Congregational Long Range Planning

As the congregation and friends of St. Stephen change so must the goals and opportunities that St. Stephen provides.  In an attempt to keep an eye on where we have been, where we are and where we want to be, the church council in 2001 created a Long Range Planning committee and goals for our congregation.

Our current church council, along with Pastor Tom Olson, has determined that because of our growth, our new addition and other changes that have occured within St. Stephen, it was time to re-evaluate these goals.  A second committee was formed and the congregation was invited to be part of this process in the fall of 2008.

In the summer of 2008, all confirmed members of St. Stephen were invited to complete a survey about what they felt were the most important aspects toward the growth and focus of St. Stephen.

Based on this input, the Long Range Planning Committee hosted a series of town-hall style meetings to provide information and gather input from the congregation on key areas that were identified with the survey.  Meetings were held to discuss:

• Outreach and Evangelism
• Christian Education
• Facility and Stewardship
• Worship

Feedback from these meetings is currently being used by the church council and other planning committees at St. Stephen to develop and build our programs focused on areas of interests identified during this process.