An item of follow up from the 2023 ACM is to provide a short summary of agenda items at the bi-weekly 
LT meeting.  

Dec 12, 2024: Community Forum on Same-Sex Marriage

Our two forums in November about the ECC position on marriage were valuable opportunities for open dialogue. These discussions provided a space for individuals to share their thoughts and perspectives, offering the leadership team important insights. We are truly grateful for everyone who participated and shared their input during these forums and in other ways.

As a follow-up, the elders are continuing to pray, study, talk to others, and through all of this, to seek the wisdom of the Lord for ECC.  We are planning a special meeting of the Leadership Team to consider these matters in further depth. Sometime in the new year after this meeting, we will communicate more to our community.

We understand that this is a deeply significant topic and want to approach it thoughtfully rather than rushing the process. Please pray for God’s wisdom and leading.  Thank you for your understanding and patience as we continue this journey together.  

June 11 2023. Community Meeting Highlights                   

After brief comments and a land acknowledgement from Dan R. to open the meeting Ken shared about our vision.

Ken – Our vision for ministry has not changed and the LT does not see a need to change it. However, how we pursue our vision and where we see God working among us during this current season of ministry is always changing. Over the next few months we will be seeking to listen to God, His Word, and the Holy Spirit speaking through elders & members of our community. Please join with me in asking God to clearly show us where he wants to work among us to fulfill our vision during this next season of ministry.

 Dan transitioned the meeting to a discussion about developing a broader leadership model. He referenced some results of the survey we conducted earlier in the year, showing that the ECC community had a good understanding of what the LT does and it’s clear, they do things that are outside the role description and Biblical understanding of an elder.

Several other ideas from the survey were shared that everyone seems to be in agreement on:

• Hire more staff, specifically w/ children and youth.
• Leadership responsibilities should be shared more broadly and expanded to include “deacons”
• Train/mentor younger leaders
• Keep working on good communication.

We have hired two new part time staff, so the next area of importance seems to be a need to consider inviting more people into defined leadership roles which will allow the elders to focus on pastoral concerns and shepherding.  Dan shared how this is not a new idea and it’s also seen in Acts 6 as the early church dealt with similar issues.

Dan gave multiple examples of the types of roles a “deacon” model would include.  A few of those were: Finance, facilities, Outreach, landscaping, prayer team, etc.

After a few questions from the community, Dan divided the group into small groups to discuss these questions:

1. What do you like about a deacon model of leadership?
2. Any concerns? Questions?
3. Please offer any suggestions or things to keep in mind as we move forward.

Finally, each group took turns sharing ideas they discussed and most of what was shared was abbreviated and transcribed.  For a full copy of those sheets the ideas were written on, please email Tatiana Crespo and she can offer a copy of those items.

The general sense of the feedback during the evening is that those present support the idea of developing a new level of leadership, such as Deacons, but it’s important that we recognize the informal leadership already in place.   In any moves toward formalizing another level of leadership, there are many details to be sorted out.

JUNE 11, 2023

The Leadership Team (LT) is pleased to share that we have called Valerie Heyn to be our Children and Family Ministries Pastor, and she has accepted. 

Valerie has been serving as the interim pastor in this position most of 2023.  The LT invited an internal opportunity for people to apply for this position during the month of May and no one applied.   

The LT was unanimous in the decision to extend this role to Valerie and many ECC community members wrote notes of affirmation and encouragement as we have all seen the fruits of her giftedness over the past season. We are quite blessed to have Valerie in this pastoral role and we look forward to watching how God will use her among our children and their families. 

Please pray for Valerie as she continues in her role as the permanent pastor in this important ministry. 

MAY 10, 2023

Dear ECC,

The Leadership Team is pleased to announce that upon the recommendation of the Search Committee a call to youth ministry has been made to Luke Simpkins and he has accepted the call.

Luke is arriving from England on July 12 and is engaged to marry Mariel Jones on August 4th. Mariel and Luke will be living in Steveston after their marriage. 

Please pray for Luke and the Leadership Team as we plan for his arrival and the commencement of his ministry.

FEBRUARY 2023

Important Request from the Leadership Team

ECC has been facing an important issue related to having enough Elders to serve as Directors of the society. We now have the opportunity to lean in and ask, as a community:

• Why do we have this problem?
• What should we learn from this?
• And how might we adapt our governance to better fit the times we are in? 

In order to get feedback and gain insight from our community around this topic, we would like to hear from every one of you and ask that you please take the time to FILL OUT THIS IMPORTANT SURVEY as soon as you are able. 

At this year's ACM we’ll have a focused meeting specifically around this important issue of governance, as well as the usual time to review 2022 and ministry highlights together as a community. So save the date and plan to attend on March 5th for our ACM, shortly after the morning service.

JANUARY 26, 2023

Dear ECC Sisters, Brothers and Friends,

During the month of November last year we prayed that the Lord would lead us and guide our thinking regarding our life and testimony as a Christian community. In accordance with His promises, God does answer prayer and guides us into all truth. We therefore know that He has spoken to those who prayed regarding His will for our community. Now is the time for you to share how you believe God has spoken to you.

We encourage you to share your thoughts and ideas about one or two things you believe God is calling us to focus on as a community. For example you may say that you believe the Lord is calling us to be more focused on development of house groups or social gatherings or children’s ministry. Or perhaps something new has come to mind? The more people who share the better because that helps us “feel the pulse” of the body of Christ as represented at ECC. Your ideas are important to us and we would love to hear what God has placed in your hearts regarding our community. 

Here’s how you can share your thoughts with the Leadership Team: 

1. You can send an email to Alastair at: reesthomas@icloud.com

2. You can phone or meet with a member of the Leadership Team;

3. You can drop a note off (anonymously if you like) at the church office or pass it along to one of the Leadership Team. 

Blessings to all

The Leadership Team

(Lesley, Alastair, Dwight, Tatiana, Dean & Ken)

JANUARY 15, 2023

Last week, the Leadership Team received a letter from our associate pastor, Laurence Vicencio giving his resignation.  While Laurence has valued his time at ECC he has sensed the need to take a bit of a break and take some time for some personal inventory. So, Laurence will be closing out his time here in our community and this Sunday will be his last.  On Sunday, we will have time during our service where we can pray for Laurence, to thank him for his work here and to send him off with God’s grace and peace.

The Elders are pleased to officially welcome Dean Golby to the team!  Thank you Dean & Linda for responding to this call at this time.

OCTOBER 28, 2022

A CALL TO PRAYER FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER 

Dear Sisters, Brothers & Friends,

We are writing to seek your help in discerning the mind and heart of God as we move forward as a worshipping community.  It probably goes without saying that the last few years have brought about tremendous change.  As a Leadership Team (the LT) we continually seek the mind of God regarding His will for ECC and as part of that seeking, we are asking you to join us in prayer.   

As we approach a new year, how does the Lord want us to live out our vision of being a caring community that welcomes people from all walks of life to follow Jesus?  How can we be more attune to the Spirit so everyone can grow and discover their gifts to serve?  Where are we to stay the same or change?

It is therefore with joy that we invite you to set aside the month of November as a special time of prayer for the ECC community.  We believe that the Lord speaks through scripture, through God’s intervention and through the body of Christ, the Church.   

After a season of focused prayer, we want to hear from you.  We ask you to share with us what God has placed on your heart.    

Everyone has a role to play in hearing from God and, if led by the Holy Spirit, to share what they hear with the church leadership.  It is the role of church leaders to discern and communicate what we believe God is saying in and through the body of Christ. 

So here is what we are asking you to do:

• Pray, listen and call upon the Holy Spirit to reveal the Lord’s heart and mind for ECC. (John 16:14 - He [i.e. the Holy Spirit] will glorify me [Jesus], for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” ). What is the Holy Spirit saying to you about our community that will change lives for the glory of God?
• In the month of December, share with us what you believe the Lord is saying to you. Maybe you are hearing from the Lord in your housegroup, as a couple, as a family, or as friends chatting. It might be an idea, a concern, a burden, a new ministry or something altogether brand new. The goal is to hear how we can better serve Christ and be His Church. 

Don’t be concerned with making a mistake.  This is not a test!  If you feel the Lord has moved your heart in a certain way after seeking Him in prayer please share what is on your heart.  As your Leadership Team, one of the ways we want to hear from God is in and through you.

We will share with ECC what we believe to be the Lord’s will and guidance for the community and seek your feedback on that as well.    

Jesus said in John 10:27 - “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”  Let us hear His voice and follow him with one heart and mind together. 

Mother Teresa said: “God speaks in the silence of the heart. Listening is the beginning of prayer.”

You can always email all the members of the Leadership Team at leadership@myecc.ca .    

In Christ,

Your Leadership Team

SEPTEMBER, 2022

Announcements to the community on Sunday, Sept 18:

1. Are you interested in joining a small group at ECC?  Contact Ken.

2. Update on ECC's Finances as of August 31, 2022:

The various options for giving to ECC are outlined HERE.

3. Please pray for our Elders: Dwight Dee (chair), Tatiana Crespo, Alastair Rees-Thomas, and Lesley Richardson (recently re-joined Eldership) as they faithfully serve this community.

MAY 8, 2022

This past Sunday, our Chair of the Elders, Peter Reynolds, announced that he will be stepping down from the board of Elders as he and Valerie will be moving to Nanaimo. This leaves us with only three elders so we are in need of two or three more people to join the board. One person is willing to be considered – more info on that will follow. If you are approached to consider joining the board, please receive this with an open heart. There is a strong need in this community for leadership so please be in prayer.

There is also a need for people to help us establish Ministry Teams in the two areas of Missions and Reconciliation. We need a small group of people to help us stay connected with our local and overseas missionaries; and we need a group of people to give some leadership to how the church can be supportive of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and others that have been marginalized in our society. If you are interested in either of these teams, please send a message to leadership@myecc.ca.

FEB 20, 2022

In early December, we faced the latest in a series of changes due to the Pandemic. Places of worship were given the option of either 50% capacity or 100% capacity with proof of vaccine. The Leadership Team here at ECC, chose to go with both options by offering two services.  At the time, we said that we wanted to try this for a season.  This decision required extra effort on behalf of Ken and many volunteers, which has been really appreciated!  This decision also met with some pushback!  But as Ken has pointed out - any pushback has always kept with a spirit of unity - for which we are thankful!

Dr. Henry’s announcement this past week did not change anything for places of worship, although there are hints of that to come.  Given that a relaxation of mandates is likely to come, and given that Lent and Easter are coming up, the Leadership Team has decided that the season of two services is over for now. Starting on March 6th - the first Sunday of Lent, we will go back to one service at 10 a.m.

But please note - this service will be at 50% capacity - we will not be requiring the Vaccine Passport. We continue to allow our vision of being a welcoming place for all people to guide us and therefore we desire to make our service available to all. If we reach capacity by the beginning of a service, we will ‘overflow’ into the kitchen(Lounge). When the kids leave for Sunday School, those people can then move into the Sanctuary.

During the last several weeks, I asked a few people to give some thought to what a ‘unique’ second service could look like. You may remember that one of the reasons for going to two services was because of the growth our congregation had been experiencing pre-pandemic. I still believe there may be a place for a second ‘unique’ service and we will continue to explore the need for that in the weeks and months to come. 

Of course, Ken, myself and anyone on the Leadership Team is available to talk more about this. Please continue to pray for us.

-Peter Reynolds, on behalf of the LT

JAN 27, 2022

For two years now, the Leadership Team has been navigating how to best deal with the changing conditions of the Pandemic. For a long time, we could only meet virtually. Then, we were able to meet together in limited numbers. Currently, we face the challenge of mandates about attendance that depend on vaccination status and the Omicron variant has raised our fears of infection. 

We regularly say we want to be a place for all people. It’s part of our vision and our DNA. So, we desire to find a way to give a place for anyone who wants to come to worship, regardless of their views on vaccines.  We considered several options but felt the only viable option was to have two services so that people have the choice to go when they feel most comfortable. 

Before the Pandemic, the leadership was starting to think about how to deal with our growing numbers. One of the options was going to two services. As we reflected on this we began to wonder if NOW was a good opportunity to explore this.

Yes, this puts more of a demand on several volunteers each Sunday. Yes, the times for the services might be inconvenient. But as Ken has reminded us several times, we are called to serve each other and have a sacrificial mindset. We may not agree with some people around the issues of vaccines, but everyone needs to feel that they have a place. People need community. People are in a desperate need for connecting. People need to worship together.

The last two years have been incredibly difficult for everyone. And it is tougher when our community – a place of stability and comfort – is constantly changing. Or even doing things we don’t like. Please bear with us. Please continue to pray for us and each other. 

One more thing – if you are flexible about which service to attend, could we ask you to consider coming to the second service at 10:45? Obviously, there is more interest in the first service (especially as this is the one with a kids program), but we would love to have more people with us.

By the way, reserve the evening of Sunday, February 27th for our Annual Community Meeting.

JAN 1, 2022

The Board of Elders is delighted to announce that we have hired Laurence Vicencio as our new full time Associate Pastor. Laurence is a resident of Richmond, has extensive experience in ministry, especially relevant to children.
 
He will officially begin on Jan.15th but will start meeting with other staff before then.  He will join us for our services on Jan. 9th Our thanks go to the Search Committee for their amazing work – Lesley Richardson, Dwight Dee, Angela Henze, Stephanie Rich and, of course, Ken Pierce.
 
Laurence is now featured on our website and he has been set up with an ECC email account.  Please take a look and get to know him as we welcome him to our community!

CLICK HERE to learn more about Laurence.

DEC 12, 2021

Most are aware of the recent decision by BC Health to restrict places of worship due to the Omicron variant. After much prayer, discussion, a small amount of debate and some input from others, the Leadership Team decided to test the merits of a second DUPLICATE service on Sundays, beginning Dec. 19^th. 

All of the options for how to solve the issue we are now facing didn’t feel welcoming or consistent with our vision. How can we say we are a welcoming community that encourages people to use their gifts and yet not everyone can come because of a vaccine passport or feeling unsafe? Although we realize this is a big ask of our volunteers, we think it’s the right thing to do. As a group, we have a peace about this decision.  We will give it a try for a season and evaluate as we go.

And I want to ask all of you to join us in giving it a try as well. Try to look for ways to serve, sacrifice and keep the unity of peace in our community.  

Currently, here is the plan, starting Dec 19th: 

• 9:00-10:15 Service: proof of covid vaccination required,100% capacity, children’s ministry. 
• 10:45-12:00 Service: no vaccination required, 50% capacity, no children’s ministry.
• A few exceptions: Christmas Eve service and Sunday, Dec 26 will be no vaccination required services – 50% capacity *visit our Sunday Services page for more details

We are still trying to determine which service would be the best for our online broadcast and will post that on our website soon. We will also continue to follow the mask and distancing protocols required of us by BC Health.

-Ken on behalf of the ECC Leadership Team

DEC 2, 2021

As most of you will have heard by now, the Provincial Health Authority has changed the mandates for in-person worship effective immediately (link is here). 

In response, the Leadership Team has made the following decisions:

1. All people 5 years and older, will be required to wear a mask while inside.  Masks can only be removed for taking communion or by worship leaders and speakers.
2. For Sunday, Dec. 5th, there will be no changes to how we have been gathering other than we will add more protection and heaters to our outdoor worship area.
3. For Sunday, Dec. 12^thonly, because we will be having our Children's Christmas program - we expect more people than our 50% capacity limit - we will require proof of vaccination for anyone wishing to be inside.

Please continue to pray for the Leadership Team and each other as we navigate these difficult waters. Pray for wisdom and an attitude of servanthood. 

NOV 9, 2021 

Associate Pastor Announcement

The Leadership Team has been working on the process for hiring a new Associate Pastor. Although our current Associate, Andreas, is moving on to a new role with The Navigators, we are not directly replacing that role. Our focus for the new pastoral role is on children, youth and young adults. We have a job description, a search committee in place and our goal is to have someone starting on January 1^st. 

Now it’s your turn to help with this process! May I ask you to please take a look at the job description? If you think of someone, please send them the link. We are hoping for FT but will certainly consider ¾ time for the ideal candidate. If you have questions about the job description or want more detail, you could contact Ken or the elders. 

NOV 4, 2021 

The Job Description for our new staff position is now available here.

OCT 28, 2021 

The Leadership team hired Catherine Fenn to consult us as we consider “next steps” for our community in regards to staffing needs. She has completed her consultation and shared her general findings and recommendations on Wednesday, Oct. 20.

The full (1 hour) video recording can be seen here. 

Below is a summary of the basic recommendations from Catherine and then the planned steps of action from the Leadership Team.

Catherine met with many ECCers to assess our current family ministries and to understand what is, and has historically been important to us in this area. She enjoyed getting to know so many wonderful people and was impressed by our care for each other and desire to serve. 

In order to take good care of what God has entrusted to us and to go forward with hope, she has recommended that we:

1 - hire a full-time Family Pastor 

2 - hire a part-time Youth pastor

3 - hire a part-time Worship and Arts Pastor 

Based on the information from Catherine; our own prayer and assessment; and on the questions from the congregation, the Leadership Team is recommending the following:

• Because of our vision to be a community that encourages spiritual growth and equips everyone we will be seeking a “Family Ministries Pastor.” This decision is also influenced by the current number of school-aged children that we have and the challenges of finding people to give the requisite number of hours and long-term commitment.

• This position will be between half and full-time depending on the candidate

• This person will work with ages 0-25 and possibly with parents

• This person will be a pastor, equipper and manager. They will schedule, train, supervise and mentor volunteer leaders from within the congregation. They will establish the overall ministries and be actively involved or establish leaders for each area

• The ideal candidate will have education, training and experience with children and youth; and possibly some theological training

• Ideally, this person will reflect the diversity of our church and community

• An important criterion will be that this person understands our community, our vision and our culture

Once this person is in place and has had a chance to learn our culture and community, we will look to hire a part-time youth pastor (likely to start in fall 2022), and invite the Family Ministries Pastor to be a key voice in this hire. 

We will not be replacing the current position of Associate Pastor. This will likely mean a little restructuring of the job description of the Senior Pastor.

As a separate process, we will also look to hire a part-time music leader who can bring more depth and breadth to our worship and make it more intergenerational. This is important yet not immediately urgent. 

Through all this, it is important to remember that we do not hire staff to do the work for us. The priesthood of all believers is a core value of this church and we will continue to need everyone to find their place of service.

SEPT 20, 2021

On behalf of the board, I would like to use this blog for occasional updates and information from the Leadership Team.

Staff –

Andreas Russell has given his resignation and in January will join the Navigators ministry as their national campus director. He and Hendrika will remain living in Richmond and a part of our ECC community.

Andreas has a unique role, overseeing our Family Ministries, youth, small groups as well as other pastoral duties. We are not planning to try and find one single person who is able to do all these things effectively.  So, we are asking the question: What is needed next for our staff? We have hired Catherine Fenn (family and friend to many at ECC) as a consultant to help us consider “next steps” regarding staffing needs.  Our goal is to move forward as quickly as possible without making any unnecessarily rash decisions.

Community Camp –

Our long delayed, eagerly anticipated, always exciting Community Camp is almost upon us! It will be Oct. 22-24 at Camp Squeah. Registration and more info are on the website - https://www.myecc.ca/Community-Camp-2021

Due to the pandemic, and the time we will spend in close proximity to each other, we are limiting attendance to those who are vaccinated. We realize that this means that some people won’t be able to join us, but we feel this is the wisest course of action. For those not able to join us we will be recording the main sessions and we will post them on the website following camp.

Refugees –

We are aware of the current situation with refugees from Afghanistan and the continuing needs of refugees from other parts of the world. We are looking at a couple of options of how we as a church can help. And it is important to note that we have budgeted funds for this area of ministry. We are looking for a couple of people who are passionate about ministry to refugees to form a small team to help us work through all the details. Please reach out to the Leadership Team if you are interested or want more info: leadership@myecc.ca

In Closing –

In the few months I have been on the board, we have been approached by several people who are passionate about certain areas of ministry. I love it! Although, we have not always been able to fully satisfy what people have asked us to consider, please be assured that we want to hear from you, and we are doing our best to seek the wisdom of the Holy Spirit in how we can best serve the whole community. Please reach out to us at leadership@myecc.ca.

In His service,

Peter Reynolds

Chair of the Board of Elders

MAY 16, 2021

Thank You to everyone who took the time to pray and respond to the nomination of Alastair Rees-Thomas to join the Elders.  We are pleased to now officially welcome him to the team!  Thank you Alastair and Nancy for responding to this call at this time.

Our current Elders with their positions & end service dates:

• Lesley Richardson - December 2021
• Dwight Dee (Treasurer) - December 2022
• Tatiana Crespo (Secretary) - December 2023
• Peter Reynolds (Chair) - December 2023
• Alastair Rees-Thomas - April 2024