Douglas Theuner Elected New Hampshire Coadjutor
Episcopal News Service. December 5, 1985 [85245]
MANCHESTER, N.H. (DPS, Dec. 5.) -- The Rev. Douglas E. Theuner, rector of St. John's Church, Stamford, Conn., was elected Bishop Coadjutor of New Hampshire at a special convention at Grace Church.
The election occurred in the fifth ballot, with a clergy vote of 39 (36 needed) and a lay vote of 104 (76 needed).
The Bishop-elect is a native of New York City. He is a graduate of the college of Wooster, Wooster, Ohio; Bexley Hall, Kenyon College, Gambler, Ohio; and has a Master's Degree from the University of Connecticut. He and his wife, Jane, have two children.
Other nominees in the election were the Very Rev. J. C. Michael Allen, Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis; the Rev. Edward S. Gleason, headmaster of Nobel Greenough School in Dedham, Mass.; the Rev. Donald P. Hart, rector of St. James's Church, Keene, N.H.; the Rev. Canon John W. Howe, rector of Truro Episcopal Church, Fairfax, Va.; the Rev. William B. Lawson, rector of St. Stephen's Church, Lynn, Mass.; and the Rev. Donald A. Nickerson, rector of St. Paul's Church, Brunswick, Maine.
A search and nominating committee had selected the nominees, with the exception of Nickerson, who was nominated from the floor at the convention. Three evening sessions gave New Hampshire people a chance to interview and question the nominees, and the effect of these sessions was seen in the strong lay support for Theuner, which was evident from the first ballot. Hart was the next strongest among the nominees.
The convention was set in the framework of the Eucharist. The present diocesan, the Rt. Rev. Philip A. Smith, began the service and offered a short homily. After the absolution, ballotting began. Prayers and hymns were offered while the votes were counted. When an election was announced, the Eucharist was concluded. Smith was assisted by the former Bishop of New Hampshire, the Rt. Rev. Charles F. Hall.
The bishop-elect is expected to be consecrated early in the new year and will preside at the diocesan convention in May. Smith's formal retirement does not become effective until 1987, but he will be on sabbatical leave until that time.