Anatomy of a split...

Well, for those of you not in Tuscaloosa or those who picked the worst week in the history of the world to not be at church, the Tuscaloosa Ward was (finally!) split on Sunday. Now where once was one overly large and burdensome ward, now two wards exist - Tuscaloosa and Northport.

It was quite interesting when I learned what was happening. My first question was what the boundaries would be - I figured (incorrectly) that the boundary between the two Elders quorums would be the ward boundaries. Once I learned that this was not the case, I did what any good boyfriend would do... brim with excitement and ask whether his girlfriend was going to be in his ward (she is). I learned what the boundaries would be, and was very surprised. The Northport Ward had the western part of Tuscaloosa - everything west of Ala. Hwy. 69 - along with everything north of the river. I then saw the challenges ahead.

I had noticed that my dad had been in a lot of meeting recently with the rest of the bishopric, and everything came together at once. I realized that almost all of the auxiliary leaders in the Tuscaloosa Ward would now be members of the Northport Ward. Even though the Tuscaloosa Ward bishopric remained completely intact, almost nothing else would remain the same. I was the only clerk in the new Tuscaloosa Ward, and was (of course) called as the Ward Clerk. No one's records could be moved until after tithing settlement ended, so I still had to help Bishop Wyatt with tithing settlement.

Anyone who is in the Northport Ward was immediately released from their callings, so Bishop Martin was in roughly the same boat as Bishop Wyatt in Tuscaloosa. This week was filled with phone calls, meetings, and submissions of names for counselors. Fun times had by all!

Few actually realize it, but both wards really have to start from the ground up, and in some ways, the new ward is better off. Bishop Martin has a clean slate to work with as he builds a new ward. However, I have learned many great lessons over the past two weeks from Bishop Wyatt - lessons that will be useful throughout my life.

With the split, each member is going to have to pull his or her weight. We no longer have enough to give some members rest. All will be needed to help both wards thrive. It will take some work and lots of help from above, but there is great potential ahead. And I'm glad I get to be on the sidelines helping!