From the Co-Ministers  - David and Stephanie

Well congratulations!!  We are delighted by your choice of John and Sarah Gibb Millspaugh as your next called ministers.  We know Sarah and John to be thoughtful, wise, warm and talented, and we expect to hear news over the years of your happy and long partnership.  Well done!

We are increasingly being asked what’s next for us, so here’s the answer:  We are soon to embark on our slightly deferred “Walden Year,” a time of sabbatical, reflection and discernment.  We anticipate some writing, reading, dog walks, yoga/meditation, conversation and exploration about what might come next.  We feel excited and fortunate to have this opportunity.

It is the location that may surprise you.  We will spend some of this time (in the better weather, ahem) at our cottage in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.  The rest will be right here in Winchester, as we have just closed on a house on Mystic Valley Parkway up by South Border Road.  This way we will have the opportunity to be near Corie, and also to have access to a wide range of opportunities for the future.

As former ministers staying in town, we do want to be clear about what you can expect from us.  Our highest priority will be for you to bond and connect with your called ministers.  We will not be attending church, nor will we discuss church business if we run into you around town.  We will not attend social functions, but we will be happy to chat personally if we happen to see you.

In the meantime, we will be conducting services through June 1^st, and attending the Children’s Service June 8^th.  We are not ones for elaborate farewells, but if you would like to give us something, what we would most appreciate would be brief notes, whether by snail mail or email, identifying something you have found meaningful during the past two years.  We would love to have a few of these to gather and keep, as a memento of our time together.

Thank you for talking us into staying a second year; we wouldn’t have done it without you, and are glad we stayed!

All good wishes for a bright and happy future,

Stephanie and David