Paster Beth Taylor
Dear St. John’s Family:
Our building on the corner of 11 Mile and Woodward has been the spiritual home for generations of faithful parishioners since 1926. Those first members built a church to house a community of love and welcome for all people. They couldn’t have imagined then what they have given to each of us: a place to nurture and grow our connections to God and to one another and a place from which to serve our wider community.
For 100 years, generations of faithful people at St. John’s have dreamed together and followed God’s call to plant and grow a community that welcomes everyone. Now it’s our turn. Now it’s our time.
I am pleased to announce St. John’s Centennial Capital Campaign:
Affirming our Welcome: Building in Faith
Now is the time to build upon the foundation laid by those who came before us! Now is the time to live into our Welcome Statement by adapting our building to reflect our deeply held beliefs and values through removal of barriers, improved comfort and safety, and creation of a space that truly welcomes all!
The Capital Campaign described in these pages is part of our ongoing story of mission and ministry. The parishioners in 1920 who planted the seeds of St. John’s, and those who kept the congregation alive and vibrant throughout our long history faced challenges of their own. Yet they trusted in God with steadfast hope. They could not have imagined St. John’ s in the 21st century, yet they trusted that God’ s love would thrive and keep us growing. Today, St. John’s is the incarnation of that hope: its roots run deep, and its branches continue to grow.
By funding and stewarding this new plan to completion, we not only advance our church mission in our lifetimes, we can seize this moment to realize more fully the promise of our mission: to become ever more open and welcoming; more dedicated to worship, learning and growth; more supportive of each other and our world.
Working together, we will fulfill the spiritual needs of our members who are, by their faith, called to do God’s work promoting justice, nourishing bodies and souls, advocating for the environment and seeking the inclusion of all people. Working together, we can ensure that our physical structure and our ministry and mission align to give future generations a place to do God’s work in the world.
Now is our time -- a rare moment of possibility -- when visionary investment in our parish home can have a profound impact on our experience in this special place and our ability to grow in service to God and the community. I pray you’ll enthusiastically join us in this Faith mission of our time.
Every blessing,
Rev. Beth Taylor+, Rector
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Capital Campaign Co-Leads Will Wittig and Marie Donigan
Dear St. John’s Family,
We are immensely grateful to the Vestry, the parish and to God for giving us the opportunity to serve you as your Affirming our Welcome: Building on Faith Capital Campaign co-chairs. After the parish adopted our mission statement more than two years ago it became obvious to the Vestry that our building did not align well with our statement of inclusion and our commitment to be a place where everyone is welcome, and everyone belongs.
After a period of discernment by the Vestry, an eight-member Capital Campaign Committee was formed to study a variety of possible renovation projects to help align our facility more closely with who we are. The committee began consulting with contractors, the Maintenance Committee, and past and present Vestry members. We solicited advice and cost estimates from several HVAC and roofing contractors. The Vestry hired an engineering company to conduct a thorough energy and building audit to ensure our dollars are spent in the right place, and we hired Thomas Roberts Architects to develop a range of possible accessibility solutions. After a year of study and discussion we entered into a more focused phase of research and discernment this spring and conducted a full feasibility study with the assistance and guidance of a consultant from Horizons Stewardship.
We are now ready to proceed with the full campaign. We are grateful to the parish for your feedback during the feasibility study that indicated that you are ready to support projects that will make our parish home vastly more accessible, welcoming, and structurally sound. We are also grateful for the dozens of parishioners who have already volunteered so much of their time and talent to make the campaign possible. We have been touched and inspired by all of you who are assisting in this effort.
The Affirming our Welcome: Building on Faith campaign that is described in these pages is one part of an ongoing story of mission and ministry at St. John’s. We are confident that the goals of this campaign will bring this process full circle by enhancing our facility to support and grow our mission and ministry. We have a rich legacy of investment in our building, but it’s been two decades since we embarked on a capital campaign. Generations of faithful people who dreamed big and followed God’s call to plant and grow a community built a solid foundation for future generations. Now it is our time to build upon the foundation they laid for us.
We are available at any time, by phone, email or in person, to answer any questions and address any concerns you may have. We hope and pray that as you contemplate your financial commitment you will ask yourself, “God, what do you want to do through me?”
Marie Donigan, Co-chair Will Wittig, Co-chair
(248) 505-2195 (248) 506-6781