Good Morning, Old Donation!

We are thrilled to share that white smoke is billowing and we have a new Rector!

Over the course of several phonecalls, Zoom conferences, and in-person meetings, the transition Discernment Team had the privilege of getting to know The Rev. Nelson Mendoza. After much prayer and discernment, it became evident that God was calling us to invite Father Nelson to lead Old Donation into the next chapter of our ministry.

Below is a personal note from Father Nelson. His first Sunday with us will be 16 November. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us as we joyfully welcome him and his husband to our ODEC family.

We are deeply grateful to our Transition Team for their faithful, dedicated work over the past year. Their thoughtful process has brought us to this exciting moment in the life of our parish.

~Your Vestry

Hey y’all! I’m the Rev. Nelson Mendoza — your new Rector, a proud first-generation Filipino American, and an even prouder son of Tidewater! I spent my formative years right here in Virginia Beach after immigrating from the Philippines with my family, and I’m thrilled to be coming home after nearly 15 years away, living and serving in cities like Phoenix, Austin, and New York City. I’m also an Old Dominion University alum — go Monarchs!

In ministry, I’m passionate about creating inclusive, hope-filled spaces where people can bring their whole selves — questions, laughter, culture, and all — to encounter God’s love. I enjoy preaching that connects faith to everyday life, worship that feels alive, and community that’s both prayerful and joyfully human. I felt called to serve ODEC because I’ve actually worshipped here a few times when I was a seminarian on vacation and I could feel the Holy Spirit’s presence here! This is a beautiful community overflowing with Christ’s love for neighbor and I am excited to continue to grow that legacy!

When I’m not at church, you can usually find me exploring local restaurants, honoring my health and wellness journey, traveling with my husband, Flavio (who’s from Rio de Janeiro), or getting way too invested in cozy video games like Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. I’m also a big fan of tabletop RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons — I love any excuse to tell a good story and spend time with friends.

I can’t wait to jump into the life of ODEC, get to know you all, and rediscover what makes this corner of Virginia so special!

Nelson+

What your Discernment Team wants you to know about Father Nelson!

• “As I prayed the night we voted I had such a clear vision of Nelson standing before our congregation in the church. He was just glowing, and I knew that aye was to be my vote! Nelson’s countenance, his smile, is contagious and his personality is so very engaging. He is easy to be with, he prays freely and easily, and he preaches the Word clearly with truth and conviction. On top of this his admin credentials and people skills appear to be solid…Yes, I knew because I knew that he had my vote as God’s choice for ODEC. Soooo, here we are and I am thrilled to envision what God has in store for ODEC in this fresh, new partnership.”

• “My first and enduring impression of Father Nelson is that he exudes a deep, abiding joy. He is warm and personable, and he really listens. He is an innovative thinker and creative problem solver with a sincere love for people. I am touched by his desire to help ODEC make an even bigger impact on our community and to minister to and welcome those who might have previously been hurt by the Church.”

• “The discernment process was all new to me. All candidates seemed qualified initially. At each point of contact - resume review; video review for preaching style; face to face via zoom, discussions with references and finally in person meet and greet, I became more and more confident in who was the best fit for ODEC and for our goals as a parish. The moment I felt that our discernment was indeed successful was during the second interview. Nelson was even more engaging and I began to visualize both interacting with him and hearing him preach in our own worship services. Meeting him in person and watching him with the transition team solidified the feeling that he belongs with us. I prayed fervently that our Vestry would be moved in the same way.”

• “Two words came to mind after our first interview with Rev. Nelson: EXUDES JOY. Looking around the room during that meeting, his Spirit-led joy, pride in the work already done, and excitement for the future of ODEC were infectious and palpable. We can’t wait for you all to meet him!”

• “From the moment Nelson+ began speaking with the team and asked to pray with us, I felt a sense of connection. Throughout the discernment process, the conversations were open and engaging. While praying, and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it became clear to me that Nelson+ was the one to call to serve as the next Rector of Old Donation Episcopal Church. I believe he will walk with us on our journey to become the parish we envisioned through our transition surveys and focus groups.”

• “The thrust of our parish portfolio was that we want to find a priest who will lead us in building upon the foundation that Bob Randall has left for us. Of all the candidates, I believe that the Rev. Nelson Mendoza is the most qualified to do just that. He has certainly done his homework, having a clear understanding of Old Donation’s mission and enthusiastically supports the journey we are on, continuing to grow, to be inclusive, and to reach out to our community. Nelson has a collaborative leadership style and is known to be pastoral, compassionate, and is a very good administrator as well. When he arrived at his present parish, Church of Our Savior in NYC’s Chinatown, as Priest in Charge, he discovered that there were serious financial challenges, and the future of the parish was in doubt. Under Fr. Nelson’s leadership they have been able to enter into a partnership with a non-profit which ensures the sustainability of the parish. Nelson is a young priest, but as one of his references stated, he is spiritually mature. He’s not rigid and willingly seeks wisdom.  I believe that he will help us attract more young families, the life blood of any church.  Most importantly for me is that our interviews with Nelson were uplifting, fun, and had a wonderful feeling that our prayers had been heard and answered.”

• “In our first Zoom conversation with Fr. Nelson I was immediately struck by his genuine warmth, pastoral presence, and spiritual depth. Before we even had started he asked if we could pray together and offered a brief but lovely prayer for discernment on both our parts. He was completely at ease in every conversation with all of the team members who spanned in age from young adult to senior. He had spent time with our materials and information, and was able to talk easily about what attracted him to joining us on our journey.”

• “Fr. Nelson shared with us that it was while he was a volunteer EMT with Plaza Rescue in Virginia Beach that he learned that he is drawn to being with people in the difficult moments of their lives, whether that requires being simply present or providing support that leads to needed action. He spoke also about wanting the church to be a place of healing and welcome to all, especially to those who may have been hurt by a church community as he was growing up as a gay young man in the Roman Catholic Church. He believes he is able to extend compassion to all because, as he said, "I have learned to lead from my scars, not from my wounds." I was impressed by his pastoral maturity that belied his relatively short time in ministry. 

• He has had a wide experience in developing Christian formation experiences attractive and appropriate to parishioners across a spectrum of life stages. Two examples come to mind. He shared the animated film The Prince of Egypt with retirees in Tucson in a format that inspired them in turn to share it and have conversations about faith with their grandchildren. He drew on an interest in video gaming to build relationships among youth in a Texas parish, leading to their inviting friends to join in and becoming comfortable sharing the questions and decisions they were facing at home and in school.

• Fr. Nelson dreams of a parish that reflects the diversity of the local community. He is interested in helping us to widen our parish circle. Who is missing? How can we keep growing into the welcoming community we want to be? He likened his vision of the beloved community to an experience he had on a crowded New York City bus, feeling the presence of the Holy Spirit as he sat among people of all nationalities and experiences traveling together for better or for worse, the people of God existing in harmony.

• I was impressed by Fr. Nelson's passion for forming partnerships that extend the reach of the faith community in service to the greater community. Using skills and resources learned in congregational development training he helped his current parish in New York's Chinatown to form a partnership with a nonprofit organization. This partnership saved his financially strapped parish from closing while providing much needed mental health services to the needy in Chinatown. He showed in this and other examples his ability to think outside the box to help us become a congregation ready to be part of the church of the future.”

• "You asked how I came to settle on Fr. Mendoza as my choice for our new Rector. When I focused on the task at hand, "discerning what God would have me do?" Did my best to eliminate my biases, my preferences for "me" and serve the parish family that is the current and desired future congregation of, and community served by, Old Donation Episcopal Church. First and foremost, I focused on the 'Christian walk of the candidate as evidenced by the candidate's spiritual presence, his service call, executive/administrative talents and his innate "gift" for "pastoring" in a way that I have observed this community (and its culture) requires. From our interviews, discussions with references, as well as other diligence done, I grew to be very comfortable with his abundant gifts and talents in each of these areas. An active participant in ODEC's men's breakfast community, an alum of our Sacred Ground initiatives, a presenter with Jim Pernini during our successful building Capital Campaign, and a volunteer for various it's STEM and URC partnership-grounded underserved outreach thrusts, I held up Father Bob's leadership benchmarks in these areas to serve as a marker for them. As an older parishioner and fairly recent former local caregiver for my deceased mother and father here in Virginia Beach, I was also keenly aware of our church family's needs for a rector who is capable and ' tuned in' enough to serve families and members faced with these spiritual growth challenges and end-of-life phases present. I became convinced that, with the assertive engagement of ODECs community and God's help, Fr. Mendoza will comprehensively orchestrate our community's service needs in this area. I came to Holy Consensus around our selection and referral to the vestry."