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FROM THE GLOBAL BOARD
"We believe the church's faithful witness to Jesus is the hope of the world."
Dear friends,
On January 1 and 12 the Alliance Board of Directors met in Sioux Falls for an in-person
meeting. Prior to that, in the Fall of 2023, we had communicated our desire to search for and hire a CEO to accomplish the mission of the Alliance moving into the future. After many hours of discussion, prayer and discernment, the Board has decided to press pause on that process. Instead, the Board has committedt o a 12-month plan of collectively doing the work thata CEO would have done, acting as a hands-on management board for 2024. Each Board member has committed to playing an active part inthis plan through the end of 2024.
Board Transition, Extended Terms, and Officers
In the last six months, we have added several new Board members as Alliance Networks have become more self-sufficient and been ready to nominate someone to serve the Alliance. Jeff Elzinga (Harvest), Ron Fischer (At-Large) and Craig Gilbert (Michigan Catalyst) began serving in July 2023 and we recently welcomed Lee Vande Voort (Upper Mississippi Valley) to the Board. With these additions and with our work this year as a management-focused Board, the new Board Members requested thatJoel Baar (Launch Board Member),Jamie Dykstra (Launch Board Member), and Seth Sundstrom (Interim Board Member) stay on the Board through December 2024 rather than ending their term in June. Joel, Jamie, and Seth have agreed to this, which wil be a great help for board transition and for the work before us. Jamie Dykstra was elected as President, Jeff Elzinga as Vice President, and Lee Vande Voort as Secretary. Ron Fischer remains as Treasurer. Joel Baar wil serve as immediate Past President for 2024.
Restated "Why" for the Alliance
As part of our recent in-person Board meeting in Sioux Falls, we spent time focusing on the "Why" for the Alliance. Why does the Alliance exist? Jesus. Jesus is the hope of the world. The church is how Christ has chosen for that hope to be shared with the world. Ourcollective testimony as his church and as The Alliance is powerful and effective when that witness is lived
out faithfully. So, whydoes the Alliance exist?
"We believe the church's faithful witness to Jesus is the hope of the world."
Or stated another way, the Board believes our organization exists to be an alliance of Christ-centered Reformed churches seeking to faithfullyfulfill the Great Commission. The Board believes the Networks of the Alliance are one of our greatest strengths for equipping churches to witness to Jesus.
The above Why statement (in quotes) wil inform the Board's approach to the What (what we wil
do) and the How how we will do it). Each of these elements will be aligned with The Alliance's
Unifying Beliefs - the document currently being circulated and refined within The Alliance, and which will become the successor to our original Organizational Convictions statement.