Our Vision Over the last several months, an official group comprised of members of St. Andrew s UMC and Foundry have been praying, talking and working together towards a vision of cooperative ministry between our two churches. We have been focusing on how this shared ministry together might allow both churches to reach new people for Jesus Christ in our community. Throughout our conversations, we have realized that both churches can gain better strategic ministry as well as assist in specific challenges we are facing. After the last two months, and both the church council of St. Andrew s and the leadership board of Foundry voting unanimously towards this shared vision, we believe God is asking us to form a cooperative parish to live fully into the mission of creating disciples for the transformation of the world, and even more specifically the neighbors around our community and the surrounding area. A cooperative parish is a unique ministry strategy that allows multiple congregations to share resources, staffing, ministry and volunteers while maintaining congregational identity and autonomy. It allows us to create a unique ministry dynamic sharply focused on the missional needs of our area. This plan to form a Cooperative Parish between Foundry and St Andrew's United Methodist Churches is based upon paragraph 206 of the Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church: Local churches, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, may enhance their witness to one another and to the world by showing forth the love of Jesus Christ through forms of mutual cooperation. We believe this relationship will best allow both churches to strategically meet the needs of our communities in our own unique ways as well as reach more people for Jesus in the greater Sterlington area.
Our Mission We believe that Jesus is doing new and unique things in our area, and we are called to be part of this. Cooperative ministry allows both churches to prayerfully invest more into their own unique visions and calls to ministry, and our overlap speaks to love, relationships, and a bigger picture of the world together. This relationship will practically help both churches with particular pressure points in ministry. For St. Andrew s, it gives stability in pastoral leadership and access to a children s ministry which has already reached critical mass, as well as a younger population to share ministry with. For Foundry, this relationship allows more permanent ministry space so energy and resources can be directed more towards ministry. It also brings a wider generational environment for better relationships. Both churches will be able to focus more on what God is asking them do as individual congregations and the cooperative parish enables both churches to enrich the other, as well as bringing more people together to help reach our communities for Jesus Christ in more effective ways. Our Stories Foundry is a new church plant in north Monroe that currently meets in the Sterlington High School for Sunday worship. St Andrew's is an established church in Sterlington, Louisiana that was formed by the merger of the previous Sterlington and Fairbanks churches back in 1961. The pastors of Foundry and St Andrew's began discussing opportunities to cooperate in ministry in 2015. Foundry began renting office space at St Andrew's in 2016 and moved out of much more expensive commercial office space. The Foundry youth group began meeting on Sunday nights in St Andrew's Wesley Hall. Foundry members were invited and participated in worship at St Andrew's on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. During the historic March floods in Monroe, members from both Foundry and St Andrew's were involved in significant ministry to the victims. When an Interim Pastor was appointed to St Andrew's in 2016, the discussions continued and the Monroe District Superintendent was also consulted. The three agreed that leaders of both congregations needed to be included in further talks. In the fall of 2016 key leaders from both congregations met informally over dinner and talked about possible future cooperation. In early February 2017 members of the two congregations met in Wesley Hall for a burger burn fellowship night. At the meeting we announced a Cooperative Ministry Team was formed with five members representing each congregation. This team met
for the first time on Sunday, February 12, 2017 and discussed the opportunities and the challenges of both congregations. Team members were encouraged to share their discussions with other members and receive input for future meetings. St Andrew's Church Council voted at their regular meeting on March 14, 2017 to support the plan for a Cooperative Parish. Foundry's Board voted on Sunday, March 26, 2017 to move into formal discussion/detail work. Key Points for Our Cooperative Parish Plan 1. Both congregations will retain their separate identity, membership, worship services, finances, and leadership structures. 2. A Cooperative Ministry Team or other joint leadership structure with members from both congregations will coordinate shared ministry activities. 3. The senior pastor at Foundry will serve as the lead pastor for our Cooperative Parish. 4. The Bishop has appointed Tony Smith as pastor for St. Andrew s, who will serve as the associate pastor for our cooperative parish. 5. The two congregations will be co-located initially at St Andrew's current location and share the use of St Andrew's facilities. 6. Foundry could utilize Wesley Hall on Sunday mornings for worship until they have a new worship facility constructed. 7. St Andrew's will continue to use their sanctuary for their more traditional worship on Sunday mornings. 8. St Andrew's owns 7 acres of land and could sell approximately 4 acres to Foundry at their cost ($40,194) for the construction of more adequate facilities for Foundry's worship and ministry with a revision clause to resell the land to St Andrew's at their cost if it is not used by Foundry. 9. Foundry could utilize education rooms in St Andrew's for their nursery, preschool, and children's Sunday School classes. 10. St Andrew's will continue to use their current classroom for their adult Sunday School class. 11. Foundry's youth program will continue to use Wesley Hall on Sunday nights and St. Andrew's Boy Scout Troop and Cub Scout Pack will continue to use
Wesley Hall on their traditional week nights. 12. Additional parking will be developed to accommodate the vehicles from both congregations. 13. Foundry and St Andrew's will develop a method to share the cost of using the existing facilities based on each congregation's usage. Frequently Asked Questions Will our worship services change? No. Foundry will continue their more contemporary worship style and St Andrew's will continue their more traditional/blended worship style. Foundry may use St Andrew's Wesley Hall while they get their own worship center designed and built. St Andrew's will continue to worship in their sanctuary. How will our congregations look different? As we cooperate and participate in shared ministries we may see more diversity around us especially in ages. Will a pastor still be appointed to St. Andrew's? Yes. The Bishop and appointive cabinet have appointed Tony Smith to serve as the pastor for St. Andrew s part-time. Rev. Chad Brooks, pastor of Foundry, will also serve as the Lead Pastor for the Cooperative Parish. How will the pastor divide time between the two churches? The Lead Pastor will spend most time serving as Foundry's pastor but will also supervise the Tony Smith. Tony will focus time on St Andrew's but there will also be some overlap as we participate in cooperative ministries together. Will the current lay leadership teams continue? Yes. Foundry and St Andrew's lay leadership will continue to serve each congregation, but the Cooperative Parish will also have a leadership team with members from both congregations to coordinate our shared ministries. Will my membership stay in my congregation? Yes. Each congregation will continue to maintain their separate membership rolls. Will I have a voice in what happens after the Cooperative Parish is formed? Yes. Since this is a Cooperative Parish and not a merger, members from both congregations will still have a voice in their separate congregations' ministries as well as a voice in any shared ministries the two congregations participate in.
What will children s ministry look like? Foundry currently has 50+ children in regular attendance on Sunday morning (from nursery through 5th grade). The bulk of this children are in grades 1-3. Foundry currently offers age specific children s ministry during the worship service. Since Foundry currently worships at 10am, their children s ministry runs during St. Andrew s Sunday School Hour. We plan on hosting Foundry s children s program in St. Andrew s facility, thereby giving St. Andrew s the ability to offer children s Christian Education during the Sunday School hour. Will St. Andrew s still have Sunday School classes? Yes. St Andrew's will continue their adult class and Foundry will continue their children's classes. As a Cooperative Parish we may also form new classes together or separately. What will happen to current mission outreach programs such as the food bank, the Give it Away Day, the Cub Scout Pack, the Boy Scout Troop, etc? All current ministries of both congregations will continue. As a Cooperative Parish, we will come together to work on current and future ministries. What will happen to the budget, current funds and future giving? Each congregation will continue their separate budget, funds and future giving. As a Cooperative Parish we may also create joint funds for shared ministries and shared expenses as needed. Will we keep our separate names and property? Yes. Each congregation will keep its separate identity which includes separate names and property, but we will also be referred to as the North Ouachita Cooperative Parish. As part of our Cooperative Parish Plan, St Andrew's will offer approximately 4 acres in adjacent farm land to Foundry at the original cost for them to build their future facilities. Also as part of our Cooperative Parish Plan, Foundry may utilize available space in St Andrew's existing facilities for Sunday worship until they get facilities built. What current ministries of either church will be cut because of our cooperative parish? At this time, the committee see s no need for any current ministry or program to change. We believe both churches offer ministry vital to the success of our cooperative endeavor. When will our cooperative parish begin? July 1st, 2017 is the first day of the new conference year. We will begin our work together on that day. The first step involves forming a permanent cooperative ministry team, and beginning to look at what necessary steps will need to be taken first. The majority of this is administrative work (room scheduling, long term storage solutions and beginning parish staff meetings). This group will also begin a visioning process for long-term shared ministry together.
What happens if we vote no on the Cooperative Parish Plan? If the Cooperative Parish Plan is voted down, both congregations will continue to provide their ministries separately, but the lay leadership of both congregations firmly believe that our ministries together will be a stronger and more powerful witness for Christ in our community.