Building Renovation Update with Encouragement from Bishop Akiyama

Dear Saints,

On August 24, Rev. Andria, Maryruth Storer, and I presented our church renovation proposal to the Board of Trustees of the Episcopal Diocese. Since the Diocese owns the church building and property, we needed permission from the Board before moving forward with a Request for Proposal (RFP) to begin working with an architect on an initial plan.

Following the meeting, we received a letter from Bishop Diana Akiyama saying: "...We were impressed and inspired by your overview of the church’s mission and ministry. All Saints’ is clearly a vital part of the emerging Woodstock community. Thank you for the outreach that you are doing now through the hot meals program, the Food Pantry and Thrift Shop. And thank you for the amazing ways you have involved the congregation and community in conversations about the future. Your prayerful and careful discernment is a model for how to engage parishioners and the greater community in hopeful conversations.

With gratitude, the Board of Trustees grants All Saints Woodstock permission to move forward with this project that will increase building usability and long-term viability of the church’s ministry for years to come. Be assured of our prayers as you move forward. We wish All Saints blessings in your continuing endeavors."

With the Board and Bishop's affirmation, the Church Renovation Committee will finalize and publish our RFP to local architecture firms so that we can select a firm for initial design work. The RFP process will take the fall and winter months and we will keep the Parish updated along the way. A generous All Saints donor has already offered to cover a considerable portion of the cost of this next step so we feel confident in moving forward.

We are excited to see how God continues to shape the mission of All Saints and how we can renovate our building to maximize our ability to fulfill that mission and sustain it for the future.

Onward,

Deb Miller

Master Plan Design