Dear COTHAians,
It is with great joy I am announcing that your Vestry unanimously approved the Search Committee’s unanimous recommendation to call the Reverend Alex Large to be the Rector of the Church of the Holy Apostles and Fr. Alex has accepted the call.
Alex is currently the Associate Rector for Family Ministries at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Houston. He has also served as Assistant Rector at All Saints Church in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and Curate at the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in Vail Colorado. He has a Master of Divinity from Trinity School for Ministry and a BA in European History from Washington and Lee University.
Alex clearly has a passion for bringing the gospel of grace to the whole Church. He has led and been involved in all stages of family ministries throughout his career. As Alex says, “I have a passion for bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to all ages, and to empower the church for God's work of redeeming love in the community,” (Romans 3:21-26). “And my wife and I are incredibly excited to begin this journey with you all at COTHA!”
Alex is married to Emily and they have 3 children, Eloise (12 years old), Cordelia (9 years old) and Phoebe (7 years old). Emily is a professional family photographer, Bible study leader, and a busy mom. The Larges will be relocating to Katy from the Meyerland area over the summer. As Emily told us, “We can’t do our ministry from afar!”
Fr Alex’s first day as COTHA’s Rector will be Monday, July 22 and his first Sunday to preach will be Sunday, July 28th.
I think anyone on the Vestry and Search Committee will tell you that the Holy Spirit was all over this search process and led COTHA to call Fr. Alex and for him to accept the call. Let us give the Glory to God and thanksgiving to Him for leading us on this journey.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Doug Eisele
Senior Warden on behalf of the Vestry and the Search Committee
It is with great joy I am announcing that your Vestry unanimously approved the Search Committee’s unanimous recommendation to call the Reverend Alex Large to be the Rector of the Church of the Holy Apostles and Fr. Alex has accepted the call.
Alex is currently the Associate Rector for Family Ministries at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Houston. He has also served as Assistant Rector at All Saints Church in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and Curate at the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration in Vail Colorado. He has a Master of Divinity from Trinity School for Ministry and a BA in European History from Washington and Lee University.
Alex clearly has a passion for bringing the gospel of grace to the whole Church. He has led and been involved in all stages of family ministries throughout his career. As Alex says, “I have a passion for bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to all ages, and to empower the church for God's work of redeeming love in the community,” (Romans 3:21-26). “And my wife and I are incredibly excited to begin this journey with you all at COTHA!”
Alex is married to Emily and they have 3 children, Eloise (12 years old), Cordelia (9 years old) and Phoebe (7 years old). Emily is a professional family photographer, Bible study leader, and a busy mom. The Larges will be relocating to Katy from the Meyerland area over the summer. As Emily told us, “We can’t do our ministry from afar!”
Fr Alex’s first day as COTHA’s Rector will be Monday, July 22 and his first Sunday to preach will be Sunday, July 28th.
I think anyone on the Vestry and Search Committee will tell you that the Holy Spirit was all over this search process and led COTHA to call Fr. Alex and for him to accept the call. Let us give the Glory to God and thanksgiving to Him for leading us on this journey.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Doug Eisele
Senior Warden on behalf of the Vestry and the Search Committee
Almighty and everlasting God, ruler of all things in heaven and earth, hear our prayers for this parish family. Strengthen the faithful, arouse the careless, and restore the penitent. Send down upon our clergy the healthful Spirit of your grace that they may truly please you, and pour upon them the continual dew of your blessing. Look graciously on this your Church and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a rector for this parish, that we may receive a faithful pastor who will care for your people and equip us for our ministries. Grant us all things necessary for our common life, and bring us all to be of one heart and mind within your holy Church; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
December 2, 2018
The search for a new rector for COTHA began in early 2018 with the formation of a profile committee following the direction of the Texas Diocese guidelines. That committee was formed and a wonderful profile of our church was the result. The profile was submitted to the diocese for placement on their website for prospective candidates to view. This part of the process is complete. My personal congratulations go out to the committee for such a great job.
Shortly after the posting of the profile, a search committee was formed to begin the process of interviewing prospective candidates. Twelve people were selected and agreed to serve on the committee. It is the job of the diocese to vet and submit to the committee candidates for our review. So for they have submitted several prospects and we have narrowed the field to two candidates to enter in to the formal interview process.
So far, we have formally interviewed one candidate whom we are very excited about. We have another formal interview set for early February with the second candidate.
The interviewing team has met and debriefed. We are scheduled to meet with the entire committee to submit the team results and discuss.
Stay tuned for further details as God is definitely at work here. It is on His schedule and not ours. We remain patient and faithful to this process as we wait for Him to reveal that special person that will lead COTHA into the future.
The search for a new rector for COTHA began in early 2018 with the formation of a profile committee following the direction of the Texas Diocese guidelines. That committee was formed and a wonderful profile of our church was the result. The profile was submitted to the diocese for placement on their website for prospective candidates to view. This part of the process is complete. My personal congratulations go out to the committee for such a great job.
Shortly after the posting of the profile, a search committee was formed to begin the process of interviewing prospective candidates. Twelve people were selected and agreed to serve on the committee. It is the job of the diocese to vet and submit to the committee candidates for our review. So for they have submitted several prospects and we have narrowed the field to two candidates to enter in to the formal interview process.
So far, we have formally interviewed one candidate whom we are very excited about. We have another formal interview set for early February with the second candidate.
The interviewing team has met and debriefed. We are scheduled to meet with the entire committee to submit the team results and discuss.
Stay tuned for further details as God is definitely at work here. It is on His schedule and not ours. We remain patient and faithful to this process as we wait for Him to reveal that special person that will lead COTHA into the future.
July 20, 2018
Dear COTHAians,
A quick update on the Rector search,
As we announced last Sunday, the Search Committee had their first meeting. They received training on the search process, how to interview candidates and elected their leaders. Roxanne Martin is the chairman of the Search Committee. Tom Stiles agreed to act as her deputy. The committee has begun formulating the interview questions using the Rector Profile written by the Profile Committee. If you recall that work was based on the results of the Holy Cow survey that many of you participated in earlier this year.
The other effort underway is gathering the names of potential Rector candidates. There are 3 sources for these nominations. The Diocese has been putting together a list they believe fits our Rector Profile. Now that our Search website is on the Diocesan website, potential candidates may self-nominate. And members of the congregation or other outside sources may nominate a potential candidate. All candidates must be approved by the Bishop.
If you have a candidate, please let one of the Vestry or Search Committee members know and we will get the forms to you to fill out, so we can submit the name. We ask that all nominations be in by August 15th.
The Vestry wants to thank the Profile Committee for all the work and the high-quality product they produced. We continue to receive recognition of the search website and Rector profile they developed.
Please pray daily for the Rector search effort that the person God has selected as our next Rector is found quickly. We give thanks for where God is taking this Church to glorify what He has created and will create.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry and Search Committee
deisele1@comcast.net
Dear COTHAians,
A quick update on the Rector search,
As we announced last Sunday, the Search Committee had their first meeting. They received training on the search process, how to interview candidates and elected their leaders. Roxanne Martin is the chairman of the Search Committee. Tom Stiles agreed to act as her deputy. The committee has begun formulating the interview questions using the Rector Profile written by the Profile Committee. If you recall that work was based on the results of the Holy Cow survey that many of you participated in earlier this year.
The other effort underway is gathering the names of potential Rector candidates. There are 3 sources for these nominations. The Diocese has been putting together a list they believe fits our Rector Profile. Now that our Search website is on the Diocesan website, potential candidates may self-nominate. And members of the congregation or other outside sources may nominate a potential candidate. All candidates must be approved by the Bishop.
If you have a candidate, please let one of the Vestry or Search Committee members know and we will get the forms to you to fill out, so we can submit the name. We ask that all nominations be in by August 15th.
The Vestry wants to thank the Profile Committee for all the work and the high-quality product they produced. We continue to receive recognition of the search website and Rector profile they developed.
Please pray daily for the Rector search effort that the person God has selected as our next Rector is found quickly. We give thanks for where God is taking this Church to glorify what He has created and will create.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry and Search Committee
deisele1@comcast.net
June 29, 2018
Search Committee
Search Committee
Dear COTHAians,
The Rector Search
The Profile Committee has completed their work and the Vestry approved the final product last week. Here is a link to that work on the Diocesan website. You will also see a few changes on our COTHA website to reflect the simplified wording on our Mission and Values statements.
We are so grateful to the work the Profile Committee accomplished. The final product was very well received by the Diocese. Please thank Kami Huyse, Teri Hobbs, Tracey Cleckler, Ikhide Longe, Juan Fuentes, Lisa Nelson, and Debbie Blank.
The Vestry has called a Search Committee after going through a discernment process. We considered every adult member of the Church who met the Diocesan qualification. It was a very difficult process because we have so many qualified members. We think you will find that this group of people will represent us well in the search process. We will commission the Search Committee THIS Sunday at our 10:30a service.
Derek Agomate, Carter Bolt, Mark Gehringer, Melissa Ghassemi, Jennifer Lindley, Ucheoma Longe, Roxanne Martin, Akin Olufowoshe, Janevieve Parks, Phil Staley, James Tomberlin, Tom Stiles.
Please remember to keep COTHA and the Rector search in your daily prayers. God has great things planned for this Church and it starts with our prayers.
Grace and Peace, Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry
deisele1@comcast.net
The Rector Search
The Profile Committee has completed their work and the Vestry approved the final product last week. Here is a link to that work on the Diocesan website. You will also see a few changes on our COTHA website to reflect the simplified wording on our Mission and Values statements.
We are so grateful to the work the Profile Committee accomplished. The final product was very well received by the Diocese. Please thank Kami Huyse, Teri Hobbs, Tracey Cleckler, Ikhide Longe, Juan Fuentes, Lisa Nelson, and Debbie Blank.
The Vestry has called a Search Committee after going through a discernment process. We considered every adult member of the Church who met the Diocesan qualification. It was a very difficult process because we have so many qualified members. We think you will find that this group of people will represent us well in the search process. We will commission the Search Committee THIS Sunday at our 10:30a service.
Derek Agomate, Carter Bolt, Mark Gehringer, Melissa Ghassemi, Jennifer Lindley, Ucheoma Longe, Roxanne Martin, Akin Olufowoshe, Janevieve Parks, Phil Staley, James Tomberlin, Tom Stiles.
Please remember to keep COTHA and the Rector search in your daily prayers. God has great things planned for this Church and it starts with our prayers.
Grace and Peace, Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry
deisele1@comcast.net
May 1, 2018
Survey Recap
Survey Recap
Dear COTHAIANS,
I hope those who could attend last Sunday’s parish meeting were as excited about the results as I was. I was impressed by the energy shown and the comments we got back. The fact that there is so much energy in our congregation to make COTHA even better has got to be an attractive characteristic for the Rector God is calling to our Church.
If you were not able to attend the presentation and receive the results summary, it is on the website under Members > Rector Search. Also, if you have a question that you didn’t get a chance to ask, there will be an opportunity to talk to the Profile Committee after the services on Sunday, May 6th, drop a note in the suggestion boxes in the foyer, or send an email to profile@cotha.org and we will get it answered.
What is the next step? We are following the Diocesan process. This process combines all our survey information and comments into the profile description of our Church. This includes information such as what we want in a Rector, the job description etc. The committee hopes to have this work done before the end of the month. Once this is put together and approved by the COTHA vestry, we will put the information on the diocesan website. The vestry will then prayerfully call a Search Community. They will undergo Diocesan training and work with the Diocese to find the Rector God is calling.
The survey results have given us a lot to think about and have identified many things we want to work on. While we are not going to stand still, we won’t be making any strategic changes. These issues are an opportunity for a new Rector to lead. The fact that COTHA is looking to have a strategy for reaching and attracting new people, especially families, and reach out intothe community to help those in need will be a very attractive characteristic.
We are still working hard to recruit a full-time Children’s Ministry Director. This fits right into what we hear in the survey results but has proven to be a much more difficult process than we anticipated. We give thanks that Jennifer Bolt is keeping our ministry going. In addition, we are very thankful that people are stepping in to help build a stronger program in our nursery. Did you know that our 3 and 4-year olds are learning Bible verses?
We are planning a Taste of the Nations event for June. This will be a great event to have some fun at the start of summer and to get to know a bit more about each other. Our attendance is up. We have visitors every Sunday. We also have a strong Wednesday program, including our free meal ministry which reaches out to the community. Everyone is invited. This is a chance to have an informal dinner and catch up with people you know and to meet some that you don’t. Almost every Wednesday there is someone there who just needs a meal or a conversation. That’s what the dinner is about; reaching out.
Lastly, none of this work will be successful if we, as a congregation, are not doing God’s will. Please pray for the Church, our future Rector, and for wisdom and discernment for the many people working on this effort. Prayerfully consider volunteering to help in one of our many ministries, if you are not already.
As Kami Huyse said this last Sunday, this is our Church, so we need to all join together to further the work that God wants us to do.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry
deisele1@comcast.net
I hope those who could attend last Sunday’s parish meeting were as excited about the results as I was. I was impressed by the energy shown and the comments we got back. The fact that there is so much energy in our congregation to make COTHA even better has got to be an attractive characteristic for the Rector God is calling to our Church.
If you were not able to attend the presentation and receive the results summary, it is on the website under Members > Rector Search. Also, if you have a question that you didn’t get a chance to ask, there will be an opportunity to talk to the Profile Committee after the services on Sunday, May 6th, drop a note in the suggestion boxes in the foyer, or send an email to profile@cotha.org and we will get it answered.
What is the next step? We are following the Diocesan process. This process combines all our survey information and comments into the profile description of our Church. This includes information such as what we want in a Rector, the job description etc. The committee hopes to have this work done before the end of the month. Once this is put together and approved by the COTHA vestry, we will put the information on the diocesan website. The vestry will then prayerfully call a Search Community. They will undergo Diocesan training and work with the Diocese to find the Rector God is calling.
The survey results have given us a lot to think about and have identified many things we want to work on. While we are not going to stand still, we won’t be making any strategic changes. These issues are an opportunity for a new Rector to lead. The fact that COTHA is looking to have a strategy for reaching and attracting new people, especially families, and reach out intothe community to help those in need will be a very attractive characteristic.
We are still working hard to recruit a full-time Children’s Ministry Director. This fits right into what we hear in the survey results but has proven to be a much more difficult process than we anticipated. We give thanks that Jennifer Bolt is keeping our ministry going. In addition, we are very thankful that people are stepping in to help build a stronger program in our nursery. Did you know that our 3 and 4-year olds are learning Bible verses?
We are planning a Taste of the Nations event for June. This will be a great event to have some fun at the start of summer and to get to know a bit more about each other. Our attendance is up. We have visitors every Sunday. We also have a strong Wednesday program, including our free meal ministry which reaches out to the community. Everyone is invited. This is a chance to have an informal dinner and catch up with people you know and to meet some that you don’t. Almost every Wednesday there is someone there who just needs a meal or a conversation. That’s what the dinner is about; reaching out.
Lastly, none of this work will be successful if we, as a congregation, are not doing God’s will. Please pray for the Church, our future Rector, and for wisdom and discernment for the many people working on this effort. Prayerfully consider volunteering to help in one of our many ministries, if you are not already.
As Kami Huyse said this last Sunday, this is our Church, so we need to all join together to further the work that God wants us to do.
Grace and Peace
Doug Eisele on behalf of the Vestry
deisele1@comcast.net
April 8, 2018
Survey results are in.
Survey results are in.
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
This past week we received the data from Holy Cow Consultants on the Church Assessment Tool (CAT) that 143 members of our congregation completed. Reaching this milestone makes it a good time to update everyone on the progress of the Rector search. I am sure many of you think this search is moving very slowly but we are committed to doing this correctly which takes time. We are so fortunate to have Fr. Desmond leading us in the interim.
Here are the highlights of the many things happening:
I want to thank everyone who took the time to fill out the survey. I can tell you that it will pay benefits as we build our profile and work to fulfill God’s mission for Holy Apostles and to call the Rector God has already selected. We will continue to update you as we move forward and want to make this search process as transparent as possible.
I also want to thank the congregation for supporting Fr. Desmond and the staff as they continue to move Holy Apostles forward in this time of transition. Nothing will help us more than having everyone in the congregation take on a role in one of our ministries.
Grace and Peace on behalf of the Vestry,
Doug Eisele
Senior Warden
This past week we received the data from Holy Cow Consultants on the Church Assessment Tool (CAT) that 143 members of our congregation completed. Reaching this milestone makes it a good time to update everyone on the progress of the Rector search. I am sure many of you think this search is moving very slowly but we are committed to doing this correctly which takes time. We are so fortunate to have Fr. Desmond leading us in the interim.
Here are the highlights of the many things happening:
- We are now listed on the Episcopal Diocese of Texas website as a church in the Pre-Search stage for a new Rector. This means candidates looking at potential churches will see that we are looking for a new Rector.
- The Profile Committee is working hard developing a link for the Diocese website that will serve as a brochure about our church for potential candidates. The site should be up and running in May or June.
- About 50% of the average Sunday attendance completed the CAT Survey. We are told by the Holy Cow owner that this is a very good response rate and is reliable data to help us to begin understanding our congregation’s priorities.
- As a part of the review process, the Profile Committee and Vestry met last Tuesday to hear the results of the survey and find out from the experts at Holy Cow what the raw data is telling us. The meeting lasted 3 hours and could have gone longer because we had so many questions. It is a lot of data. The committee will be having several additional meetings over the next few weeks to get a clearer picture of all the information.
- Our next steps in this process will be to review the results with Fr Desmond and the staff and to hold a parish-wide meeting in May (We will send a notice out well in advance). We will then present the results to the congregation.
- We also plan to hold focus meetings with various groups to further refine our insight into the priorities of the congregation. As interesting as the data is, the analysis of the survey data marks only the beginning of the conversation. We want to get the stories behind the data which we know will help to build a great profile.
I want to thank everyone who took the time to fill out the survey. I can tell you that it will pay benefits as we build our profile and work to fulfill God’s mission for Holy Apostles and to call the Rector God has already selected. We will continue to update you as we move forward and want to make this search process as transparent as possible.
I also want to thank the congregation for supporting Fr. Desmond and the staff as they continue to move Holy Apostles forward in this time of transition. Nothing will help us more than having everyone in the congregation take on a role in one of our ministries.
Grace and Peace on behalf of the Vestry,
Doug Eisele
Senior Warden