May 14, 2012
Dear parish and diocesan ministry leaders
Anne Brown has informed me of her intention to retire from her position as communication minister for the Diocese of Vermont, effective August 31, 2012. She and I have been in conversation about this for some time now and I support her in this decision. Anne has served the Diocese for fifteen years, first as Mountain Echo editor and then as communication minister. For the past year, with changes in our communication strategy Anne has become increasingly aware that the gifts and skills she brings to the ministry of communication are not as well suited to the current requirements of that ministry. This was not an easy decision for her to reach and I respect the integrity with which she has carried out this discernment. Her years of diocesan ministry have been marked by significant improvement in the area of communication and above all in the quality of the award winning Mountain Echo. She now believes it is time for another to take us into the future. Anne has several important tasks to complete before she retires, including continued publication of the Mountain E-News, a newly reformatted digital version of the Mountain Echo, completing the migration of material from the old website to the new, reporting on General Convention and ensuring that the records and materials in her care are transferred for future use. All of that is to say that Anne will continue as a full and integral part of our diocesan Ministry Support Team (dMST) throughout the summer.
I have begun the process of thinking about the future needs and possibilities related to our communication ministry and will gather a small group of folks from around the diocese, including members of the Diocesan Council, to help us plan for that future. I hope you will join me in thanking Anne for her significant contributions in this ministry over the years and wish her well in her discernment about where best to continue to offer her considerable gifts and skills. We will find appropriate ways and times to honor Anne’s ministry and service to our diocese.
Faithfully,
+Thomas
The Right Reverend Thomas C. Ely
5 Rock Point Road
Burlington, Vermont 05408