St. John's Episcopal Church

Parish News

SEARCH CAME FULL CIRCLE BACK TO ROBERT ALVES

The journey that led to the choice of the Rev. Robert M. Alves as the next rector of St. John’s was a circular one in many ways. Not only is Robert returning to a parish where he served as

The Rev. Robert and Polly Alves

an assistant rector two decades ago, the Search Committee returned to Robert late in its discernment process after he had been one of the first names discussed when the committee began its work two and a half years ago.

Robert was contacted early in the search process but withdrew his name from consideration because he had only been at his current church, St. Barnabas in Greenwich, CT, for four years and felt it was “too early to leave,” he said in a recent interview.

In the intervening months, the Search Committee considered dozens of candidates and recommended three names to the Vestry in only to have all three candidates remove themselves from the process for varying reasons.

Finding itself again starting over early this spring, the committee decided to see if perhaps Robert were interested in reconsidering his original decision. He was asked to participate in a single-candidate discernment, and this time he agreed.

Mary Alves

“I was contacted two weeks before Easter after just deciding that I would not enter any more search processes until after my son James graduated from high school,” Robert said.

But because “St. John’s has always had a special place in our hearts” and he had been at St. Barnabas for more than six years at that point, Robert and his wife Polly decided to proceed with the discernment. After consideration, they decided that moving prior to James’s sophomore year in high school might be good timing after all.

Although the search process took much longer than the Search Committee felt it would at the outset, Committee Chairman Richard Alligood said that despite some setbacks along the way his group continued to seek “the finest priest available to St. John’s -- one that fits us and we fit him/her.”

It didn’t take long for the committee to decide that Robert was the right fit for St. John’s, and “although the rest is now history,” Alligood said, “let me assure you it wasn’t easy! God does work in mysterious ways, and through Him, our mission has been fulfilled!”

The Vestry quickly agreed, and news that Robert had accepted a call to become the next rector of St. John’s was announced at services on July 11. He is expected to assume his new duties sometime in September.

Of the process, Robert said, “It was an honor to be contacted with the invitation to consider

James Alves

coming back … an honor to be remembered fondly and for the Search Committee to feel that I might help in a new chapter in the life of the parish.”

Although he has ties to the church’s past, Robert makes it clear that the future lies forward, not backward. “St. John’s has grown and changed, and I’ve grown and changed. I look at this as not going back in history, but as a springboard to a new chapter in the history of St. John’s.”

He said, “I bring a breadth of experience that has included dioceses and churches in North Carolina and Connecticut. I hope to bring something of that experience into the life and ministry of St. John’s.”

Robert stressed that he does not come into his new job with any plans for immediate changes. In his meeting with the Search Committee, he said he posed the question, “The next rector at St. John’s will most likely lead the parish during its bicentennial celebration in 2017. What traditions will we bring, and what hopes for new things do we have as we begin that new century together? I don’t see my role as coming in a bringing an agenda for change, but to lead a conversation in which we will distill a common vision for the future.”

As he looks at his new parish, he is impressed by the strength of the lay ministry. “I have gotten to know an active group of lay leaders who have continued and expanded the ministry of St. John’s during the interim. It is good to see that the traditional strengths of youth ministry and Christian formation continue at St. John’s.”

Robert said he will be reconnecting with a parish that has grown during the years he was away. “Youth group members (during his previous tenure here) are now on the Vestry.” He is excited to “re-engage at a point when Fayetteville is getting ready to expand because of BRAC (the military realignment program that will bring thousands of new troops to Fort Bragg). I have long valued those who serve in the military and look forward to enhancing the relationship with Fort Bragg and the military during my time at St. John’s.”

He also hopes that the parish, which has a long history of commitment and service to its community and the greater church, will continue in those traditions. “I have long been involved in leading congregations to serve the needs of the community and greater church.” He mentioned his involvement in community organizations at each of the parishes he has served, including being a member of the board of Urban Ministry while he was in Fayetteville.

Regarding the greater church, Robert said, “St. John’s can be a uniting and life-giving force during a challenging time in the life of the greater church.”

His discussions with Senior Warden Fred Klinck have also led him to believe the timing for his arrival couldn’t be better. “I remember Fred saying that St. John’s needed to be able to do things on its own before bringing in a new minister.” The strong lay program that has allowed the church to thrive in the three years since the departure of former rector Louanne Loch will provide a solid foundation on which Robert will build his own ministry here, he said.

Robert said he and Fred discussed “getting Post-It Notes from the Holy Spirit” during the process that led him back to St. John’s. One such sign was the fact that Robert had discussed his history at St. John’s with a North Carolina-based church architect consulting on a project at St. Barnabas on the very morning that he received the call from Richard asking if he would be willing to re-enter the discernment process.

Another sign that St. John’s parishioners might take as an indication that things are falling neatly into place is the fact that Robert and Polly have agreed to purchase the former residence of the late Dr. William Powell, a leader both at St. John’s and in the Diocese of East Carolina for decades.

A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE REV. ROBERT M. ALVES

The Rev. Robert M. Alves comes to St. John’s after serving as rector of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Greenwich, CT, since 2004. Prior to that, he was rector of All Saints’ Episcopal in Roanoke Rapids, NC, from 1993 until 2004. He was assistant rector at St. John’s from 1989-1993.

He is a 1981 graduate of the University of the South in Sewanee, TN, with a BA degree in economics. He attended seminary at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, VA, receiving his M. Div. degree in 1989.

Robert and his wife, Polly, have two children. Mary, 19, is a rising sophomore at Sewanee and James will be a rising sophomore at Terry Sanford High School in Fayetteville.

Robert enjoys hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities. He is also a lover of history, which has led to a hobby of collecting and restoring old books. He and Polly also enjoy traveling, while Polly also has a love of church music and is a member of their church choir.

Highlights of Robert’s continuing education include CREDO in 2005 and CREDO II in 2010. He attended the annual meeting of the Compass Rose society of the Anglican Communion in London in 2007. From 1995-1998, he attended a 10-day Summer Refresher Course at Virginia Theological Seminary and in 1988 he attended a month-long course, “The Bible and Its Setting” at St. George’s College in Jerusalem.He has served on the Standing Committee of the dioceses of Connecticut and North Carolina and was an alternate deputy to the General Convention in 2000. In the Diocese of East Carolina, he chaired the Youth Commission, was on the Convention and Liturgical committees and also was spiritual director of a weekend Cursillo retreat.

His community activities include the Visiting Committee of the University of the South, the Greenwich Fellowship of Clergy, the Roanoke Rapids Clergy Association. Habitat for Humanity and Fayetteville Urban Ministry.

PARISH ISSUES CALL TO NEW RECTOR

At the recommendation of the Search Committee, the Vestry of St. John's has issued a call to The Rev. Robert M. Alves to become the next rector of the parish. Following is a letter to the parishoners of St. John's from Senior Warden Fred Klinck and Richard Alligood, chairman of the Search Committee.

18 July 2010

Dear Members of St John’s family

It is with great joy that we share this good news with the St. John’s Church family.

The hard and often difficult work of our search committee has resulted in The Vestry of St. John’s issuing a call to our next rector. We are pleased to report the call has now been accepted and we are ready to proceed with transition. Our new Rector has 18 years experience as Rector of two Churches in two different Dioceses. Prior to that, he served in our Diocese as an Associate. He has held important leadership positions at Diocesan level in his previous two Diocese including experience on Standing Committees, Bishop transition committees and Secretary of Diocesan convention. It is our honor and humble privilege to announce that the

Rector of St. John’s Church is The Reverend Robert M. Alves. Robert, his wife Polly, and their children Mary and James will be transitioning to Fayetteville in mid August with Robert assuming duties in the September timeframe. You may remember Robert when he was our Associate at St. John’s for 4 years in the early 90s.

We want to thank the search committee and the vestry for being patient and allowing God to lead them and Robert to successfully conclude our search process. There is much work now to be done in preparing for the transition of our new Rector and the farewell of our Interim, Dan Lynch. We are forming a transition committee to help support this transition and if you are interested in serving in this way please make yourself known to the Church Office. Please watch Church publications, email and our web site for further information when we finalize the dates for Dan’s farewell and the welcome for the Alves family.

Yours in Christ,

Fred Klinck Richard Alligood

Senior Warden Chairman, Search Committee

OWLS ENJOY SOUTHERN PINES BRUNCH

A group of twenty OWLS enjoyed Sunday brunch at Mid Pines Resort in Southern Pines earlier this year. This was the group's first outing for 2010.