St. Andrew’s Spring Hill calls the Reverend Matthew Theodore Grunfeld as it’s next rector.

It is with great pleasure that the Vestry of St. Andrew’s, Spring Hill has unanimously called the Rev. Matthew T. Grunfeld as it’s next rector.  Fr. Matthew will relocate from Holmes Beach, FL where he has been rector of The Church of the Annunciation since 2015.  He is also the dean of the Manasota Deanery and is involved in the Diocese of Southwest Florida as a member of the Diocesan council, instructor in the school of ministry and Cursillo.  We will welcome Fr. Matthew on Saturday August 31st, for his first weekend celebrating the Eucharist and preaching as our new rector.

Please see Fr. Matthew’s letter below, to the congregation.

Dear People of St. Andrew’s,

I bring you greetings in the name of Jesus Christ.  I am humbled and honored to accept the call of your Vestry to be your priest and rector.  I have met wonderful people at St. Andrew’s during the call process, and I look forward to meeting all of you soon.  I look forward to walking in the footsteps of those who have labored with God to bring St. Andrew’s thus far in its witness and ministry to Spring Hill and to venture into the future as Hernando County continues to grow and change.

I will begin my tenure on the weekend of August 31 and September 1, where I will preach and preside at the Eucharist.  Because I am moving from Anna Maria Island in Manatee County, it is possible you might see me make an appearance around the church campus before then as I move some of my personal effects out of my current parish.

My theology and ministry is grounded in the Benedictine pattern of prayer, life in community, and conversion of life.  I believe we meet God at the Altar during the Holy Eucharist, but also at the other tables we experience in our lives.

My father is Jewish, and my mother is an Episcopalian.  They decided to have me baptized at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in my hometown of Columbus, Georgia.  I also attended Roman Catholic schools for most of my younger years and hold a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Sociology from Emory University in Atlanta, a venerable United Methodist institution.  Ultimately, I decided to stay with the church of my family and childhood.

It was as a college undergraduate that I discerned a call to the priesthood and was sponsored for ordination by St. Thomas and the Diocese of Atlanta.  After serving in a clinical chaplain residency at a hospital in my hometown for a year after graduating college, I moved to New York City to attend the General Theological Seminary of the Episcopal Church.  It was as a student at GTS that I came to love the rich Anglican liturgical tradition.  It is also where I gained an appreciation for life and culture outside of my roots in the Deep South.  I was ordained to the diaconate as a seminarian in 2006 and to the priesthood in 2008.  I have served parishes in the Dioceses of Atlanta, New York, Alabama, and, since 2015, the Church of the Annunciation on Anna Maria Island.  I am glad to be continuing my ministry in the Diocese of Southwest Florida under the leadership of your native son, Bishop Scharf.

When I am not busy with church matters, I enjoy traveling, hiking, kayaking, and giving treats to my dog, Bruno.  I also eagerly await my Atlanta Braves recapturing first place in the National League East after the All Star Break, as is tradition.

You all at St. Andrew’s are in my prayers, and I look forward to being with you soon.

With thanksgiving for your partnership in the Gospel,

Matthew+