June 6 Congregational Meeting Update and a Celebration for the Gibbs.

Redeemer family and friends,

In the coming weeks, Senior Pastor Tom Gibbs and his wife, Tara, will formally transition out of their roles with Redeemer and on to their new calling in St. Louis. Tom and Tara have ministered to our congregation and city in beautiful ways over the past 19 years. We are very thankful for their strong leadership, caring spirit, and joyous support of our church. While we are sad to see them leave, we are hopeful to see the ways God will continue flourishing their ministry to new generations of leaders in St. Louis. As we continue to prepare our hearts for their departure, we invite you to pray for the Gibbs family and to participate in some significant ways as we lovingly send them off.

What is Tom’s timeline?

On Monday, May 24, Pastor Gibbs returns from his much-needed sabbatical and resumes his pastoral duties. Pastor Gibbs will lead his final worship services as Senior Pastor of RPC in May and June, with his last Sunday on June 20. On July 1, Tom will assume his new role as President of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis.

Celebrating Tom and Tara

On June 20 at 3:00 p.m., there will be a church-wide celebration to honor Tom and Tara and their 19 years of ministry with us. We’ll have ice cream, sweet treats, mariachis, and fun for the kids outdoors, so bring a lawn chair or blankets to sit on. We are pursuing an outdoor location near downtown, but it is currently unclear if this venue is willing to host us due to shifting safety protocols in our city. As soon as we have the location finalized, we will communicate that to you. In the meantime, please save the date and RSVP to let us know you are coming. This gathering will be our first church-wide celebration in over a year, and we are excited to be together and honor the Gibbs.

In addition to the church-wide gathering, the men’s and women’s ministries have sendoffs planned individually for Tom and Tara. On June 5 at 8:30 a.m., the men’s ministry will host a breakfast for Tom in the Redeemer Fellowship Hall. On Tuesday, June 8, from 7-9 p.m., the women’s ministry will host a San Antonio sendoff for Tara. Please RSVP for these events.

Congregational vote required

At the March Session meeting, Pastor Gibbs submitted a letter expressing his gratitude, seeking prayer, and pointing Redeemer to trust in God’s faithfulness for our future. We encourage you to read the full letter here. The letter also requested that we release him from his call as Senior Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church, effective June 30, 2021. As required by our Presbyterian polity, the congregation must vote to release Tom from his call (PCA BCO 23-1). At the previously called congregational meeting on Sunday, June 6, immediately following the 11 a.m. worship service, the Redeemer Session invites the congregation to vote on this matter. We encourage all communing members of the congregation to attend this meeting in person to help reach a quorum. If you are not comfortable attending the meeting in person, you may cast a ballot in the Redeemer foyer during either worship service that morning.

Over the next few weeks, we will have more opportunities to hear from Tom about this transition. We hope you will join us at our worship services, the congregational meeting, and these celebrations as we honor our dear friends Tom and Tara Gibbs and wish them well as they prepare to move to St. Louis!

Warmly in Christ,

The Session of Redeemer Presbyterian Church