The Good Shepherd Discernment Committee has had a very busy summer! We began our telephone interviews just a few days after the electricity was restored in Pitman following the big June storm. Meeting several nights a week, the entire committee gathered around a speaker phone in the conference room as the interviews were conducted by Mark Nicolle and two committee members using questions developed by all of us. All the rest of us did our best to listen quietly!

We completed the telephone interviews in July, and moved to the next round:  the initial face-to-face interviews. For this interview, each candidate meets two committee members for dinner and a mini-tour of Pitman, the rectory, and our church. This is followed by a conversation/interview with the entire committee, once again in our conference room. We moved out the tables and sat in a circle, if you are wondering how we all fit! Again we used questions contributed by the whole committee, and answered many questions from the candidates, with all of us participating actively in the conversation.

These initial face-to-face interviews will be completed in August. We will move to the next phase in our discernment in September, when we will be sending teams of three committee members to visit and experience a Sunday worship service in the home parish setting of each of the candidates who remain in discernment with us.

Our Parish Profile and OTM Portfolio will stay on bulletin board display in the parish hall. Our Parish Profile is on the website, here is the direct link: https://goodshepherdpitman.org/parish_profile/

We are very grateful for the group of wonderful priests who have been or continue to be in mutual discernment with us. We believe we are giving them a good idea of what Good Shepherd is all about. We are thankful for the trust and patience of the congregation and our families through this extensive process. We appreciate everyone’s understanding with regard to confidentiality. We truly feel blessed with your love, your prayers, and the the Holy Spirit at work in our discernment of God’s will. Please keep praying for our church, for us, for all the candidates, and for the next Rector of Good Shepherd!

Mark Nicolle, Chairman
Roger Baker, Aimee Burgin, Pat Braidwood, Len Clark, Becky Goff, Stuart Lynd, Elizabeth Nelson, Deb Prieto, Chelsea Richmond, Tom Rigg, Chris Southwick, Jeff Snodgrass, Wayne Szalma, Diane Wall, Jim Wynkoop