May 30, 2024
Dear St. John’s,
The past few weeks have been a rollercoaster. You supported me through a bishop election and a disappointing loss. You have continued to support St. John’s and my family through a stressful time. Thank you, St. John’s, for your kindness and generosity of spirit.
As many of you know, my husband, Joel, returned to his previous work with the Seattle Fire Department nearly six months ago. With the possibility of the bishop position, we lined up schools and activities for our children in the Seattle area. Mutual discernment with the Diocese of Olympia helped me see that the role of bishop is not something I am called to at this time. Additionally, it clarified how much I love serving as your rector. As I told the vestry at our May 22nd meeting, it also revealed that getting our family together is the top priority.
To that end, I have accepted the position of Parochial Vicar at Epiphany Parish, Seattle and will be leaving St. John’s. If I could take you all with me, I would! Leaving is bittersweet because my time as your rector has been a blessing. This opportunity will allow our family to be reunited, with fulfilling employment for Joel and myself, and good opportunities for the children.
Things will be changing pretty quickly as St. John’s moves into a place of transition and discernment for your next rector. Rest assured, St. John’s is in very capable hands with the wardens and members of the vestry.
This Sunday morning, June 2nd, the Rev. Tim Hodapp, Diocesan Canon for Congregations and Transitions will be with us. At 9 AM, Canon Tim will facilitate a Community Conversation to outline the transition process and next steps. This will be a mutual process between St. John’s and the diocese and you have the full support of Bishop Jeff Mello and Canon Tim at this time.
With this news, we shift into a new phase of our life together, one of saying goodbye. This has been a vulnerable process for all of us. I want to thank you for your grace and support during these past months of uncertainty. St. John’s is a healthy, vital, and thriving congregation and that spirit shines brightly. That spirit will continue to shine in the months ahead.
The coming weeks will be full of blessing and challenge. As your rector for a little while longer, I will be saying goodbye and gradually stepping into my new role at Epiphany Parish. This time is bittersweet and it is important. Saying goodbye well is something we must do together. But we don’t do this alone, God is with us and the Holy Spirit strengthens us.
As we move into this next chapter together, the wardens and I would like to invite you to a Goodbye Party on Sunday, June 30th at 6:00 PM. More details will follow.
In thanksgiving for all of you,
Kate +
From the Wardens
Dear Friends in Christ:
God works in mysterious and surprising ways. Just two weeks ago this community shared Rev. Kate’s disappointment in her electoral loss to be bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia (WA). Yet as one door closed, another opened within days: one that now invites Rev. Kate to a new professional challenge on familiar turf while reuniting her family on the same coast.
While this was the force of the Holy Spirit, you had a hand in it, too. You provided a nurturing, open-minded environment in which a young rector clear from the other side of the country could grow spiritually and professionally, testing new ideas to deepen our faith and grow in community, always with the
admonition that “relationship is primary in the Kingdom of God.” You embraced her family – husband, children, and mother – as fellow communicants and friends. You seized the invitation to study the Bible together, and you launched Bill’s Blessings in answer to a call to supply the resource-challenged.
The Wesches’ departure is bittersweet, filled with their joy balanced by our physical loss of a beloved spiritual leader and friend — and yes, more in between time. Yet, in the words of the pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, “there is nothing permanent except change.”
In a special congregational meeting this Sunday, the 2nd, at 9:00 AM, The Rev. Canon Tim Hodapp, ECCT’s Canon for Transition Ministry, will outline the roadmap ahead. We already know that, for a variety of reasons, this won’t be a protracted interim like ones before. We also know that this congregation will be in the driver’s seat, with the full support of diocesan leadership.
As you pray today and in the weeks and months to come, give thanks for Rev. Kate’s ministry and for challenging us to be better Christians. Pray for her success and fulfillment at Epiphany, Seattle, and for her family’s happiness. And pray that the Holy Spirit will lead us into dialog with a new pastoral leader
who can stretch our imaginations, nurture our souls, and increase our faith to be all that God calls us to be.
Faithfully,
Scott Konrad Sandy Loether
Warden Warden