What is a Master Plan?

Brendan Murphy on August 28, 2021

One of the greatest blessings of Little Fork Church is the gift of worshipping in a church building in which people have been seeking God, finding hope, and making connections for centuries. We are also blessed to have the 1776 Historic Preservation Foundation as a partner in maintaining out Historic Church building.

Yet, God does not call people and communities backward, but instead God calls us to discern how we are called to be a living congregation today and, as other generations did before us, leave a foundation for those who will worship at Little Fork long after we are gone.

Currently, our congregation is discerning how we are called to develop our church resources, especially our 16-acre property to serve as a place where people find respite for their souls, hope for their journeys, and peace. I often talk about developing our grounds in a way that allows us to become a 21st Century Chapel of Ease.

The master plan is the first significant step in this process. Over the next 9 months, the Master Plan Working Group will be working with Julie Basic PLA, a landscape architect who has significant experience working with historic properties to:

  • Articulate a set of guiding principles that we will use to develop our property.
  • Consider a variety of possibilities for the development of the property that have been brainstormed.
  • Collaborate with stakeholders – Congregation, Vestry, Burying Grounds, Preservation Foundation – to select and prioritize our programming and development priorities.
  • Develop a site plan that will guide developed over the next ten years.

Over the next several weeks, you will be receiving more information about the Master Plan process and information about how you can participate in this process.

Peace, Rev. Stacy

This post is part of the following series:

  • What is a Master Plan? – September 2
  • Why a Master Plan Now? – September 9
  • Who is part of the Master Plan Working Group? – September 16
  • How will the Congregation be Involved? – September 23
  • When will the Master Plan be Complete? – September 30