Nside the Suncoast (Part 1)

For the next few weeks I will be posting an "Nside the Suncoast" series of posts that I hope let you get to know your church a little better. Today, we will look at the staff of the Suncoast.

We call our current staff the, "Management Team" and they are the ones that make the decisions around here. We are a staff led church as compared to an elder led (think Presbyterian) or congregation led (think Baptist) church. The current staff members of the Suncoast are Rita Wilson, Crystal Michehl, Steve McCauley and myself.

Some basic info:

Rita - came on staff part time, first as our children's director, and now as an administrator back in late 2006 I think. She does all kinds of office stuff, manages the website and other communications, helps me a ton, and leads our Sunday first impression teams. Rita really does anything I ask and has become a trusted go to person for me on almost any project. Even if she has no idea how to do it! Rita works on Monday's and Thursday's at the Warehouse.

rita@canthisbechurch.com

Crystal - started attending our church in 2009 from a postcard and quickly jumped into volunteering and we hired her in late 2009 part time as our Children's Director. She runs the Coastal Kids scene at the church and has done an amazing job growing leaders and creating a real "Wow" experience for our kids. It is a HUGE job and she works a lot more than part time on it!!! But, she is at the Warehouse on Tuesdays.

crystal@canthisbechurch.com

Steve - jumped in back in 2006 when we had a hole in our band and needed a guitar and some vocals. What started as a favor turned into 5 years of being our music guy! Being portable the only practice Steve gets in leading our band is before church on Sunday's, but week after week he gets out music and provides direction under a lot of pressure! Steve can take a crazy idea I have for a song or service element and give it life in a short amount of time. He can also play everything up there, so the flexibility has been such a huge blessing! AND, he is the only staff member we have never had to pay a dime! He volunteers for all this!!! Steve works remotely from his house through a ton of e-mails.

steve@canthisbechurch.com

Then there is me - I have been here since the beginning and for the first few months was the only staff member. I folded programs, did powerpoint, called volunteers, and even led the band!!! Yikes, I would not want to go back to those days. These days I spend my time working on messages, creating a chunk of the Sunday service, and leading the church overall. Well, I do a lot more than that, but that is the 30,000 ft view anyway. Right now I am the only full time staff member at the Suncoast.

The staff meets twice a month on Tuesday's for about 2 hours over lunch and we evaluate the Sunday services, plan, talk about current needs and issues, and we usually are digesting some ministry or hip new leadership book. If you think of it, we would love your prayers!!! We need them as we listen to God and guide this church.

Next time I will share about how a Sunday comes together. Tune in next Wednesday... unless baby Sophie is here!!!