Dear Glen Mar friends,
As you know, Eric and I are moving to North Carolina this summer so that we can care for aging parents and in-laws who all live there. I’ve been appointed to a church called Saxapahaw UMC, in Graham, NC (Saxapahaw is a Native American name shared by the nearby town). It’s pronounced SAXpuhHAW). It sounds like how I heard a young Glen Mar church described years ago…”a little church…with potential.” Most importantly, it is in exactly the right place to allow for us to care for family. We will miss you so much, but we see God’s hand in this, and this appointment is an answer to prayer, and to a call from God to a season of family.
My last Sunday with you will be June 8, and my last day, June 10. To make the move, I’ll take some leave to cover the time until Pastor Chris Dembeck becomes your Lead Pastor on July 1. We will have amazing preaching in that time in between my last day and Chris’ first day, and will have pastor(s) on call for that time if you have a need for pastoral care.
Starting on July 1, Pastor Chris will be your new lead pastor, and I will become the pastor at Saxapahaw UMC. While we will always love and care for one another as siblings in Christ, starting July 1, I will no longer be your pastor. I will not return to perform “pastoral duties” like funerals, baptisms and weddings, because you will have (at least) 2 wonderful pastors to do those things for you here at Glen Mar in Pastor Gayle and Pastor Chris. It is especially important for Chris to form a good relationship with you starting when he arrives on July 1. He cannot still be caring for his “old church” and do that. Similarly, I will need to start pastoring my new congregation in North Carolina. I know for sure you will be such a blessing to him and to his family.
Many of you are friends with me on social media, and I’m glad for that to remain, or, you may feel that you want to change that once I’m not your pastor anymore. If you want to “unfriend” or “snooze” me, you will not hurt my feelings or cause me to question our love and care for one another in any way. Obviously, I will have to stop posting about how much I love Glen Mar, and about what’s going on here. I’ll be posting a LOT about my excitement for the new church. That doesn’t mean I don’t still love y’all, but I’ll need to be Saxpahaw’s “pastor on Facebook.” If you are not up for reading all those posts, I understand completely. You are free to determine what makes sense for you.
This is NOT the last communication from me at all. I just wanted to share this transitional information with all of you so that you could know what to expect when I leave in June. Eric and I are so grateful for you, and for all the ways we have grown together, and how God has richly provided, as we have “Praised God, Grown Disciples, and Served the World” over these 7 years. I hope you’ll join us in worship if you can, as I work to “end well” and to “light the way” for what comes next at Glen Mar!
Love in Christ,
Mandy
PS As part of this transition, I’m required to share with you the official policy on pastoral transitions for the Baltimore Washington Conference of the UMC. It sounds very…well…official…but the purpose is to help both the “outgoing” and the “incoming” pastors use their gifts to the fullest to bless the congregations to which they are sent.
¶4015. Returning to a Previous Appointment
- As of the effective date of a new appointment, a pastor shall immediately cease all pastoral counseling and pastoral visitation with members or member families in the previous appointment. Since appointments are generally announced several weeks in advance, each pastor has adequate time in which to effect closure and make appropriate referral to another for the pastoral care of members.
- Pastors shall have a clear understanding with former congregations that they will not return to officiate at baptisms, weddings and funerals, or do pastoral counseling or pastoral visitation in that parish. Pastors, active or retired, shall respectfully decline to participate in such duties when invited by members of a former congregation. Declining all such invitations is the responsibility of the previous pastor. The present pastor, at his or her discretion, may invite the previous pastor to return for pastoral functions. However, the present pastor should never be under any pressure to invite the previous pastor. This policy is ongoing and doesn’t have an expiration date.
See you in church,
Pastor Mandy
