A Plan for Our Time
(submitted by the Rector, Wardens & Vestry, November 2003
and accepted by the Annual Parish Meeting, January 2004)
All of God's world grows and changes. As the people of God, we grow and change every day, often without knowing where growth and change will lead us. The Wardens and Vestry of Trinity Church are confident of Trinity's future, even if we do not know where the future will lead us. We believe that is vital to our parish that we reflect on where Trinity has been, seek consensus on where we are, and jointly plan for our future. With God's blessing, these processes will give us more confidence as a congregation as we face the future. Hence, with thanks for your continuing support, the Vestry and Wardens offer this Plan for Our Time, a spiritual, relational, structural, and giving plan for Trinity and its community.
Who We Are and How We Got Here
Our parish historian Lisa Klein informs us that continuity and change have been twin themes at Trinity for more than 150 years. While our congregation is smaller now than it was 50 years ago, and our resources are fewer, we are nevertheless slowly growing anew, and our needs are growing with us. When Trinity faced a similar challenge in the past, Trinity focused on growth, as your Vestry is doing now. Building up the Body of the Church is an important part of this Plan.
Today we are a parish composed of residents of 47 ZIP codes in Central Ohio, around 200 people worship on a typical Sunday, to which are added the many downtown workers who worship and pray with us during the week, and many visitors from out of town, who seek a place of worship as they pass through. We are, and strive to continue to be, "and house of prayer for all people." We represent many generations of parish membership and also many newcomers to the community and to Trinity. Our demographics change constantly. The mix of young and old, economically privileged and disadvantaged, individuals and family groupings, changes with the shifts in our downtown community and in the economy. Ever turning to our community and beyond ourselves, in times of strife we are a seat of calm dialogue. In times of grief, we are a sanctuary for our community's prayer and reflection, a united congregation offering solace to those in need. In times of joy and celebration we are a source of light and sound pouring out into the street drawing all to enter in.
More recently, in celebration of who we are and what we can be, we have held a series of parish meetings to discuss the elements of this Plan. As St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, "Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those that hear." (Ephesians 4:29) Just as St. Paul admonished us, our discussions have been positive, well expressed, and heartfelt. As an outgrowth of the expressions of the parish during the early phases of this Plan's development, one goal was to retain a new Assistant Rector, a goal we have achieved with the welcome addition of the Rev. Megan Stewart-Sicking, who joined us in July of 2003. This goal was graciously funded by our community as a reflection of our commitment to sustaining our growth. Additional goals are being achieved even as we discuss this plan.
The Elements of our Plan
Out of the Vestry’s discussions, we chose a five-year planning horizon, both because that amount of time allows us to define and keep focused on the Plan as developed, but also because it will carry us through the General Convention to be held in Columbus in June 2006. We intend the Plan to provide objective and measured steps to help guide our path, and by which to measure our success and enable restructuring as necessary along the way. The Wardens and Vestry will take responsibility for shepherding the Plan along, and will continue to monitor our progress toward the goals set forth below. In its discussions, the Vestry identified five goal areas. A discussion of each goal area and action steps follows.
1. Membership -- the nurturing and growth of who we are
The members of Trinity are sharers of the Word of God through Jesus Christ through the nurturing of ourselves, our families, and all who would join with us. Beyond sharing of the Word of God in church on Sunday mornings and on weekdays, we recognize that we could be more if we were more tightly knit together on Sundays and during the week. As our individual lights gather more closely together, our light on Capitol Square will be a stronger beacon declaring our ministry to our community. To accomplish these goals, we will:
Implementation of our Plan
No plan is worth its salt unless it is clear and concise and can be readily implemented. Our Plan cannot implement itself. To attain our goals, a large number of parish members will be needed to staff the various committees which will focus on each of the foregoing elements, integrating the various elements where there is overlap, and expanding where there are perceived needs. Further, budgets, where appropriate, will need to be developed and coordinated with the overall fiscal plan, both long term and annual, which will help translate our goals to reality.
While individual commissions, committees and other groups will have primary responsibility for individual items, the Wardens and Vestry undertake to supervise the overall implementation of this Plan. To that end, each commission and committee will have at least one Vestry representative who will report the group's activities to the Vestry on a regular basis. In addition, one member of the Vestry, along with the Senior Warden, will assume the task of coordinating these efforts. These assignments will be made in February of each year, when a new Vestry convenes. The Vestry will conduct periodic reviews of the activities of the commissions and committees and will propose appropriate additional measures.
As your Vestry, we are confident that the abilities of the parishioners of Trinity can assure the success of the Plan and the vitality and growth of Trinity Episcopal Church for years to come.
