Friends of Portland Mennonite Church,

At the end of our worship service this morning I told the congregation that I will be retiring at the end of August. I want to make sure you hear the news from me too. This summer I will be 65, and August 31 will be exactly 25 years that I have served as Lead Pastor at PMC. It's time; it's time for me, and it's time for the congregation.  My wife, Molly, and I will both retire this summer. We are not exactly sure what is next for us, although we are definitely planning to stay in Portland and are very much looking forward to the next season of our life together.

PMC is also on the cusp of a new season. We are coming out of the pandemic, and there are opportunities to re-think the ways we do church together. PMC is also in the midst of a generational shift. Many of the 'pillars of the church' when I arrived here in 1999, have moved or passed away. Happily, PMC has a wealth of younger and committed leaders. But looking forward, PMC needs a Pastor to help lead the congregation for the next 8-10 years. And that won't be me.  When a Lead Pastor leaves, it is inevitably disruptive. But this can also be an invigorating time for the church as you talk together about what has been meaningful and as you imagine what lies ahead as you 'seek the peace of the city.' 

It has been one of the great privileges of my life to serve as a pastor at Portland Mennonite Church – to share our lives together, to work out our faith together. When I think back over the last 25 years, I remember so many people and so many moments. And I am filled with tremendous gratitude for them all. Thank you, thank you, thank you,

I am looking forward to the next eight months of our life together. Peace to you,

Rod Stafford 

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After I spoke this morning, Colleen Milstein (chair of the Table), shared about the plans that are being made for this season of transition. Here is a short summary:

- Next Sunday, Eric Massanari (Executive Conference Minister for PNMC) will be at PMC. He will preach at the 9:30 am worship service and then there will be a Congregational Forum at 11:00 am. We will plan for regular Forums and gatherings through the spring. A Transition Committee will be formed to guide the congregation through the next eight months and to create settings and spaces for us to remember and celebrate all that's happened in the last 25 years.

- The Table, in consultation with Eric, has decided to hire an Intentional Transitional Pastor (ITP) for at least one year. This person will preach, lead the staff team, meet with the Table, and do pastoral care. In addition, they will have training and experience to guide the congregation through this period of change. The Table is working with Eric and Rachel Ringenberg Miller (of Mennonite Church USA) to identify candidates. The Table has formed a Hiring Committee of Table members with the intention of having an ITP in place on September 1.

- A Search Committee for a long-term, 'settled,' pastor will also be formed this Spring. Their first task will be to listen in the Forums that will take place through the spring. They won't begin the active work of searching for a settled pastor until the Fall. It could take a year or more to hire a new Lead Pastor and to have that person in place at PMC. 

- Please hold Rod, the Table, the congregation, and this process in prayer. 

This past holiday season PMC shared many gifts with each other! Every year we do an Advent Tree to gather gifts for local organizations doing good work in Portland. This year we brought gifts for Street Roots, which is an organization in Portland that publishes a weekly social justice newspaper sold by people experiencing homelessness and poverty to earn an income. Over the years, PMC has connected with Street Roots in various ways, and each Sunday, vendors Nathan and Kristina join us to sell papers. For our Advent Tree, we gathered gifts of things that Street Roots asked us to donate, supplies for the vendors they work with who are experiencing homelessness. This included things like: gloves, socks, hand warmers, hats, ponchos, cough drops, and sleeping bags. PMC was quite generous! Take a look at the photos of the tree before and after. I just dropped off all these things at the Street Roots office in downtown Portland, so check out a picture of our gifts given.

PMC also did a special offering on Christmas Eve with money going toward the relief, development and peacemaking work of Mennonite Central Committee amidst the war in Gaza. MCC is providing, to the extent possible, emergency relief with existing partners in Gaza, distributing locally purchased food packages, hygiene items and bedding as well as cash transfers to families in need. MCC is also working to help children cope with the trauma. And, Kathy and Frans Van der Horst performed a program of holiday stories and songs. They took an offering at the show, and that money was added to the total sent to the MCC Gaza crisis response.

​Additionally, many people donated their time to advocate for ceasefire and peace in Israel-Palestine. Esther Nelson, Lisa Hughes, and Paul Reid worked with the Mennonite Action group to plan a trip and letters to Oregon senators and representatives. Over 30 PMCers from across the Portland Metro area held a peace service protest at Rep. Suzanne Bonamici’s office in Beaverton City Hall on December 19. They sang hymns, and shared their personal stories of deep grief and mourning for the Palestinians and Israelis killed in this war. The group urged Rep. Bonamici to sign on to a “Ceasefire Resolution.” 

Finally, a gift to all from PMC carolers! We gathered for a Holiday “living room” Hymn sing on Dec. 16, and enjoyed lots of holiday treats and cookies. We shared community together with a casual gathering and had lots of fun singing together. We sang our favorite Christmas songs and recorded them to send to others as “video carols.” Hope you enjoy!

Once again the PMC lower level was filled with laughing children, cookies, and friends. Thanks to all that braved the rain and came out.

Thank you Deb and Don!

Our Advent Tree giving project this year went toward the work of Family Promise of Metro East. Since the organization is just getting off the ground, they told us that their biggest need was funding. So we participated in a major fund drive they did through the Willamette Week’s Give!Guide. Some people gave directly online and others gave their money through PMC’s offerings. Family Promise of Metro East is excited that they exceeded their holiday fundraising goal of $20,000. The total amount that went through the PMC offering was $3,425 and we had an estimated $4000 from PMC donated online, so our total donated amount was about:

$7,425.00 donated to Family Promise Metro East!

We also had a number of material items gifted to FPME for their day center including Playdough sets, Legos, craft supplies, towel sets, etc. Our Advent Giving Tree gave us a visual of our donations. We started with tags that people could take, and everyone added an ornament after making their donation. Check out our beautiful Advent Tree! (before and after photos)

Our Christmas offering went toward Mennonite Central Committee which is an organization that does relief, development, and peace work all over the world. Our church has been a long-term supporter for MCC, both financially and through members who have served as long-term volunteers. The total Christmas Eve offering was:

$2,494.25 donated to Mennonite Central Committee!

The kids at PMC also worked on gifts. During Sunday School classes in Advent, Danese Jundt helped the PK1, 2nd & 3rd graders wrap simple gifts and make cards for other children. We took all of these gifts to a program in North Portland called First Door. This organization runs an afterschool program that serves kids and families in need.

Other fundraisers included Christmas Wreaths sold by the PMC youth group. Additionally, PMC members Franz and Kathy Van der Horst hosted an evening of storytelling and raised money for MCC. Our Mainspring food offering for December raised $100. We also hosted the Just Cause fair trade store during the weekend of the Advent workshop. The store sold fair trade items and donated 10% of their sales to the Sunnyside Mennonite Montessori School, which is one of PMC’s outreach programs to the local community.

Not only did PMC members give financially, but they gave with their time and service to each other and the community.

Ed Shirk, Bruce Kuhns, and a crew of PMC volunteers worked very hard for months to do major renovations on the parsonage. And a whole host of people showed up on several occasions to help clean and move boxes/furniture for the parsonage move in.

Over the week of Thanksgiving, PMC hosted families with Family Promise and served a full Thanksgiving meal for current and former families. On December 8, five PMC members showed up as a part of our monthly commitment to serve with NightStrike, an organization that provides needed food and services to the homeless community in Portland. 

Carolyn and Josh McCarty opened their home to host folks for a Christmas Dinner potluck. And, the Congregational Life Core Team sponsored a Soup and Bread lunch on January 1, 2023 to give us a chance to be together on New Year’s Day and served lunch to about 65 people. The members of this Committee – Lois Gearhart (chair), LaVonne Blowers, Randy Lanford, and Micah Engle-Eschleman – all pitched in to make this event happen, as well as others like Sylvia Shirk who brought soup and Sharon Ness who helped with coffee and clean-up. It was a beautiful time of fellowship together to bring in the new year! 

A huge thank you to everyone who has contributed time or money over the holiday season! We can celebrate a church that is actively engaged in community building and outreach, and many of these efforts and projects continue on in the new year of 2023.