Due to space constraints related to the on-line filing of our Church Information Form, the PNC was forced to abbreviate our responses. These 6 pages contain the CIF we wanted to post.
 

The Mission of the First Presbyterian Church is to be an active, growing, inclusive and caring church family that witnesses to God's love and shares the good news of Jesus Christ.

Through First Presbyterian Church, all are transformed by the presence of our Living God revealed and celebrated by:

· Caring that embraces all as a loving family

· Education that is innovative and nurturing

· Service that is a catalyst for justice and peace

· Worship that is fresh and inviting

FPC is very service-oriented, providing active volunteers to the local community. The church has been an incubator for many projects which later matured and moved out to stand on their own. These include Children, Inc. (Columbus’ first day-care facility founded 36 years ago), Ecumenical Assembly/Love Chapel (an inter-denominational association of churches which includes a food pantry & other forms of direct assistance), Housing Partnerships (a Habitat-like agency that rehabs homes), Volunteers in Medicine (a free or very low-cost health clinic) and Su Casa Columbus (a Hispanic resource center). The Empty Bowl started in our gym in 1999 to raise money for the Love Chapel food pantry and it too has been taken over by the community. It is now held in a public space with over a dozen co-sponsors, including churches, social groups and schools.

FPC Preschool is highly regarded in the community and is attended by over 200 children from culturally and economically diverse families, including those of both members & non-members. This fall 17 students will attend on scholarships made possible by fund-raising projects and member contributions.

Our church has an outstanding music program led by a Ph.D. candidate vocal musician. We installed a Casavant FrÈres organ when we remodeled the sanctuary in 1995 and purchased a 51" Perzina studio piano this summer. Guest musicians & vocalists regularly participate in our worship services and Music at FPC brings nationally known musicians to the community every year.

FPC provides fellowship and educational opportunities for all ages. Our children/youth programs include music, Sunday school and outside activities open to members & their friends. This summer’s VBS had record attendance of 96 children, over ½ non-members, including a few who did not speak English. Our adults are nurtured through their participation in Sunday school and the small groups which have begun to take root. Generally we do not use a published curriculum for adults but offer a Bible or book study as requested by the class. We have volunteer SS teachers. Our Pastor is welcome to attend but is not expected to teach on a regular basis.

FPC empowers its leaders and its members to take roles of responsibility in the community. FPC’s membership is quite homogenous but represents a wide range of opinions which challenge, but also strengthen, the congregation. Recent congregational surveys indicate that FPC members perceive our church’s greatest strength is that it is a caring Christian community which is open, friendly and strives to meet members' needs.

The congregation includes a mix of young & old with many different gifts. The education level of our members is high: this is a middle to upper-middle class congregation located in a reasonably prosperous community. We have a good mix of adults from their mid-30s and older (as well as their children) but would like to draw more members in their 20s to the church. FPC is the largest church in the Presbytery of Ohio Valley and our Pastor will certainly have to assume Presbytery duties, as do members of the congregation.

Our Sunday morning includes worship with instrumental and/or choral music, children’s time, a lay liturgist and an inspiring sermon, followed by coffee fellowship and adult/youth Sunday school. Entering the Fellowship Hall (named for Bill & Ellen Laws), people are greeted with friendly faces & conversation, Fair Trade coffee (reminding us that even our smallest actions can have far-reaching impact) and several tables of books, CDs & videos available for loan from our extensive church library.

The FPC Foundation offers financial support to the local and larger church as well as the community. In 2006, this includes matching $50,000 raised within the congregation for repairs to our steeple and in addition, matching $35,000 in new & increased congregational pledges to be used specifically for mission work.

Because peacemaking and social justice are very important issues to our members, we budget 18% of our pledges to mission work. Including un-budgeted special offerings, approximately 25% of the church’s yearly gross receipts are spent on mission work. Our pastors have taken an active role in ecumenical & other programs in the community. FPC's annual William Laws Peacemaking Lecture has hosted such authors as Philip Gulley & Matthew Fox. We believe our typical member views Christianity primarily as a way of life to be shared with others.

In 1997, our congregation adopted a pledge toward using inclusive language in worship, including language describing God. FPC has been a "Covenant Network" congregation since 1998, while respecting the diverse opinions of its members.

At the 2006 GA meeting in Birmingham, FPC successfully brought an Overture to have HIV/AIDS recognized as a Peacemaking issue, so as to be eligible to receive funding from that annual offering.

FPC was founded in 1875. We have typically had a male Pastor but we have had well loved female Associate Pastors and have thrived under two different female Interim Pastors. The PNC feels that either a man or woman would be welcomed by the congregation. We generally have a history of long term pastors, including Bill Laws (moderator of the 182^ndGA in 1970). Church members have expressed an interest in sermons inspired by Christ's teachings, blended with appropriate use of humor, personal observations and thoughtful insights drawn from today's world.

Our members are deeply committed to the church and involved in its life. We responded to recent congregational concerns with a consultant-led discernment process, a critical step in developing a balanced budget. This led to staffing changes that the PNC believes have positioned us to meet our current and future needs. We are a healthy church ready to move forward in both numbers and individual spiritual growth.

Name John McKune
Address 646 Town Hill Road E, Nashville IN 47448
Phone Number 812/988-1258
Relation Member of the Presbytery, regular worship attendee
E-mail john.mckune@sbcglobal.net

Name Lorna Kuyk
Address 1319 W Bloomfield Rd, Bloomington IN 47403
Phone Number 812/334-1152
Relation Executive Presbyter
E-mail lkuyk@presbyteryofohiovalley.org

Position Description:

S/he will serve as Pastor/Head of Staff for a 425 member church with Sunday worship attendance of approximately 200 and a staff including an Associate Pastor/DCE, a Director of Music and an office staff of two. The Pastor does not directly supervise the Director of the Pre-School but has "dotted line" authority over her. The (long-time) Pre-School Director is a church member.

Our Pastor will take a personal interest in, and make regular visits to, our homebound and hospitalized members.

S/he will plan and conduct worship services, administer the sacraments and care for the congregation’s spiritual needs including counseling, funerals, weddings, baptisms and other typical duties of a Pastor. S/he will embrace and nurture our congregation, look for areas of growth and improvement and motivate our members to accomplish their goals. FPC is a friendly congregation, focused on inclusiveness and openness: this should be reinforced by our pastor.

Our pastor will lead fresh and inviting Sunday Services, encourage Sunday School attendance among all age groups and help offer our members opportunities for additional growth through non-worship study and activities. We have begun the effective utilization of small groups and would like to see this expanded.

Our new Pastor will:

Be an effective administrative leader, monitoring the budget, managing all personnel functions and setting a clear & consistent direction for both paid staff & member-staffed committees.

Be known for being caring, approachable, welcoming and a good listener with a resolute sense of humor.

Be willing and able to take a personal interest in the life of any member who is going through crisis.

Be an outstanding preacher, able to send the congregation away on Sunday with a message that will sustain us through the next week.

Be able to lead congregation members in our personal faith journeys as well as our mission to the community and the world.

Be well educated but have common sense.

Be comfortable with the importance of inclusiveness to this congregation.

Respect our traditions while helping us respond to the present, prepare for the future and deal with the issues facing the larger church.

Embrace the importance of music in our worship life.

Enjoy teaching and learning, have contagious enthusiasm and help provide motivation, encouraging members to continue grow in our faith.

Be an active and visible participant in the community, so as to challenge us to continue our outreach efforts.

Be experienced with developing small group ministries and able to assist us in our individual spiritual journeys, as well as assisting our congregation to grow our church community through bringing new members to FPC.

We have been counseled regarding, intend to comply with and expect compliance with, all issues raised under Step 6.