Contact us

You’ll find our email addresses and telephone contact details for the Diocesan staff below. For contact details of the principal diocesan leadership both staff and volunteers visit this page.

Clergy Transitions

The Rev. Charles ‘Chas’ Marks
Transition Missioner

Contact

transition@diowestmo.org

Direct: (816) 648-0731

Office: (816) 471-6161 ext. 106

The Transition Missioner is responsible for clergy transitions.

For Clergy:

• Discernment.
• Profile assistance on the OTM Network.

For Congregations:

• Clergy searches.
• Interim clergy.
• Church status & needs assessment.
• Perform searches via the OTM database and network outlets.

Christian Formation

Kim Snodgrass (Part-time)
Assistant to the Bishop for Christian Formation Development

Ultimately, Christian formation is how our experience of God forms, inspires and transforms our lives; it trains and allows us to understand and recognize the culture of the Kingdom of heaven – right here and now. We are to be about creating disciples with faith-filled lives. I am here to help you promote the lifelong process of growing in relationship with God, self, others, and all creation because communities of faith offer the ideal opportunities to experience God through liturgy, education, fellowship and outreach. Intentional Christian formation experiences help us understand on a deep level what it means to love God, care for each other, and serve the world. My goals are to:

• Be an advocate for life-long formation – from nursery through adulthood!
• Be present to congregations with prayerful encouragement and support.
• Work to offer engaging resources and tools that help people explore, grow, and deepen the interior life.
• Provide support to diocesan committees and commissions to identify areas of formational need and determine how the diocesan family can best respond.

Communications

Zach Phillips
Communications Director

Contact

communications@diowestmo.org

Direct: (816) 683-9177

Office: (816) 471-6161, ext. 111

Links

New Spirit: spirit.diowestmo.org

I am here to help you promote your church, communicate its message to your members and the world, and provide advice on marketing and technology.

I provide and manage website hosting and access to administrative services to the churches of the diocese. I share news of what’s going on in the diocese and the general Church, plus advice and training on communication methods, best practices, and technologies. I work with the diocesan staff and churches to promote and share information about diocesan and church events.

• News, Updates, & Events: Twice monthly the New Spirit Update, the diocesan news and events summary is emailed out and published online. We monitor lots of information sources and curate the content so you don’t have to. It has a section dedicated to the needs of church administrators, lay leadership, and clergy.
• Promotion: I monitor social media and promote church content to help your church seen by more people. Please email me if your church has news or events to share, something published in the local press, or if you have a video shown on local TV. I’ll help spread your message. Be sure to tag any social media content you want to share with a wider audience with the #dwmo hashtag – yes, even on Facebook!
• Facebook Group: There is a dedicated private Facebook group for church communicators and administrators.
• Online Service list: A list of all the online service offerings from the churches of West Missouri.
• Admin Website: We have a separate diocesan administrative website providing access to a host of administrative and communications resources. We have an image library and links to websites that are a ready source of content for newsletters and bulletins.
• Episcopal Asset Map. This is the official public ‘Find a Church’ service of The Episcopal Church and The Diocese of West Missouri. The map can also be used in disaster situations to discover local resources that can be deployed.
• Website hosting: We are providing managed WordPress hosting for any church that needs it, and also hosting church websites on the Digital Faith platform while we transition to WordPress. I’m here to provide advice and training on building and maintaining your church’s website and the use of technology to spread your church’s message.
• Email & Microsoft Office: I have the budget to help 26 churches move to online-based office administration software with lots of online storage and professional email.
• Online Event Delivery: We have all the necessary video and audio equipment to broadcast events online from any church with good cell phone reception.
• Event AV: For multi-church in-person events we can help with large projection screens, video, and a portable PA system.

Got any questions? Give me a call.

Bishop’s Executive Assistant

Emily Davenport
Bishop’s Executive Assistant

I’m at your service! My primary responsibility is maintaining an open conduit between the diocese and the bishop. Please contact me if you’d like to arrange meetings or speak with the bishop; I’m just a phone call or an email away.

• Visitation forms. I use the information you provide on these forms to arrange the Bishop’s weekday and Sunday visitations. These forms are also a part of the Bishop’s official record (similar to your weekly service register) to the General Church.
• Governance Rosters/Slates. The roster information is part of the Diocesan records, plus the form you submit helps us know who to contact and how, especially when the Bishop is looking for leadership to fill roles across the diocese. The slate information is used for voting purposes at Convention and for the deans to contact delegates with information and invitations to Deanery Council meetings.
• Lay Licensing. Preacher/Catechist, Eucharistic Visitor/Minister, Pastoral/Worship Leader
• Annual Reminders. I Look for annual reminders from me regarding license renewal. I track these licenses for churches and the Commission on Ministry.
• Membership information. Like the rosters/slates, keeping member information up to date allows the diocese to communicate effectively.
• Discernment for Holy Orders. I receive, document, and file records for the Commission on Ministry on nominees, postulants, and candidates for ordination.

Finance Administration

Ron Weil
Finance Administrator

I have been with The Diocese of West Missouri since 2014. I come from an accounting background and enjoy working with Treasurers and other church leaders in stewardship of our diocese. Please feel free to contact me with any questions in the following areas:

• Parochial Reports.
• Expense Policy questions.
• Church Audits.
• Payroll questions.
• Bookkeeping questions.
• Finance best practices.
• Questions with Excel, Quickbooks and ACS.

Hispanic Ministry

The Rev. José Palma
Missioner, Hispanic Ministry

Human Resources

Elaine Gilligan (Part-time)
Human Resource Administrator and Finance Assistant

As a part-time employee, I strive to be available every day to be of the best service to you. Email or mobile phone is the best way to reach me.

Human Resource Administration

For your convenience, the Diocese website (search Human Resources) contains information to guide you in the onboarding of volunteers and employees; Medical and Dental plans/pricing; Minimum Clergy Compensation; Mutual Ministry Review; and much more.

I am your contact person for:

• Employee Changes
• Compensation Changes
• Background Checks
• Safe Church, Safe Communities Online Training
• Pension and 403B Enrollment
• Benefits-Medical, Dental, Disability, Life
• Property and Casualty Insurance
• Episcopal Payroll Services

Finance Assistant

I assist the Finance Administrator and primarily responsible for Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable.

Lay and clergy vocations

The Rev. Charles Everson
Vocations Missioner

As Vocations Missioner, I provide oversight to the vocations program and ordination process of the Diocese, working closely with the Bishop and Commission on Ministry in the recruitment, discernment, and formation of those called to vocational ministry in the Church, both lay and ordained.

I am the primary contact with those in the ordination process, working with them to facilitate timely completion of the work needed at each stage of the process.

I also act as an advisor to the Bishop in interpreting and applying national and diocesan canons related to the ordination process and licensed lay ministries.

I serve as the staff liaison for vocations, representing the Bishop with the Commission on Ministry, the Diocesan Board of Examining Chaplains, and the Bishop Kemper School for Ministry.

Youth Ministry

Missioner for Youth Ministry