Part-time minister sought at First Congregational

By: 
Leslie Silverman
The First Congregational Church of Keystone is looking for a part-time minister. The position is rather unique, due to several factors including the nature of Keystone itself and the rich history of the congregation.
The core congregation is described as a “diverse set of personalities who come together for a common cause,” says Steve Dalton, who sits on the search committee. 
“We have people of vastly different political, economic differences and we all seem to love each other,” he said. Cindy Esposti, one of the congregation’s longest members, agrees. 
“We get along so well. It’s quite an amazing congregation,” she said.
The search committee is looking for a devoted individual who will be dedicated to this distinct congregation and the church and ministry. The most important aspect of the position is that “people get fed the word. We want someone who will preach the Bible and that souls can be saved,” says Judy Dalton, who is on the church board.
 It is unclear demographically what the right pastor will look like.
A retired pastor may make a more personal connection with the elderly residents in town.  
“There are lots of people who can’t get out,”  Steve says, so a minister involved with outreach, dedicated to knocking on doors, would be beneficial.
A younger pastor may have more potential to reach out to younger congregants. 
“Older pastors leave a hole for youth in town,” Steve says while admitting that  many Kestone children already prefer to attend church with their friends, who often go to services in Hill City. “I don’t think God’s intention is for us to detract from other ministries.”
One intention, however,  may be the potential scope of the ministry. In the winter Keystone houses a few hundred people, but a few million pass through each summer.  
“There is the opportunity here to touch an awful lot of lives, if for only a brief time,”  Steve says. 
Finding the right minister is not an easy task and as Steve explains “there are very few fish in the lake.” The belief is that the position will ultimately be filled by someone local.
Many area churches, including some in Hermosa, Custer and Edgemont, don’t have a dedicated minister.
It was common as recently as 50-60 years ago for churches to be visited by traveling ministers.
Cindy remembers a time when the church was on a circuit of sorts and would get “somebody different” to preach each week. 
“I didn’t like it. You never knew who you were gonna get or what you were gonna hear,” she said.
Currently the congregation relies on a “pulpit supply,” a small group of individuals who step up to minister each week. It’s “very rare” that someone can’t be found, although Christmas Eve this past year was challenging. And while congregants are grateful to have those individuals, it doesn’t allow for commitment and continuity the way one individual would. 
“The pulpit supply works remarkably well,” said John Esposti,  adding it’s a “credit  to the people” in the pulpit-supply pool.
The process of looking for a minister has been a long time coming for the First Congregational Church of Keystone.
The church bylaws, constitution and  procedures had to be brought into the current century. Then the church profile needed to be streamlined so that potential ministers would be able to learn about the congregation and its rich history. 
That history goes back over 125 years.The First Congregational Church of Keystone began in 1895 and was organized in a small log schoolhouse before congregation members erected an official church building.
That building, which was restored in 1928, has at times been home to the town library and movie theater as well as site of worship for Baptist, Methodist and Episcopal services. Carrie Ingalls Swanzey was an active member of the congregation; occasionally one could hear the sermons of Badger Clark inside.
The church also has a 75-year-old tradition of hosting an Easter sunrise service at Mount Rushmore which attracts people from all over the region.
To find out more about the First Congregational Church of Keystone and its pastoral church visit key
stone-church.com.
 

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