Dear One's of St. C's

As I sat down to write this report I went through my calendar to reflect on this past year with you all. I have to say my brain is spinning a bit.  The first 6 months of 2023 Alissa was still your Vicar.  It is hard to believe that Alissa has only been gone for 7 months.  I think it is a testament to how well Alissa and I worked together, how much both of us love this place (and all the people here), and how adaptable and open this community is that the transition to me as your Vicar has gone so seamlessly. And then of course, our long time Music Director, Martin, left in December of 2023, another transition we had been anticipating for a long time came into fruition.  Again, we were incredibly blessed with a smooth transition, when Susan was able to immediately fill that position and comes to us with a plethora of knowledge, skill, and expertise for our worship to continue to form us in the way of Jesus and connect us to God. 

Even though I am so incredibly thankful that these big transitions have been so smooth, it is worth noting and catching our breath a bit that this has been a big transition year and I am so proud of us.  Because even though we have been in transition, we have still started many new wonderful ministries and kept ongoing ministries going, active, and continue to give life back to this community and to our neighbors. 

The amount of energy it takes to get a new thing off the ground is very real and yet when everyone works on it together it is so life-giving and connecting.  I am so proud of the addition of our Flower Guild, Robotics, and One Parish One Prisoner Team in 2023.  I have walked alongside all of these new ministries and all the people involved have worked so well together, I have even witnesses some difficult and tense moments that I have watched you all work through with such grace and care.  I cannot emphasize how lucky I feel to be here and be your priest. 

This feeling continues with the ongoing ministries.  Our food bank ministry has hit some challenges because of the increased cost of groceries.  In 2023 you all stepped up to meet those challenges.  I have been working hard with the food bank leadership to cut costs as much as we can while still providing bags of food with needed nutrients for our neighbors.  The way this community gives to the food bank through monthly food donations, financial donations, grocery runs, and our on the ground volunteers who put together and hand out the bags is truly remarkable.  We continue to grow our own food of the food bank in the summer, welcome in gardeners from the community garden and work on deepening our relationship with the Sudanese community.  

We are a place that feeds the poor, welcomes the stranger, the prisoner, the children, and the refugee.  We continue to use our adult formation classes and feminist study to learn how to not only say that everyone is invited to come to our church, but to get better at truly welcoming all people from all walks of life.  My favorite thing about being your priest is that when a new person walks through the doors, I can look them in the eye and say, you’ll find yourself cared for here, I hope you’ll join us in our mission to love God, our neighbor, each other, and ourselves. 

In 2023 we also had an incredible Bishop’s Committee that gave so much back into this community.  They also faced many difficult conversations around our budget deficit and with the Board of Directors for the Diocese around selling our North parcel, advocating that the money from the previous easement sale go back to our building and grounds, and around the possibility of new interest rates on our building loan and an increase in our monthly payments.  Please make sure to thank your BC members for bringing such care, wisdom, and passion to these difficult conversations. 

An enormous thank you to our staff - Jennifer (Bookkeeper), Val (Children and Youth Coordinator), Susan (Music and Liturgy), Yadira (Childcare), and Norma (Childcare).  Each of you is such a joy to work with and you all give 100 percent to your different roles, which helps to create such a warm and loving atmosphere at St. Columba’s.  

Lastly, none of this is possible without each person who comes and contributes to this place. We truly need God and each other to make St. Columba’s the beautiful, welcoming, spiritually nurturing, healing, and connecting place that it is.  Thank you for showing up in whatever ways you can and giving of yourself to this community.  Each time you do this we are blessed tenfold.  Never underestimate your significance to making this community what it is today. 

with care and gratitude, 

Meghan