On November 28 and December 3, St. Paul’s parishioners were invited to dinner meetings at the church to learn more about the priorities and projects of the ReNEWal Capital Campaign. We followed up with several parishioners who attended one of the sessions and asked them to reflect on the campaign.

Nella Fulton: I had heard about the campaign in church when David Broughton spoke. I found his talk very inspiring. It would make anybody want to support the campaign. Beyond that, I didn’t know many of the details. I thought the town hall meeting was very informative and helpful in explaining what we’re going to do and why it all needs to be done.

Lyons Gray: My wife Connie serves on the Buildings and Grounds Committee and has shared many of the concerns that need to be addressed, so I went to the meeting knowing what the needs were. I was there just to listen and see the presentations. Clearly, it’s time to fix the 1928 building before it’s too late. Fixing up the 875 building is an important part of the St. Paul’s mission to play a positive role in the community. The other priorities need to be addressed as well. And town hall meetings are a great opportunity for the campaign leaders not only to provide information, but also to find out what parishioners are thinking and make sure the messages are reaching them.

Tog Newman: My husband Michael—who’s an architect—and I were eager to understand exactly how the campaign plan and budget were put together. There’s no doubt in our minds about the need for renewal outside, and I expect we’ll experience a renewal inside once we’ve finished the outside and begin to use the spaces for our programs and ministries.

Peggy Taylor: I knew I was going to make a donation so I wanted to see what the campaign was all about. I knew the building across the street was included, and I’ve noticed some of the water damage while sitting in church myself. I do think the campaign is a good idea and needed to keep St. Paul’s in shape.

Ken Zuhr: My primary interest in attending the meeting, since we were talking about a capital campaign, was finding out the intended use of the capital. If you’re asking for thousands of my dollars, I want to know how you intend to use them. Those questions were completely and thoroughly answered. I found out everything I needed to know. Actually there are several aspects to it. One is the preservation, maintenance and renewal of the church building. Another is renovating the building across the street. The third is the restoration of the garden. And then, of course, there’s the endowment. All of those things together lend a certain coherence to the ReNEWal theme.