Trinity's congregation called the Reverend Sara J. (Sally) Hughes to be its Designated Pastor and she began January 1, 2017.
The Call came in a unanimous vote of the congregation following worship on November 20.
"We are all enthused and excited about Sally joining us," said Elder Phil Elbert, who served as secretary of the Congregational Meeting where the vote was taken. "We have been through a lot the last several months without a pastor we are excited to have reached this point."
Sally and her husband Rev. Will Berger are currently co-pastors of Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church (HFPC) in Franklin, TN where they have served the last 23 years.
They pastored churches in North Carolina (Lisbon and Clarkton) and Mississippi (Ripley and Tippah County) before coming to HFPC in 1993 where their newly formed congregation has grown from 150 to 300 members.
Sally is a native of Nashville and was graduated from Hillwood High School and George Peabody College for Teachers. Her family is one of Trinity's charter families. She was elected a Trinity elder in 1975. She attended Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, Virginia and was graduated with a DMin in 1983. The day after graduation, she married Will Berger.
Through the years she has served Middle Tennessee Presbytery as an Ordination exam reader; currently on the Administration/Finance Committee; Special Visioning Task Force for 2020; Mentor for Company of New Pastors (OGA, PCUSA); Interim Executive Presbyter Search Committee; Moderator, Presbytery of Middle Tennessee; Personnel Committee; and member and moderator of the Committee on Preparation for Ministry.
About her Calling, Sally writes, "God has called me to people who need leadership but not dictatorship, to people who desire a listening ear but not a word of judgment, to people who want to hear God’s word to us in our time, through the scriptures of the Old and New Testament, to people who love to worship and serve God.
"I have grown in realizing that while the church is a wonderful institution, the church isn’t God. God is at work in the world in and through and sometimes in spite of the church. The church is God’s creation, God’s instrument, accomplishing God’s will. Finally, having worked with newly ordained, sometimes younger pastors, I have grown in my appreciation and confidence that the future of our denomination is in their good hands, guided by the Spirit and filled with the grace of Christ"
Her formal installation was 2/12/17.
Sally and Will have three adult children: Sara Anne, Mary and Paul.