Discerning a clearer vision to help us follow God's deep calling for our church. Read more below:
Dear Westside Family,
We are deeply grateful for you—for your prayers, your faithfulness, and your shared commitment to being the Church together through the year and in this season. Over the past while, our leadership team has been spending intentional time listening, praying, and discerning what God may be inviting us into as a community.
Like many churches, we find ourselves at an important crossroads.
We have continued to grow - even more so in the last year than in previous years. While we are still who God has called us to be at our core, we have also evolved. Think about it as a different version of Westside with the same DNA at our core.
We have continued to sustain our mission today with similar resources, staff and structure as when we were 100-150 people. This past year was been was both incredible and challenging as felt a big stretch in our capacity.
In 2025 we hosted 2 Alpha sessions, 3 group sessions in 7 locations, 2 Sunday gatherings; for the 1st time we welcomed over 400 at Carols and Cocoa and 550 on Christmas Eve-Eve. KidsQuest and young adult engagement continues strong while youth ministry engagement has almost tripled.
Since we have lots to celebrate it can be deceiving. From the outside it can look like we’re covering all our bases. While we’re so grateful for all God is doing and all the ways our faithful volunteers sustain our ministry and mission, we want to discern how better to sustain and support, and also multiply discipleship in the long term.
We don’t want to risk moving into our future without some attention to clarifying our vision.
In light of the mission we started with over 20 years ago - connecting people to a growing relationship with Christ and each other - what is a clearer vision of how and what in this season for our church, in and for our city, and in our increasingly secular culture.
We are thankful for the story that has brought us here, and at the same time we sense a growing invitation to seek greater clarity around who we are, what God is calling us to, and how we can best steward our people, energy, and resources for the future.
With this in mind, we want you to know that we are entering a focused season of organizational clarity and renewal. This is not about chasing trends or fixing what is “broken,” but about slowing down long enough to listen well—to God, to one another, and to the story God has already been writing among us.
To support this work, we have invited Lead From Transformation, a leadership development and coaching organization, to walk alongside us. They will be helping our leadership team engage in a thoughtful process that explores four key areas:
- Our roots — clarifying our identity, values, mission, and vision
- Our present reality — honestly assessing where we are and what is shaping us
- Our future direction — discerning priorities, focus, and strategy
- Our practices — strengthening the structures and rhythms that support healthy ministry and leadership
This process will take place over the next 6–8 months and will primarily involve our leadership team. Alongside this, we are also receiving part-time, seasoned leadership support to help guide and strengthen this work as it unfolds. (see more from Greg Langman below)
This will be a shared journey, not a closed-door process. Over the coming months, we will be intentionally engaging ministry leaders and partners in our church through listening, conversation, and opportunities for input. While leadership carries responsibility for discernment and decision-making, we believe God often speaks through the wisdom, experience, and prayers of our broader community. So often in our past it’s been a community discernment that has helped us move forward with clarity and unity.
In addition to regular updates, we will create space for our congregation to participate—to help shape understanding, to name what matters, and to pray with us as clarity emerges. We are committed to communicating openly and inviting engagement in ways that are meaningful, timely, and appropriate for this season.
This work is ultimately for the flourishing of our whole church. Our hope is that greater clarity at the leadership level will lead to greater health, alignment, and freedom for our staff, volunteers, and congregation—to help us love well, serve faithfully, and participate more fully in God’s mission. We are committed to walking through this season with humility, prayer, and transparency.
Thank you for trusting us, praying with us, and being part of this shared journey. We believe God is at work—often quietly and beneath the surface—and we are hopeful about the fruit that will grow in time. With gratitude and hope,
Leadership Team (Joe Frizzle, Christina Parrillo, Steve Dustin, Ron Williams, John Roberts, and David Manafo - pastor)
*please reach out to leadership@westsidegathering.com with any questions or input now or along the way.
A Note from Greg Langman
Hello Westside Gathering family,
My name is Greg Langman, and I’m really glad to be joining you in this season. I live in Alberta with my wife, Linda, and family matters deeply to both of us. We have three adult children spread across the country: Alisha and her husband Kyle live in Toronto, Cara and her husband Lehman are in Regina, and Jenaya and her husband Paul live in Burlington. Walking with my kids as adults has been one of the great gifts of this stage of life, and it continues to shape how I understand faith, leadership, and what it means to grow together over time.
I’ve spent over 30 years serving in a mix of pastoral, church planting, leadership, and coaching roles, walking alongside churches, nonprofits, and leaders through seasons of change, growth, and renewal. One thing I’ve learned along the way is that real, lasting change rarely comes from rushing or fixing. It usually comes when people take time to listen well—to God, to one another, and to what’s been forming beneath the surface for a while.
These days, I co-lead a leadership development and coaching practice called LFT Leadership. At the heart of our work is helping people become spiritually deep, risk-taking, non-anxious leaders who know how to cultivate flourishing in the people and places they lead. We do this by slowing down, asking good questions, and creating space for clarity, courage, and healthy leadership rhythms rooted in character, faith, and calling.
With Westside Gathering, I’ll be serving in a coaching and leadership development role, coming alongside the leadership team during a focused season of listening and discernment. Together, we’ll be addressing Westside’s roots—its identity, values, mission, and vision—honestly naming present realities, discerning future direction, and strengthening the rhythms and structures that support healthy leadership and ministry moving forward.
I’ll be spending time with ministry leaders and staff both in person (3–4 times over the coming months) and online between visits, offering coaching, facilitation, and steady support along the way. I trust this will help us listen—to God, to one another, and to the story God has already been writing in and through Westside.
While lots of this work will happen with the leadership team, the ripple effect will serve the whole church. As space is created for listening and shared reflection across the congregation, my prayer is that greater clarity at the leadership level leads to greater health, alignment, and freedom for everyone who calls Westside home.
I’m genuinely excited to walk with you. From what I’ve seen and heard, Westside Gathering is a thoughtful, honest, and hopeful community, and it’s a privilege to join you in this shared journey. I look forward to getting to know you along the way.
With gratitude, Greg Langman
