Minister This is the fifth Annual Report I’ve submitted in your service. I’ll spare readers all the “swift passage of time” clichés, but I cannot deny that I am thinking of them as I write, because a fifth report hardly seems possible. Yet here we are, at the close of another church year and again we have much behind us to celebrate and much ahead to anticipate. The year was marked by significant changes in our church staff. Two positions were filled by individuals new to us, and two new positions were created and filled by familiar faces. As Music Director, Johanna Evenson has brought a refreshing personality and expression to our music life. She continues the excellence initiated by her predecessors and brings out the very best in our talented choir members. She has introduced new instruments and music this past year, and eagerly helped craft two lovely Sunday evening services. I hope we will be able to continue, and perhaps expand—in frequency and attendance, vesper services. Johanna has taken on leadership of our Chalice Choir and engages the children with her creativity and warmth. Joe McCormack came on board with almost the exact experience and skills we long sought in a Sexton. He is conscientious and friendly, accommodating and skilled. The role has changed over the past years, and in some ways we are still adjusting to this essential staff member living offsite and not on the property. However, Joe has helped us establish this new reality more deeply. Though we allocate thirty hours each week, it is still a formidable responsibility for one employee to oversee complementary aspects of facilities use and management. Our own high activity level and also multiple rentals and community events fill the Sexton’s schedule with meeting set-up and break-down. Regular maintenance and oversight of our historic (sometimes this translates as “problematic’) properties remains a challenge. Yet our staff, and numerous devoted church members, respond with able hands and responsible stewardship. For some time we’ve been fortunate to attract a steady flow of visitors to our services and to have well-coordinated Membership Committees ready to provide guests with helpful guidance. This initial outreach, however successful, maxed out our lay leadership and left a void in continued contact, and membership follow-up. We took in good numbers of new members but seemed to lose track of them too easily. We saw the need for a part-time staff person to serve as direct liaison and support to those seeking and “shopping” a new spiritual connection. This prompted Carol Oates, our member previously known mostly for her musical ability, to take on the role of Membership Coordinator. In our first year with this position Carol has done a wonderful job of overseeing the process of a guest’s first visit all the way to the possibility of membership. Besides to reaching out more effectively to newcomers, Carol is also helping us better serve longer-term members explore new opportunities and roles within the church. Our present Religious Education enrollment is approximately 135 students. Janet Watts, as Director of Religious Education, organizes most all of our educational and family programming. On most any Sunday, (save perhaps the mid-summer weeks), our children can be found in the 1 Annex, in upper Gage Hall, and often enjoying the fine campus of our across-the-street, neighbor, Charleston Day School. While Janet excels at managing simultaneous tasks, she cannot serve in more that one place at a time. Our new Religious Education Assistant, Sandra Selvitelli, helps manage RE programs, supervise students, and support Janet’s work as needed. As a parent with children active in our Sunday School, Sandra already knew the strengths of our efforts and also recognized the places where her additional involvement could make an essential difference. In addition to our compensated staff, we also benefit from the teaching and preaching of Rev. Nancy Pellegrini, Affiliated Community Minister, who joined us this year. As Chaplain, Rev. Nancy’s primary ministry is to the patents and staff of the Hollings Cancer Center of the Medical University of South Carolina. On site with us, Nancy participates in Sunday services and has led Adult Religious Education courses. She is helping us learn more about her role, how she embodies our free faith in the community, and how we can best support her dual ministry. We say goodbye to Hannah Piazza this year. Hannah started working part-time with the church as Office Assistant in 2010. She excelled in this role and when the Office Administrator position opened in 2012, her ease and experience with our procedures made her an ideal candidate. For much of her time as Administrator, Hannah also balanced the remaining classes of her Bachelor of Arts program at the College of Charleston. Now with her degree fulfilled, and other opportunities before her, she takes leave of us this summer. Hannah managed the office when we most needed someone to step in with care and confidence. She has successfully corralled a staff of highly independent characters in weekly meetings and has supported a minister known for his disregard of deadlines. She protected the church’s interests with apartment tenants, countless vendors, wedding couples, and even Hollywood film producers. We wish her well on her journey and hope she carries something of our imprint with her. I am personally gratified to work with such a committed core staff and I appreciate the energy and insight each member brings to their individual spheres and to the larger work we share. I am equally grateful for the volunteer leaders of the Personnel Committee, the Committee on Shared Ministry, the Vestry and others, who ensure that resources exist to appropriately provide for our staff and who support us personally through friendship and counsel. The state of other important areas of our church are shared elsewhere in this annual document. The work of our Caring Committee, our financial health, our social justice and various outreach efforts, and many more noble endeavors are chronicled herein. This is but a snapshot (selfie?) of an active and vital urban church, with a largely suburban membership, attempting to promote and uphold a historic, liberal religious message during an unusual time of both great social progress and sadly divisive public policy. Our national leaders appear entrenched and unable to negotiate diverse views. Blessed with a spirit of cooperation and mutual regard, we seem to accomplish relative harmony every day on Archdale Street. And for this, I believe we should all be thankful. 2 A report such as this is always flawed and incomplete—just like most of us. Our beloved church exists to help us make of ourselves, not something perfected and whole, but individuals more aware and ever compassionate, more generous and ever growing, more open and ever willing. Please forgive whatever unintentional omissions there may be. Above all, know that it remains an honor to be your minister and to share this historic congregation. Respectfully submitted, Administrator This year the office grew in staff along with the membership of the congregation. By offering a third Pathways to Membership class in 2013-14, the congregation welcomed over 50 new members. Most of this positive growth would not be possible without our wonderful Membership Committee and the assistance of our new Membership Coordinator, Carol Oates. When Carol joined the staff under the pilot Membership Coordinator position, her presence in the office was an immediate help to everyone. Her work contributed to the membership roles becoming more complete and church communications reaching more interested visitors. I am grateful for all Carol has done in helping both the congregation and staff. Joe McCormack and Johanna Evenson also joined the staff this year fulfilling the roles of Sexton and Music Director. Joe has been fundamental in organizing and overseeing all church related events, outside rentals, church maintenance projects and weddings. He’s also provided faithful support to our revived Docent Committee during their regular tour hours. I enjoy working with Johanna as well, as she adds spirit to our staff meetings and worship services. One accomplishment from the office this year was the increase and quality improvement of electronic communications. Paper versions of the monthly newsletter, The Gateway, are no longer sent through the mail, saving on paper and postage. Instead, the newsletter is emailed electronically to members and visitors and available online. The weekly email update was also improved upon by adopting the use of a professional email marketing software. The transfer of some of the financial duties from the office to DAK Bookkeeping allowed more time for the aforementioned communication improvements. The financial transitions began around the close of last year and came to be the successful process it is now with the help of Treasurer, Terry Walsh and our reliable bookkeeper. I thoroughly enjoy working with both of them to maintain the church’s financial practices and transparency. At the close of last year’s annual report I stated a few goals for the upcoming church year which I am proud to say we have accomplished. The office received a new copier and printer which prove much more efficient and allow for higher quality publications. The bathroom located 3 upstairs Gage Hall also received cosmetic upgrades and was fully renovated. These projects were funded with Endowment money graciously granted by the Finance Committee. Ron Updike was a great help as chair of Building and Grounds in overseeing the bathroom overhaul. The summer will allow for more goals to be set for the next church year, which I am confident will come to fruition under the guidance of fantastic and dedicated staff, leaders and congregants.