STAFFING UPDATE

Ryan Brammer, Pastor of Ministry Support

It is that time of year when the RockPointe Staff Team begins to plan for the next Ministry Year. The planning portion of the yearly rhythm is always preceded by much prayer and discussion. We seek to build everything on a solid foundation of prayer and discerning God’s direction.

This year, more than most, there is a sense of excitement as we begin to see the plans that God has for us. These plans promise to be a continuation of the good work that God has already been doing among us. In the past year we have seen many new and young leaders step into the work that God has for them. They have brought a new energy to the work and are helping us understand what it will take to reach the next generations for Jesus. We also see increased attendance and a growing commitment to share the Good News of Jesus and to help those who already know him grow in their faith. Across all our sites we see a growing desire to extend a helping hand to those with needs.

The new and growing commitment to God’s call upon our church, along with the departure or absence of beloved staff members, has implications on how RockPointe staff is structured. The staffing shifts mentioned below are good and necessary. What you read here represents our desire to follow God’s leading and our commitment to be prepared for the good things that lay ahead.

Bearspaw Site Team

Stafford Greer - As announced this past weekend, Stafford has accepted the call to join us as Lead Site Pastor. We are targeting a May 13 start date. It’s quite the task to onboard into a new church and an existing staff team, so be praying for Stafford and his family in this transition.

Ron Gray - Ron will be taking a much needed sabbatical starting April 15. He will be returning August 15 ready to contribute. His future role at RPC will be defined over the Spring.

Phil Morrow - As much as we loved having Phil on staff in both the Youth & Worship role, it is always a pleasure to see someone respond to God’s call in their life. In his absence, we have hired Stef Schmitt to serve as Bearspaw Worship Lead (below) who was introduced to the Bearspaw congregation a few weeks ago. We will talk about the Youth Ministry piece in a moment.

Stef Schmitt - Stef will be serving the Bearspaw congregation as Worship Lead. Stef, along with his wife Layna, have been longtime volunteers on the worship team and at Bearspaw. They bring a lot of experience and capability to the role.

Ashley Issler - There has been some reshuffling within the Children’s Ministry Team as of late, much of it due to other staffing shifts that were needed. This has actually enabled us to dream about what Children’s Ministry can and should look like in the coming days and Ashley will be a big part of leading that! Ashley will be shifting her role to head up Curriculum Development and to give overall leadership to RockPointe Kids and the Children’s Ministry staff. Ashley will continue to be part of the Bearspaw Team and a regular fixture at the Bearspaw site.

Children’s Ministry Staff - As a result of this shift for Ashley, we will be posting for a position on our website for a Bearspaw Children’s Ministry Director soon. Ashley will work closely with this person to ensure our families and kids at Bearspaw are well cared for.

Westhills

Dwayne Pederson - Dwayne is still on Long Term Disability. We are tracking closely with Dwayne and Brenda through this process and we are happy to see them have the time to focus on health and well being. It is likely that Dwayne will be absent until at least late Fall 2024. Continue your prayers for Dwayne and his family.

Nathaniel Froese - In the extended absence of Dwayne, we have asked Nathaniel to step in as Interim Site Pastor for Westhills. Nathaniel has been growing in capability and in strength as a Pastor and Dwayne’s absence gives Nathaniel a window of opportunity to continue growing and developing. To support Nathaniel, Ryan Brammer will assist with supervisory and leadership elements, Greg Langman will assist with pastoral needs, Todd Postlethwaite will absorb some Associate Pastoral functions into his role (see below), and a Lay Leader Support Team will be built as an “on the ground” support to Nathaniel at Westhills. To help Nathaniel fully step into this new role, he will be releasing the Young Adult’s portion of his portfolio, something Nathaniel feels the time is right for regardless of this shift (more on Young Adults below).

Todd Postlethwaite - Todd will be bringing further strength to the Westhills Team by absorbing some Associate roles from Nathaniel, including Groups & Community, Discipleship Training Modules, assisting the Associate Pastoral Team RPC wide, and backing up Nathaniel in pastoral needs as they arise. Todd will continue to serve in his worship role.

Meredith den Engelsen - I am pleased to announce that Meredith den Engelsen will be helping lead the Young Adults Ministry forward as Nathaniel steps more fully into the Interim Site Pastor Role at Westhills. Meredith brings a lot of enthusiasm and capability to this role. Nathaniel will be walking closely with Meredith to ensure the handoff is done carefully and well. This will help us continue the great momentum we have had in this ministry. Meredith begins her new role March 22.

Emma Davidson - Emma has been on a discernment journey the past few months. As we have prayed and explored together, it’s clear that Emma has a call to the marketplace and to be a light for Jesus in whatever role He has for her. Although it's always sad to see someone go, it's exciting to see them step into God’s call. She will be finishing up her serve on RockPointe Staff as of May 30. Emma will be telling her story of listening to God, discerning, and taking this step of faith this weekend at Westhills.

Children’s Ministry Staff - As a result of this shift for Emma, we will be posting for a position on our website for a Westhills Children’s Ministry Director soon. Ashley will work closely with this person to ensure our families and kids at Westhills are cared for.

Bowridge

Jon Lim - Jon is on his second week of a short term leave. This four week leave is for rest, renewal, and for ongoing medical testing to hopefully ascertain what is behind his fatigue. Jon has been accepted into the Long Covid Clinic for further support, which is great news. As Jon works with his doctors to discern next steps, Cherylyn, along with Jeff Watt, has stepped in to look after the Bowridge Congregation in greater measure. Continue to pray for Jon’s health.

Cherylyn Radford - Cherylyn has done a fabulous job as the Bowridge Associate Pastor over the last months. What many forget is that Cherylyn also leads the Children’s Ministry Curriculum development RPC wide. It has been obvious for some time that Cherylyn needs the freedom to continue growing in the Associate role. Therefore, Cherylyn will be releasing Children’s Ministry Curriculum from her role in order to focus solely on Bowridge. As mentioned, Ashley Issler is onboarding this critical curriculum role.

Marcela Froese - With Phil Morrow and Emma Davidson exiting staff, this leaves Marcela as the sole Youth Pastor. As we discerned alongside Marcela, there is growing excitement around a role shift that enables her to focus solely on Youth Ministry and not split her time between Children’s Ministry & Youth at Bowridge. Marcela will be releasing the Children’s Ministry role for Bowridge and spending all her time giving strength to the Youth Ministry in order to ensure our kids, parents, and sites are well cared for.

Children’s Ministry Staff - As a result of this shift for Marcela, we will be posting for a position on our website for a Bowridge Children’s Ministry Director soon. Ashley will work closely with this person to ensure our families and kids at Bow are well cared for.

Jessica Mitchell - As our Bowridge congregation is already aware, Jessica will be establishing a New Venture Partnership with RockPointe, the Alliance National, and the Western District in order to love and serve the Yazidi population in Calgary. Jessica begins April 1 and we look forward to introducing her and sharing more in the days to come.

That probably feels like a lot! And it is.

However, in each of these shifts I can truly say that God is at work. Our staff is increasingly stepping into areas of gifting and the future is genuinely exciting! I (Ryan) have been here just over a year now, and I am so pleased by what I have seen on this staff team. The culture is positive and healthy, our teams are leading together and supporting one another, staff are discovering their callings and taking bold steps to follow Him, and younger leaders are getting a chance to develop and lean in. Additionally, there is a sense among staff that something God given, God ordained, is taking shape here at RockPointe and that the changes you’ve read about are an outworking of our desire to fulfill our commitment to live into our calling: So that all may know Jesus, we proclaim the Good News, we help those with needs, we equip the faithful, we welcome new Canadians, and we transform our neighborhoods.

Over the coming months we will be giving you all a larger picture of what is happening in each ministry area as we plan for the year to come.

Thanks for praying for us and with us! When you see one of these staff members listed above, give them a big hug and some encouragement in their new role/direction.

Lastly, thanks for bearing with this larger update, as I feel mapping out all the changes at once is much better then sporadically over weekend services, in order to see the bigger picture.

Ryan,

On behalf of the Lead Team