Read the full issue of this week’s newsletter here: The Weekly Liberal Dec. 5

In this week’s Liberal, Rev. Jen Crow writes:

Do you ever find yourself thinking and planning and saving and daydreaming for so long about something that you wonder if it will ever actually happen? I’ll admit that there have been days when I have wondered if our building renovation would ever actually happen. We’ve been thoughtful and methodical. We’ve taken in new information and explored new options. And this winter, we’ll mark 3 years since the launch of our capital campaign, Not for Ourselves Alone: Building an Inclusive Future, that raised $4.5 million to help our building better serve our mission and our community. Since that time, many of you have made and continue to make generous financial gifts to help us fulfill our vision of a stable financial future and a building that truly welcomes all. 

During this time of discernment, we’ve paid off our mortgage and weighed our options. We continue to right size our expectations to meet our budget – and we are moving forward. In November, we hired an Owner’s Representative – a project manager who works directly for us, advocating for our best interest with our future contractor and our present architect. As we do with every contract over $5,000, we used our vendor policy to guide our decision, ensuring our resources are spent in alignment with our values. I’m thrilled that our new Owner’s Representative is Chelsea Waters from Watershed Partners. Chelsea recently brought Bethlehem Lutheran Church through several major building projects and she comes to us highly recommended for her efficiency, wisdom, and eye for cost-savings. It didn’t hurt that Chelsea knows our space already, too, having grown up in our religious education program with first-hand experience of the shag carpet that used to grace our social hall. 

We expect to hire a General Contractor within the next two weeks, and then move into a period of value engineering – which is a fancy way of saying that our Building Team will work closely with Chelsea, the contractor, and the architect to get as much of what we are hoping for as possible. We’ll create a final draft of our plans, and if all goes well, we can expect to begin renovations before the end of June. 

While things have moved slowly for some time, we are about to change gears. All of our imagining and planning is taking shape, and the speed is about to pick up. As we keep you informed about all that is coming, we will also be asking for your help. We’ll be identifying tasks that we can do together – and asking you to pitch in. We’ll need your good spirits and willingness to try new things as we make way for this long-awaited change. After a time of waiting, something new is about to begin.

In faith, 
Rev. Jen Crow
Co-Senior Minister