CHICAGO, IL (October 16, 2011) – Gary Walter has been nominated to serve a second term as president of the Evangelical Covenant Church, it was announced today during a meeting of the Covenant Executive Board at Covenant offices.
Walter’s nomination came during a Friday meeting of the 24-member Nominating Committee meeting in Chicago and followed an extensive evaluation process conducted over the past several weeks.
A centerpiece of the evaluation process was a 360-degree review of Walter’s performance during his first term that included evaluations and comments from numerous individuals representing the breadth of the church, accompanied by the president’s own self assessment and evaluation.
“In reading those comments, it became quickly apparent that not only has Gary been doing an outstanding job in his role as president, it is also abundantly obvious that there is a deep affection for Gary as our brother and fellow servant in the kingdom,” said John Martz, who chaired the nominating process.
“His gifts in leadership, in communication, in casting vision, combined with wisdom and humility, were constantly referenced in the review,” Martz noted. “We had the opportunity to interview Gary and got to hear his heart and his vision for the future. The committee voted unanimously and joyfully to nominate him for a second term as president.”
Walter was first elected during the 123rd Annual Meeting in 2008, having served as executive minister of the Department of Church Growth and Evangelism since 1999.
A graduate of the University of California-Berkeley and North Park Theological Seminary, he previously served as a pastor at Newport Covenant Church in Bellevue, Washington, and Clairemont Covenant Church in San Diego, California. He and his wife, Nancy, are founding members of DeerGrove Covenant Church in Palatine, Illinois, and have three daughters: Amy, Alissa, and Lauren.
The election for president will take place during the 127th Annual Meeting of the Covenant June 21-23 in Irvine, California.
