GLAD Leadership Retreat Looks to Future
The GLAD Council met in Springfield VA at Council Moderator Karen Barr’s home last month. Meeting from February 13-17, it was a minor miracle that all managed to gather despite 13 inches of fresh snow falling in the area.
The GLAD leadership reviewed the progress of GLAD’s work in the past year, especially the passage of GA-1327 “Becoming a People of Grace and Welcome to All” at the Orlando General Assembly and the hiring of Rev. Dr. Mark Johnston as Executive Director of the Open & Affirming Ministry Program.
The GLAD Leadership attended services at National City Christian Church, an Open & Affirming congregation in Washington, DC. From left to right Sarah Combs, Debbie-Anne Richards, Derek Penwell, Lizzy Beach, James Barton, Andrew Raker, and Mark Johnston. Missing from this photo are Karen Barr, Council Moderator, who attended her own church that morning and Dan Adolphson, Council Member who was not able to attend the leadership retreat.
With Dr. Johnston focusing energy on Open & Affirming Ministry, the Alliance Council is able to put more energy into other aspects of GLAD’s mission. Thus, Rev. Derek Penwell, Council Member from Louisville, KY, and James Barton from Mesa, Arizona, have taken on the task of building up GLAD’s Strategic Action Team. Andrew Raker, Council Member from Indiana, is stepping into the leadership of the Open & Affirming Ministry Team and will focus on building that team to serve as an advisory and oversight team and eventually to develop a volunteer corps for the team.
Development and fund raising was an important focus at the meeting, and several council members committed to spending time developing a plan to ensure GLAD’s financial future, including James Barton and new council members Lizzy Beach from Los Angeles and Sara Combs from Edmund OK.
The Council also began a strategic planning process to focus the work of the Council and the Alliance. They discussed issues including the diversity of GLAD and its leadership, the size of GLAD’s membership, and the need to review GLAD’s team structure.