June 5, 2020: Our new Director of Child, Youth, and Family Ministries Dan Leaver!
Leadership Council and our Search Committee are pleased to announce the newest member of our ministry team at Wesley-Knox: Dan Leaver. To read more about Dan, click here!
March 28, 2020: The Announcement We’ve All Been Waiting For!
The Search Committee appointed by Leadership Council has been working diligently since January. The first task of the committee was to find a “Supply Minister” to pick up from Glen Pearson and carry the congregation through the next eighteen to twenty four months.
Last week the Search Committee, after well thought out research, reported to Leadership Council with a unanimous recommendation to appoint Rev. Pirie Mitchell as our Supply Minister. The recommendation has been accepted by Leadership Council and endorsed by the Antler River Watershed Regional Council. Rev. Mitchell will join our staff and lay team on April 1, 2020.
By way of introduction, Rev. Mitchell has significant experience and knowledge of church life and here are just a few of his credentials:
- Twenty five years as a teacher with the Thames Valley District School Board
- Twenty three years as a Lay/Student Minister in three different pastoral charges
- Graduate of the University of Toronto, Emanuel College as an Ordained Minister
- Since Ordination he has served in four Pastoral Charges, two as Interim Minister
- Certified Family Counsellor
- Doctor of Ministry in Preaching
- Leader’s Role in Resolving Conflict
Rev. Pirie and his wife Ruth live in the community of St. Mary’s and as our three quarter time (30 hours a week) Minister, he will be in the office on Sunday and two other days of the week plus his time working at home. Remember, this is the pledge we made as a congregation to increase our lay work involvement and support the three quarter time efforts of our Minister.
During this current time of uncertainly as COVID-19 moves through our society hopefully it is comforting to know that our church community now has a very qualified Minister as part of the leadership team. It may be some time before you have the opportunity to actually meet Pirie face-to-face but when you do please take the opportunity to welcome him into our church family.
The Search Committee has now turned its efforts towards finding a leader for our Children’s, Family and Youth Ministry program. The Position Description has been reviewed in detail and approved by Leadership Council and will eventually be shared with everyone on our website. If you happen to know of a possible candidate that fits the position description please share these details with a member of the Search Committee.
The members are:
Jane Fenwick, Maggie Walker, Tony Haworth, Martin Horak, Cathie Banks, Carl Hearn ,and John McFall.
March 8, 2020: The Search is On… An Update
Our Search Committee consists of Cathie Banks, Jane Fenwick, Tony Haworth, Carl Hearn, Martin Horak, John McFall and Maggie Walker. This committee was formed late last year and has been meeting regularly, and in fact, weekly since late January. The committee is undertaking a search for a Supply Minister who we expect to be with us for at least a year.
In mid January the Region approved the Wesley-Knox Community of Faith Profile contingent on Congregational approval, which came at our January 26 Congregational Meeting. In approving the Profile we approved the hire of a three-quarter time Supply Minister and the associated Position Description. At the AGM on February 9 the budget was approved to support the hiring of this Supply Minister.
The Committee has had inquiries from interested ministers and has combed the Region’s digital database for prospective candidates. After requesting an expression of interest and video or audio recordings from candidates, the committee now has a short list of candidates. Over the next two weeks interviews will take place. We hope to contract with our new Supply Minister before the end of the month. The standard contract for ministers in pastoral relations calls for a notice of three months to terminate a pastoral relation, so it could be June before we have a minister in the vestry.
The process to search for and contract with a minister is quite involved, even for a Supply Minister, and consists of a number of steps. It is important to take the time to determine our needs, receive necessary approvals and to do a proper search for a good match. Your patience is appreciated.
The Search Committee is also responsible for searching for a Child, Youth and Family Minister. A position description has been developed and the decision made by the Region that this position will involve a contract between Wesley-Knox and the new minister – with no appointment or call from the Region. Normally the position would not be filled without a Supply Minister in place. The committee is exploring how to meet our needs until the Supply Minister is appointed to Wesley-Knox.
John McFall
Member, Search Committee
January 26, 2020: Search for a Supply Minister
The Community of Faith Profile was approved at our congregational meeting on January 26, 2020 (rescheduled from January 12). This profile is a requirement of the Region in order to search for and appoint a new supply minister. It includes background information about Wesley-Knox (Living Faith Story, Demographics, Financial Viability) and details about our ministerial positions. The full profile is available here.
December 30, 2019: Search for a Supply Minister
The Community of Faith Profile writing team has completed the faith profile. We are grateful for everyone’s input as we work to tell the story of Wesley-Knox. Leadership Council approved the Profile and has called a congregational meeting for Sunday January 12 2020 to consider approving the profile. If approved it will be posted on the United Church’s online pastoral relations tool – ChurchHub -for viewing by ministry personnel searching for a supply ministry position.
November 1, 2019
The appointment of Rev. Tom Hiscock has been a while in coming, but is now a reality. The Tom-Glen team will lead our faith community into Advent and beyond. Rev. Tom will be in the pulpit on Sunday. We joyfully welcome him!
October 20, 2019
The Faith Profile Team presented the results of the congregational survey that was completed in September. The results can be viewed here.
September 21, 2019
The Spiritual Life Committee has engaged Glen Pearson and other guest speakers to provide thoughtful and inspiring sermons to the Wesley-Knox community. We are most blessed that many individuals have stepped forward to offer leadership during this transformative period. The love for Wesley-Knox and Jesus Christ has been demonstrated in so many acts – large and small. Leadership Council continues to work with Regional Council to engage Rev Tom Hiscock as worship leader. Our long term strategy is to define the pastoral leadership for Wesley-Knox and search for a permanent Minister.
July 2, 2019: Pastoral Coverage in September
Leadership Council has accepted the services of Glen Pearson to provide pastoral coverage following Rev Tracy’s departure. Glen will deliver the message on Sunday mornings. This arrangement will be in place while we work with Regional Council to make further plans for the future. his arrangement allows the search for a permanent Minister to move forward in a thoughtful and comprehensive manner. Congregational input will be a key element of the process.
June 13, 2019: Search for a New Minister
The team has met a couple of times and is hard at work developing a community of faith profile. This profile is the first step of the pastoral relations process. The profile tells the story of Wesley-Knox.
April 28, 2019
- The Community of Faith presentation is available here