August 20, 2024 - Letter from Session

August 20, 2024


Dear Christ Pres Family,

Savior, like a Shepherd lead us. 

Much we need thy tender care

We are thine. Do thou befriend us. 

Be the guardian of our way. 

The words of this hymn ring true for us as we have together sought the Lord’s will and guidance to form a Pastor Nominating Committee. It has been a time-consuming process for us and sometimes with twists and turns along the way. 

Still, we are reminded that the Lord is our strength and so we look forward to what He has in mind for us going forward.  We are thankful for wise input from the congregation and for active involvement and willingness to serve from so many.  And we are confident that God is using this process to help us form a strong PNC that will serve us well and that will faithfully and maturely represent our congregation as we search for a pastor.  

In our June 11th letter to the Congregation, we described the desired characteristics of PNC members.  

We said that we were looking for PNC members who are: 

  • Spiritually mature – deeply committed to the Lord and His Word, led by the Spirit

  • Humble and willing to hear and consider the opinions of others

  • Discerning

  • Committed to being a team player

  • Available for meetings and committed to a long-term process

  • Familiar with and committed to the mission of Christ Pres

  • Either a current covenant partner or baptized member (or willing to become one prior to being put forth as a nominee for the PNC). Note: These are the people who, according to by-laws can be on the PNC.

As we considered the bigger picture and the characteristics of our PNC as a whole, we said that we would look for a group that:

  • Represents the diversity of our congregation, including a mix of age, gender, culture, and longevity as a member of Christ Pres, with no more than one member per family.

  • Is unified in vision and purpose while also being willing to express and consider differing views.

  • Can objectively evaluate all candidates who meet the ECO criteria for becoming pastor.

Consistent with the PNC formation process laid out for us by the Bylaws and the ECO we have completed the following steps: 

  • Session will elect an elder to chair the PNC.

  • Session will prayerfully consider potential PNC nominees from available covenant partners and active baptized members.

  • Session will approach potential PNC members to discuss the responsibilities and their availability.

  • A proposed slate of nominees will be sent to the congregation along with at least 2-weeks notice of a special congregational meeting for the purpose of voting on the slate of nominees.

  • At the congregational meeting, members may nominate additional names for the slate.

  • At the congregational meeting 5 additional names were nominated.

  • A 2 week postponement of the vote was announced and notice given of another special congregational meeting to be held on August 25, 2024.

  • Session approached the 5 new nominees to discuss the responsibilities and their availability.

  • Session decided to set the maximum number of the final slate at 9 (in addition to the elder selected by the Session to chair the PNC).

At the Special Congregational Meeting on August 25, 2024, Session will present the final slate of nominees with a motion to either

1) vote yes to the entire slate or

2) vote no to the entire slate.  

With Kathy Wibberly as the elected elder to chair the PNC, the final slate of nominees is:

Kelly Hargreaves

Danny Peck

Jeremy McEntire

Lillian Macpherson

Ian Savino

Hope Braxton

Hayden Braxton

Bob Andrews

David Wood


Note: The other nominees that came from the congregational meeting (Rhonda Lewis, Roger Hershberger, Marilyn Metzler) decided to withdraw their names.


To be clear, what this means is that we will not have a secret ballot vote which would eliminate some of the nominees.  Rather the vote will be for the entire slate of names, yes or no.  


We invite any who know that they cannot be at the Congregational Meeting on Aug 25th to submit a yes or no vote to the entire slate in writing by Saturday, August 24th at 5 pm.  That can be sent to Ev Worthington, clerk of the Session at eworth@vcu.org.  


Thanks to all of you – for your prayers and your patience.  We know that God has called us to be a fellowship of love.  As we say on our website, we are a diverse community in Richmond, VA, committed to helping people know, grow, and show the love of Christ.  May others come to know Christ by the love they see among us.


We love you and are committed to praying for you,


CPC Session of Elders: 

Karen Carr, Judy Hounsel, Jeremy McEntire, Makenzie Smith, Kathy Wibberly, Ev Worthington


Moderator: Bob Andrews



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