Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada

Member church of the Lutheran World Federation

Congregational Redevelopment Services

Congregational Redevelopment Services Announcement

Posted: | Filed Under: Congregational Redevelopment Services, Spotlight

The Eastern Synod announces changes to our Congregational Redevelopment Services.
 
Rev. Jennifer Hoover has accepted a new call to Parish Ministry and will be stepping down from her role as the Congregational Redevelopment Services Advisor effective May 1, 2025. Jennifer has served in this capacity since 2022, and since then has accompanied over 50 congregations at various points along their redevelopment journey. She remarks, “My role with CRS has been an exciting and challenging chapter in my vocation, and I am grateful for this opportunity, but my heart belongs in parish ministry; I have missed it deeply.”

To support current and future redevelopment partners during this interim period, we are pleased to announce that Katja Brittain will serve as Interim Congregational Redevelopment Services Advisor. Katja Brittain is a consultant specializing in church property management, mission realignment, and sustainability. With a Master of Theology, an MBA, and extensive experience in the not-for-profit and faith-based sectors, she helps congregations optimize their spaces while staying true to their mission. Previously, she held leadership roles in economic development (grant provision), church-based affordable housing, and charitable governance. An active member of Martin Luther Lutheran Church in Toronto, she serves on boards like Ecuhome and the Christian Jewish Dialogue of Toronto. Katja is passionate about helping churches reimagine their buildings as assets for ministry and community service.
 
Bishop Carla Blakley is filled with gratitude, saying, “The Eastern Synod is deeply grateful to Jennifer for her years of service to CRS. She brought many gifts to this work, and will be a blessing to the communities of Listowel and Wallace Township as she begins this new chapter in her ministry. Equally, we are so excited to welcome Katja to this interim CRS Advisor role. Katja and Jennifer have worked very closely for the past number of years, and I am confident that she will bring much creativity, skill and passion to this new position!”
 
For more information about CRS, please continue to contact Rev. Jennifer Hoover (jhoover@elcic.ca) until the conclusion of her term. Transitional information will be shared via the CRS page of the Eastern Synod Website as it becomes available.

Rev. Jennifer Hoover To Serve As Next Congregational Redevelopment Advisor

Posted: | Filed Under: Congregational Redevelopment Services, Spotlight

Bishop Pryse is delighted to announce that the Eastern Synod Officers have issued a Call to Specialized Ministry to the Rev. Jennifer Hoover to serve as our next Congregational Redevelopment Advisor. Pastor Jennifer has provided pastoral leadership in two congregational redevelopment efforts that have been supported by the work of the Eastern Synod; at St. Paul, Bridgeport and Bethany, Woodstock.  She is passionate about the work of congregational renewal and redevelopment and is excited to join our Congregational Redevelopment Services team!

In accepting this position, Pastor Jennifer remarked, “The moments of surprising discovery-when church leaders and community partners gather together around the table to imagine the possibilities for a particular ministry or service, space or property-these moments have been the highlight of my ministry. Our redevelopment projects may begin as a quest for financial viability and sustainability for our congregations, but both the church and the community are transformed in the process. I’m so excited to begin my new role as Congregational Redevelopment Advisor and to help congregations engage in the vital and hopeful work of renewing the church in a way that honours both the devotion of our forebears and the imagination of our children.”

Pastor Hoover succeeds Rev. Dr. Mark Harris who will conclude his term of service on June 30, 2022. I am grateful to Mark for the exceptional leadership he has provided and his willingness to support Pastor Jennifer as she transitions into this role.

If you are ready to explore your options, get in touch with Jennifer Hoover jhoover@elcic.ca

Rev. Dr. Mark Harris to serve as a Congregational Redevelopment Advisor

Posted: | Filed Under: Congregational Redevelopment Services

Photo by Mirko Petricevic, Martin Luther University College

Dear Friends,

I am delighted to inform you that the Eastern Synod welcomes the Rev. Dr. Mark Harris to serve as a Congregational Redevelopment Advisor starting on July 1, 2021. Congregational Redevelopment Services is one of the ways the Eastern Synod supports congregations which are struggling with declining membership, revenue and relevance. The goal is to help congregations discover where renewed mission and capital resources meet community needs.

Mark brings considerable gifts in missional leadership, administration, and relationship management. He is the past Principal/Dean of Martin Luther University College. Prior to his time at Luther, he served as an Assistant to the Bishop of the Eastern Synod and as a parish pastor in three congregations. He was also the founding chairperson of Lutheran Homes- Kitchener-Waterloo.

I am also happy to inform you that Karen Bjerland will continue to work with Mark and Congregational Redevelopment Services at a reduced level. Due to the needs of her elderly parents, she will be stepping backing from the bulk of her current responsibilities.

Karen and Mark look forward to working together to ensure a smooth transition and continued quality service to Eastern Synod congregations. Mark’s deep experience and familiarity with the challenges faced by churches across the Synod puts him in a strong position to help congregations deal with today’s realities and make good decisions.

Our church is in a time of great change and opportunity. No one has all of the answers, but through congregational redevelopment we are beginning to see new forms of ministry and redevelopment, which may help congregations create more sustainable futures. With support from Congregational Redevelopment Services, some of our faith communities are renewing their vision for the future and making life-giving decisions to rethink how their property is used to better serve the community. As an example, two congregations will be providing affordable housing for seniors and other vulnerable individuals in their communities, while maintaining space for ongoing worship and fellowship. Both the congregation and the community benefit.  

We welcome your questions and encourage you to talk to Mark and Karen about how congregational redevelopment may be able to help your congregation.

Blessings,
Bishop Michael Pryse

From Journey to Pivot

Posted: | Filed Under: Congregational Redevelopment Services

From journey to pivot: motion and change in congregational life

By Henriette Thompson, October 15, 2020

We Christians are used to “journey” language. Our ancestors in the faith journeyed through the wilderness for 40 years; Jesus journeyed in the desert for 40 days. We are “people of the Way” (the road). 

But these days, adjusting to rapid social change requires the ability for churches to pivot on their faith journey. COVID-19, the climate crisis, increased food insecurity, the urgency for racial justice – all are calling us to pivot from our journeys of the past to a new, outward focus.

We don’t do “pivot” (very well). We belong to churches that are institutions and well, you know what they say about institutions: they can be slow to change! To pivot, however, is to rotate, to swivel, to spin or oscillate – it’s not linear movement, it is a movement that is propelled when the end of a shaft rests and turns in a bearing.

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St. Paul’s Journey to Transform Lives

Posted: | Filed Under: Congregational Redevelopment Services

From the KW Record

KITCHENER — This time next year, people will be unpacking boxes and moving in to a new affordable housing project at Bridgeport Road and Lancaster Street.

“A year from now it’s not going to be bricks and mortar, it’s going to be home,” said Dan Driedger, executive director of MennoHomes, the non-profit that is building the project.

He was speaking Tuesday at a news conference where the federal and provincial governments announced $3.8 million in funding for the project.

Dignitaries huddled under tents at the muddy construction site as a thin drizzle fell, but the mood at the event was sunny.

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