Last weekend, the 2024 Vestry braved wind, rain and a touch of cold to retreat at St. Crispin’s Conference Center and Camp in Wewoka, Oklahoma. The retreat gave the newly inducted class the opportunity to come together as a leadership council and to ponder our 2024 goals while keeping an eye on the horizon of a future whose plans are very much in motion today.
While the Vestry members were already well acquainted, we, in some instances, had had little chance to learn about each other. As we represent the 9:00ers, the 11:15ers, and the Saturday nighters, we don’t always see each other before and after worship. We spent Friday evening learning about each other’s different backgrounds and exploring prayerfully how our spiritual gifts and experiences might come together to continue Transfiguration’s long line of strong Vestries. Centered around the Eucharist and Compline, we used the David and Goliath story as a theme for taking on the giant challenges standing before us this year.
We gathered our stones to slay the incoming giants on Saturday. Among these will be our “Wandering Tabernacle,” our time that we will worship the Lord out of Roper Hall. We heard reports of all of the beautiful work that will happen in the sanctuary while we enjoy “Worship in the Round” out of the renovated Roper Hall. The congregation will have an engaging, while temporary, worship experience that will incorporate the signs, sounds, and symbols we love in a way that works, as one Vestry member explained, “like the Gospel reading, the whole time!”
Saturday afternoon brought a, perhaps, unexpected conversation about transparency with the Vestry. While we felt that past Vestries had done well to keep the congregation informed of their actions, we committed this as another priority for 2024, particularly as we guide the church through our Sixth Year of the Transfiguring our Foundations Campaign. We hope that every member of Transfiguration gets to know its Vestry and that we can maintain open, active dialogue all year.
Our theme came back full circle on Sunday as we reviewed the work and fellowship we had enjoyed in Wewoka. Above all, we came away proud of the parish we lead. We are blessed with a talented and committed clergy, a dedicated and focused Vestry, and a church community for whom no challenge is too giant, for no problem is larger than our Lord.
Goals set by the Vestry for 2024
- Raise $1.5M to finish the work of Transfiguring Our Foundations
- Maintain energy and attendance while we worship in Roper Hall
- Strengthen our online presence through an updated website
- Embrace the blessing of our many new families with children by meaningfully connecting them to our mission and ministries.
- Develop 5-year budget and facility maintenance plans