Rector’s Update: Vestry Nominations close today
Dear Restoration,
On Sunday we gave thanks for the Lord’s faithfulness to our church and to our diocese. We celebrated 8 baptisms with 6 kids taking the vows for themselves! We are now turning our face, with anticipation, towards what the Lord has next for our parish. We remain open to the ways He wants to use us in the work He is doing around us. To that end, I am writing to remind you that vestry nominations will close today at 5pm. Please join me in prayer for the leaders God is raising up to walk our parish into this next season of ministry. You can use this form for your submission.
See you soon,
David
Here is a refresh on my email from last week, which describes the kind of person we are seeking to serve on our vestry:
Our church has a vestry board of nine women and men who serve as elders for three years. In November, Restoration will elect three new vestry members. Nominations are now open and I invite you to nominate yourself or someone in our church for consideration. The form for making a nomination can be found here. Feel free to be brief in your responses on the form. You do not have to inform your nominee that they have been nominated. Remember that most of the people who are nominated are not actually put on the election slate. We will have dozens of nominees, but a slate of only 5-7 candidates. It is a process that requires a couple of months of discernment and prayer.
What are we looking for in a vestry candidate?
To serve on the vestry, an individual should:
- Be a mature Christian committed to the orthodox doctrine, discipline and worship of the Church, not one who has recently come into faith;
- Be temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, gentle, not quarrelsome, and have a good reputation with those outside the Church (see 1 Tim. 3 and Titus 1);
- Maintain an active life of prayer and study of Scripture;
- Be known and respected among the Church;
- Have a strong record of serving the Church and cheerfully giving to the
Church of his/her time, talent and treasure; - Have family relationships that honor God and reflect strong Christian commitment;
- Have enough time to be able to serve effectively as a Vestry member; and
- Make a commitment to put Vestry service high on the list of personal priorities.
This list is a challenge for us all and by God’s grace, it describes a number of people at Restoration. I encourage you to let these characteristics inform the way you pray about your nominees.
What is required of a vestry member?
Some of our past vestry members have described it like this:
“As a member of the Restoration Vestry, you are committed to devoting yourself to the Word of God and to be faithful in prayer. You will be encouraged to form a small team of intercessors who will pray with and for you as you cover our church, our staff, our missionaries and our meetings in prayer.”
“The Restoration Vestry has ten Tuesday evening meetings each year as well as one weekend-long retreat and one meeting with the Bishop. Together, the Vestry will discuss and vote on items including the church budget, our strategic plan, the management of our facility, new initiatives, outreach and crisis management. Vestry meetings tend to last 2-3 hours each month and require 1-2 hours of advance document/email reading. In addition, every member of the Vestry serves as a liaison to a church advisory team and/or as a Vestry leader (Warden, Treasurer, Secretary). Advisory team participation involves 1-2 hours of additional involvement each month and leadership role time commitments will vary.”
It is a significant commitment of prayer, time, and leadership over a three year period. The vestry members who are elected this year will serve from January 2023 until January 2026.
What is the timeline for the 2022 Vestry election?
Nominations will be open until October 19. Again, you can submit your nominations, here.
During the week of October 24, nominees will be informed of their nomination. Not everyone who is nominated becomes a nominee.
On November 16, the slate of candidates will be shared with the congregation, along with a brief bio on each candidate.
The actual election will take place through a personalized Survey Monkey link that will be sent to each member of the congregation on November 27. Those links can only be used once and will stay open for a week. The election will close on December 4 and the results announced on December 7.
Who is overseeing the election?
At their September meeting, the vestry appointed a vestry discernment committee who will receive all of the nominations and discern the final slate. That committee is made up of our three outgoing vestry members: Adam Guzzo, Lorene Eberhardt, and Dan Vogel, plus the rector, David Hanke. This committee will review the nominations and make decisions regarding the slate. Please pray for us as we pray for you and our congregation during this time.
