Meeting Our Elder and Deacon Candidates
Over the last nine months, City Church has undertaken a process of identifying, nominating, and training both elders and deacons to lead and serve our church. The Session has tested and approved two men as eligible candidates for the office of elder: Andrew Bleckley and Hatch Reppard; and three men for the office of deacon: Frank Allen, Brandon Lowe, and Doug McBride. We will hold a congregational meeting immediately following our worship service at Grace Covenant on June 26, 2016, so that the congregation can elect elders and deacons from among these candidates. The election will be held by anonymous paper ballot and each elder and deacon candidate will be elected individually. All communing members of City Church are eligible to vote.
To help introduce these men to you, we've put together a brief biographical sketch of each. We encourage you take some time to learn more about Andrew, Hatch, Frank, Brandon, and Doug. Pray for them. Reach out to them. Ask them questions about their desire to serve the church and encourage them as they prepare for this office.
If you have any questions, please feel free to talk to any of the current members of the City Church session (Erik, Joshua, David Blanchard, Jon-Marc Haden, Mack Hendrix, James Murphy, and Bo Vaughan). We realize that some of this congregational meeting business may be foreign to you, but we want to make it as simple and transparent as possible. These meetings are one of the important ways that you demonstrate what it means to be the Church in and for the city of Richmond.
2016 ELDER CANDIDATES
Andrew Bleckley has been a City Church member since 2009. He grew up in South Carolina and attended Clemson University. He is a principal at landscape design firm Cite Design, headquartered in Jackson Ward. Since 2012 Andrew has served as a deacon at City Church. He also has led City Groups and served on the finance team. He also has lead a small group men’s Bible study for the last couple of years. Andrew lives in Church Hill with his wife Hillary and their 18 month-old-daughter, Tatum.
Hatch Reppard grew up in northern Virginia and graduated from the University of Virginia in 2003. He is currently Director of Business Development in PeopleSolutions. Hatch and his wife Shannon became members of City Church in 2013. Since joining the church, Hatch has taught Children’s Worship, served on the Personnel Team, and helped lead a City Group. Hatch and Shannon live in the West End with their four children: William and Hudson (7), Anna Kathryn (5), and Hatcher (2).
2016 DEACON CANDIDATES
Frank Allen has been a member of City Church since 2013. He’s married to Kate, and they live in the West End with their three children: Jack (7), Eleanor (6), and Adeline (3). Frank received Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Richmond and spent several years working in banking in Atlanta. In 2012, Frank and his family moved back to Richmond in 2012 where he now serves as Associate Director of Career Services at his undergraduate alma mater. During his time here at City Church Frank has been a City Group leader and been a key leader in Men’s Ministry–and we are particularly thankful for the work he’s done in organizing our annual men’s overnight.
Brandon Lowe grew up in Yorktown, Virginia. He received his Bachelor of Science in Urban Studies and Planning from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2006; since then he has worked extensively in the worlds of donor relations and grant writing. He currently serves as Stewardship Coordinator at Westminster Canterbury Richmond. Brandon has been a member of City Church since 2010 and was appointed as a diaconal assistant in 2012. He lives in Woodland Heights with his wife Megan and their two children, Birdie (2) and Jonah (almost 1).
Doug McBride has been a member of City Church since 2013. He grew up in Hanover County and attended college at William & Mary before moving back to the Richmond-area to work for a private mortgage lender. Doug served as our Discipleship Intern in the summer of 2015 and has led a City Group this past year.