Shepherd is located at the northern tip of Door County, an isthmus of approximately 500 square miles between Green Bay and Lake Michigan. As a rural, resort county dependent on tourism as its primary industry and filled with retirees who are from “somewhere else,” historical relationships are not common in the community or congregations. 

Newness of relationships and deep loyalties to other hometowns, not to mention significant political and social differences, often impeded congregational cohesiveness and mission. Shepherd dove headfirst into our theological action research process by initiating a listening campaign in the congregation that radically deepened the fabric of relationships within the congregation and with the congregation to its local community. 

Then they included much of the congregation in a spiritual discernment process after the listening campaign that built immense trust for bold actions. They changed their future staff plan to add an experienced human resource professional to connect congregants with medical and mental health resources that are usually geographically distant from Door County. The congregation fostered countywide gatherings to de-stigmatize and promote available mental health services, a dramatic need in the extended community. 

Shepherd even began a “bus ministry,” not to bring in worship attendees, but make their bus and its drivers available to serve transportation needs of senior neighbors and vital support organizations. 

Shepherd is far from done. They are scheming to share more of their resources in strategic manners dictated by a commitment to community listening. They learned a new mode of learning and acting that fosters powerful missions in a unique county and congregation.