In last month’s Beacon, I shared that the Board had begun to work on key initiatives for the coming months and the next year. In this article, I will provide more detail about these initiatives and outline how our community’s participation will be essential to achieving our objectives. To be clear, these aren’t the only areas the Board will be focusing on, but they are the major themes of our long-term agenda.
The first initiative we are focusing on is defining a long-term strategic plan for East Shore. This plan will include an updated vision and mission for East Shore, along with sub-plans for evolving our community, covenants, ministries, partnerships, campus, and finances. Make no mistake, the Board doesn’t see its role as doing this work alone. Our goal is to set in motion various streams of activity that will invite every one of you to participate in the months and years to come. East Shore is an evolving beloved community made up of each and every one of us — each Board is merely guiding this process for a short time.
You may be asking yourself, don’t we already have a 5-year strategic financial plan at East Shore? And you’d be right. This excellent plan is the result of countless hours of dedicated effort by the Financial Stewardship Committee (FSC) over many months and years. I’m pleased to announce that just this past week, the FSC submitted a final updated version to the Board, which we will review before sharing it with the community. And… this financial plan is just one of the vital sub-plans in our broader emerging strategy at East Shore. As important as finances are, they answer the question of “How?”, but they don’t address “Who?”, “Why?”, “What?”, or “Where?”. We recognize that East Shore needs to be intentional as we reflect on these questions.
Secondly, we are committed to fostering a deeper focus on healing within our governance and across the East Shore community. The goal here is to learn about healing and to create covenantal spaces where healing is not only possible but seen as essential to moving forward as a community. While I am no expert on healing, I have experienced how powerful even the simple act of listening and bearing witness to the stories of others can be. There is much more to it, of course, and I am learning and practicing whenever possible. Over the coming months, the Board and I will invite you to opportunities for learning, practicing, and healing together. We are all beautifully imperfect, and harm will inevitably occur within our community, whether intended or not. It is my and the Board’s intent that East Shore will become a stronger, more resilient community by speaking our truths, paying attention, noticing, bearing witness, and being humble enough to make amends whenever we can.
The final initiative we are committed to is promoting a better understanding of our governance at East Shore, which is embodied in our bylaws and policies, as well as in how we apply them within the Board, committees, task forces, and teams. This initiative aims to make our bylaws and policies more accessible to everyone, so that they are seen less as dry formalities and more as guide rails that allow us to be nimbler and truer to our covenants while engaging in the activities, ministries, and leadership that nourish our souls. We have already started by taking a small step at our September Board meeting, where we reviewed the policies governing the Board-SLT relationship. We plan to continue taking small steps that will inform the tools and practices we share with the larger community.
In closing, I hope this article has conveyed where we, as a Board, are heading and that you find something here that sparks your curiosity. I also hope you will hold us accountable to the things I have shared. I invite anyone reading this to engage with me and the Board on these topics, or on any matter of deep concern. I am always open to hearing your thoughts, wishes, and comments offered in loving kindness.
With love and gratitude,
David Langrock
President, ESUC Board of Trustees