Vestry Nominations
Deborah Lynn Bittner Cusick
What does St. Paul’s Episcopal Church mean to you?
St. Paul’s is a comfortable place for me. I appreciate that our worship services can be openly challenging in the words and phrases spoken by clergy and laity. The comfort I feel allows me to be more open to the message which is incredibly important to me now. I’ve been going through a phase of confusing the messenger with the message. And, yes, I can get angry with the Messenger and miss the Message. But that’s the beauty of St. Paul’s. We give, and I have received, space and time and safety to hear and absorb the Message.
What is your favorite part of the Baptismal Covenant and why?
I am just beginning to understand my favorite part of the Baptismal Covenant: The gifts of the Holy Spirit. It’s only been in the past few years that I have begun to see That I am a co-creator of my life. That it isn’t enough for me to just follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit shows me a What, a Where and a How I need to do the work that accompanies following Christ.
What do you perceive as your gifts for Ministry?
My gift for ministry might be getting fed up. I have a natural tendency to balk at being told what to do. Sometimes I actually do know a better way to do it. But most times I’ve worn out doing things “that way”. My Uncle Howie was an aircraft designer and test pilot. When he would visit, I would demand all his time. When he’d had enough, he’d look down at me and say “You’re pushin’ the envelope kid.” I’m still “pushing the envelope”.
Why do you want to serve on the Vestry of St. Paul’s Church?
During the Rector Selection process, the current Vestry members allowed me to present a question to the Candidate that is a make-or-break issue. My question asks if our Rector Candidate would be willing to work against Federal government authority and help provide the pharmaceutical treatment needed for members of St. Paul’s and their family who need Gender Affirming Care. This isn’t an issue I expect someone else to take care of. I need to learn the processes of the Episcopal Church, the will of St. Paul’s Vestry and, especially, the will of the Congregation to understand if this is an issue they can get behind. There’s a lot of work ahead but right now I need to act as a channel for information and faithful formation.
John Hannah
What does St. Paul’s Episcopal Church mean to you?
St. Paul’s is a welcoming, accepting church that has become a wonderful place to grow into my Christianity. I love it because it does not require a passage into a preconceived notion of perfection to participate. It truly is a come as you are, all are welcome church.
What is your favorite part of the Baptismal Covenant and why?
The question, “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” With God’s help, I will. It isn’t easy sometimes, but this part really resonates with me.
What do you perceive as your gifts for ministry?
A loving and caring heart, patience, and empathy. I also have a knack for all things mechanical, love technology, and have a problem solving mind.
Why do you want to serve on the Vestry of St. Paul’s Church?
Service to my church and for my church family. I also want to be involved with helping to guide us into an even better future than we currently have. We have done great things in and by our church and we can and will do much more, with God’s help and good, hopeful, caring, and diligent leadership.
Elyse Monroy
What does St. Paul’s mean to you?
To me, St. Pauls means community. During a moment of extreme hardship in my life, I felt a stir deep inside of myself. It said “go back to church.” When I’ve told this story many have said I was bargaining with God in my moment of strife…. but it didn’t feel like bargaining, or pleading, or even promising. It felt like a push. My first service after feeling this nudge, I sat in the same pew I’d sat in thousands of times before and felt calmness, security and comfort. I was being nudged to be in to community. I was being moved to be wrapped in the caring concern of not just God’s love, but the love of the parish that watched me grow up. I was being nudged to the place and to the people that would carry me through my hard time.
St. Paul’s is grounding support and fellowship.
What is your favorite part of Baptismal Covenant and why?
My favorite part of the Baptismal Covenant is where we promise to “proclaim” and “seek and serve”
I live my life searching for ways to proclaim, specifically by example, the Good News of God in Christ. I do this by finding ways to seek and serve Christ in all persons. To me, these two parts of the baptismal covenant distill down our duty as followers of Jesus living in the church. We are reminded that our sacraments are “outward visible signs of inward spiritual grace.” When we live to proclaim the Good News and do as Christ taught, to serve and love, we are being outward signs of God’s spiritual grace.
Why do you want to serve on the vestry of St. Paul’s Church?
I am excited for the future of St. Paul’s as we have a new rector coming in to support this community as we continue to proclaim and serve. I would be proud and honored to be selected by the parish to serve as a leader during this time of transition.
Kathyrn Dixon
WHAT DOES ST. PAUL’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH MEAN TO YOU?
St. Paul’s is family, and St. Paul’s is home. A community full of love and fellowship. A community where you can be your authentic self and help others share their authentic self. St. Paul’s is a place of caring, love and belonging; ready to share Jesus with those searching for him whether they know it or not.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THE BAPTISMAL COVENANT AND WHY?
I always feel joy when we take part in The Baptismal Covenant as I repeat and take a vow to love and serve my Lord that was taken for me by my parents and godparents before my age of reasoning. As I often do so, my tears flow as we say words of our Faith from The Creed. These words are very dear to me as they give meaning to my life now and upon death and resurrection.
WHAT DO YOU PERCEIVE AS YOUR GIFTS FOR MINISTRY?
My gifts that I perceive that I would use in addition to one empathy is that of administration. After 65 years managing a household of 5-6, I have organizational skills and the knowledge of how and where to find answers or help with programs, problems or projects when needed. Another gift I use is that of listening. I do not always have answers, nor do I try to give answers. I can listen and help others to find their answers if there are answers but also to recognize there might not be an answer right now. I can also suggest where else to look for answers.
WHY DO YOU WANT TO SERVE ON THE VESTRY OF ST. PAUL’S CHURCH?
I am completing my third year of service as a vestryperson. This year we began a search for a new Rector and the need also appeared for a new Junior Warden. I accepted that position not because I had skills to be a sexton or a handyman but because Margaret, our Senior Warden should not be alone in caring for the church and its family. I know how to make phone calls, reach out to vendors and I hope to get things done. If I do not know how or where there are those to ask and I have done it and they have answered.
I am getting a good feel now for how to be a Junior Warden and want to get this job organized and in a good direction. I am looking for a second term to be able to do that as well as taking care of our community and our church.
Mark Pritchard
What does St. Paul’s Episcopal Church mean to you?
I believe that the work of the people — prayer, worship, and service — is best performed within the context of a local congregation, which can support an individual’s path of spirituality and service in many ways. When I chose St. Paul’s, it was because of the congregation’s large and diverse membership, because I know I will find people to share work, music, and creativity.
What is your favorite part of the Baptismal Covenant and why?
I find the Thanksgiving Over the Water moving because of the similarity of the language of the presider’s prayer to that of the Eucharistic Prayer. This language encourages listeners to understand that baptism is an occasion of both gravity and joy.
What do you perceive as your gifts for ministry?
In most of the worldly jobs I’ve had over the years, and in many of my extracurricular ones as well, I have used writing, teaching, and creative talents. I’ve written novels, songs, liturgical music, press releases, websites, and nonfiction reporting and essays. I’ve taught classes, appeared on stage in various guises (panelist, pop singer, presenter), and led worship as both a musical leader and lay deacon.
More importantly, I have the ability to be an organizer and leader. In my current role as a street activist, I’ve planned, organized, and executed many different kinds of actions and activities, ranging from standard protests to the creation and display of enormous banners for No Kings Day — an effort in which over 25 people were involved — to the organization of groups of people to create and distribute whistle packets for community defense. I have edited and published many kinds of publications from an 8-page congregational newsletter to a 48-page quarterly magazine.
I’m also good at praying off the cuff.
Why do you want to serve on the Vestry of St. Paul’s Church?
I think that the arrival of a new rector provides an opportunity for growth and change in the congregation, and being part of it seems to me the best way that I can integrate myself in the life of the congregation.