Information about the Rector position and applying


Holy Family’s Vestry (Serving as Search Committee)
Class of 2026: Keith Brown, Amy Burtch, Danny Slone, Kris Little
Class of 2027: Leslie Sharpe, Lisa Ray, Caitlin Fuller, Ivis Bohlen
Class of 2028: John Blunk, Alma Gaudette, Martha Mundy, Lisa Worster
Officers of the Vestry
Senior Warden: Caitlin Fuller Junior Warden: John Blunk

Rector Search Process and Timeline


Calling a Rector for Church of the Holy Family
As we continue the process of calling Holy Family’s new rector, we want to share the process with the congregation, provide a status update, and offer answers to questions we have received from you. 

Rector Search Timeline (updated April 24, 2025)
  1. Receiving names (National Search) 
    • Our OTM (Office of Transition Ministry) document is posted. 
    • Applicants send their information to the Transition Ministry Officer
    • If you know someone who might be interested, send them the link! 
    • Applications close April 23, 2025 
2. After applications close, the vestry will receive all resumes, OTM profiles, and letters of interest from the Transition Ministry Officer.  
  • The vestry will prayerfully review the applications and select candidates for Zoom interviews. After those candidates are discerned, the bishop and Transition Ministry Officer will conduct “background” checks. 
3. Mid-May: The Vestry will conduct Zoom interviews. 

4. End of May to Mid June: After Zoom interviews, the vestry will prayerfully narrow down the list and invite candidates for in-person visits and interviews. This is where we are.
5. June/July- Decision Time
  • The vestry will again meet and prayerfully discern whom to call as our new rector.  When a consensus is reached, the vestry will seek the permission of the Bishop to extend the call. 
There will be some time after the call is extended before our new rector will begin. They will need to wrap up their current work and perhaps move. 


Still have questions? Please use the link below to email the Senior Warden. 
The Process: (Updated February 2025)
Getting Started – what we have done 
  • Plan farewell for Sarah Ball-Damberg - This took place on January 24, 2025.
  • Call a Bridge Priest - Mother Joyce Corbin Allen, our bridge priest for the next 5 months, joined Holy Family on Feb 9, 2025.
  • The vestry will go into active search mode by having the rector position posted nationally in late February/early March - The rector position is posted, and the search is active. 
Preparing the Parish Office of Transition Ministry (OTM) portfolio and post the position - what we have done
  • Mutual Ministry Reflection - This took place with the vestry in March 2024.
  • Parish-Wide Survey - This took place September 2024 in person at CHF and by email survey. 
  • Complete the Office of Transition Ministry (OTM) form and get it approved by the vestry, the bishop, and the Canon for Transition Ministry. - This is completed. 
  • Post position. We anticipate this will be posted on March 1. This will be a national search. - This is posted.
Search and Discernment - what will happen next
  • Once the application closes after Easter, the transition officer will send application materials to the vestry. 
  • The vestry will:
    • Review written materials and narrow down candidates to meet on Zoom. 
    • The vestry will then thoughtfully and prayerfully discern and narrow down the candidate slate to invite semi-finalists to Chapel Hill for in-person interviews with the vestry.
      • The diocese, on behalf of the bishop, will prescreen the semi-finalists prior to the vestry inviting them to Chapel Hill. Bishop Rodman will also meet them while active discernment is taking place, often via Zoom as to not slow the process. 
    • The vestry will then prayerfully discern a finalist and ask for the Bishop's permission to call this candidate to serve as Holy Family's rector. 
Issuing a Call and Welcoming a New Rector - The vestry will take these steps 
  • The vestry votes to call the candidate. 
  • The senior warden notifies Bishop Rodman of the desire to call the candidate and asks his permission to call him or her as the new rector.
  • With the transition officer’s assistance, the senior and junior wardens negotiate a Letter of Agreement with the candidate.
  • Celebrate!
  • Plan farewell for Mother Joyce
  • Welcome new rector
  • Conduct Mutual Ministry Reflection in one year


FAQ from December 2024

What happens when Sarah leaves at the end of January? 
We have chosen to accept the recommendation of Bishop Sam and his staff to call a bridge priest for the period between when Sarah leaves and when we call a new Rector hopefully before the end of Summer 2025 .

What is a bridge priest, and why did we choose that path rather than an interim Rector?
A bridge priest is a clergy member who serves a church temporarily between the departure of one priest and the hiring of another. This person will have pastoral and administrative duties but will not have ecclesiastical authority; that role is filled by the Senior Warden until a new Rector is called. The bridge priest will serve ¾ time alongside our current clergy and staff. 
The diocesan staff recommended a bridge priest for a few reasons:
  • As much of the work of a typical transition process has been completed via the process begun in March 2023, we don’t need someone for the typical duration of an interim rector. 
  • The Vestry decided that the option of simply finding supply priests would lack the continuity that the congregation wants and would be an undue burden on the rest of our clergy.
  • During her tenure as Priest-in-Charge, Sarah has served as a de facto interim priest.
  • Interim priests are in very short supply, and it might take six months or more to find an interim rector. A bridge priest would take less time to find. 
  • There are two “hiring seasons” for Episcopal priests. The first and most active is the spring, and we want to take advantage of this more robust hiring season. 
When will the bridge priest start?
Bishop Sam and the diocesan transition team have identified a possible candidate.. The Vestry will meet with him or her in the coming weeks with the hope that this individual will start shortly after Sarah’s last Sunday, January 26, 2025. 
Will there be a Rector Search Committee?
We have heard from several members of the church body who would like to serve on the Search Committee. Based on the diocesan staff’s recommendation that the Vestry continue this work, there will not be a stand-alone Search Committee.
We will have an election for a new Vestry class in 2025, so parish members can nominate themselves for Vestry if they desire to participate in the Rector search and then serve to support the new Rector once they are in place. (Note: This is a three-year term, not just the duration of the Rector search.) 
Diocesan staff will continue to support and guide the Vestry during this transition, and we will regularly communicate with the parish about the search process.
Will the people of Holy Family get to meet potential candidates?
Following the diocesan process, the candidates are kept confidential and the responsibility of the call of the next Rector of Holy Family belongs to the Vestry . This is standard procedure and not unique to the process we are in.
What is the timeline for the Rector Search?
We fully expect to post the position the first week of March 2025 which dovetails into the prime “hiring season” in the Episcopal Church. We plan to compile candidate applications until mid-April. Interviews would occur from late April to May. Our hope is to call a new Rector summer 2025 and have him or her in place in early fall. 

Are the current clergy eligible for the Rector position?
The diocese will not consider current clergy for the Rector position. 
Will our other clergy have to leave once the new Rector is in place?
The current clergy and staff do not have to leave when a new Rector is in place– this is a longstanding myth!. The Vestry hopes our current clergy and staff will stay and continue their work with Holy Family. The Vestry will work alongside the new Rector and current clergy and staff to support a smooth transition. 
I still have questions/thoughts/concerns/wishes about the new Rector. What should I do?
The Vestry is here to listen! All the information gathered at the All Parish Mutual Discernment meeting in September and in the subsequent survey is being carefully considered as part of this process. Your Vestry members are available to listen and communicate your thoughts with the rest of the Vestry during the search process.