The Interim Years

2001 – 2002

A committee was elected to search for a full-time pastor and another to search for an interim pastor. Bob Gurganus, Craig Pendergraft, Woodruff Allen, Carol Stovall, and Pat Glazier, chairperson, and Katherine Godwin, staff representative, were asked to serve on the interim committee. The pastor search committee consisted of Shawn Stovall, Mickey Ramer, Joel Bing, Dot Fennell, and Wanda Gore.

During this interim, the church called Dr. Joe Peterson, August 27, 2000, as part-time minister of music. The next year, June 1, 2001, he was asked to serve as pastor, for the summer only, as he was a full-time teacher in the New Hanover County public schools. After the summer interim, Dr. Wray Wheeless from Nashville, NC was recommended by the search committee to serve as interim pastor. He began September 12, 2001 and served until 2002.

On Easter Sunday, March 31, 2002, Dr. Joe Peterson and Mr. Bob Hood resigned. Dr. Peterson served at Calvary for nineteen months and Mr. Hood as organist for twenty-four years. Through action of the personnel committee, Mr. Kevin Groves, from the Wilmington area, was employed, July 22, 2002, to serve as temporary minister of youth and praise/worship leader. Tommy Lupton was licensed to preach June 2001, and Jonathan Rochelle was accepted at Southeastern, November 14, 2001.