Transition Ministry
Ministry transitions are rarely simple, but congregations and clergy never have to navigate them alone. The Transitions Ministry office walks alongside vestries, search committees, and priests through every stage of change – from discernment and interim leadership to searches, calls, and healthy retirements.
Explore current openings, diocesan guidelines, and resources below to support your parish’s next chapter.
To contact the Director of Transition Ministry, please call or email Liz Villanueva, 757-213-3390 or lvillanueva@diosova.org.
Transition Ministry
The Transitions Office provides resources to congregations and clergy who are in search, as well as clergy in the early years of new ministry, departing or retiring. We can also assist you with the following resources:
- Parish Transitions Manual
- Canonical Requirements for Entering Into a Search Process
- Clergy compensation guidelines
- Clergy continuing education guidelines and grants
- Clergy Conferences & Retreats
- Clergy letters of agreement
- Sabbatical planning
- Exit Interview for Senior Parish Clergy
- Employee background checks
Congregations in Search
Open positions are listed on the Vocation Hub website and then through “Position Search.”
The point of contact for all congregations in transition is Liz Villanueva, 757-213-3390, lvillanueva@diosova.org. Please send an email detailing the parish(es) in which you are interested. Only those with a completed Vocation Hub profile, including the narrative portion, will be considered.
Once your name is forwarded to the Search Committee Chair, any request for additional information needed will come from that person.
Parish & Clergy Transitions
To learn more about our parishes, select a parish name below to be directed to their website.
Seeking New Clergy Leadership
Search Committees Receiving Candidates:
St. John's
Halifax
Ascension
Norfolk
Good Shepherd
Norfolk
St. Peter's
Norfolk
Bruton Parish
Williamsburg
Parishes In Search for an Associate, Assistant, or Curate
St. John's
Hampton
Christ & St. Luke's
Norfolk
Parishes in Preliminary Stages of Discernment
Clergy interested in submitting their names for discernment at any of these parishes are encouraged to reach out to Liz Villanueva, Director of Transition Ministry, 757-213-3390 or lvillanueva@diosova.org.
Spring 2026
Clergy Transitions
- The Rev. Andrew Cropper (Episcopal Diocese of Easton) will begin serving Holy Trinity, Onancock, as Priest-in-Charge on July 1, 2026.
- The vestry of St. Francis’, Virginia Beach, called The Rev. Mark Riley as Rector starting on July 1, 2026. Mark has been serving the parish as Priest-in-Charge since July 2024.
- The Very Rev. Sam Sheridan completed his Rectorship at St. Paul’s, Petersburg, on June 7, 2026. Sam began serving at St. Paul’s as Priest-in-Charge in December 2022 and was called as Rector in May 2024.
- The Rev. Jeckonia Okoth (Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota) will begin serving Grace Church, Norfolk, as Priest-in-Charge on August 17, 2026.
- The Rev. Sarah Forti will begin serving Redeemer, Midlothian, as Curate on August 16, 2026.
- The Rev. Dana VanVliet-Pullin has been assigned to St. Stephen’s, Newport News, to serve as Deacon starting June 1, 2025.
- The Rev. Jackson Davey (Episcopal Diocese of Virginia) will begin serving St. Thomas’, Chesapeake, as Curate on June 1, 2026.
- The Rev. David Perkins’ last Sunday at Emmanuel, Glenmore, and St. Anne’s, Appomattox, was Sunday, April 5, 2026. David served as Priest-in-Charge at both churches since January/March 2024.
- The Rev. Canon Jeunée Godsey completed her nearly 14-year Rectorship at St. Michael’s, Bon Air, on Sunday, April 26, 2026. Jeunée’s position on Bishop Susan’s staff as Canon for Congregational Vitality is transitioning into a full-time roll beginning June 1, 2026.
- The Rev. Bob Randall began serving Good Shepherd, Norfolk, as Part-Time Interim Rector on April 1, 2026.
- The Rev. Mario Melendez began serving Emmanuel, Virginia Beach, as Priest-in-Charge on March 16, 2026.
- The Rev. Nanette Woodworth has accepted a new call as Priest-in-Charge at St. John’s, Tappahannock.
- The vestry of Christ Church, Smithfield, called The Rev. Todd DeLaney as Rector with a start date of February 1, 2026. Todd has been serving the parish as Priest-in-Charge since July 2024.
Clergy Retiring
- The Rev. Fred Poteet is retiring from active ministry. Fred served as Priest Associate for over 10 years at Old Donation, Virginia Beach.
- The Rev. Nancy Meck is retiring as Rector of Johns Memorial, Farmville, on May 31, 2026. Nancy has served as Rector at Johns Memorial for 12 years.
- The Rev. Keith Emerson is retiring as Rector of St. Paul’s, Suffolk, on August 31, 2026. Keith has served as Rector at St. Paul’s for 19 years.
Winter 2025/2026
Clergy Transitions
- The Rev. Genevieve Nelson began serving as Deacon at St. Stephen’s, Norfolk, on Sunday, March 8, 2026.
- The Rev. Jacqueline Soltys completed her five-year Priest-in-Charge/Rectorship at Church of the Good Shepherd, Norfolk, on Sunday, February 22, 2026. She and her husband are relocating to Texas for his work.
- The Rev. Donna Hines completed her Rectorship at Glebe, Suffolk, on Sunday, January 25, 2026. Donna has served as Priest-in-Charge/Rector at Glebe since June 2021.
- The Rev. Dana VanVliet-Pullin celebrated her last service as Long-term Supply Deacon at Emmanuel, Virginia Beach, on January 4, 2026.
- The Rev. Stewart Tabb retired from active ministry with her last day at Ascension, Norfolk, on December 25, 2025. Stewart served as Rector at Ascension since May 2015.
Interim Ministry & Parish Consultants
Interim Ministry Network (IMN)
The primary ecumenical standard for transitional leadership certification. Their training focuses on system dynamics, managing congregational anxiety, and leading communities through major shifts in identity and direction.
Center for Congregational Health
Rigorous Intentional Interim Ministry (IIM) education rooted in family systems and organizational health. They provide hands-on consulting tools, continuing education, and an active national network for practicing interim clergy.
Resources for Search Committees & Vestries
The Vestry Handbook, Fourth Edition
Christopher Webber’s essential guide for Episcopal parish leadership, recently updated to address the contemporary realities of church life.
It demystifies the core responsibilities of wardens and vestry members - covering governance, fiduciary duties, church canons, and healthy clergy relationships - while offering practical wisdom on leading through periods of pastoral transition and communal change.
Meditations for Vestry Members
A thoughtful collection by Colleen McMahon tailored to the specific spiritual challenges and rhythms of lay leadership.
Designed for opening prayers, retreats, and discernment meetings, these short reflections help search committees and vestries look beyond balance sheets and administrative checklists to keep the parish’s deeper pastoral identity and spiritual health at the center of their work.
- Prayer in the Calling Process
This period of search for a new rector can be a time of new and creative activity in the liturgical and devotional life of the parish that can enrich the church for long after the search process is over. This guide offers you resources, suggestions, possibilities, for that journey. - Caring for Clergy in the Calling Process
Guidelines for search/calling committees on the calling process including: appointing a committee; setting a budget; communications; reviewing, visiting, interviewing, choosing and calling candidates. - Caring for Clergy through Housing
A useful and insightful look at the complex and important issue of adequate clergy housing. - Interviewing in the Calling Process
Guidelines to help the search/calling committee make the interviewing process an effective tool to determine a good match between priest and parish. - Caring for Clergy through Compensation
Guidelines for examining and advocating a theology of compensation in the calling and care of clergy, including: salary, housing, & utilities; benefits; reimbursement for professional expenses, with tax implications of each.
Policy on Retiring & Departing Clergy
At any given time, a diocese of the size of the Diocese of Southern Virginia has several congregations undergoing a transition in clergy leadership. Often, leaders ask about policy or best practices when a change of clergy leadership is unfolding, and for good reason.
Effective navigation of the transition when clergy retire or depart from a congregation is essential. The health of the congregation as well as that of the departing clergy is dependent upon the care with which the transition is managed. So is the successful ministry of incoming clergy.
Policy on Retiring & Departing Clergy, effective January 1, 2020
As stated in the policy, the Bishop and the Canon to the Ordinary are available to provide resources, support, and guidance to help both clergy and congregations navigate the journey of transition in ways that will ensure the future health of the parish. We are ready to assist whenever it would be helpful.