When Beth asked me to join the staff of St. Mark’s 9 years ago, I had some idea of what it would be like to work where I pray and find community. It was a mutual discernment that led to an unusually meaningful and satisfying tenure.
It has been an incredible experience serving this community. Mostly, I have continued to learn what it is to center the community. Truly a counter-cultural posture; I think it may be the hardest, most rewarding work a person can do. Our multiplicity of voices and ideas are woven into all we do together, from business meetings and parish events, to our discernment about how we can support the spiritual deepening and faith lives of our members.
So many moments come to mind looking back, mostly times when staff were bonded by something silly or something new and challenging. But I think the one I will always feel most viscerally will be the Sunday after the scaffolding fell in September 2019. So much went into making it possible to worship that morning from the technical challenges of restoring electricity and cooling the nave to initiating the insurance dialogue and managing the media interest. I’ve never experienced so much determination and care for a common purpose from our staff and from our members. It was nothing short of a miracle and I could feel the love of all who filled the church that morning to near Christmas Eve levels in solidarity as if to say, “We are here. And we will persevere.” I felt so proud of us as a community and couldn’t keep the tears from coming as I met the eyes of all in the nave. I knew from that morning that we would have what we needed to get through that calamity together. And we did. That experience left me in awe of what can be accomplished in unity. Just four months later, the pandemic hit, and again we learned that we had just the right skills on staff and just the right leadership to meet the moment.
Now, let’s keep doing what we do best – to love and support one another and to carry the light of Christ into all that we do and all whom we encounter with the guidance of our clergy and our faith. We are in good hands. And as I’ve been saying to all who ask, I love St. Mark’s and will continue to make this place my church home. See you on Sunday!
Dina +