Ron Brown begins as outreach director December 1
I Heidi Schmidt
n mid-November, the Rev. Gary Jones announced that Ronald L. Brown had accepted his call to serve as the new outreach director for the parish. Ron’s first day at St. Stephen’s will be December 1. This welcome news was the result of an extensive search by a committee composed of parishioners, vestry members, and staff. Ron has extensive experience in community outreach. Since 2014, he has worked for Pathways, a not-for-profit organization in Petersburg focused on community revitalization. Formerly named Petersburg Urban Ministries, Pathways provides assistance to underserved communities in such areas as education, employment, financial literacy, and health. Prior to that work, he was a neighborhood outreach director for Virginia Commonwealth University. He is accustomed to working with diverse groups of people, and managing volunteers. Ron has a bachelor’s degree from St. Paul’s College and received his master’s degree in urban and regional planning, magna cum laude, from VCU.
ministries, as a partner with entities such as as Fairfield Court Elementary School and Peter Paul, and two we helped found, Anna Julia Cooper Episcopal School and Rework Richmond. Gary appointed a search committee earlier this fall to find outstanding candidates for this crucial position, and after an extensive search, the committee presented him several excellent finalists. The committee, chaired by Thomas Goode, included Alice Goodwin and Jim Johnson, both active outreach volunteers; vestry wardens Allison Koschak and Lynn Ivey; and staff members Sarah Bartenstein and the Rev. Will Stanley. Parishioner Sam Davis served as a consultant to the committee. Deep thanks go to Erin Townsend for her service during the interim period. Erin made sure that our food ministry, so much in demand during the pandemic, continued to run smoothly during a transitional time. We are grateful for the fine work Erin did for us, with such grace, commitment, and good humor.
Anna Jones, who serves so ably as our farmers market manager, ‘The praise for Ron Brown from our “The praise for Ron Brown from is now coordinating our food our diverse search committee diverse search committee was unanimous. distribution, working with was unanimous,” said Gary. our amazing volunteers in the No one had a doubt about the depth of “No one had a doubt about the pantry and the fruit ministry. depth of Ron’s vast experience; Anna is familiar with this part Ron’s vast experience; his commitment his commitment to listening, of our food ministry through its to listening, networking, and healthy networking, and healthy connection to the market–many partnerships; or his compelling partnerships; or his compelling market vendors provide fresh combination of personal warmth food for those we serve–and she combination of personal warmth and and effective communication previously worked for Shalom effective communication skills.’ skills. And when I met Ron in Farms, a ministry that grows GARY JONES person, I instantly realized that and distributes fresh food he would be universally loved to those suffering from food and embraced by the people of St. Stephen’s, and that these insecurity. Anna is excited about adding this dimension of our feelings would be mutual.” comprehensive food ministry to her work. Gary noted, “Like staff before him, Ron will generate enthusiasm among our fantastic volunteers, and I know he will be respected by our many outreach partners. I don’t think it’s possible to spend a little time with Ron and not be excited about the future of outreach ministries at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church.” Ron also expressed his excitement to begin the work, saying, “I am looking forward to meeting each of you personally as time allows,” and saying he views this as more than a job: it is, he says, an opportunity to serve and to build bridges. “I am passionate about building lasting relationships,” Ron said. This approach fits perfectly with the way St. Stephen’s has engaged in outreach S A I N T S T E P H E N ’ S E P I S C O PA L C H U R C H
During the interim period when we were searching for just the right person to fill this vital role, we were also coming to terms with what it means to reach out to the community in a time of pandemic. It’s true that in a sense, the future of these efforts is murky. We don’t yet know when we’ll be able to return to many of the activities—locally, nationally, and internationally—that we had pursued before. At the same time, we know that the needs have only increased during this time of fear, job loss, and economic uncertainty. This is all the more reason that we are blessed to have someone of Ron’s abilities leading outreach for St. Stephen’s Church, and helping us navigate where God is calling us. ✤
ADVENT/CHRISTMAS/EPIPHANY | WINTER 2020
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