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Strategic Planning Process

We are receiving surveys now through October 31 for our strategic planning process. Take the survey online here: Episcopal Diocese of Georgia Vision Survey

This survey is a second step, following the 10 in-person and online listening sessions, which with 215 taking part, went very well at identifying some key themes for our work in the coming years. After the survey, our consultants and the committee will offer feedback to our diocesan convention where we will also work further on the themes. This process is designed to offer multiple opportunities to help shape our visions, goals, and strategies. Here is more about what we seek to accomplish with this strategic planning process.

By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
-I Peter 1:3

New life in Jesus does not offer a vague, uncertain hope that things might one day improve. Instead, as followers of Jesus, we have the sure and certain knowledge that Jesus is with us now and always. The presence of the living God offers both comfort and challenge. We are called not simply to have hope, but to take actions that reveal the living hope within us. Living hope is embodied in our actions.

The Strategic Planning Process we are entering into this year is not just about creating a sound business plan for the Diocese of Georgia, even though we should expect our vision of how we are to be and what we are to do will make sense from that perspective. This process is primarily intended to help the people of the Diocese discern how the Holy Spirit is leading us into the future. In asking, “What does fidelity to Jesus look like in this moment?” we can confidently look to the Spirit to guide us into new ways of embodying our living hope.

In the visits we make to every congregation of this diocese, Victoria and I see that the resurrection we long for is already happening. We meet people new to the Episcopal Church who have found themselves connecting to their faith in Jesus in Word and Sacrament in the community of their Episcopal Church. We routinely meet people of every age and stage of life who are as grateful as we are to have found a home in this corner of the vineyard.

In addition, I see the new life taking root in places where parishes have begun to work with other Episcopal congregations as well as ecumenical partners. When we move outside our red doors to engage with our neighbors and to work with other churches, the Spirit shows up. When we live in hope, we give hope to others. New life is already among us. The question is not the one that faced Ezekiel, “Can these bones live?” The answer to that is clearly, “yes” based on the evidence around us. Our call is to join with what God is already doing as we practice resurrection. This is the Christian call to die to what has been to let Christ be born in us anew, as individuals and as a Diocese. We strengthen our faith and deepen our trust in Jesus when we move from having hope to living hope.

+Frank

The Rt. Rev. Frank S. Logue, Bishop


Strategic Planning Committee
Bishop Logue has named eleven members of the Diocese with diverse perspectives to work with our consultants on this planning process characterizing them to Diocesan Council in a recent meeting: The two teens on the team have experience in their own congregations, diocesan youth programs, and with the churchwide Episcopal Youth Event. Five additional lay persons bring their views from a variety of sizes of congregations and sizes of communities they serve. The four clergy likewise bring a depth of insight from the different places they serve. Chairing this committee is Carey Wooten, who has gained a broader view of the Diocese and its ministries while heading our Leading with Grace training.

Billy Alford, Dean Emeritus of Augusta
Amy Ariail, St. Thomas in Thomasville
Bob Baranko, St. Patrick’s in Albany
Jody Grant, Our Savior in Martinez
Cam Mathis, St. George’s in Savannah
Dwala Nobles, Good Shepherd in Brunswick
Becky Rowell, Christ Church Frederica
Sandy Sandbach, Christ Church in Valdosta
Kelly Steele, St. Peter’s in Savannah
Charles Todd, Trinity in Statesboro
Carey Wooten, Calvary in Americus (Chair)

Diocesan Offices to Move

A Message from Bishop Frank Logue

Summary: I am writing to let you know that the Standing Committee has concurred with my decision to sell our current Diocesan office on 34th Street in Savannah and to move to a new Episcopal Center in the former St. Michael and All Angels building on Washington Avenue and Waters Avenue in Savannah. This move will eliminate all debt on our balance sheet while adding more than $1 million in investments to support the diocesan budget and will have your bishop and diocesan staff serving from an office in a place offering greater accessibility where other ministry is also happening.

The Former St. Michael and All Angels’ Property
When the Vestry of St. Michael and All Angels in Savannah voted to close the parish and give the keys to me as bishop as of July 1, 2023, we continued the ministries taking place, that were serving more than 350 people each week, while deciding what to do with the facilities. We did not want to lose this prime location in Savannah, but a more serious concern, not immediately evident, was the burials on the grounds and in the courtyard of the church. Working with the Standing Committee, we opted to sell the rectory next door, which had been a plan first put forward by the parish vestry. That sale is funding our catching up on all of the deferred maintenance in the church building including a new roof and addressing several serious issues raised by structural engineers. We were looking for non-profit groups to lease the space on the second floor of the parish hall in order to cover the cost of maintaining the physical plant. We found some interest, but no tenants. During this time, the Rev. David Lemburg provided a priestly presence to the ongoing ministries, and Mrs. Judy Naylor-Johnson continued to assist with the administration of the space, as Canon Katie Willoughby and Mr. Daniel Garrick, our Canon for Administration and Assistant Administrator, went above and beyond to make this work. That’s when the Aha happened.

The Aha Moment
I was walking the space soon after our Presiding Bishop-Elect announced that he was going to forgo the expensive installation liturgy at Washington National Cathedral. I looked at the rooms again wondering why we could not find a tenant and it dawned on me that the space would best serve the Diocese. I wondered why it had not occurred to me before as it seemed obvious in that moment. I am grateful for Presiding Bishop-Elect Sean Rowe’s leadership, which helped me envision a decision that was much better stewardship for the Diocese of Georgia. I immediately engaged with the Standing Committee on this new possible direction. Canon Willoughby worked with our project manager for the site on the costs of making the new location work for our offices as I considered the costs and benefits of making this move. 

The Details
The current Diocesan House is a beautiful building that is costly to maintain, in addition to other shortcomings. The layout of the building has limited accessibility, especially for people with disabilities. The building itself is not accessible, as navigating stairs is required to enter, and the first-floor layout precludes the holding of confidential conversations as there are no doors on that level. While it has been a good site for the bishop and staff since 2018, moving to another, more workable ministry site provides opportunities to be more accessible, welcoming, and outreach-focused.

I have remained concerned about the debt the Diocese has maintained on its balance sheet. When I was elected bishop, the Diocese of Georgia had the much-discussed Honey Creek debt that we paid off in full in December 2022. We also had notes in our audits of internal loans from our investments of $400,000 used to buy our current office, and $115,000 for the Campus Ministry House in Statesboro. Two recent bequests allowed us to pay off the debt on the house near Georgia Southern and to reduce the debt on our offices to $200,000. The sale of our offices on 34th Street will clear that remaining note on debt on our audits while yielding more than $1 million to invest with the Board of the Corporation so that an appropriate annual draw can increase the diocesan budget. This wonderful windfall from investing in this downtown Savannah property in 2018 will assist in realizing the vision that emerges in our strategic planning process now underway.

The benefits of the new location include having more ample parking and better, more accessible meeting spaces for diocesan gatherings while maintaining existing ministry services in the area including operating a food pantry and providing space for community groups to gather. Additionally, the worship space will become a diocesan chapel that can still be used by the Episcopal Church of the Epiphany, while also being available when helpful to the Diocese. Mostly, this move emphasizes ministries happening concurrently in the same space, while offering the potential for much more.

This decision is about focusing on what matters most. Worship is the heart of ministry and so all of our congregations matter. The work of your bishop and diocesan staff is also important ministry as is feeding our neighbors in need and otherwise engaging with the community around us. Having these differing ways of living into our faith in Jesus all present in our new Episcopal Center matters. We are doing this in a way that eliminates debt and increases our investments in the Board of the Corporation as well as our investments in our neighbors. I believe this move is an important witness that will advance the Gospel.

pax et bonum,
+Frank