NEW PASTOR ANNOUNCED
On Sunday, May 7, the Staff-Parish Relations Committee announced they had met with the District Superintendent and the person the Bishop intends to appoint as pastor of our church starting July 1, 2011. At the meeting, the committee unanimously endorsed The Rev. Nancy Bischoff to take the position.
Rev. Bischoff was ordained in 1983 after completing her Master of Divinity, with a concentration in Pastoral care and Counseling, at Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey. Nancy had previously received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism and Public Relations from Ohio State University. She served in both the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference and the Northern New Jersey Annual Conference from 1983 to 2000, serving as Associate Pastor in Ridgewood, N.J. from 1983 to 1987 and Pastor in South Orange-Vailsburg UMC in N.J. from 1987 to 1989. In 1989, Nancy became an Associate Conference Council Director of Camp, Conference and Retreat Ministries for the Northern New Jersey Annual Conference and Executive Director of Aldersgate Center where she managed the Camp, Conference and Retreat Center. This involved program design, implementation and management for summer and year round programs; facility management, including three major renovation and fund-raising campaigns; budget management; hiring and supervising summer and year-round staff; and marketing and public relations.
In 1994 she returned to local church pastoring at the Stanhope UMC in Stanhope, N.J. until 1997 followed by a two-year leave of absence and then becoming pastor at Gladstone UMC in Gladstone, N.J. from 1999 to 2000.
In 2000 Nancy was hired by Cisco Systems, Inc. based in San Jose, CA where she continues to work today remotely while serving churches in Maine including: N. Sebago, Maine from 2000 to 2003; Columbia, Maine from 2003 to 2006; Rockland, Maine from 2008 to 2009; and Troy, Maine from 2009 to the present. Nancy's position as Operations Manager for the Cisco Networking Academy Program in the U.S. and Canada has allowede her to bring her skills and experience to small churches that are unable to afford the salary and benefits for a full time pastor.
In addition to her pastoral experience, Nancy has been active in the following conference activities:
Member of the Board of Ordained Ministries
Registrar, Board of Ordained Ministries
District Youth Coordinator
Coordinator of Conference Clergywomen's Caucus
Walk to Emmaus Team Member
Led three mission trips to Haiti
Member of NNJ Annual Conference Crisis Intervention Team
Nancy has also had significant experience in the corporate world. She was a Division Supervisor for Liberty Mutual Insurance Company for ten years, Training Manager, Underwriting, for Prudential Healthcare for almost three years and has been involved with designing, developing and managing a Global online Alumni Community to serve the graduate community of the Cisco Networking Academy Program as well as her current position as Operations Manager.
She is married to Roy, who is retired, and she is the step-grandmother of two step-grandsons and two step-grandaughters
Nancy will be lea ving Cisco on June 30 and moving into the parsonage on July 1. Roy will stay behind in Maine to sell their home and care for their two miniature donkeys. She is familiar with Chatham and the Lower Cape, having spent considerable time vacationing here.
We extend a warm welcome Nancy as our pastor and to Nancy and Roy as members of our community, and look forward to exciting new times starting July 1.
Introducing The. Rev. Nancy Bischoff and her husband, Roy.
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