Grace to Host A.C.E.O. Annual Meeting

Tuesday, Sept. 17th, is the date of the ACEO annual meeting.  Grace will be hosting this, with lunch provided at noon.

This emergency outreach project is a part of the R.L. Area Ministerial Association, with 11 participating churches plus a representative of the Salvation Army.  The ACEO is a collective organization. formed out of a need to coordinate client requests for emergency aid with church resources.  It serves the area of the R.L. School district and several Cameron churches.

At its annual meeting, members will hear about the 2018-19 financial, audit, and statistical reports.  Two guest speakers will be present:  Duana Bremer from the Family House Shelter and Lori Bowman from Benjamin’s House.

From Senior Warden, Paul Chase:

The Vestry recently met and discussed the proposed concept of a Team Ministry with St. Alban’s Spooner and St. Luke’s Springbrook.  It was the consensus of those present that the Team Ministry is the most viable way forward for us at Grace, as well as for those in the other two churches.  Sharing clergy costs should permit the team churches to offer a more attractive salary to potential candidates, should we decide to proceed jointly in a search for a full-time priest-in-charge.

To review the concept, the three parishes would share a team of two priests and one deacon.  The priest-in-charge of the team would receive a salary and benefits.  The other priest and the deacon would receive payments for supplying at Sunday and other services.  All three would be involved in pastoral care, with the  priest-in-charge taking the lead in this area.  The priest-in-charge would receive reimbursement for travel to the two churches in towns where he/she is not resident.  The others would be reimbursed for any travel to the three parishes.  The clergy costs, which would amount to about $72,000 in total, would be shared among the three congregations on roughly a 3-2-2 basis.  All other matters relating to church upkeep and operating expense would remain the responsibility of each individual congregation.  Further details need to be worked out relating to the interrelationship of the vestries and other matters, but the principle is that each church remains its own entity while sharing clergy with the other churches.

The Senior Warden and Vestry would like to hear your views on this concept.  Please contact them with specific positives and negatives that you see in the plan.

A new call-in service has been installed. 

Unable to make it to church?  You can listen in to the service on your cell phone. 

Just dial 319 320-0275 and choose Option #1 to hear the service.