Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I am delighted to share the good news that our Nominating Committee has prayerfully and successfully drawn a roster of new officers to lead Second Presbyterian Church of Charleston from a list of excellent nominees. We put forward the names of Elders, Deacons , and Officers of the Corporation below. It is important to note that the usual practice of also preparing a new Nominating Committee to serve the upcoming year has been postponed; the trying circumstances of social distancing, combined with the exciting prospect of choosing from among our wonderful new Session, led us to move this process to the near future.
As most of you know, the process for electing new officers requires a Congregational Meeting, so that every voice can be counted. Unfortunately, this is now problematic due to the pandemic. We have sought and, thankfully, received consultation on the best way to move forward, so that our church is not left without leaders at this crucial time. The Charleston Atlantic Presbytery and several of our sister congregations have recommended the following procedure: please review the Slate of Deacons, Elders, and Officers of the Corporation below. If you approve, offer a prayer of thanks and set this letter aside. We will joyfully accept the election of these officers and officers of the corporation by common consent on June 15, 2020. If, however, you have an objection or an alternate nomination, please text, call, or email that objection, with explanation, to Nathaniel Walker, head of the Nominating Committee: walkernr@cofc.edu (912) 220-1543 no later than June 12, 2020. Please know that all of the persons previously submitted were considered and all of them were contacted. We had more nominations than we had offices to fill, praise God! Not everyone could be called upon to serve, but everyone was and remains cherished and respected. If we do receive objections or additional nominations, we will submit these before the congregation in another letter and call for a vote on them.
We would all be so much happier to conduct this election in the traditional manner, with our voices and our spirits united in one another’s presence! These are unusual times, however, and we remain grateful to be united in God’s presence. We are also grateful to have a transparent and democratic culture of governance—a Session of Elders, a Nominating Committee, a nominating process, and a congregation that are all dedicated to joining hands in the common responsibility of leading our church to the place and the day that God has ordained.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is sovereign, and in these trying times, we are more grateful than ever for that marvelous fact. Please say a prayer of thanks for the wonderful women and men who have agreed to serve our church as Elders and Deacons. It is an honor and privilege it is to serve the Kingdom of God hand-in-hand together, and to help bring it closer to completeness, wherever we may be at this moment, which is uncertain in some difficult ways, but so certain in every way that truly counts.
Love,
2019-20 Nominating Committee
Nathaniel R. Walker (Head), Jessica Brock, Kenneth Carrington, Llewellyn Clarke, Lee Lingle, Jordyn Pritchard, Debra Smith, and Cress Darwin (ex-officio)
