Introduction to THE CENTER FOR WELLBEING
The Center for Wellbeing is a core part of St. John’s Cathedral parish and is designed to be a resource for the broader community. Inspired by the love of Jesus, St. John’s is building God’s kingdom on earth, bringing together people of profound difference to love, learn, and serve God and each other. The Center for Wellbeing is a tangible outgrowth of that mission.
Located in a newly renovated space on the third floor of Cathedral House, the Center has a philosophy that pervades our entire parish community. We expand the Cathedral’s support beyond the spiritual into the realities of everyday life, nurturing mind, body, and spirit through education and compassionate support. Consistent with the multifaceted nature of wellbeing and reflecting the priorities identified by our fellow parishioners, we offer services that are diverse in content and approach. We do this through programs offering one-on-one coaching, support groups, physical activities, small-group discussions, meditation, spiritual direction, and instructional courses.
The Center provides a nurturing, compassionate, and safe environment for individuals and groups to seek healing and connection. We invite you to join us as volunteers, users, or donors — together, we will flourish and fulfill our mission.
Letter from THE LEADERSHIP COUNCIL FOR THE CENTER FOR WELLBEING
LEADERSHIP COUNCIL
Paige Hakimian, PhD, PCC
Patrick Kimball, MSSW, LCSW (Retired)
Kell Owen, Gero MS, CPG, PhD Candidate
Louis Russo, MD, U of FL Professor Emeritus of Neurology
Jacqueline Stoll, MS, PMHNP
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANCE
Janice Gadd
In July 2024, Dean Kate Moorehead Carroll sent a letter to the St. John’s Cathedral congregation describing her vision for a Center for Wellbeing at St John’s Cathedral. Dean Kate envisioned a radially inclusive space where free resources relating to wellness for mind, body, and spirit would be available. She pictured a place where people could be nurtured and assisted, regardless of their religious background. She then asked the five of us — with diverse backgrounds in health care and education — to serve on a Task Force to begin making this vision a reality.
During the last year, we have made tremendous progress. The Center has a newly-renovated physical home — a peaceful, lightfilled space on the third floor of one of the main buildings of the Cathedral Campus. We offer a growing number and diversity of programs and have served more than a hundred people from the community at large. We are blessed with a growing number of dedicated volunteers, who help us as program leaders or by providing administrative support. We also have thoughtful policies in place to guide our operations.
While this progress has been extremely gratifying, we realized that the development of a Strategic Plan would help ensure that the Center will fulfill its mission and achieve its vision on into the future. The following three-year plan is the culmination of many hours of research, deliberation, and strategizing. Our Task Force has now transitioned into the Leadership Council for the Center, and we are enthusiastic and proud to serve in this vital and transformative new program at St. John’s — and to help encourage its future development. We hope you will join us on this journey to help fulfill the Center’s vision to be a welcoming bright light in Jacksonville for years to come.
Faithfully,
The Leadership Council for the Center for Wellbeing
OUR PROGRAMS
Our current programs are open to all and offered at no cost to the participants
ONE TO ONE
• Coaching for sustained positive behavior change
• Spiritual direction
SMALL GROUPS
• Meditation
SUPPORT GROUPS
• Cancer
• Caregiver
• Divorce
• Death and Dying
• Grief
GROUP COURSES
• Age-ing to Sage-ing
• How to Find a New Job After Leaving Your Old Job
• Introduction to Wellbeing
• Mindful Aging Strategies
PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES
• Contemplative yoga
• Group walks
COMMUNITY EVENTS
• Gal-a
COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS
• Bishop’s Institute
• National Asoociation of Mental Illness
MEASURING OUR IMPACT
During the Center for Wellbeing’s first year of operation, it has already demonstrated tremendous value and positive impact on our community.
PROGRAMS OFFERED
NUMBER OF UNIQUE USERS
AVERAGE NUMBER OF PROGRAMS OFFERED EACH WEEK
AVERAGE NUMBER OF USER CONTACT HOURS EACH WEEK
AVERAGE NUMBER OF VOLUNTEER HOURS EACH WEEK
15 120 12 64 85
“The cancer support group has meant so much to me. The hope, strength, and courage I have witnessed by being part of the group has been an inspiration for me.”
“It is a deep pleasure to serve as a caregiver support group leader for the Center for Wellbeing, walking alongside those who give so much of themselves in love. I am honored to help create a space of encouragement, understanding, and strength for caregivers in our community.”
“The one-on-one coaching has already made a very positive difference in my life. My coach’s patience, trustworthiness, and understanding, combined with her very gentle way of leading me to positive changes, has been an enormous gift. Having focused meetings with a professional who actively listens and cares is an invaluable offering from St. Johns Cathedral.”
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
MISSION
Our mission is to nurture mind, body, and spirit by fostering deeper connections and mindfulness in an inclusive, safe space through education and compassionate support.
VISION
We aim to be the recognized, spiritually-based Center for Wellbeing.
VALUES
Our guiding principles focus on holistic wellbeing, service excellence, inclusivity, safety, and adaptability guided by values of community, confidentiality, empathy, inclusivity, safety, spirituality, and support.
STRATEGIC GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
1. Excellence in Organizational, Operational, and Fiscal Management
We are committed to operational excellence through improved communications, security, integration with the Cathedral, technology upgrades, database development, policy refinement, and clear financial reporting.
2. Program Development
We will continually launch and evaluate a range of wellbeing programs, prioritizing community needs and integrating spiritual and physical health. Continuous feedback and performance metrics will ensure program quality.
3. Volunteer Recruitment and Retention
Our volunteer strategy includes clear roles, targeted recruitment, structured onboarding, ongoing support, and performance feedback to build a strong volunteer team.
4. Community Engagement, Relationships, and Partnerships
We will collaborate with local organizations, churches, academic institutions, and government, building a directory of wellbeing resources and engaging diverse community groups.
5. Development and Financial Sustainability
We will ensure financial health through coordinated fundraising, donation technology, grant writing, sponsorships, and signature fundraising events.
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN: YEARLY THEMES
Year 1: Foundation Building
Establish core programs, management and development systems, volunteer structures, and initial partnerships.
Year 2: Expansion and Integration
Expand offerings, deepen engagement, refine management, deploy database for all Center needs, and launch fundraising initiatives.
Year 3: Sustainability and Growth
Solidify financial sustainability, strengthen administration, optimize programs, and introduce innovative partnerships.
EXPENSE BUDGET
A detailed three-year budget will support program development, operations, volunteer support, community engagement, and fundraising. The Plan is fully achievable with the volunteer commitment and financial resources currently available to the Center. Sustained growth and financial stability beyond year 3, however, will require employed staff and further financial investment as projected in the Year 3 Objectives.
CONCLUSION
This Strategic Plan positions the Center as a leader in holistic wellbeing — grounded in spirituality, inclusivity, and community. By achieving these goals, we will “get better every day,” delivering lasting impact for those we serve.
STRATEGIC GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
EXCELLENCE IN ORGANIZATIONAL, OPERATIONAL, AND FISCAL MANAGEMENT
• Develop wayfinding and communications programs to facilitate access to the Center
• Assure the security and safety of Center space for staff, volunteers, and users
• In the absence of fulltime staff for the Center, the Task Force should formalize a structure aligning Task Force members with more specific management roles
• Hold regular meetings for staff, volunteers, and Center leadership to maintain transparency and provide feedback opportunities
• Integrate Center operations and management into the existing structure of the Cathedral, including the development a Center Organizational Chart that integrates into the Cathedral Org. Chart
• Revisit and refine Center Policies and Procedures and assure alignment with those of the Cathedral
• Develop policies for use of Center space and time and develop technology to support calendaring
• Develop the technology infrastructure to support the Center
• Create process for development of an annual budget and key performance indicators
• Develop data and reporting systems to monitor performance toward annual financial and program goals
• Recruit and hire an Executive Director for the Center
PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
• Develop policies for operation, duration, and continuation of programs
• Launch programs in all major wellbeing areas, prioritizing those most supported by parish survey
• Create performance measures and metrics for all programs
• Establish a feedback system for users, leaders, and staff
• Offer instructional and short-course educational programs on health and wellbeing
• Initiate programs in spiritual direction and the interface between spiritual and physical wellbeing
• Explore a community health education program with academic health center partner
• Consider off-campus program offerings
VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION
• Define roles and numbers needed, and revisit this based on needs of the Center
• Seek volunteers tied to specific Center needs, as opposed to having an open-ended approach to recruitment
• Develop job descriptions, including reporting structure, for each position
• Develop a formal program for onboarding volunteers
• Create a support system for volunteers, including mentoring, periodic meeting with staff and leadership, and recognition programs
• Develop performance review program
• Develop policies and procedures for termination and replacement of volunteers
• Do a survey of all existing programs at St. John’s and explore opportunities for collaboration
• Identify a source for a list of available community resources related to all aspects of wellbeing; if none exists, develop this
• Create a branding initiative for the Center with strategic communication tactics for engagement of social and traditional media
• Organize a meeting of other community organizations with missions related to wellbeing to introduce the Center to them and for us to better understand the existing community resources
• Explore relationships with other Cathedral District churches and other Episcopal churches in the Diocese
• Arrange meetings with leadership of the various academic institutions in Jacksonville to explore opportunities for collaboration around issues related to wellbeing and to determine the interest of students and/or faculty in offering programs through the Center
• Meet with leadership of AgingTrue and other retirement communities to explore needs for this growing population
• Engage conversations with residents of various new and established apartment buildings in the Cathedral District and the broader center city
• Meet with local government leadership to explore opportunities and needs related to wellbeing
• Enter into a dialogue with the Development Council of St. John’s Cathedral and determine how the Center can most effectively interface with it
• Explore donation technology that could be placed in the Center for onsite giving by users of the Center
• Research the legal and ethical issues related to corporate sponsorships
• Plan and implement a Center-specific annual day for donations to the Center
• Plan and implement an annual Center fundraising event
• Explore legacy giving by users of the Center or their families
• Work with existing grant proposal infrastructure at St John’s to begin to build grant writing and management capability for the Center
• By Year Three, begin to build a comprehensive Development Program specific to the Center
“The Gal-a was an opportunity for women to come together in celebration of women’s joy, hope, and free-spirited movement and fun.”