Thank you for your January articles updating us on recent changes in Woman's Missionary Union of Virginia. As a former employee of WMUV, and one of many dismissed or pressured to resign during the tenure of the former WMUV executive director, I have followed these events with greater interest than most. Though I am disappointed at the vagueness of these articles, I understand that there are legal limitations to what can be shared. I would, nonetheless, like to respond to Daniel Polk's letter to the editor [Herald, Jan. 25] by offering my own experience at the WMUV as a way to gain more insight into the who, what, where, why and when questions he so keenly raised.
In 2004 I accepted a position as co-missioner for WMUV and the Virginia Baptist Mission Board. Having been born and bred a Virginia Baptist, I trusted and was excited about investing in these organizations.
However, my WMUV experience was stressful from the beginning. I spent my first seven months working under a vague job description and met with reproach or silence when I asked questions. Then one day I returned from a VBMB meeting to discover that my job description was suddenly assigned to a new employee at a meeting to which I was not invited.
I spent my last six months as a co-missioner with no job description and a growing sense of discouragement. Though I received nothing but accolades from Virginia Baptists, co-workers and my VBMB supervisor, I received criticism or silence from my WMUV supervisor. After months of repeatedly asking for direction and getting none, I finally voiced my frustration in a staff meeting and was immediately joined by other staff members who echoed similar frustrations. Shortly thereafter, my position was terminated. I was told the new budget lacked funding for my position, yet I noted that it managed to include the start of two new positions around the time mine was to end.
Though I am still healing from the hurt I received at the hands of those I once respected, I remain a Virginia Baptist at heart. I loved my job, I loved the people I served, and I will always hold fast to my solid Virginia Baptist roots.
It is this deep love for Virginia Baptists that compels me to revisit this painful chapter of my life and express my present concern for WMUV. While I am thankful that fruit has come from the testimonies of former employees such as myself, I am disappointed that WMUV's tradition of covering errors with vague press releases continues. Speaking the truth in love is our calling as Christians, and no organization can cut off limbs without repercussions being felt throughout the greater body of believers. It is time for WMUV to acknowledge its past, learn from its mistakes, and chart a corrective course. Covering over the truth denies the pain of those wounded, and that does not facilitate healing for either party. For the sake of our mutual healing, I pray WMUV will move toward the bright and holy future to which it is called by acknowledging the dark and troubled valley through which it has come.
Kristin Fogg, Richmond
Editor's Note: See the article on WMUV recommendations.