These are exciting times in our diocese and being part of the calling of a bishop is both an opportunity and a significant responsibility. The Search Committee will announce the nominees on March 15th, accompanied by some basic introductory information. However, it is of utmost importance that all elected delegates and alternates attend at least one of the Meet and Greet sessions, since these are the only opportunity delegates will have to interact face-to-face with the nominees.

The Election and Transition Committee of our diocese, the organizer of these events, has announced the three sites for the Meet and Greet sessions. These evenings are opportunities for all elected lay delegates to Convocation and Convention, along with members of congregations, and canonically resident clergy, to meet the nominees for the next Bishop of New Hampshire, to ask questions, and to listen attentively to responses.

Each session will begin promptly at 6:30 PM with a registration period from 5:45 to 6:15. The sessions will conclude at 8:30, followed by an informal reception. The sites are as follows:

• Tuesday, May 1, 2012 Christ Episcopal Church in Exeter UPDATED
• Wednesday, May 2, 2012 The Holderness School in Plymouth
• Thursday, May 3, 2012 St. Paul's School in Concord

The three sites were selected with the hope that that attendees would not have an unreasonable drive to and from the events and that the sites would have sufficient space to comfortably accommodate the number of attendees anticipated. The Election and Transition Committee recognizes and regrets that these three sights are not optimally convenient to everyone.

How will the Meet and Greets be set up? We are anticipating five nominees and therefore five separate classrooms will be set aside, with attendees assigned to a particular room. The 20-minute sessions will be guided by a moderator. Each nominee will meet with each group, beginning with a brief introduction, after which the floor will be open for questions. At an appointed time, the nominee will offer a brief summary, followed by a brief stretch break during which the attendees will stay put while each nominee proceeds to the next classroom and the process will begin again. Each bishop nominee will have equal time with each group.

Please arrive at the facility during the registration time. On arrival at the registration area you will be asked to fill out a very brief form asking your name and some basic information. You will then be assigned to one of five classroom locations. An effort will be made at registration to assign people from the same parish to different classrooms, so that within each parish delegation there will be maximum exposure to the presentations and questions. In addition, the May 1st session in Exeter will be videotaped and available on the diocesan website.

We will be calling a bishop of all people. The greater the number of Episcopalians involved in these Meets and Greet events, the better prepared our delegates will be for the Electing Convention on May 19th.