Assistant Minister's Annual Report for May 2007

          I want to start off my report by saying that each of you is so important to me! You have been supportive of my efforts, as I have worked to grow to better serve this church and fulfill my calling, and I thank you for all these many blessings, I am truly challenged and humbled by them.
         When I began work as Assistant Minister on June 1, 2006, I hit the job running with board retreats for Christian Education, Church Growth, and Mission and Outreach. The boards continue to work on many of the projects that they identified at these retreats and we have been seeing results in the number of visitors here, the knowledge in the community about our church, and its programs and activities, and the wonderful mission projects that have been completed.
         One of the highlights of this year was the wonderful experience of learning about Appreciative Inquiry at last years Conference Annual Meeting. It is a new way of doing our work and we will be using these tools as we look at expanding our vision for our church in the months ahead.
         In March 2007 I attended a Church Leadership retreat sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Conference, it was a wonderful experience, and we will be sharing in part of that knowledge as we host Consulting Conference Minister Hal Youngblood on May 19, 2007 from 9:00 am until 2:00 pm as he does a retreat here with church leaders and interested members of the Congregation.  This is a wonderful chance to share in some new ideas and new ways of looking at church growth and the role each of you play in that as members of the congregation.
         Our church is also one large family, and I like so many of you are saddened by the losses we have experienced in the last few months of so many of our long time members, they were our friends and partners in worship and their absence is greatly felt.  I take comfort in looking around the church and seeing a part of each of them here and knowing how much they were involved and how much has been accomplished because of their efforts.  I encourage each of you to take some time and reflect on the many contributions that each of them have made, and how important their efforts were to the well being of this church.
         I have been able to accomplish many of the special tasks that have arisen.  A couple of the important ones have been the CPR class last fall so that we have people trained in CPR in the event of an emergency, and the sound system.  We now have an extra hearing loop with a different type of headset, and both hand microphones are once again working. As funds become available upgrades can continue to be made to the sound system to make it even better, and we have a new sound company in the wings to assist us in this task.  I continue to work on other projects and concerns that you have shared with me, and hope to have them completed in the very near future.
         Since Sharyl left on her sabbatical, I have also been working more closely with many of the boards and committees that I don’t normally work as closely with and have learned a great deal, and hope that I have been able to contribute to their efforts as well.
         As I reflect on this year, it has indeed been an exciting year for me, and has given me an opportunity to be of service to you as your Assistant Minister.  I look forward to the time ahead, to the opportunities and challenges we face, and the many ways that we can joyously serve in our ministry together to answer Christ’s call for each of us.
         Blessings,
                     Dan