All Angels finds interim leader

As the Rev. David Danner heads to Canada, All Angels by the Sea Episcopal Church has found an interim rector.

The Rev. Dee de Montmollin will begin her work Sept. 2 at the church.

De Montmollin began her ministry work in 2001 at a church in Miami before heading to St. Francis Episcopal Church in Rutherfordton, N.C., for seven years.

After that, she served as rector at Church of the Annunciation on Anna Maria Island. After five years there, she said she felt called to do other ministries and began mission trips, leading retreats and serving as a supply priest.

De Montmollin said the role of interim can be twofold. On one end, the interim is there to keep things in order until the new  priest arrives. The other end is directing and guiding the parish. She said she feels her time at All Angels will give her the chance to do both.

De Montmollin isn’t a stranger to the All Angels parish.

Last year, de Montmollin stepped in for Danner when he was ill, and while she served at Church of the Annunciation, she would sometimes attend All Angels by the Sea’s services.

“I’m excited,” she said. “They’re a devoted, faith-filled group of people.”

Danner announced his retirement in February. He was not part of the selection process for de Montmollin, but he does know her as a colleague.

“I have only the highest or best comment to make about her, but I was not officially part of the process,” Danner said.

The vestry did not get to choose de Montmollin as the interim, though All Angels Senior Warden BJ Bishop asked the diocese if she was available to serve, and it worked out.

“She does have a history [with] and she has attended All Angels when she’s been in town, so the good news is she is familiar to our membership, and she’s just a delightful, lovely person,” Bishop said.

Bishop said the vestry will continue its search for a permanent rector. Going forward, the diocese will screen individuals before the vestry conducts interviews for the position.

“The one thing we keep emphasizing for the congregations is we recognize this is a time of change and transition, but as we all learn in our personal lives, that there are opportunities with every change and transition, and while it might feel uncomfortable, great things will hopefully come from the other end,” Bishop said.

Following the service Aug. 12, Danner and his wife, Wafa, drove to Canada where they will be closer to their family. He said this time is one of mixed emotions.

“I’m leaving the community that I’ve come to love dearly and have found to be special during the last 13 years that I have been here, so it’s very hard to say farewell to that community,” he said.

Danner admits, though, that he has plans he is excited about. Danner will work toward his doctorate in theological studies from both the University of Toronto and the Toronto School of Theology. His interest area is church history, and he will be specifically examining the history of how the church ministered to immigrants post World War II.

The Danners will return to Longboat Key for a brief visit on Nov. 4, when Danner will celebrate his final mass and enjoy a brunch with the congregation.

“I’ve come to realize that All Angels is a special place and a community, as I said, I dearly love, and of all the churches I’ve served in the past 42 years, it really is probably has been the best in many way,” Danner said. “I feel like it was a very good fit in terms between myself and the congregation.”