An Important Message From Rev. Joanne Hull

To My Family at First Presbyterian Church,

With mixed emotions, I shared at this morning's 11AM worship service that I have decided to retire on December 31, 2023 after ten years of ministry with you and forty years of professional ordained ministry in total. The time is right for me to step aside and let a new capable generation of pastors lead you in ministry. But, it is also the right time for me to enter into a new season of my life with my husband Eddie as we will relish the time we have together and gain the freedom to do many of the things we have on our bucket lists before the time is gone.

I am very excited about this new stage of my life but I am also beginning to grieve the loss of my relationship with you as a pastor. After this year has ended, I will no longer be one of your pastors, but I will always be your friend and a sister in Christ who will pray regularly and often for you and your life here.

With heartfelt thanks, I have been privileged to serve four churches as an installed pastor but as you might have heard me say, "God saved the best for last." Thank you First Presbyterian for walking with me through too many surgeries and the celebration of my marriage. It indeed took the whole church to make that wedding happen in 2020. I will be forever grateful for you and to you. Thank you First Presbyterian Church for allowing me the honor of being one of your pastors for a decade as we have shared life together through the laughter, tears, joy and sadness that life brings.

We have plenty of time to say goodbye before I vacate my office. I am announcing this now so that the session will have enough time to begin searching for the next pastor to fill my role. I will treasure these last eight months of ministry with you. I hope you will share with me the sadness of my departure but also the joy of relief from the rigors of ministry and the gift of time for rest, exploration, and new memories with Eddie.

I am grateful to God that I have been so blessed to be a part of such an amazing church. May God’s grace, blessing and peace be with each of you always!

With Love,

Rev. Joanne Hull

Associate Pastor for Congregational Care and Deacons

A Note From Rev. Alan Dyer

Dear Friends:

There was a mixture of emotions for me as well when Joanne first shared with me about her plans to retire at the end of this year. To be perfectly honest, the first thing I felt was a healthy dose of trepidation. Joanne manages and leads a plethora of activity and ministry in her role as Associate Pastor for Congregational Care and Deacons – how will we do it without her!? Next, I felt a pang of sadness. Since arriving last year, Joanne has been such a valued colleague, friend, and confidant helping to make my transition into the senior pastor role go smoothly.

But then I realized there was one thing I was feeling more than anything else: gratitude. For the past ten years, Rev. Joanne Hull has faithfully and capably led First Presbyterian’s ministry of care and compassion. She has sat by countless hospital and hospice beds, knocked on the front door of many of our homes, and cared for us through both the best and worst moments of our lives. As recipients of Joanne’s faithful and loving ministry for a nearly a decade what else can we really say other than, “Thank you!”

As Joanne states in her letter above, today’s announcement is (thankfully) not an immediate goodbye. We will all have plenty of opportunities over the coming months to express our gratitude and love for both Joanne and Eddie. Her announcing now also gives the session ample time to begin the process of planning for the transition as well as prayerfully discerning the type of role and pastor God may be calling First Presbyterian to next. We will continue to share information on both of these fronts as they develop in the coming weeks and months.

Today though is simply about giving thanks. We give thanks for the rich blessing that is Joanne Hull and for her forty years of ordained ministry in the Presbyterian Church. I hope you will join me in celebrating with her and also continuing to hold her and Eddie in our prayers as they prepare themselves for this exciting new chapter in their lives!

Blessings to you all on this Palm Sunday.

Peace,

Alan