Bell Street Chapel Votes to Hire a Consulting Minister
June 6, 2008
At the Annual Meeting on May 18, the congregation made a decision to change the direction in our search for a settled minister. With the announcement by Rev. Bill Robinson that he would not be returning for a second year as Interim Minister, the congregation examined its goals and readiness to call a settled minister. Rather than hire another Interim Minister and continue the search process, the congregation voted to hire a part-time Consulting Minister for a period of up to three years. A consulting minister is hired to coach the board and congregation on fulfilling specific, stated objectives. In our case, the primary goal will be to help the congregation to grow so that we can support a full-time settled minister.
Like an Interim Minister, a consulting minister will work with the board and congregation on trust-building, leadership, growth, and other issues. However, unlike Interim Ministry, Consulting Ministry is not time-limited. This flexibility will give Bell Street Chapel time to develop and implement an intentional plan for growth. The Consulting Minister will help the congregation to get to know itself and its needs, and will challenge us to consider new ways of thinking and acting.
As a next step in this process, the Governing Board will complete the online application for a Consulting Minister. Our District Executive, Rev. Bill Zelazny and the UUA Transitions Director Rev. John Weston will discuss the congregation’s needs and recommend candidates. The Governing Board will appoint a task force made up of Board members and a member of the Search Committee to interview and hire a Consulting Minister.
Because we will no longer be in Search, the work of our current Search Committee will end shortly after the Consulting Minister is hired. The Search Committee has worked hard over the past year, and has gathered much useful information about our congregation and our needs. The committee will share this information with the Consulting Minister to inform his or her work with us. On behalf of the congregation, I would like to thank the Search Committee for their time, hard work, professionalism, and sensitivity to the needs of the Chapel and its members.
With this decision, the congregation has begun to write the next chapter in its history. The Governing Board will, of course, keep you updated as this process continues.
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