United Church of Canada
Orchard Valley Pastoral Charge
DRAFT
2014 Annual Report – LARGE PRINT EDITION
Orchard Valley United Church
130 Cornwallis Avenue
New Minas NS B4N 3M7
Tel: (902) 681-0366
Fax: (902) 681-1460
www.OrchardValleyUnited.ca
United Church of Canada
Orchard Valley Pastoral Charge
2014 Annual Report
February 18, 2015
Ordained Minister: Rev. Dr. Randy Crozsman
Diaconal Minister: Annika Sangster
Weekend Supply Ministry
Personnel: Rev. Karen Lynch
Music Director: Ken Hassell
Admin Assistant: Theresa Perrin
Custodian: Louis Lightfoot
Orchard Valley Pastoral Charge – 2013 Annual Report
Orchard Valley United Church
130 Cornwallis Avenue
New Minas NS B4N 3M7
Tel: (902) 681-0366
Fax: (902) 681-1460
www.OrchardValleyUnited.ca
Rev. Dr. Randy Crozsman
Annika Sangster
Ken Hassell
Theresa Perrin
Cover photo courtesy of
Peter Oleskevich, 2014
pjophotography.com
Table of Contents
1. Our Vision Statement 1
2. Congregational Statistics 2
2.1 Baptisms 2
2.2 Marriages 2
2.3 Funerals / Memorials 3
2.4 Membership 4
3. Notes from Council, Ministry, and Staff 6
3.1 Valerie Mosher, Chair, OVUC Church Council 6
3.2 Rev. Randy Crozsman, Minister for Worship, Congregational Development and Faith Formation 8
3.3 Annika Sangster, Minister for Worship, Youth and Families 11
3.4 Rev. Karen Lynch, Weekend Supply Ministry Personnel 19
3.5 Ken Hassell, Music Director 22
3.6 Theresa Perrin, Admin Assistant 24
4. Committee Reports 25
4.1 Ad Hoc Committee 27
4.2 Communications Committee 38
4.3 Congregational Life Committee 40
4.4 Covenanter Church Committee 43
4.5 Faith Formation Committee 49
4.6 Finance Committee 56
4.7 Ministry and Personnel Committee 58
4.8 Outreach Committee 59
4.9 Pastoral Care Committee 64
4.10 Property Committee 68
4.11 Stewardship Committee 72
4.12 Visioning Committee 74
4.13 Worship Committee 78
5. Other Groups 81
5.1 Orchard Valley Men’s Group 81
5.2 Orchard Valley UCW 84
5.3 Orchard Valley UCW–Wolfville Unit 91
5.4 Orchard Valley Women’s Breakfast Group 97
5.5 Prayer Shawl Ministry 101
5.6 Wolfville Area Inter-Church Council 102
5.7 Kentville, New Minas and Area Council of Churches 105
5.8 Valley Foodgrains Project 108
5.9 Valley Presbytery Report 111
5.10 Maritime Conference Report 114
6. Board of Trustees 118
Annexes:
Congregational Meeting Minutes
Nominating Committee Report (to be presented at the Annual Meeting)
Financial Report (under separate cover)
1. Our Vision Statement
Inspired by God:
We are a faith family, with traditional roots and contemporary wings,
called to love –
in and through diversity.
We value hope-filled, transformational worship, and authentic relationships
within which we care for each other, the community, and the earth.
Following the footsteps of Jesus,
we respectfully challenge ourselves and society,
striving to grow as individuals and as a faith family.
2. Congregational Statistics
2.1 Baptisms
There was one baptism during 2014:
· Isaiah David Ralph Dominey, child of Amanda and Lester Dominey
2.2 Marriages
Five wedding ceremonies were performed in 2014:
· Ronald Earl Barr and Carol Anne Semple
· Philomena D. Hennessey and Sheila Janet Dietz
· Douglas Wade Hearney and Robin Shawn McGregor Stewart
· James Stockdale and Jennifer MacMillan
· Benjamin Jean-Pierre Cogswell and Alyssa Elizabeth Patterson
2.3 Funerals / Memorials
In 2014, 18 members of OVUC passed away:
· Shirley Borden
· Louise Crossan
· Christina de Geus
· Dean Hatt
· Frances Hawkins
· Wilma Haworth
· William Hockey
· Margaret Parker
· Mary MacKenzie
· Gerald McKinley
· Christina Muis
· Florence Ogden
· Eleanor Pudsey
· Edna Sanford
· Evelyn Smith
· David Squier
· Dianne Thompson-Sheppard
· Doreen Tillotson
In addition, we held funeral / memorial services for eight individuals who were non-members.
We remember not only their deaths, but their lives, and the eternal hope of the resurrection.
2.4 Membership
In 2014, eight individuals left OVPC through Certificates of Membership (Transfer).
In addition, seven individuals became new members of Orchard Valley Pastoral Charge:
· Bruce Grove
· Nancy Handrigan
· Kelly Messom
· Peter Oleskevich
· Susan Proude
· Bruce Smith
· Sue Smith
As of December 31, 2014, there were 1294 members on the Historic Roll:[1]
· 227 active members
· 639 inactive members
· 428 non-resident members
In addition, there were 59 individuals who were active adherents.
Orchard Valley Pastoral Charge – 2014 Annual Report 121
3. Notes from Council, Ministry, and Staff
3.1 Valerie Mosher, Chair, OVUC Church Council
As a new year begins, it is only natural to look back as well as forward. I have decided not to reoffer as the Chair of Council and this was not a decision I made lightly. I had the good fortune of being a part of the first Church Council for Orchard Valley United Church, so perhaps this is the reason I am feeling melancholy about all the changes I have seen in the past couple of years. We decommissioned both the former St. Andrews and St. Paul and St.Stephen church buildings this past year; this follows the decommissioning of Canard and Greenwich churches in 2013. We also have much to celebrate, including our music ministry and the many talents in our church community.
In many ways we are just coming into our own, in terms of new programs and committees getting up and running, although we are always looking for ways to improve, and meet the needs of our congregation and beyond.
I have great hopes for Orchard Valley and as I end this part of my journey, I look forward to seeing where we are in one, two, five years and more.
I want to thank all of our staff and their families as well as Rev Karen Lynch who has jumped into the void that exists while Rev Randy is out on sick leave. I also want to thank all the members of Council who have made my job so much easier, as well as everyone who has volunteered in any capacity with the church.
Take delight in the Lord
and he will give you the desires of your heart
Psalms 37:4
Valerie Mosher
Chair, Church Council
3.2 Rev. Randy Crozsman, Minister for Worship,Congregational Development and Faith Formation
Sometimes, the birth of Orchard Valley United Church seems like forever ago … yet we are chronologically but a 2.5 year old congregation! When I reflect back over my experience with 2.5 year olds, especially from the perspective of “Dad” and of “Grandpa,”, I remember that it is a very significant, busy and trying time: trying to assert independence and control; trying to get needs met; trying to make sense of the world around. It is a stage of welcoming love, as well as offering it. It is a time in which we “don’t always play well with others.” It is a time of immense transition … and it is a time of soaking up everything going on.
If you reflect on our corporate life as a living, growing church family, there are many similarities. Child development professionals tell us that “it gets better” in the next stage; and that’s great news. And so, as you read this reflection and the fullness of the Annual Report document, I invite you to consider building on the great strides you have already taken to enhance our cohesiveness and effectiveness as a Christian presence here in our region. It seems to me that our priorities need to include deepening our sense of community and open, transparent communication.
Over the past year, we have witnessed incredible commitment and achievement by so many individuals and committees. There is much to be thankful for. The presence of God is abundantly expressed through all of this dedication!
There are clear benchmarks before us that become a measurement of our communal health and strength. They are the dream for our future. Here are some that occur to me:
· Revisit our vision statement, with the goal of determining specific values that define the path of ministry that will be our faithful response for the unconditional love that God has graciously provided;
· Sell our site in Kentville;
· Begin the focussed discussion on a future church home;
· Address the longstanding commitment to maintain a United Church “presence” in the various communities within our catchment area;
· Significantly enhance the spiritual life of our members;
· Take the lead on creating an inter-agency effort to understand more clearly the poverty in our region and begin those necessary steps to make a real and sustainable difference; and
· Market ourselves to the wider community.
Dear friends, we are told that when we wake up each day, it is a fresh start. May our third year be the best yet, but only until we reach the next.
May you know the deep and abiding peace and joy of God within you!
Rev Randy Crozsman
3.3 Annika Sangster, Minister for Worship, Youth and Families
Goal / What I Did / Learnings /To be a calm and impartial, yet listening and responsive, presence as high stress decisions (i.e. building and relationships) are made. / Listened to a number of folks as they lamented and celebrated the following:
· Loss of buildings
· Retention of buildings
· Loss of staff
· Retention of staff
· Loss of theology
· Loss of worship style
· Exploration of worship style
· Loss of independence
· Loss of Leadership
· Retention of Leadership
Offered a stronger presence during the extended leave of my colleague. / There are an equal number of folks who are on either side of every subject.
Listening to folks lament their loss also means sometimes listening to criticism about myself.
Seeing and feeling the benefits of a calm and impartial presence during pastoral care.
To establish an online ministry to meet the needs of those who can’t be with us on a weekly basis and to enhance the experience of those who can be with us each week. / Set up Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ for Orchard Valley.
Organized congregational participation in online retreats.
Offering pastoral care via email in appropriate situations.
Offered a special online presence during Advent. / A plan for social media is helpful. It may require more than just me.
While we have 200 email addresses in the database, many of them do not come every Sunday. Also while we have 170 in church each week, many of them do not have email addresses. This can lead to gaps in the communication.
The connection between the online presence and the off-line life is important. (Addie the Advent Sheep both online and at home.)
To revitalize the Outreach Committee to work with the new vision for Orchard Valley and establish a larger presence in the community. / Organized a meeting of the Outreach Committee.
New vision statement, stage 1 is completed. Stage 2 is well underway.
Supported Seekers as they increased their outreach (Coldest Night, Comfort Bags, We Day).
A number of Outreach- supported/co-ordinated efforts including: Famous People Players, 24 Hours of Homelessness, Canucopia, Christmas Hampers, etc. / Outreach is very important to the congregation, but many don’t understand the value of community outreach, with no strings attached.
Since the amalgamation, outreach has happened, but not necessarily through the Outreach Committee or even officially through Orchard Valley. We’ve been doing more than we realized!
19 requests for assistance (plus more that my colleague processed).
To provide opportunity for new and creative forms of worship for those who seek it. / Conducted / undertook:
· Survey on worship
· Workshop on spirituality
· Yoga church
· Wings Worship
· Godly Play Circle
· Messy Church / Leading more than one worship opportunity can be very time-consuming.
One specific form of worship cannot “trump” another.
A presentation to Council about different church sizes (meant to be a bridge into another topic) taught me that folks don’t necessarily understand the benefits of being a “Program Church” and all the possibilities that can exist.
To educate folks about issues of power and privilege. / Haven’t accomplished much, but continue to see a lot of need during my listening and supporting various committees.
Work has been done with the Seekers Group. / With fair-trade being such an important issue in this area, I was surprised to discover that there are some cultural issues around power and privilege.
To work with transparency. / I have been trying to encourage transparency in all that I do.
· Tracking of hours
· Public goals / Transparency is hard to keep when a situation requires you to be subversive.
People expect me to not be transparent (i.e. that I have knowledge that I don’t have.)
I’m not going to hide anything – this year was hard. We had a lot of ups and just as many downs, but we’re going to be okay. We have supported one another through completed sales of buildings, through offers for buildings being rescinded, through staffing issues, committees thriving and committees resigning. It’s been emotional. It’s been a reality check. But here we sit on the other side of the year. The above is a list of goals I had in my annual report heading in to 2014. I added to them in June. Aside from my goals, I have also worked away at emergency pastoral care, reaching out to young families, representing the church on a wider level at the church council meetings, presbytery, conference and general council, working with the Sunday School and the Seekers, specific work with the Visioning, Covenanter and Outreach Committees, as well as offering my support to as many regular committees of Orchard Valley as I can. I have worked hard to help everyone find a home in Orchard Valley United Church.
My continuing education time was spent at Rendez-vous (a United Church Youth and Youth Leader Conference) in Winnipeg as well as safeTALK (a suicide awareness program). For work in other courts of the United Church, I have been part of the Education and Students Committee as well as a pastoral charge supervisor for Valley Presbytery. At the Conference level, I chaired the Maritime Conference Annual Meeting and Planning Committee and represented that committee on the Executive. I concluded my time on the General Council level with the Steering Group for Candidacy Pathways and look forward to a short break from General Council work until regular staffing is reinstated at Orchard Valley.