As I write this, three members of the Board of Trustees (our Interim Minister Task Force) are meeting and working together on behalf of the full board and the congregation. They are preparing to exchange information with three candidates who would like to be our Interim Minister.
How did we get this far? We submitted our application for an Interim Minister to the Transitions Office of the UUA early in April. What happened (and will happen) next follows. I share it pretty much word for word from the email sent to us by the Transitions Office.
• All the UUA interim ministers met in Texas last week. During their meeting they reviewed all of the interim applications and indicated to the Transitions Office which congregations they thought they could serve well.
• During the first round, which began Monday, April 23, we received the names of three ministers who are interested in serving our congregation. This was done through the online Settlement System. These candidates are Accredited Interim Ministers (AIMs), those in the process of becoming accredited, and a few extremely experienced ministers.
• Our Interim Minister Task Force is in the process of contacting those ministers and exchanging packets of information with them.
• Next, the full Board of Trustees will interview the candidates by phone or Skype. We will talk about salary, housing, and benefits first to make sure there aren’t any deal breakers before extending an offer. The Board will also check references.
• Prior to May 4, we will check in with all potential interims whose names we have in order to gauge their continued interest in us. We may signal that we wish to hire one of the candidates, but we may not make an offer until May 4. If there is mutual agreement on May 4, we may move toward finalizing the contract.
• If we have found no match in the first round, then second and even third rounds will follow.
The Board has been warned by the Transitions Office that this is a time of anxiety in any congregation. Some members and friends will drop away in response. Our growth may level off for a time. We expect these things to happen, but we hope the effects will be minimal.
Now is the time for all of us to stand together as a congregation and be strong as we navigate any bumps in the road that may be a part of our immediate future. Let us work together. Let us rise to the occasion with love for one another.
I am happy to communicate with anyone who has questions. My email address is below. Please use only this one and delete all others you may have used in the past. If a phone call is better for you, my home number is 899-5850.
Faithfully,
Nikki Williams, President
Nikki.uucss@gmail.com
