Thank you all for the love and gratitude you expressed to Lynne Jacoby as she departed her position as Membership Development Coordinator in November. We miss her already, in many ways! We also appreciate your patience as other staff shoulder many of her responsibilities—it’s a stretch and a steep learning curve.
I must admit, I’m a little daunted and a little excited to turn my attention to the Membership ministry. The shoes are big to fill, and I have small feet (think Lynne’s legacy, and before her Cheri Taylor, and before her Kathy Porter). Fortunately, no one does the work of membership alone—welcome, engagement and membership are up to all of us.
We have an enthusiastic Membership Team of lay leaders, who would love your help volunteering at the Membership Table on Sundays during Coffee Hours. If you enjoy chatting with members and newer folks interested in First Church, please contact our Ministerial Intern, Steve Sieck, at steve.sieck@uumilwaukee.org to sign up for a shift. Steve will also serve as the point person for ushers.
We have the friendly presence of staff member Deb Solis at our Greeter lectern in the hallway on Sunday mornings – a consistent smiling face for guests, members and friends. Deb will also help us connect to guests after their first visit and make name tags for anyone who needs one.
I will lead the monthly Membership Team meetings and co-lead our Journey to Membership classes with our intern Steve. I also support the co-chairs of our Welcome team (Ben Trubach & Steve Sieck) and our Member Engagement team (David Hoover & Laurie Petersen). If you are interested in joining our efforts, please reach out to these fabulous leaders!
Rev. Dena McPhetres
Associate Minister