Sunday, September 13 at 11am
Dear St. Mark’s Family,
At the December 2025 Congregational Meeting we announced that Traci Billman would be retiring in June of 2026. As we know, Traci filled many roles at St. Mark’s beyond Christian Education, and we used this as an opportunity to take a closer look into the needs and future of St. Mark’s instead of launching the search for a replacement Director of Christian Education.
The first step of this process was the Church Council forming a Discernment Committee to have conversations about the direction St. Mark’s is growing towards not just in education, but across the life of the church. This committee met with various Sunday Learning classes, families, members, and staff from January through March. Taking the findings of the Discernment Committee, along with a consultation meeting led by Pastor Jonathan Hemphill of the Southeastern Synod, the Council set forward with in-depth Gap Planning to cover the current staffing shortage and announced the formation of the 2026 Transition Committee which would assess long term staffing needs helping to shape a path forward.
The Transition Committee met from June through August, exhaustively using all the materials available from the Discernment Committee, and information from further interviews with staff and board chairs which included complete lists of tasks performed on a regular basis as well as those additional tasks assigned during the Gap Period. The work of the Transition Committee was to take thoughtful consideration of all the roles performed by staff and board members and make a recommendation for Staffing the Future of St. Mark’s.
At the conclusion of this process, the Transition Committee recommended to Council that St. Mark’s call a rostered minister to fill a new position as Pastor for Congregational and Community Life. In addition to recommending a rostered leader, the Transition Committee also presented a detailed restructuring of current staff positions. These updated roles reflect the ongoing needs and growing ministries of St. Mark’s while being grounded in the spiritual gifts of our current staff as well as striving to faithfully structure the breadth and scope of individual positions for future staffing needs.
The Church Council voted to affirm the work and recommendations of the Transition Committee and will be holding an Informational Meeting in the Sanctuary on Sunday, September 13 at 11am during which Council President, Jim Law, will introduce the path forward and share information on forming a Call Committee; 2026 Transition Committee chair, Jason Miller, will talk about the Transition Committee’s work throughout the summer; and there will be an opportunity for those in attendance to ask questions of Council and Transition Committee members.
A Call Committee at St. Mark’s is comprised of 6 members appointed by the Council spanning generations, ministries, and backgrounds working to create a faithful representation of the congregation. More information on this process will be shared at the Informational Meeting on September 13, but those who are interested in submitting their name for the Call Committee are encouraged to do so by talking to any of our Council members who will bring their name forward for consideration at our next meeting on September 21.
If you would like to share your interest in the Call Committee or submit questions for the Informational Meeting early, you can email them to [email protected] or talk to Jim Law.
Below are brief position descriptions for Staffing Our Future beginning with the new Pastor for Congregational and Community Life followed by the other staff roles. We want to provide these before the Informational Meeting to share a more in-depth view of how the roles align with our staffing needs and coverage of all aspects of life at St. Mark’s.
We look forward to continued conversations and the bright future of St. Mark’s!
Growing Together,
St. Mark’s Church Council
STAFFING OUR FUTURE
Pastor for Congregational and Community Life – New Rostered Role
The Pastor for Congregational and Community Life is instrumental in leading and facilitating the care of members, friends, and visitors of St. Mark’s as well as leading in Witness and Outreach programs for our community at large.
Pastor for Faith Formation and Engagement – Rev. Will Starkweather
The Pastor for Faith Formation and Engagement is instrumental in sharing the Gospel through preaching in worship, leading Bible Studies, and overseeing educational classes for members, friends, and visitors of St. Mark’s. The Pastor for Faith Formation and Engagement will also be responsible for maintaining a presence as a faith leader in the Greater Huntsville Community.
Director of Worship Arts – Patrick Marchant
The Director of Worship Arts, in collaboration with the Pastors, seeks to add beauty to worship creating opportunities for the congregation to engage all their senses as they participate. A major part of this role is leading worship through music ensembles and congregational song fostering love, and therefore confidence, in music for all generations.
Director of Communications – Shelby Billman
The Director of Communications collaborates with church staff, council boards, and ministry teams in content creation, strategic brainstorming, and campaign development across the ministries of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church working to maintain the brand identity and design parameters as set forth in collaboration with the Marketing Team.
Office Manager – Heather White
The principal responsibility of the Office Manager shall be to ensure that the business operations of the office of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church run smoothly on a day-to-day basis in accordance with current policies. The office manager will oversee daily operations, record keeping, and the finances of the church.
Administrator of Office and Volunteer Life – Position to be filled at the conclusion of the 2026 Office Assistant Interim Period
The Administrator of Office and Volunteer life is often one of the first faces you’ll see at St. Mark’s. A welcoming voice to phone calls, friendly smile at the front desk, and the first point of contact to direct members, friends, and visitors of St. Mark’s in the right direction.
Staff AV Tech
The Staff AV Tech will work in collaboration with the Director of Worship Arts and lay volunteers to ensure the smooth execution of Audio, Visual, and Streaming Technologies in worship.