medical and

7 dental care, therapy, education and job training to women who have survived lives of prostitution, trafficking and addiction. In addition to serving locally, the community of CHN tries to address the needs of our more distant neighbors. In February 2014 a group from CHN organized and went on a medical mission trip to the Philippines in response to Typhoon Haiyan. Our youth group takes an annual mission trip and has served in many locations throughout the country. Fellowship Besides caring for one another through various ministries, we find time to enjoy each other s company and celebrate the seasons. Some traditional annual events for which we gather include our spring Dinner Dance/Silent Auction, the youth group s Pancake Supper, Bunco night, a summer picnic, Christmas caroling, Comfy Sunday, and St. Nicholas Day brunch, where we collect Christmas gifts for families within a designated charity.

8 Our Spiritual Yearning Our Next Rector Though the CHN lay ministry is strong, we very much need the guidance of our new priest. We seek a rector who demonstrates: A vital and growing faith that models a Christian life both rooted in the customs and practices of the Episcopal Church and open to change in response to our increasingly diverse world A gift for preaching that is intellectually rich, spiritually nourishing and culturally relevant An ability to cast a vision for the future of CHN and experience in recognizing the ministry strengths and discerning the callings of the members of our community A special sensitivity to those who need healing in our community and the readiness to provide them with pastoral care A love and acceptance of the diversity of God s children A passionate concern for the needs of our local community and the larger world, particularly for those on the margins of society An ability to welcome children into the journey of faith by integrating them into worship, and to help the senior members of our church maintain and share their still-vital spirituality A one-on-one relationship with the members of the parish Looking in hope to the future, we seek a rector who can guide us by: Helping the community find new and exciting ways to form meaningful relationships, both within the church and with other local communities, religious and nonreligious Providing visionary leadership in our children s and adult formation programs, particularly as we transition to a small group format Looking for strategic opportunities to expand our local outreach efforts Thinking creatively about the future of our Sunday morning services, in terms of the worship, the possible need for increased capacity, and experimenting with various formats and music styles

9 Demographics Parish and Community Information The parish has experienced significant growth over the past eight years, almost doubling average Sunday service attendance from 70 to 136 in Current CHN membership is 167 from 115 households. Current congregational demographics are: Age <19 years old 20% years old 10% years old 25% 55+ years old 45% Gender Female 62% Male 38% Ethnicity Caucasian 88% Latino 5% Asian 4% Black 2% Other 2% While CHN grew out of the desire to have a church in the local community, the church now serves many people well beyond Clarendon Hills. According to our most recent survey, more than 55 percent of current parishioners travel five or more miles to CHN. A significant area of focus over the past eight years has been on program development (e.g., Godly Play, Journey to Adulthood, paid Director of Youth Ministries, etc.) supporting youth formation, which has resulted in growth to more than 40 youth members.

10 Finances The parish has enjoyed strong financial performance for the past several years. * Budgeted * Pledging Units Expenditures $295,982 $306,491 $313,582 Revenue $301,844 $310,491 $313,582 Endowment $124,994 $137,205 $137,205 The table above indicates that pledging units have remained relatively stable with a targeted revenue growth of 2-3 percent per year. It should be noted that during the period of the parish additionally raised $685,000 in capital campaign pledges for its $867,000 Reaching New Heights building campaign. In 2015, an additional $35,000 in capital pledges was raised for targeted rectory upgrades (detailed below). Staff In addition to its strong lay leadership, the parish employs the following staff: A full-time, salaried Rector A full-time, salaried Parish Administrator A part-time, salaried Director of Music (15 hours/week) A part-time, salaried Director of Youth Ministries (15 hours/week) A part-time, salaried Director of Child and Family Ministries (15 hours/week) A part-time, salaried Sexton (15 hours /week) A paid childcare assistant at the 9:30 a.m. Sunday service (3 hours/week) A paid bookkeeper (6 hours/month)

11 Properties The parish properties, church and rectory, are located in Clarendon Hills, Ill., at 275 S. Richmond Ave. and 412 E. 55 th St., respectively, on adjacent properties joined by the church parking lot. Together they are valued at more than $2.5 million. In late 2013, the parish completed an $867,000 Reaching New Heights building campaign that included the following additions to our church facility: New universal entrance and elevator: A new universal access entrance that welcomes all to our facilities, including a three-level elevator that facilitates access to all floors (basement, ground and upper). New bathrooms space: New and redesigned bathrooms located adjacent to our main gathering space. New kitchen: Completely new and significantly expanded kitchen facility. Reinstallation of an outside altar: A marble altar in the flower garden outside the church that is used for special services. The capital campaign raised $685,000 and in 2014 the parish converted the remaining project balance of $182,000 to a long-term mortgage. The rectory across the church s parking lot is a spacious four-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom house featuring formal living and dining rooms, an eat-in kitchen, a family room and first-floor office, along with an attached two-car garage. Following the departure of the previous rector, the parish chose to undertake several needed updates on the rectory in early 2015 that included: Remodeled and redesigned kitchen with new cabinetry, granite counters, appliances, lighting and flooring Remodeled bathrooms including new fixtures and flooring Completely painted interior Our expectation is that the next rector would live in the rectory.

12 Clarendon Hills, Illinois Clarendon Hills is a suburban community village of 8,600 residents located 18 miles west of downtown Chicago. The two square-mile community has a quaint downtown area that is well served by a stop on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Metra commuter rail line. The population is well educated (72% have a bachelor s degree or higher) and relatively affluent (median income of $97,500). The village s public elementary school district is ranked among the best in the state and feeds into the nationally acclaimed Hinsdale high school district. Additional information about Clarendon Hills is available on the city s website at Diocese of Chicago Church of the Holy Nativity is part of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. Since 2008, the Right Reverend Bishop Jeffrey D. Lee has led the diocese, which is comprised of 127 congregations and more than 40,000 baptized members. In 2013, the diocese increased average Sunday attendance more than any other diocese in the Episcopal Church in the United States. The diocese has three simple goals: Grow the Church, Form the Faithful and Change the World. To support our diocesan goals and other missions, CHN supports the diocese through its significant, annual diocesan pledge. Additional information on the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago can be found on its website at: episcopalchicago.org/ If you are interested in applying for our rector position, please contact the Rev. Andrea Mysen, Associate for Ministries in the Diocese of Chicago, at or amysen@episcopalchicago.org.