Last week one envelope with two letters was mailed to the Chester Eastide guests, volunteers, leaders, donors, and long-time supporters. Both were letters that introduced the new Director of CEI. Realizing that there are those who are not on the mailing list, I offer here the letter that I wrote. If you have seen it, you get a pass on reading it again – but only to the bottom of this post where you will find a message that is only here on the website.
August 22, 2022
To the Chester Eastside Community…My New Team,
I write with the deepest gratitude for the call to serve as Executive Director of Chester Eastside. Know that I receive and accept this call with equal measure of humility and apprehension, and full measure of trust in the grace of God grace through which we accomplish things “unexpected in common hours.” It would be only natural for you to wonder what you can expect from me.
CEI is not just a place, it is an experience. Yes, it is a place in which people receive comfort, support, sustenance, and are welcomed with dignity and respect that is rooted in recognizing the divine spark that resides in every child of God. Even deeper, it is a place where the ones we serve experience radical hospitality, amazing grace, and abiding hope. What you can expect from me is complete, unqualified, and uncompromising devotion and commitment to the very essence of CEI.
As the result of many years serving as the pastor of a congregation, there are two pillars that characterize my ministry. First is the importance of healthy, direct, and respectful communication. I strive to be completely transparent knowing that secrets – even the perception of secrets – erode trust. When people are informed, they feel included, and when they feel included, they become invested. At the core of my leadership is to offer and encourage communication that models the Apostle Paul’s exhortation to “speak the truth in love.” This leads to my invitation: to share your CEI journey with me. I long to hear your hopes, fears, dreams, and visions for CEI. The door to my office is always open, as are my phone, voicemail, email, and text boxes.
Second. I have always been passionate about athletics. Most of the important life lessons I have learned have come while competing and coaching. “Play for the name on the front” is one of them. In many sports the name of the team is on the front of the jersey and the player’s name is on the back. Barking “play for the name on the front” flags the fundamental distinction between a single player and the collective team; it is a corrective and a challenge to use our gifts in collaboration with the rest of the team. I come to the CEI team committed to playing, praying, laughing, serving, and striving for the name on the front: Chester Eastside.
I look forward to meeting each of you – my new teammates. May we be victorious in our pursuit of compassion and justice, and may our collective service bring joy, inspire hope, and deliver…
Peace,
Andy
And so I write offering this introduction, but also with an invitation. In the days ahead I will be using this space to offer reflections and thoughts about the CEI journey. My goal is to provide pictures, stories, and reflections that inform, challenge, and – ideally – inspire our collective commitment to offer comfort, provision, hope, and peace to all who come to our door.
I offer this, and all that will follow, with the conviction that when we share in the journey of service it ceases to become a burden; it becomes joy. May the joy we experience together become a blessing for each of us – and all of us.
See you soon! And in the meantime…
Peace,
Andy