Two island churches are in the midst of transition after the departures of their pastors in recent months.

At the Burton Community Church, Rev. Bruce Chittick, who served the church for two years, resigned abruptly in September, and at the Vashon Lutheran Church, a congregational vote, also in September, resulted in the departure of Pastor Bjoern Meinhardt, who had been the pastor of the congregation for nine years. Representatives from both churches say they will take a period of time before selecting a new minister.

Jeanette Smith, the moderator of the Burton church, a small American Baptist congregation, said Chittick resigned unexpectedly on Sept. 26.

“This was a sudden resignation,” she said. “We were all pretty surprised.”

In an email to The Beachcomber, Chittick said his departure had more to do with personal reasons than the church, which he called “a warm and welcoming community.” Two of his family members died this year, he said, and as a pastor with two jobs, he rarely had a day off and had little time to spend with his partner and young son.

“I was exhausted and stressed and had reached a breaking point,” he said in the email.

Chittick came to the congregation following the death of Rev. Marcus Walker in 2011 and after a six-month search process, and his abrupt departure has spurred more emotion in the congregation.

“Right now we are in another process of grieving,” Smith said.

While the congregation was caught by surprise, Smith said, they will also try to make the best of the situation. Each American Baptist church is its own entity, so the congregation has a lot of autonomy, which members will use now, she noted.

“We have the opportunity to shape our future however we want it to be, which is very exciting,” she said.

In the coming months, she said the congregation will alternate lay-led services with services led by guest speakers. They are also looking to attract new members, she said. Currently, the close-knit congregation typically has under 25 people in the pews on Sundays.

The group hasn’t decided when it will begin their search for Chittick’s replacement.

“I am looking forward to listening to a lot of interesting speakers,” she said.

At the Lutheran church, longtime council president Jack Lincoln said he was not at liberty to discuss the details of what transpired there but confirmed that the church congregation voted in mid-September to have Meinhardt leave.

“The majority felt that is what needed to happen,” he said.

For his part, Meinhardt also declined to comment on the

situation.

The church is now in what the Lutheran church calls an interim period, Lincoln said, and in most churches there is work to be done during such a time. Pastors specifically trained to serve in an interim capacity work during that time to “get the house in order,” he added. Typically, they serve for a year or two.

“Usually, there is work that needs to be done,” he said.

Pastor Tim Wolbrecht, who is currently finishing an assignment in Bellevue, will begin working with the Vashon congregation in a few months, Lincoln said.

“That is what he does, and he’s very good at it, and we feel fortunate that the bishop has appointed him to be our interim pastor,” he said.

In the meantime, Lincoln noted, guest pastors are filling in, and Jeff Larson, PhD, a member of the congregation who is a clinical psychologist and an ordained Lutheran minister, is providing personal pastoral care when it is needed.

Lincoln, who has been a member of Vashon Lutheran Church for eight years, said he has been through interim processes in other congregations.

“They are a time of growth, learning and bringing the congregation together,” he said.

He noted he likes hard questions and is looking forward to the process, but not everyone shares his outlook.

“It’s a time of change,” he said. “Change is not always easy.”