It has been fifty‑one days as your pastor, and what a joy it has been. The tally so far? One funeral, six “Grandmother parables” shared with our young disciples, one hat fashion show, seventeen suppers shared with sixty‑eight members — and, to be honest, far fewer church meetings than the two thousand my brain insists on.
To be clear: I love this church, its people, and its story. I am grateful to be woven into a small piece of it. Hallelujah!
So, when Pastor Marylee announced her retirement, the Staff Parish Relations Committee (SPRC) was tasked with gathering the church’s wish list for their next pastor and presenting it to the Bishop and Cabinet for the sacred matchmaking of pastor and congregation. I matched! I received that thoughtful wish list and it was a tall order indeed. You hoped for a pastor who was “biblically grounded, compassionate, inclusive, a connector across generations, and someone who nurtured strong relationships within the church, the interfaith community, and the broader Napa community”.
I was relieved to see you were not interested in a pastor who could chew gum and walk at the same time, nor did the pastor need to know something about wine. Although I was a teetotaler who had just served the congregation where Frances Willard was once a member, I arrived willing to learn how to see, smell, swirl, sip, spit or savor.
For the fun of it, I shared your wish list with a ‘bottom line expert’ and asked, “What exactly do the Napa Methodists want from their pastor at this moment in their discipleship?”
The response was wise and clarifying:
As the pastor, don’t ask, “How do we get people back into church?” Ask instead, “How can Napa First UMC become so useful, welcoming, authentic, and connected to the community that people want to be part of it?” Reframe ministry — from maintaining a church to cultivating a living community of faith.
Imagine my delight when I arrived and discovered this congregation was already being “useful, welcoming, authentic, and connected to the community.” Unfortunately, only a few know our story in order to know we are what they are looking for. Seems to me, we have lived out our values quietly, faithfully, and sometimes invisibly. For instance,
· Few know that our congregation has a long history of property stewardship as a form of our Methodist social justice.
· Few know that in 1963, Napa First UMC paid for half a page in the Napa Register, advocating for an Open Housing Covenant where all persons — Black, Brown, Jewish, and others — be legally able to rent or buy homes in Napa. The backlash was immediate and intense: in the dark of night, a white cross was erected on the parsonage lawn, where our current parking lot sits.
· Few know that in 1985, Napa First UMC chose to use its underutilized vacant property on Jefferson Street to address the growing challenge of aging in Napa by building low‑income senior housing. It was the second senior housing development in Napa, and it faced significant opposition.
· Few know that the Napa First UMC oversaw the creation of an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Napa Housing Foundation, because religious institutions cannot directly manage federally regulated housing funds. The Foundation was responsible not only in carrying out the church’s vision for dignified senior living, but also owning the property and overseeing its finances.
· Few know that for over thirty-five years, Foundation members who are mostly members of this congregation faithfully served in that ministry without celebration or recognition. However, one long-serving member told me, they do not look for gratitude, they are in it for “faithful service”.
I could go on and on. The story of Napa United Methodist Church is not one of nostalgia; it is one of a small band of disciples living with courage, justice, faith and a witness that God’s grace is for all.
Napa First UMC has helped shape the Napa community. We continue the work of drawing the circle even wider and the grace even deeper. Perhaps it is time to toot our horn a bit — to tell this thriller of a story of Napa Methodists making bold decisions for social justice, offering public witness that matched our words, weathering fierce opposition, and living out unwavering faith in a God who loves us all. It is a story worth telling. It is a story worth celebrating. And it is a story still unfolding.
Grateful to be part of our life together,
Grace