by The Rev. Dr. Stephen Applegate, Interim Rector

Dear Friends,

After I made a couple of phone calls earlier this week to parishioners, it occurred to me that not everyone has heard the wonderful news: St. Paul’s has called its next rector. But then, it’s summer. People are away. Our emails don’t receive the kind of compulsive attention they do during the rest of the year. And some of us—you know who you are! 😊 —have taken a hiatus from Sunday services.

So, at the risk of being redundant, let me repeat the joyous news shared in a special email last Friday and in person by Senior Warden Susan Quill at services last Sunday: The Rev’d T.J. Freeman has been called to be the 17th Rector of St. Paul’s. His first day in the office will be September 2, and his first Sunday will be September 7—Kick-Off Sunday for the new program year.

T.J. has eleven years of experience in parish ministry. After receiving his M.Div from the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, TX, he served as Curate, then Associate Rector, at Calvary Episcopal Church in Pittsburgh, PA, and most recently as Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Fort Wayne, IN. T.J. and his wife of 15 years, Annie, have two school age children, Ellie and Jack, and a golden retriever named Lucy. Information about the call, including photos of the Freeman family, a letter from T.J., and a video introduction can be found here.

It may seem that this is happening very quickly. It is, and it isn’t.

Let me remind you that the Search Committee’s faithful work has been going on steadily for months. Confidentiality requirements have meant that no announcement could be made until the Wardens, Vestry, T.J., and Bishop Anne had all come to an agreement about the terms of the call and signed the letter of agreement. T.J. and Annie are understandably eager to have their children start school here rather than in Indiana, so they were in town last weekend house hunting. Susan Quill announced at last Sunday’s services that they made an offer on a house in Shaker Heights and that it was accepted. It sure sounds to me like the Holy Spirit is working overtime!

My last Sunday will be August 17. I’ll preach at all three services, attend the August Vestry meeting on August 19, wrap things up that week, and head home to Granville, where Terry and I have lived since 2003.

I don’t have another interim assignment lined up, nor have I sought one. I’ve lived away from home for almost two years. It’s time to sit on the front porch, read the paper, and establish some new routines and practices. Terry and I have planned an October vacation on the Florida panhandle and look forward to celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas with family (and without parish responsibilities).

I’ll write more in next week’s Dear Friends letter. For now, I’m savoring the remainder of my time here.

Congratulations on the call of your new rector! I couldn’t be happier for St. Paul’s.

Blessings,

Stephen Applegate