Letters from David – Gratitude for Our Church Staff
Dear Friends and Members of First Baptist:
I want to be very specific. Of the many gifts I have in my life, I have the incredible privilege of sharing my vocation with a grand collection of talented, equally called individuals whom we refer to as our “Church Staff.” Let me put some names and details to that label.
Bill Neal has served as our Interim Pastor to Senior Adults and Pastoral Care since last November. His care, wisdom and compassion have been a Godsend to me and to us all. And for the majority of his time ministering to us, he has refused any salary. So what he has offered over this last year has been a gift multiplied over several times!
Peter Rhea Jones is our Pastor Emeritus. He is also my personal pastor and my good friend. His wisdom, gentle spirit, and unconditional support make all of us better at what we do and how we share.
Kathryn Hartgrove, our Music and Arts Director, gives her heart and soul to us every week. She loves, challenges and pushes our Sanctuary Choir and a whole host of talented musicians in Sanctuary worship so that we truly feel God’s presence among us through music. One of my favorite times of the week is sitting with Kathryn planning creative, meaningful Sanctuary worship weeks in advance.
Eliel Rodrigues Freer-Sullivan, like Kathryn and our whole staff, is a joy to work with. As our Fresh Start Music Coordinator and Band Leader, his talents abound. But his contribution is more than making excellent music. He skillfully weaves various volunteer musicians and a different collection of instruments each week into a solid sound of joyful praise music with every song. We worship well in Fresh Start early on Sundays thanks to his guidance, talent, and joy.
Daniel Solberg is the one we like to call the “Young Mozart.” But not only is Daniel one of the best organists in all of Georgia, but he is also a good friend and loyal part of our First Baptist family. He is always willing to do whatever is necessary to make First Baptist shine. The perfect example: Christmas on Clairemont. In just three brief years, Daniel has single-handedly made this Advent event a Christmas staple for the entire Atlanta area. With Daniel directing a full orchestra and an overflowing choir, he is now greeted with standing room only crowds expecting a meaningful and extraordinary experience. This epitomizes Daniel’s many contributions to our community of faith. He also is, as our entire staff, a true gift to my life and to our congregation.
Kristen Koger, our Pastor to Children and Families continues to dedicate herself to the lives and growing faith of our beautiful kids. Growing a ministry to children in a setting like ours is not easy. But Kristen’s energy, passion, and resilient spirit continues to demonstrate how exciting ministry with our children can be. Vacation Bible School, Children’s sermons, good work, and connections with First School and First Camp, along with Camp Prism serve as a few excellent examples of much good is happening and what an exciting future is emerging with Kristen’s gifts and passion for ministry.
Kelsey Lewis, our Pastor to Youth and Families, has also made great strides with our FBCD Youth. In just over a year, she not only has learned a lot, but she has also contributed magnificently to our ministry. Whether guiding good groups of our youth on retreats, weekly learning events on Wednesday nights, Sunday Bible lessons, Mission Trips, or nurturing relationships with them in ministry, Kelsey is building a Bible-based, God-centered and loving group of youth at FBCD.
Paul Wallace is our Interim Pastor for Adult Education. Also, an author and a professor of Physics at Agnes Scott College, Paul’s multiple talents and passion for the gospel excite even the most jaded intellectuals. His sessions on Wednesday evenings and leadership in our Adult Sunday School represent some of the best learning opportunities of any church I know.
Shelley Woodruff is the newest addition to our amazing staff. As our Interim Pastor for Community Engagement, Shelley’s passion, community involvement, ministry experience, preaching and teaching ability are all doing exactly what we imagined when we hired her. She is reaching out, working hard, making connections, inviting new friends, sharing good news, and positively representing First Baptist in the community to great results.
Dilshad Premji holds all things together. She is our Director of Administration and Finance, and I personally rely on her more than she knows. Every week, she helps me to plan, prepare and strategize. She provides valuable guidance for staff meetings while keeping us all focused, centered and motivated. She oversees our renters, contracts, and potential new sources of outside income. She is the ultimate professional, highly organized, and extraordinarily disciplined; her enthusiasm for life, faith, ministry and the people of First Baptist are evident in her every act and interaction.
I am also very thankful for our Director of Communications, Matt Snyder. He offers a very special kind of ministry. We have personal testimonies from numerous visitors and new members who found our church on our FBCD website that he continues to perfect. His posts on social media and his weekly devotionals offer wise counsel and inspiration to an audience that now spans the globe. Allow me to share a few important statistics that should clarify the value of just a little bit of what he does.
Visitors to our Website (since January 2019):
Over 22,726 visitors
From over 70 countries
Over half are millennials or younger
Social Media
In October, we’ve reached over 7,000 people on Facebook (of all ages)
In the past month and a half, our tweets have reached over 54,000 people on Twitter
Since Jan. 2019, our sermons have been downloaded over 2,800 times in not only the United States, but even Sweden, Germany, the UK, the Philippines, and China
Matt’s value is far more than a few statistics. But thanks to his guidance and skill, the things we do, say, share, and the gospel we proclaim is literally being shared around the world.
Randall Hampton is our Fresh Start Worship Coordinator and Director of Security. He is also so much more than that. He and I work together every week in another one of my favorite times: we collaborate on slide preparation for both services. And in doing so, he often offers very helpful critiques on what might and might not work. He continues to make me a better presenter, pastor, and preacher, and I treasure our time and teamwork together!
Harriet Holland is the Director of our terrific First School and First Camp Programs. If you have ever been to one of the First School graduations and have watched these amazing children recite poetry, sing and proudly exhibit their new confidence and talents to the world, you know that Harriet’s work is vital to the future of our community and to the next generation of leaders. As a result, she is constantly besieged by former graduates and families, grateful for her support and all that she meant as their director and still means as their friend.
Sara Robb-Scott has been merging into a new role that we are glad to create. As Bill Neal begins to wind down his duties, Sara is gradually increasing hers. She is becoming our new Pastor to Senior Adults and Pastoral Care. And in that growing capacity, she has combined her role here and as the Associate Pastor at our partner church, Scott Boulevard. I have so enjoyed working with her and watching her love and deep concern for our Senior Adults become a great component of her faith journey in ministry.
Jeremy Clark is our Facilities Manager. In this broad capacity, he spends most of his days and his nights caring for our facility and for us. His passion for our physical space is the result of his passion for what we all stand for, for our history, and for how we and our space present the Gospel message to the multitude of groups and individuals who use these buildings. His friendship, his commitment, his care to us and to our community are incalculable.
I am grateful to have Cynthia Jones as my partner in ministry. As our Professional Assistant, she keeps my schedule and does her best to keep me out of trouble and confusion. She is also an ordained and highly capable minister who often utilizes her compassion and skill in vital ways. She works with those who need extra assistance, consoles and prays with some of our outside callers looking for advice or care, and keeps us informed on the needs of our members.
Nancy Baines is our Office Manager and keeps us on task. She oversees the usage of our vast space and over eighty community partners who use our building. We are thankful for her fine and ongoing organizing of all that we do around here.
Marie Shepley is our librarian. She quietly goes about her work adding books, labeling, overseeing a host of volunteers in the largest private collection of books in all the Southeast. She has marked our library’s eightieth anniversary with fanfare and a new infusion of books and funding. She is a treasure.
Marianna Anderson is Dilshad’s quiet partner working diligently to keep our finances in shape and to make sure that our staff continues to be paid on time and in full! We are fortunate to have her help, friendship, and skill working on our behalf!
Steven Hall is our Food Service Manager. I don’t know how he accomplishes all that he does and how he is able to organize all the groups he is to care for. Not only providing meals for our children every day, but he also prepares lunches for the multitude of visiting groups who use our building, along with our Wednesday night meals and several other groups who use his service. His positive attitude and kind smile are also blessings to us. Plus, he has been working here now for over sixteen years!
Devita Parnell is our Pianist on Sunday mornings in our Sanctuary Service. Yet she is so much more than that. As an ordained minister and full-time employee at our Cooperative Baptist Fellowship offices across the street, her wisdom, connections, and passion for missions, young adults, retreats, children and Seniors is contagious and vital to our congregation’s ongoing mission efforts, here and beyond.
Philip Rogers works with Jeremy to keep our facility in great shape. He seems to be in constant motion, conscientious about doing what needs to be done and caring greatly about keeping this sacred place clean, functional and looking good.
I hope you will join me in giving thanks for each one of these good friends and co-workers. Pray for them. Share with them how much they mean to our congregation and how blessed we are to be able to be on this valuable journey of faith together.
Our Hopeful Blessing: And now, may your faith be always growing, your hope be constantly strong, and your love be forever courageous. May your blessings be continually expanding, your joy consistently surprising, and your generosity graciously abundant in every good gift.
With love and gratitude,
David