May 15, 2012
Annual Westmoreland Chancel Choir Concert
May 19, 7 pm
“Sacred Music Across the English Channel”
The Music of Gabriel Fauré and Ralph Vaughn Williams
Contributions benefit Bethesda Cares
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Executive Committee Updates
Executive Committee met April 25. Read Updates to keep informed of the latest Westmoreland happenings!
• Open Circle is a new social group consisting of church members and friends in their twenties and thirties!
• Book Reading by Executive Committee. We will all be reading and discussing Gil Rendle’s Journey in the Wilderness, New Life for Mainline Churches. Please ask us about the book; it offers an exciting look at the change taking place in mainline churches today.
• Pastoral Search Committee has engaged the Negotiating Team in preliminary work and research. The Negotiating Team is represented by: PSC–Robert Benton, Mike Weber; Trustees–Geoff Lilja, Trey Holloway; Personnel–Nancy Batson, Paul Connor; Exec Comm–Mary Grossnick. A Welcome Team will work with church members to make the Candidating Period a time for church members to get to know the prospective minister. The Welcome Team is chaired by: Jeanine Derr, Jan Lilja, Mary Grossnick
• Thank you – Please find time to express your thanks to church members spending an incredible amount of time and energy to support Westmoreland. The Pastoral Search Committee and Governance Team spend more hours than we might imagine on their work.
Mary Grossnick
Moderator
Congratulations to Our College Graduates
Miles Batson graduates from The College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio where he receives a degree in Chemistry. Following a summer of work in Bethesda, he will enter a Ph.D. program in Physical Chemistry at The University of Pittsburgh.
Phaon Derr receives his degree in Exercise Sports Science from Elon University. He is returning to the DC area for work.
Kate Light is graduating cum laude from University of Maryland, College Park, with a major in English. Kate will continue as the Content Manager for Equisearch.com, where she’s been working full-time since 2010.
Dana Savage is graduating from St Mary’s College of Maryland with a degree in Mathematics. He plans to take some time off to work before considering graduate school.
Sarah Schear is earning a B.A., with honors, in Anthropology from Amherst College. She has been awarded a Fulbright Research Grant to work in India during 2012-13 with grass-roots organizations focused on public health and gender equity.
Laney Siegner graduates Phi Beta Kappa from Tufts University. She double majored in Environmental Studies and International Relations. This summer she will begin working for Citizen Schools in Boston where she will be developing curriculum and teaching in an after school enrichment program for middle school students.
Katie Siegner earned her degree from Middlebury College where she majored in International Studies with a focus on Political Science, Spanish and Latin America. In August she will begin work with Green Corps, a field school for environmental organizing.
Middle East Committee to Sponsor Forum
“Iran: What’s Happening, What’s Next”
is the subject of an after-worship forum next Sunday, May 20. Flynt and Hillary Mann Leverett, leading authorities on the Middle East and Persian Gulf, will form the panel. Mr. Leverett is a senior fellow of the New America Foundation and a professor at the Pennsylvania State University School of International Affairs. Ms. Leverett, CEO of Strategic Energy and Global Analysis, has more than 20 years of academic, legal, business, diplomatic, and policy experience working on Middle Eastern issues. Both have served on the staffs of the National Security Council and the State Department.
The Middle East Committee is providing child care for the three Leverett children and the children of interested Westmorelanders.
Governance Team Update
Members of the Governance Team met with the congregation for a productive after-church forum on Sunday, May 6 to inform the congregation of the current draft proposals for governance revision and to solicit feedback and questions from Westmorelanders. Following a brief summary of the origins of the Governance Team and its work to date, members participated in breakout sessions facilitated by members of the Governance Team.
Recurring themes or topics of interest and concern were as follows:
• General support for one governing body to replace the Trustees and Executive Committee.
• General support for a “phase in” approach to governance revision.
• The role of the moderator under the new proposals: What are his/her functions? Should the moderator be a voting member of the Governing Council in order to effectively lead? Is the moderator better able to lead and facilitate discussion, “be an honest broker” if he/she does not have a vote?
• The numerical composition of the Governing Council: Do we need more voting members in order to respond to the many issues that will be addressed including property and finance issues.
• The role of the congregation generally and more specifically in responding to issues that have the potential to be divisive.
• The role of the liaisons from the Governing Council to the various ministries: Will their liaison role be one primarily of communication between the ministries/committees and the Governing Council or will they play a more active role within the ministries/committees themselves?
• The role of current church officers that are elected such as Treasurer, Assistant Treasurer and Clerk.
• What does staff leadership of ministries entail? What does it look like?
• The role of the Nominating Committee: Will it follow the model Interim Working Team did to solicit nominations and put forth a slate? Will the Nominating Committee operate on a longer timetable than just a few months before the annual meeting?
• The need for evaluating the progress of our governance revision as we proceed in phases: we need to see what is working, what may need to be revisited and give ourselves the flexibility to do so in any revisions of the constitution and/or bylaws.
We are extremely appreciative of the participation in Sunday’s forum and through other informal means. It is through our continued dialogue that we seek to understand the concerns and desires of all members of the congregation on this path toward governance revision. Please contact us with further thoughts at govteam@westmorelanducc.org.
From the Governance Team: Louise Stoner Crawford, Jeanine Derr,
Casey Fannon, Doug Hallward-Driemeier, Sarah Wilson
All-Church Retreat: Get Ready for Registration
It’s time to think about that fall weekend, October 12 – 14, of stimulating conversation, fellowship, fun activities, worship and relaxation – - the Church Retreat! Registration packets will be available at church on May 20. Please pick one up, complete the registration and return it to the church. Done! Packets will be mailed to those who do not pick one up in the next few weeks.
Prime Timers Luncheon – May 16
All members of the AARP Generation are invited to attend the May luncheon to learn about “From Mt. Pleasant to Westmoreland” as experienced by Edith Wilkerson. Meet in the parlor for appetizers at 12 noon, followed by lunch in the social hall at 12:30. Lunch is $8. Contact Nona Cox by May 14 or sign up in the Social Hall.
StillReading Book Group
“Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe is an African novel that has achieved international critical acclaim and is now widely read in many English-speaking countries. The story focuses on Okonkwo, a wrestling champion and leader in a fictional Nigerian village, his history, the culture of the Igbo people and the effects of British colonialism and Christian missionaries on the Igbo community. The group meets at 5 – 6:30 pm, Sunday, June 3 in the Parlor. Brad Case leads the discussion and light refreshments are served.
Vacation Bible School Comes to Westmoreland
This summer Westmoreland children and their friends can “dive deep” into Vacation Bible School. All kids grades K – 5th will enjoy “Operation Overboard,” 5:30 – 8 pm, June 25 – 29. Many volunteers are needed to help, including story-tellers, craft leaders, game leaders, musicians, actors and folks to provide dinner and help with decorations. Please contact John Forrest to volunteer.
Congregation Notes
Congratulations to Mike Durst, Westmoreland’s pastoral intern for two years, and Rev. Sung Hwan Cho, Pastor of the Alpha Community Church (UCC) and In Discernment with Westmoreland, on their graduation from Wesley Seminary on May 7. Both men graduated with honors. They were recognized during the May 13 worship service and were presented with Bibles as gifts from an appreciative congregation.
Dolores Boynton, a member of Westmoreland since 1985, and a member of the church office staff for a number of years, died peacefully in Berlin, Maryland on April 29. Her memorial service will be held at Westmoreland on Saturday, June 2, 1 pm. Condolences may be sent to her daughter, Carla Boynton, at 33 Abby Road, Millsboro, DE, 19966.
We extend our sympathy to Wes Seigner on the death of his father, Dr. Allan Siegner, of Orchard Park, New York on May 1. Services were held on May 4.