Dear Clergy, Council Delegates, and Guests,
Grace and peace to you. It is with great joy that we gather once again in SanMarcos for our 121st Diocese of West Texas Council to worship, conduct important business, participate in workshops and enjoy fellowship.
It seems only a short while ago that we were gathered for Council 2024. Sincethat time, there has been much going on in our diocese! During my first year as Bishop of West Texas, I traveled throughout the diocese, witnessing amazing work that is being carried out by our clergy and lay in the 87 congregations that span the vast region of our diocese. Additionally, our diocesan ministries have been hard at work and look forward to updating you on their programs.
In October, the Rev. Angela Maria Cortiñas was elected as our next BishopSuffragan. We are excited to have Rev. Cortiñas in this role. You will have theopportunity to meet her at Council, and we will be sharing more informationabout her upcoming Consecration on March 15, 2025, at St. John’s in McAllen.
At our last Council, I asked you to “Lift High the Cross” in your churches andcommunities as missional servants of God, and you answered that callresoundingly. The theme of Council 2025 is “Here Am I. Send Me”. As thelandscape of our communities and churches evolve, it is more important thanever that we all answer God’s call to spread his word and love far and wide. I look forward to discussing opportunities and sharing ideas to put this theme into action and inspiring others to follow this call in 2025.
Thank you for being a part of our 121st Council.
Peace,
+David Read
Bishop of West Texas
The email with your Voting link will be sent at 9:00 a.m. on the day of Council, Thursday, February 20. This link will be imbedded with your own Elector ID and Password. This is your voting link and should NOT be forwarded or shared with anyone.
The email will appear to come from The Episcopal Diocese of West Texas. Within the email, or when searching for the email you see the sender as: vote@simplyvoting.com
All ballots during Council will be announced by Bishop Read. When Bishop announces a ballot, you will go to the link within the email sent to you at 9am on Thursday, February 20.
OR, if your browser is still open to the Voting application, simply click on "Dashboard" at the top of the page.
Remember: If the voting application "times out", just go to the email and click on the link again.
If the application doesn't take you right into the ballot, click on "Dashboard" and look under the Current ballots section.
Success
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IF your Delegate cannot be present, we will have the following times to replace a Delegate with an Alternate, making the Alternate the Delegate.
IMPORTANT: The ONLY way to change an Alternate to a Delegate is through the submission of a form officially requesting the change. Click this https://dwtx.fellowshiponego.com/external/form/74d890b8-8a87-433e-9bc5-65aea871648f or go to dwt.org/council for the link to the form.
Council in Action is a giving program in association with theEpiscopal Diocese of West Texas Council. It is an opportunityfor the Diocese of West Texas to serve a community withinthe diocese, opening our hearts and walking as God hascalled us to do by assisting those in need.
Council in Action ministry partner is Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center (HCWC), an organization whose mission is to create an environment where violence andabuse are not tolerated in the communities we serve. The Center provideseducation, violence prevention services and crisis intervention to victims of family violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and child abuse.Last year, HCWC empowered over 2,200 victims of abuse, provided approximately 6,700 nights of shelter, and assisted approximately 2,900 individuals through their helpline.
We encourage every church to demonstrate God’s love through support of thisamazing organization. Congregations are invited to bring the following items with them to Council 2025 in support of HCWC:
A booth will be set up in the Exhibit Hall to receive in-kind donations for HCWC or click here to see the current Wishlist of the Center and purchase directly online. Please visit hcwc.org to learn more about this vital community organization and click here to learn more about HCWC’s programs.
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