As you may know, it has been my hope to hire an associate priest at St. Francis to help me with my pastoral and sacramental responsibilities. However, due to budget constraints, we were only able to offer potential associates 3/4 time pay. While this limited the field of candidates, we did get some strong leads. As things were beginning to move forward with potential candidates, one of our parishioners asked me what we had planned for children 11 – 18; this was especially pertinent as we have two children who have aged out of Blair’s Sunday school, with at least one more that will age out next year. Regretfully, I had nothing planned for our older youth. The clergy position was geared towards sharing care of the congregation, with an emphasis on programming for all ages.
It was at this time that Shelley Reece came to me and said she’d heard of an opening at the church; I told her it was for a clergy person, but that she should come to the office and talk with me. After a fruitful and spirit-led conversation, I realized that Shelley was a perfect fit for leading programming and youth, with an emphasis on people ages 11 – 25. Shelley has been an instructor with Ancient Ways Karate for several years, and she is an excellent teacher. She ably teaches students ages 4 – 70, with grace, humor, and discipline. Hiring a lay person over a clergy person comes with a few advantages: the total pay package is less, and there is no expectation that she takes part in the service on Sunday morning. She can be with the children, and during the week, her focus will be on programming for all ages, with an emphasis on our kids and children in the community.
I realize that this happened quickly; I met with Shelley on July 24, and on July 31, asked the vestry to approve funding for a Missioner of Programming and Youth, rather than an associate priest. After meeting for nearly an hour, the assembled vestry unanimously approved the hiring of Shelley Reece to be the Missioner of Programming and Youth. The vestry’s primary concern was that I receive the help I need to run the church; I assured them that Shelley would be taking enough off my plate to help me a good deal. The reason for haste was twofold: one, Shelley is excited to work with youth in the church, and she already has a strong background through her teaching at Ancient Ways. Two, the programming year begins in September, and I wanted to have someone in place for our children.
As I said to the vestry, we owe it to our youth and the youth of the community to create and sustain a strong community geared towards their spiritual needs. We will review and assess Shelley’s progress in January and decide where to go from there. It is my hope and prayer that she is wildly successful and that we have as many kids here on a regular Sunday as we do on Christmas Eve. The kids are out there; it’s getting them here that’s the challenge.
—Fr. Jason