Vestry Bios & Voting 2025

Since our youngest son's baptism at Advent in 1990, I've had many opportunities to serve our church community. I've held leadership roles as treasurer, People's Warden, Outreach Chair, and currently, Stewardship Chair. My vestry service includes two terms in the 1990s, plus my current term. In Sunday worship, I’ve volunteered as an usher, lay reader, and Sunday School teacher. I've contributed to our church's growth and direction through the Capital Campaign, Rector Search, Endowment, and Parish Profile committees. And making music brings me particular joy as a member of the Chancel and Handbell Choirs. Advent has been a part of our community for over 140 years because generations of parishioners have practiced their faith and found community here. I pray that my small contribution to vestry service will help continue that tradition and fulfill the stewardship call to service. In offering my time and talent, I hope to help Advent continue to be the hands and heart of Christ in our world today. Faithfully, Jim Palic

Hello, For those whom I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting, my name is Bob Larson. My wife of 40 years Kathy and I have been residents of the Philadelphia area since 1986, having lived in East Goshen, Malvern and currently residing in a +55 community in Cochranville. We are newer members of Advent having joined the church in June of 2023. Advent and its congregation have quickly become a very significant part of our lives and we look forward to a long and happy association with all the friends we have made here. With Kathy having been raised as a devout Catholic and me as a Congregationalist, we have sometimes struggled over the years to find a church where we both would feel comfortable and spiritually fulfilled. We have felt at home since the very first time we attended a service at Advent with everyone being so welcoming and we love the wonderful spiritual guidance of Reverend Tim. As our association with our church has been so rewarding to our lives, my interest in becoming part of the Vestry is reflective of my feeling that I would like to acknowledge the positive effect Advent has had on our lives, and am hopeful that serving on the Vestry will help repay the Advent community for all it has meant to our family. As I am currently serving on the boards of two non-profit charity based 501(c)(3)s, as well as professional management experience from my business career, I believe I can add to the Vestry’s work in a positive way. I look forward to serving our community. Yours in Christ, Bob Larson

I have been a member of The Church of the Advent for six years, beginning when I moved to Jenner’s Pond Continuous Care Community. Prior to that, I lived in Newark, DE for 38 years and attended St. Thomas’s Episcopal Church. There I served on the Vestry for two, three-year terms and was Senior Warden twice. I am a cradle Anglican having been born in Canada. I have also been a Professed Member of the Episcopal Order of Anamchara Fellowship for the last 15 years. I am a trained Spiritual Director. When I was contemplating moving to Jennersville, I attended church both here and in Oxford. Selecting a new church home was as important to me (perhaps even more important) as selecting my retirement home. At Advent, I found a warm, welcoming community interested in why I wore funny clothes and very accepting of me. I have been involved with the Adult Education Ministry for about five years as well as attending the Wednesday Bible Study and the Book Study group. I helped organize the first subdeacons when our Assistant Priest was leaving. I coordinate the monthly Eucharist at Jenner’s Pond and, during Covid, I officiated at a service using Reserve Sacraments when we were without a priest. I love The Church of the Advent and want to work with others as we walk this crazy world in the coming years. Truly, I have found a home! Faithfully, Sister Jackie Fossler

I am a lifelong Episcopalian who was baptized and confirmed (1960-65) by Father John Gallop at Saint John’s Episcopal church in Hingham, Massachusetts. I grew up working every day before and after school on a dairy farm in Hingham where I developed a strong skill set in the responsible care and husbandry of dairy cattle, swine, sheep, laying hens and broilers. I pursued a BS in Animal and Veterinary Science at the University of Massachusetts, and then earned a VMD at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine. After graduation I pursued an internship and residency at Cornell, an MS degree and second residency in bovine internal medicine and surgery at Michigan State University and finally a PhD degree at the University of Pennsylvania. I remained in academia and served on the faculty at University of Pennsylvania, School of Veterinary Medicine, the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine and finally the department of Animal and Food Sciences, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Delaware. I am currently retired as professor emeritus from the University of Delaware. Throughout my tenure at these universities, I remained a faithful member of the congregation here at the Church of the Advent. As an early parishioner, two very inspiring members of Advent, Marshall Newton and Dick Bucher recruited me into usher and greeter services at the 8:00 AM service. Soon afterwards I was recruited into the buildings and grounds commission of the vestry. I remained on the buildings and grounds commission for 3 years and served as usher for 32 years. Late in the 1990’s I also served as a vestry member under the Reverend David Thomas. During my tenure on the vestry, we were deeply involved in the redesign and remodeling of the sanctuary and parish hall where I saw the importance of teamwork in developing an effective, objective driven organization led by strong leadership. I developed a strong respect for the role of the vestry in supporting the ministries of Reverends Dave Thomas and John Obenchain while overseeing resource management. At this point I have chosen a second tenure onto the vestry of the Church of the Advent to assist in defining, developing and sustaining the mission of the congregation both at Advent as well as the greater Episcopal church. To that end, I believe Advent is extraordinarily blessed to have Reverend Tim Johnson as pastor. His knowledge, commitment and mentoring skills inspire growth in this very diverse parish community’s relationship with God, Jesus and people within and outside of Advent. Reverend Johnson’s seminars and workshops on the New Testament, the Old Testament, the historical development of the Episcopal church and the evolution of worship services are the mark of an imaginative and innovative minister who is dedicated to making “God and Christ more and more visible and active” in our lives. My primary reason for joining the vestry a second time is to provide the encouragement, resources and team effort that will sustain Reverend Johnson’s pivotal role in walking with every parish member in this community. Lastly, I am particularly interested in serving as a conduit of opinions, needs and concerns of members of the 7:45 service to the vestry since I have always been an active member of that particular group of Advent parishioners. Faithfully, Bob