Parry Family Moving to Jacksonville

Rev. Faith Parry’s husband, AJ, has been presented and accepted a full-time position with the National Guard. His new position is quite an opportunity and begins immediately in October. As a result, the Parry family will be moving to Jacksonville, Florida. In complete support of this opportunity for her family, Faith will transition out of her role at Shalimar UMC by the end of the year. She and Abigail will move to Jacksonville to join AJ in the coming months.

Faith joined our pastoral staff in 2017 as an associate pastor from the Navarre United Methodist Church. She is one of many young associate pastors that have served at Shalimar. Shalimar UMC has always had a tradition of helping young pastors in their ordination path. Faith is in the final preparation of submitting her ordination requirements while at Shalimar UMC. This is one of our congregation’s lasting contributions to Faith’s journey of ministry.

We especially appreciate Faith’s contributions to our congregation since 2017. As Communication Pastor, she has been a key leader in technology expansion, including live stream and leadership with the online campus. Behind the scenes, she mentored countless people and held classes on using technology when “in-person” options were not available. People have said Faith’s biggest contribution was helping people stay connected through technology during the isolated times of the pandemic.

As Faith transitions to move with her family, what will happen to her role as Communication Pastor? We do not plan to receive another pastor to fill her vacancy. As a result, the church budget will be reduced, and so will the number of our pastors. Faith’s duties will be primarily assigned and realigned with existing staff. The Staff-Parish Committee will also monitor future staffing needs in the areas of communication, online, and technology going forward into 2022.

In the coming weeks, please take a moment to thank Faith for her contributions while at Shalimar United Methodist Church. She has helped us with innovative ways in unprecedented times. There will be more communication about Faith’s transition in the coming weeks. In the meantime, join me in prayer for AJ, Faith, and Abigail, as they begin the transition to Jacksonville.

Shalom,
Philip