Dear Friends,
At the end of this month, I will have been serving Trinity Toledo for nine months – the halfway point of my agreement as Interim Rector with your Vestry. “Time flies when you’re having fun” – so goes the old saying. And it has been fun to be with you! The parish accurately reflects the four words often used to describe it: progressive, inclusive, creative, downtown.
Let me add one more word (although I’m not proposing we add it to our communications.) The word is “involved.” At the Vestry retreat this past February, we decided that one of the things we could do to strengthen Trinity before your next rector comes was to expand the involvement of parishioners in the life and leadership of the parish. This is happening! And it’s happening more quickly than I ever imagined. Let me share the evidence with you.
More than 35 people serve in one of the pods that make Trinity’s weekly community breakfast possible. In addition to those helping through the pods, several other parishioners are present every week to pitch in – welcoming everyone to My Brother’s Place, joining with our neighbors in table fellowship, and washing dishes (we see you, Sean Patrick!). A similar number of members and friends of all ages have helped bring the restored Plaza to life, hauling bags of dirt, topsoil, and mulch from the street to the upper level, planting native species, vegetables, pumpkins, and sunflowers. Someone came to stake the tomatoes this week; another person regularly checks the moisture level in the soil and opens the drip irrigation system to keep the garden watered.
The newly-formed Parish Life Committee has many new participants who have sponsored or will sponsor activities that help build community – events like “Baseball with the Bishop” on Father’s Day, the Mac & Cheese Bakeoff last weekend that welcomed over 60 people to the Parish House, and the upcoming Fourth of July celebration on the Plaza – one of the best places to view Toledo’s Fireworks display. A subgroup is beginning to look at how we can better care for each other when the delivery of a meal, or a ride to an appointment, or being a helpful presence when a death occurs in a family.
The Adult Spiritual Formation Committee has planned two activities this summer and will offer Sunday classes in the fall in preparation for the November elections – everything from the mechanics of voting (voter registration, IDs needed to vote) to how we can disagree with our families and friends without being disagreeable. And this coming Sunday, June 30, we’ve invited parents to gather for a “lunch and learn” about hopes for Christian formation programming this fall for children and youth.
The committee planning for our celebration of Pride in late August has organized itself and meets regularly.
Behind the scenes, members of the Finance Committee monitor cash flow, budgets, and investments. A Property Task Force recently studied and prioritized what work needs to be done to ensure that our buildings are in good shape and are safe and secure.
The eight-member Search Committee recently completed a significant phase of its work and hopes to release the Parish Profile and the Office of Transition Ministry portfolio to the wider church at the beginning of August.
Last but definitely not least, attendance at Sunday services this summer – even with the choir on hiatus – keeps growing! So Trinity is progressive, inclusive, creative, downtown and involved.
Have you found your ministry at Trinity? St. Paul used a metaphor to remind one of the churches he planted that the Body of Christ needs eyes and ears and hands and feet – that it needs all the parts – to function effectively. If anything I’ve mentioned in this letter appeals to you enough that you want to be part of it, contact the Parish Office – (419) 243-1231 or trinity@trinitytoledo.org. And if you have a burning desire to start a new ministry, let us know that, too. There are many ways to discover a ministry that brings you a sense of joy and fulfillment!
I can’t wait to see what happens in the second half of my time as your Interim Rector.
Blessings,
Stephen Applegate
