The 2010-2011 church year was and continues to be a good one.

In May at the Annual Meeting, the Governing Board welcomed new members John Osborne, Mary Erdei, and Sara Morin. They are eager to serve and I look forward to working with them as we move into the next church year. Also, long time Board member Bineke Oort stepped down after her term ended this year. Bineke was and is a joy and an inspiration to work with and the Board’s loss will be the congregation’s gain. Actually, the Board is losing Bineke as a member but gaining her as an advisor and she will continue to be active in our community. We  look forward to working with her in her new role.

On another note, do you ever ask yourself, “why do I come to church?” I did recently, and my answer was simple. I come to church to change lives.

Not least of which is my own. Whether you are a young family looking to provide a religious tradition for your children, or a young (or not so young) couple or single looking to find deeper connections in a newly adopted community, or, if you grew up in or spent many years in this church, the search for satisfying relationships and deeper meaning is a constant motivator and is what gets us out of bed on a morning that we might otherwise just want to sleep in.  Speaking of sleeping in, I should tell you what the Governing Board has been up to. We continue to be in transition.

Over the past few years we are moving away from a task based working Board to a Board focused on articulating and supporting the church’s broader mission. We are creating a Board that uses policy to empower members to do the work of the church and to give them the authority to make decisions.

And, speaking of mission, the recent conversations about who we are as a congregation, taking place at the Circle Suppers currently underway, are laying the foundation for creating (or re-creating) our mission which will be at the core of our future church life. Whether that means (to paraphrase Hosea Ballou) serving the spirit of life, agreeing in love, seeking knowledge in freedom, or questing for truth, we are all willing keepers and stewards of the mission as we live it every day.

Although this church year is winding down, we will be picking up the conversation in the fall to complete both a congregational covenant (which was drafted last winter) and a draft mission statement. Over the summer, the Board will be focusing on the larger picture of vision and mission preparing to prioritize the strategies that, eventually, will bring them to life. Change will be slow and there will be bumps in the road. There will be challenging moments and at times we will feel defeated and disheartened. But, it is our faith in a brighter tomorrow that will sustain us. This place, right here, right now, is why we come, and the possibility of building the beloved community and transforming each others lives, our motivation. We see good things happening for us all and we look forward to the possibilities we are creating in this place.

I look forward to sharing my continuing journey with all of you. And, I’ll see you in church.

Todd Lloyd
President