The Vestry of St. Martin’s Church has appointed the Rector Search Committee. The members of the committee were recommended by Co-Chairs Rex Angle and Sue Mitchell, who were appointed two weeks ago, from applications and nominations received from within the parish. At the regular monthly meeting, February 16, the Vestry named the following persons, along with the Co-Chairs, to serve as members of the committee: Tom Bolerjack, Jerry Burkett, Lisa Efthymiou, Courtney Mullaney, Mark Pulliam, Janna Soesbe, and Cathy Tolliver. The committee reflects the diversity of our membership, has an arrray of gifts that will be helpful in the search process, and is a manageable size.
The Rector Search Committee will begin its work immediately following a meeting with the Vestry, Bishop Mayer, and Canon Waggoner on February 25. The first step in the process will be the development of a parish profile, which will reflect input from the parish as well as other data that will be useful in describing St. Martin’s for those Priests who will be considering submitting an application in a few months.
More details will be published as the committee carries out its mission. The Co-Chairs and the Vestry are grateful to all those who submitted applications and nominations for service on the committee.
Remember that this process is one of mutual discernment. At the same time our committee is discerning whom to recommend to the Vestry as our next Rector, Priests will be looking at our life together to discern if they may be called to serve here. It is the mission of the committee to search for a Rector. It is the mission of the parish to be the people God is calling us to be and doing the things God is calling us to do with glad and generous hearts.
As we go about our tasks, let us offer this prayer daily for the search.
Almighty God, giver of every good gift: Look graciously on St. Martin’s, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a rector for this parish, that we may receive a faithful pastor, who will care for your people and equip us for our ministries; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
And, let us also offer this prayer daily for our discernment of who we are called to be as a parish.
O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Meet the Rector Search Committee
Rex Angle – Co-Chair
I was born and raised in Anniston, Alabama and graduated from Jacksonville State University in 1985 with a B.S.,majoring in marketing with a focus in intermodal transportation. I have had a thirty plus year career with BNSF Railway, having moved to six different locations with the company and held more than eleven assignments within the company, primarily as a commercial officer. I am a member of Kappa
Alpha Order and a third degree Mason. Kerry, also a Jacksonville State graduate, and I married in November of 1985. We have two children, Elizabeth and Stephen. Elizabeth is a graduate of the University of North Texas and a fuel manager at BNSF Railway. Stephen has both his undergraduate and masters from Oklahoma State and is employed by the EPA in Dallas.We became Episcopalians in Birmingham, Alabama in the mid 1980s and have since been extremely dedicated to our church of choice. My personal interests include everything family, hunting, sporting clays, fishing, and sports. I look forward to the process that will lead us to call a new Rector for this wonderful parish.
Sue Mitchell – Co-Chair
I was born and raised in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the oldest of four children. We were all Baptized and Confirmed at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church where I have fond memories of participating in the EYC as a young adult and singing in the Choir with my parents. I left home to attend college at Georgetown University in Washington, DC where I met and became engaged to DJ Mitchell. We transferred to Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where we were married 50 years ago at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church.
The move to Hurst, Texas led us to visit several area churches, finally settling at St. Martin’s in 1991. With two sons in college and the youngest in High School, I began a career in accounting with Paula Jefferson & Associates and participated in many activities available at St. Martin’s, including serving time as Treasurer, Vestry member, Senior Warden, and member of the Choir. I also participated in the Memorial Garden Committee, the Bread Ministry, the Quiet Committee, and the Prayer Shawl Ministry, among other groups. I retired from the business world in 2007, and am enjoying spending time with our married children and seven grandchildren, in Seattle, Atlanta, and Sydney, Australia; traveling, volunteering at an elementary school in the area, and quilting when time permits. I look forward to serving St. Martin’s in a different way as we move forward with the search process and plan for the future.
Tom Bolerjack
I wish to serve on the Search Committee because I believe that its mission is incredibly important for St. Martin’s, and I would like to do what I can to ensure that the church calls the best rector it can. I believe that I can offer a useful perspective, and I hope to be able to give back to the church as much as I have been given. My mom Becky Snell-Bolerjack and brother Jack Bolerjack are also members of St. Martin’s, where I was Confirmed twelve years ago.
Jerry Burkett
When my wife Kim, son Jackson, and I found St. Martin’s, we had been to several churches trying to find the right place, the right ministry, and the right church that aligned with our beliefs. St. Martin’s was immediately the right place for us. Not only because of the people and the “radical hospitality” but because of a thoughtful and welcoming Rector. I want to help support the church in finding the Rector who can lead our church to grow and continue that welcoming spirit that we found three years ago.
Lisa Efthymiou
I will make a significant contribution to healthy group process as the team comes together and executes its mission. I have served in leadership in a small church during this process before (as religious education director, working closely with the Search Committee). I also participated in two years of small-group experience which trains group members in heart-opening process grounded in deep listening, which will be important to the work to be done by a Search Committee. Members have very different experiences, backgrounds, perspectives, expectations, and needs. I came to St. Martin-in-the-fields in early 2019. I hold the values shared here at St. Martin’s deep in my heart. I enjoy serving as greeter and lector and participating in many activities of the church such as SOS and many of the outreach collections throughout the year. I am a software workflow strategist and live in Keller with my husband. We have two lovely grown daughters. My parents and sister live just 2 miles away here in Keller too. I love to run and work out, participate in civic activities, cook delicious meals, and spend time with my family. I truly believe serving on a Search Committee should be a spiritual growth experience, bringing us closer together, closer to Christ, and closer to our St. Martin’s Church Community. While I bring a fresh perspective, being a relatively new member of around 1 year, I also have a deep desire and curiosity to come to understand who this church has been in the past, and where God is leading us. If our team experience is based on this kind of foundation, the path forward will reveal itself, by God’s hand.
Courtney Mullaney
My husband Christopher, our three children, Brooklyn, Elliott, and Kellan, and I have been active members of St. Martin’s for seven years. I want to represent families with young children as part of this search. I have perspective on skills needed to run a parish and to interface with parishioners, as I have served on the vestry. I have many years of experience in hiring and interviewing.
Mark Pulliam
My wife Carla, children Bates, Elena, Lexi, and I have attended St. Martin’s for approximately four years. I am a proud Holy Mower and passionate about Service Sunday. I served 23 years (active and reserve) in the United States Navy retiring as a Commander in 2008. In my civilian career, I’ve worked over 20 years in the travel and hospitality technology industry with roles in corporate finance, business operations and sales. I am currently Senior Vice President, the Americas, at RateGain, a global technology firm specializing in hotel distribution, business intelligence, and social media content creation and monitoring. I earned an MBA from George Washington University and a BA from the University of Texas at Austin. I was confirmed Episcopalian at St. Martin’s, and I am passionate about raising my children in a spiritual environment that exudes Christ’s message of love, welcome and acceptance to all people. I am honored to assist this committee, and our parish, in finding our next Rector.
Janna Soesbe
I am a fifth generation Episcopalian and I love St. Martin’s. We are fairly new to the congregation and to Texas. My husband Joseph, children Caroline and Rebecca, and I have been attending for almost two years. I teach Sunday School and have helped with Vacation Bible School the last two years. I would like to serve on the search committee because I want to be a voice for the young families that will help St. Martin’s continue to grow. Growing up I watched my dad as he served as Senior Warden during a search and I understand the importance of this next step for our church.
Cathy Tolliver
I was a Human Resources Director before my retirement and I feel I can bring knowledge of candidate interviewing and matching people with desired qualifications. I have been an active member of St. Martins since 2012 and serve as a greeter, reader, altar guild member and the chairperson of the Memorial Garden ministry. I have the interest and, I feel, a calling to participate in this search.