Trinity Together | September-October 2018

MEET THE NORTH PARISH CARE TEAM

Did you know each of our parishes has a care team? The team consists of an elder, one or two deacons, a prayer coordinator, and a communications coordinator. The goal of parish care teams is to enhance the shepherding and mercy care of our church, and we hope that this care will flow out to our neighbors.

We'll be using this space to introduce you to the care teams. And even if you're in a different parish, you might like to learn more about some of your fellow congregation members.

Elder Bill Porter: Bill was ordained as a Ruling Elder in Richmond in the late 1970s at Stony Point RPCES. He and his wife, Sheila, moved to Charlottesville and have been at Trinity since 1984 (with brief sorties to New Mexico and Colorado for work projects). They participate in a small group and are a Fellows host family. Sheila is involved in Women Together in the Word, and Bill is engaged in Reformed University Fellowship, as well as the Blue Ridge Presbytery. Bill was made Elder Emeritus by the Trinity Session in August 2018. Bill is a retired professional engineer (civil). Sheila is a retired Albemarle County School teacher. They have two children and three grandchildren. You can reach Bill at whporter@gmail.com.

Deacon Jim Garmey: Jim has attended Trinity since 1979. He was ordained as a Deacon in 1992, beginning his work with the Mercy Ministry. Jim has also served as chair of the Mercy Team and the Diaconate and has played a role in helping his brothers work through our denomination’s policies and other documents to determine ways to serve together. The Garmeys have hosted and mentored Trinity Fellows. Jim has spent his career in medical research at UVA, primarily in diabetes and cardiology. He and Maureen, a nurse at UVA Medical Center, have two daughters and a grandson. Jim’s prayer for Trinity is that we allow God’s Word to be the foundation for all that we do as we seek to impact a culture estranged from Christ and unfamiliar with Christianity. Jim can be reached at jcg8p@virginia.edu.

Deacon Jeff Johnson: Jeff and his wife, Sandra, moved to Charlottesville in 1978, for Jeff’s job with what is now Northrup Grumman, and so Jeff could attend graduate school at UVA. They joined Trinity in 1982. Jeff has served as a Deacon since 1986, including five years chairing the Diaconate or a committee. His main area of service has been on the Mercy Committee, which he chaired for several years. Jeff is happy that while Mercy Ministry has always involved direct service, recently it has produced greater personal blessings through more relational roles and one-on-one mentoring. Jeff and Sandra have four children and seven grandchildren. Sandra recently became one of Trinity’s first deacon assistants.

Communications Coordinator Audrey Kattwinkel: Audrey has been a member of Trinity for over 20 years, having arrived in Charlottesville just after graduating from JMU. She met her husband, Frank, at Trinity and they have two teenage sons. Audrey has enjoyed being involved with small groups in her parish and in Women Together in the Word, the Parish Ministry, and the Hospitality Team. She feels called to serve on the North Parish Care Team because of her desire to help people feel known, loved, and cared for in our church and community. Reach Audrey at northparish1@gmail.com.

Prayer Coordinator Carey Bailey: Carey is married to Rives and they have been members since 1984. They have raised four children at Trinity. Carey is a pediatric nurse, currently working at Jefferson Area CHIP, a nonprofit that offers home-based services to families with young children. Carey says, “It has been a joy to be asked to pray for people and to engage the local body of Christ in praying for each other. Serving in this role has helped to invigorate my own prayer life.” Contact Carey at careyb619@comcast.net.

session summary: august/september

AUGUST: We opened our August meeting by forming smaller groups for a season of personal praise and prayer for one another, for the congregation, and for the city in anticipation of the anniversary observance of last year’s civil protests.

Next, we heard a ministry update from Abundant Life Director of Leadership Development Richard Feero, who is also a member of our Local Mission Ministry Team. Richard told us about a new Abundant Life initiative, the Abundant Life Fellows Program, inspired by our own Fellows Program.

Newly arrived Director for Spiritual Formation Lane Cowin introduced herself and talked about her role at Trinity. Working with Pastor Wade Bradshaw, she will be responsible for the relational and administrative oversight of formation ministries. She told us that lately she has been particularly inspired and encouraged by John 15 teachings about our abiding in Christ, knowing the joy of union with him and abiding by obedience through the Spirit. Lane has a long history with Trinity, and we are most grateful for her presence on our staff.

Pastor Joe Magri told us about a new Deacon Assistant training plan. He explained that a retrospective review of our initial program had revealed ways we could improve the whole process. After a brief explanation of the changes, we approved the new program, which he will implement with the next class.

Finally, with considerable reluctance but with even greater gratitude for his years of extraordinary service, we granted Bill Porter Elder Emeritus status.

SEPTEMBER: At our September meeting, as is our regular practice, we opened in prayer. Pastor Wade led us in the Thursday evening liturgy that many of you use in your personal devotions. We prayed for several known needs among you—a particularly good way to help focus us on the Lord and the task before us as we begin our meeting. If you ever want us to include in our prayers a concern you may be aware of, please contact me or any pastor or elder. We welcome any such requests.

Our meeting featured a a discussion of group leadership values, based on comments received during our joint Chapter, Diaconate, Session retreat in August. In small groups we talked about both what we loved and what frustrates us about how things get done. We then brainstormed about group leadership values that we should consider using in our meetings. This is still a work in progress.

Have a question about our Session? Email session@trinitycville.org.