Emmanuel Profile

Parish Profile

Emmanuel Episcopal Church
Grass Valley, California

To know Christ and to make Him known

February 2008

Who We Were .... p. 2
Our Community .... p. 9
Who We Are .... p. 15
Who We Want to Be .... p.22
Appendices .... p. 25

February 2008

Dear Prospective Pastor,

"Celebrating our past, excited about our future." These words should give you an insight into Emmanuel parish today as we stand at the threshold of calling a new rector. We give thanks and praise for our unique heritage, yet we eagerly look forward to what lies ahead.

We are blessed to have had the Rev. James Sigler as our rector from 1992 until his retirement early last year. His ministry and steady hand at the helm during the past decade and a half was deeply appreciated by the parish; his retirement was occasion for many heartfelt tributes.

However, as you’ll see in the accompanying parish profile, our parishioners now are ready for new leadership. We seek a spiritual leader who is personable, energetic, and outgoing, who can guide us and support us in our ministries, a person who has a special flair for reaching out and attracting young families and interacting with those who are just coming of age, yet likewise, is equally able and willing to provide comforting pastoral care to our more senior family members whenever it is needed.

To help you learn more about Emmanuel, we’ve divided the profile into four sections:

WHO WE WERE. A brief historical overview of the parish, now entering its one hundred and fifty-third year of ministry.

OUR COMMUNITY. A topical summary of a few of the outstanding features of Grass Valley and the foothills of western Nevada County.

WHO WE ARE. A status report on current worship services, programs, staff, facilities, financial condition, demographics and other aspects of our parish family.

WHO WE WANT TO BE. A vision of the future, including some of the traits and qualities of our ideal rector, based on the results of two surveys and a town hall meeting.

May you be richly blessed in your search for a new pastorate. As for ourselves, we pray only that we may receive a faithful pastor who will help us in our quest to know Christ and to make Him known.

Faithfully,

Debra Wicks

Senior Warden