Vision
In 2003, Grace came together in a visioning process with
leadership from consultant Michael Smith. Aproximately fifty
parishioners with eight trained parish facilitators met to identify
the Charism of Grace. Following that work, Vestry met in a two-day
retreat to develop our Vision and long-range Goals for Grace. Below
is a description of the outcomes from those meetings.
Our Charism:
Our Episcopal identity: a faith built on
Scripture, tradition, and reason.
Our Vision for Grace Church
We strive to be:
Faithful to the
mission of the Church, and to our unique charism as an Episcopal
parish,
A congregation supporting and matching the energetic
leadership of clergy,
A congregation supporting each other and
holding each other accountable for ongoing spiritual
growth,
Rooted in our Episcopal/Anglican tradition and able to
articulate that identity to the local community,
Creating
opportunities for nurturing each other, ever strengthening our sense
of community and caring,
Proactively contributing to meeting the
needs of the greater community,
Nurtured by stimulating worship
and challenging preaching.
In order that we might achieve this vision, goals have
been established in seven specific ministry
areas:
Church Family / Pastoral Care - To
provide support within the parish family through caring, nurturing
and healing ministries and to invigorate the church family towards
the love of God in one another while embracing a growing
church.
Christian Education - To develop an engaging,
vibrant Christian Education program for all ages, preparing us for
mission and ministry.
Worship - To be a church that
respects diversity of worship styles within the Anglican tradition,
energizing us for mission and ministry.
Fellowship - To
value strong relationships within the parish, nurturing us for
mission and ministry.
Outreach - To energize and engage
the parish for outreach activities as the Gospel calls
us.
Marketing - To clearly and simply identify and
inform the parish and the community about Grace Episcopal Church and
how it lives its faith.
Collaborative Ministry - To be
a parish of collaborative ministry that is interactive, mutually
accountable, and respectful.