Hello, Friends!
I promised that I would have something to share with you about Synod Staff as soon as possible and today I am delighted to share with you that our Synod Council, just yesterday, issued a call to Pastor Rick Carter to serve as South Carolina Synod Assistant to the Bishop.
It gives me great joy to have Pastor Rick work with me in this new capacity. Many of you know that he has served for the past four years as Director for Evangelical Mission in the ELCA with the South Carolina Synod. He is gifted in organizational and leadership coaching, has experience as a Mission Developer and as a Pastoral Therapist. He is a valued member of our Synod and Staff, and his new call officially began this morning. Best of all, we share a passion for Jesus and the people of God! Please help me welcome Pastor Rick to this new position, and continue to hold us both in prayer.
I am working with the ELCA to consider a Part-Time Interim Director of Evangelical Mission who will work directly with our Mission Congregations and Pastor Developers until the time when we can once again find a Full-Time DEM. As we move through this transition we are thankful that Assistant to the Bishop Carter can continue to be a resource for those important ministries with our Missions.
Your Synod Council and Finance Committee have been working with me for the last several weeks to secure enough funding in our budget to provide for a second Assistant to the Bishop who can join our staff at the end of this year or the beginning of 2021. I hope to make time this fall for an interview process and will announce the second position as soon as possible.
I also want to share that we are blessed to have Mrs. Wendy Davidson join our Synod Staff in a part-time position as South Carolina Synod Assembly Manager. This is a big position and we are blessed by Wendy’s gifts for organization and attention to detail. Wendy was an incredible blessing to us when she stepped in as Registrar for our 2020 online assembly tending to the details of a complicated registration process and walked with us through Assembly.
She has served as Administrative Assistant at Grace at the Cross Parish, a partnership between Amazing Grace Lutheran Church Waxhaw, North Carolina and Crossroads Lutheran Church, Indian Land, South Carolina.
Wendy will be working closely with me and the staff to assume the planning and management of Assemblies. I am so delighted that she is willing to serve in this capacity.
Mr. Bill Newmyer will continue in his role part-time as Synod Staff member serving as Interim Director of Youth Ministry. Bill has years of experience working with Congregational and Synodical Youth Ministry. He has written and coordinated many weekend retreats and LCY Conventions since 2003. He has served as Director of Camp HUGG and GIFT (serving special needs teens and young adults in the greater Lexington area) since 2006.
Bill has served in this position since last fall and has graciously agreed to continue serving until summer 2021. We are so thankful that he has agreed to stay on in this position for another year and will be part of our Staff.
Please welcome these Staff members and continue to hold your entire Synod Staff in prayer as we faithfully move together through this time of significant transition.
Finally, I want to be sure to invite each of you to attend the Service of Installation which will be held online on Sunday, October 4 at 3:00 p.m. I hope you will tune in to be part of that service and leave a selfie or comment to let us know you were there and in the “online procession”. At this Service of worship, Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton will Install me, and I will Install Pastor Rick as Assistant to the Bishop. We both sincerely hope you can join us.
God’s peace and blessings to each of you this day in the name of Jesus.
