Trinity Together | October 2016

loving the next generation

BY catie webster & Jennifer walker, nursery coordinators

We are so grateful for all the members who keep our nurseries running. Several years ago, Trinity began asking all members ages 14–65 to serve in one of our five nurseries approximately three times per year. You can expect to serve once every four months, a total of about 4.5 hours a year. This saves the church thousands of dollars each year in staffing costs, and allows Trinity members a simple way to fulfill their vows to serve the children of the congregation.

Congregational meeting oct 16

We want you to be aware of the upcoming Congregational Meeting and why it has been called.

If you are a member at Trinity, your attendance is very important because we will be voting on two items. We will vote on (1) calling Wade Bradshaw as an Associate Pastor and (2) deciding on the structure for the second pastoral search committee.

Currently, Wade is an Assistant Pastor called by the Session. The Session recommends that the congregation call him as an Associate Pastor. This distinction allows you, as a congregation, to call him as a pastor of Trinity. If called by the congregation as an Associate Pastor, he would become a voting member of the Session.

We will also be deciding on the structure of the pastoral search committee for the Pastor for Church Mission. One option is to have a second committee composed of nine members nominated by the congregation. Another option is to task the current pastoral search committee with this second search and add two members to the committee. This would allow the committee to search for candidates for both positions simultaneously. For further details on the second pastoral search committee, click here.

During the congregational meeting, we will vote on these two issues. Your prayerful consideration of these matters and attendance is important in order for us to decide how to proceed.

Jessica Wey Robinson
Church Operations Director

(On behalf of the Transition Team: Stu Scott, Rachael Green, Corey McLellan, Susan Prindle, Bill Porter, Will Schnorr)

september session summary

BY bill porter, moderator of the session

Highlights of the Session's two September meetings:

The Session has begun using the church's evening prayer liturgy as its guide for opening worship and devotions together. The time will normally be led by TE Wade Bradshaw. We encourage all Trinity members and attenders to use the morning and evening prayers as a rich devotional guide.

Time was given to discussing the Ambrose Program, which brings seminary graduates into Trinity for a two-year residency. This year we are fortunate to have DJ and Sarah Carter (you've seen and heard DJ leading worship recently) and Bo and Kathryn Waldo (arriving in November). Kevin Sawyer is leading the program.

Deacon Bob Luck, for the Finance Committee, reported favorably on the financial condition of the church based on year-to-date figures and in anticipation of a strong finish to the year. The Session gave final approval to the 2016 Budget, which had been postponed until the timing of filling personnel vacancies had become better defined.

The Session directed the Transition Team to plan for recommending to the congregation that TE Wade Bradshaw be called as an Associate Pastor. This will happen at the congregational meeting called for the morning of October 16 (see article above).

At the September 22 meeting, guest Manasses Fonteles, an elder in the Presbyterian Church in Fontaleza, Brazil and colleague of RE Dick Pearson, spoke encouragingly about the growth of his home church and the central importance of the missionary work of Presbyterians from the U.S. in helping found his church. We were honored and humbled that Dr. Fonteles traveled from Brazil and, while visiting the University, asked to attend our Session meeting as a brother in Christ. What a joy!

A report was reviewed on plans for the 40th Anniversary Homecoming (held Sept 30–Oct 2), which was a wonderful time all around. Great thanks from the Session to the staff, pastors, deacons, Fellows, and all the volunteers who made the weekend special and memorable!

Finally, the Pastor Search Committee reported the completion of the church description/profile, which will be used to inform potential pastoral candidates about Trinity and our search. Following a proposal and discussion, the title of the initial pastor being sought was modified to "Pastor for Preaching and Community Care."

We are grateful to God for a faithful congregation and the many blessings we continually enjoy at Trinity!

Questions? Email: session@trinitycville.org

Our financial status through September indicates that our church giving numbers are slightly below last year's. Total contributions to the General Fund are $1,407,500—approximately $25,000 less than at September 30, 2015. But we are encouraged as congregational giving during September has picked up when compared to the summer months and when compared to last September. For September 2016, contributions were $160,000—about $6,000 more than September 2015. We are grateful to all of you for your renewed efforts to give to Trinity. On the expense side, we are temporarily spending below budget, due to our two open pastoral positions. However, we are still running small monthly deficits. In most years, significant giving during October, November, and December makes up the monthly shortfalls from January–September. While we still have sufficient reserves to remain in a heathy financial position for 2016, we will need to increase giving in order to meet our budget for 2016 and be in a strong position to start the new year. We encourage your faithful giving in the coming months, to support Trinity’s mission for 2016 and beyond. Please prayerfully consider how you can support Trinity with your tithes and offerings.

UPCOMING EVENTS