The Personnel Committee has been meeting weekly and corresponding daily since September as it works diligently and prayerfully to identify a candidate to recommend to Session to serve as our interim senior pastor. We have sought and received counsel from retired clergy who worship in our church; from an interim ministry expert at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary; from pastoral colleagues on the boards of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and Princeton Theological Seminary; and from many in the congregation.

We are conducting a nation-wide search and have been in touch with nearly all of the Presbyteries in the US (including the Pittsburgh Presbytery) to post information about our search. We have received and followed up on candidate suggestions from members of the Congregation. We have been contacted by more than 20 potential candidates. We have conducted several telephone interviews with more scheduled and will be having face to face meetings with candidates in December and January. We expect to have an interim senior pastor in place in March or April. Our priority is to do our work well rather than to do it hastily just to get someone in place.

Our church is blessed to have Scott and Tracey as our associate pastors. They have developed a plan to provide the clergy leadership our church needs between the time when Dana leaves, on January 10, 2010, and the time when we have an interim senior pastor in place. Their plan includes a schedule for preaching; a rotating month-at-a-time assignment as head pastor; and other arrangements for sharing pastoral and administrative duties previously held by Dana. They are enthusiastic about the developmental opportunities these assignments provide for them, and they feel honored to serve the church in expanded ways during this timeframe. Session has unanimously and enthusiastically endorsed their plan and has the utmost confidence in each of them and in both of them, together, to lead our church well during this time between Dana’s departure and the arrival of our interim senior pastor.

We will keep you updated on our progress, but in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact any of us of you have questions or recommendations.