St Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church

Rector Search Committee 

The search committee met Tuesday night, July 1^st, and after much discussion, we made several decisions regarding the content, the timing, cost, and other particulars surrounding the upcoming parish survey.  Relevant decisions include:

·        Using a very attractive vendor, Holy Cow! Consulting, as our survey instrument designer and results tabulator

·        Designing a plan to inform our parish about the importance of taking the survey

·        Asking parishioners 16 years old and older to take the survey, either at home or at church

·        Planning for computer availability at the church and assistance for those parishioners unfamiliar with computer techniques

·        Preparing a timeline for the survey, and

·        Making editorial changes to the standard survey format in order to accommodate our particular needs.

Thanks go out to Gordon Moore and his sub-committee, including Ellen Hartsfield and Lenora Lee, for their preparation work on the survey plans.  Thanks also to David Rose for taking the lead on managing the parish access to the survey and the computers that will be available for parish use. 

Here are some particulars: 

1. The survey will be available beginning on Sunday, August 31^st and continuing through the month of September, closing on Tuesday, September 30. 
2. Parishioners are encouraged to go to the church website (www.sfaec.org) and take the survey; it will be automatically tabulated and is anonymous unless the parishioner wants to attach a name to the survey.
3. Survey time required:  approximately 30 minutes.
4. Hard copies of the survey will be available for those reluctant to use a computer, but by far the most helpful way to take the survey is via the church website, as any hard copy survey results must be hand entered by a volunteer.

PLEASE NOTE:  this survey will be our primary avenue of collecting data about who we are and what our hopes and dreams for St. Francis are, now that we know they include finding a new rector to lead us into further ministry together.  Acknowledging that taking surveys is not popular, it is critical to note that the more data we collect on our parish, the more likely we are to find the very best person to be our leader.  Please resolve to take the survey faithfully and on time.

In the meantime, the search committee will see that every avenue of information will be utilized to get the word out about the survey and how to take it.  Further, the search committee will spend the rest of the summer weeks before initiating the survey August 31^st working on getting financial data from the vestry, preparing to make computers available  for the survey takers, and getting our search request formatted and complete before we go to the national church office with it.

Our next meeting is Tuesday, August 26^th.  You can help us by continuing to pray for our plans and deliberations.  Our energy remains high, and we have good leadership in Stephen Askew from the Diocesan Office.  We are committed to seeking God’s will in this process and working toward completion in a deeply meaningful way.  Thank you for your partnership with us in this process. 

For the search committee, 

Curtis Baggett