A Good-bye Note

Dear Families of Vanderbilt Pres
I could say, “It’s been a blast,” and it has been. I could say, “We’ve had fun,” and we have. I could say, “We’ve learned a lot together,” and we have. But, what I want to do is to tell you how much you have all meant to me. It is so refreshing and inspiring to be with people who struggle with issues related to the spiritual development and faith of their children and their family. It has been wonderful to watch you all “play” together, learning that life does not always have to be structured around little league, dance lessons, music lessons, etc; but learning that there is joy in just being together. I want to thank you for all of the support you have given me over the last three years, for your words of encouragement and your excitement about family ministries. I also want to say that it does not have to end here. There is so much good that is happening from Stepping Stones, to Sacred Shelter, to Vandy 500 to Beach Cleanup Days to Trunk-n-Treat and on and on. Here at VPC you have a safe place to gather to relax and have fun, you have a safe place to ask questions about God and faith and “how do we teach our children?” You have the opportunity, now, to do a new thing, something daring and on the edge so that your children and youth remain excited about what it means to be a Christian. My charge to you, as I leave Vanderbilt Presbyterian, is to always strive to make Vanderbilt a welcoming place for families of all shapes and sizes and all socioeconomic backgrounds, all stages of faith development. Be open to new ideas and be open to those that continue to ask questions. Think OUTSIDE THE BOX! And remember; remember that first and foremost is God. If we don’t teach that to our children and youth no one else will. That behavior must be modeled in you. Okay, now I’m lecturing—but you get it! Last, but not least—Yes, I will miss you. I am excited about the future, yet sad about leaving. I will miss all of those wonderful smiles and bright eyes during children’s moment—my favorite thing in the world. I will miss our camaraderie, our come as who you are attitudes, and I will miss YOU. Take care and God bless. “Behold, I am doing a new thing: now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:19.