November 15, 2025, was a glorious day for the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). It was a day of firsts.

ELCA Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry, installed October 4 in Minneapolis, came to Christ Lutheran Church in Charlotte to install the Rev. Emily Hartner as bishop. She is the 79th bishop of the NC Synod—and the first woman to serve in the role in its 222-year history. Curry is the denomination’s first person of African descent in that role.

So many words could be used to capture the day, but the female pastors likely said it best.

“It’s so exciting!” said the Rev. Cassie Overcash, one of Hartner’s assistants to the bishop. “I have so much hope.”

Overcash went on to say that in 2018, the North Carolina Synod produced a video, “Seriously?”, which included real quotes said to female pastors. Male pastors read the statements aloud, without seeing them before filming. They were not amused.

“Now we have a woman leading our synod,” Overcash said. “The work we did mattered.”

The Rev. Micah Kearney, pastor at Holy Comforter, Belmont, participated in that video. Three generations of his family have been pastors or are in church work. He and Hartner are third cousins.

His parents, the Revs. Beth and Doug Kearney, were the first clergy couple in North Carolina, and his aunt and uncle, the Revs. Mary and Tim Canniff-Kuhn, were longtime program directors at Lutheridge.

“I’ve always had strong female clergy in my life,” he said. “It was never the exception. It’s wonderful for Emily to be bishop.”

“It is a great joy to see a person so ready to be bishop, with a depth of wisdom and one who is young, vibrant, and full of ideas,” the Rev. Mary Canniff-Kuhn said. “It’s a great day for the church.”

The service was indeed a family affair for the new bishop. Her husband, Ian, sang “The Call,” and their son, Oliver, along with her niece and nephew, Max Kuhn and Grace Kuhn, presented the communion elements.

All of Hartner’s uncles and aunts were present as well.

“I’m just so incredibly proud of her,” Ian Hartner said after the 90-minute service. “She’s going to be so good in this role. I was the least surprised person in the world when she was elected.”

More than 80 rostered ministers from North and South Carolina were in attendance, as well as parishioners from Hartner’s first two calls, St. Mark’s, Charlotte, and Holy Trinity, Charlotte. Attendees from her home congregation, Beth Eden, Newton, were there, too.

Cameron McCall of Christ the King, Cary, is NC Synod Vice President, and served as assisting minister and liturgist.

Bishops Virginia Aebischer (South Carolina), Phyllis Milton (Virginia), Kevin Strickland (Southeastern), and Pedro Suarez (Florida-Bahamas) of the ELCA’s Region 9 Synods were all in attendance.

Aebischer, who took office in 2020, was the region’s first female bishop, and noted she loved seeing more women stepping into the office.

“Any time we make a step forward, we are standing on the shoulders of those who got us here,” said Bishop Kevin Strickland, an openly gay bishop in the ELCA. “But we can’t stop. We’ve got to keep walking.”

The Rev. Tim Smith and the Rev. Leonard Bolick, the synod’s two bishops emeriti, were also in attendance. Smith presented Hartner with the bishop’s cross, while both men said personal prayers over her during the Laying on of Hands portion of the service.

Curry did as well.

This was his sixth installation in six cities since taking office last month.

“It’s been fast-paced,” he admitted. “I’m trying to balance being in my office and throughout the 65 synods. We do have diversity based on gender, but we still have a ways to go.”

In his sermon, Curry said that the miter (head covering) and crozier (staff) represent Hartner’s role as a shepherd.

“Remember that all of us are a bit lost at times,” he said. “Let us continue to engage the stranger. Sometimes the stranger showing up is God showing up.”

In her remarks, Hartner repeated the words she shared when she was elected at the 2025 NC Synod Assembly in May.

“I love Jesus and I love the church!” she said. “I love the church even more since I have been visiting various congregations almost every Sunday. I love you all and I love our Synod.” In many ways, her remarks underscored a central theme of her ministry so far—tending to the synod’s core value of relationship.

Hartner also thanked the Rev. Scott Suskovic, host pastor, the massed choir of singers from congregations across the state, the instrumentalists, and the handbell choir. “This day is above and beyond anything I could have expected.”

At the conclusion of the service, she donned her miter with panache and gave the benediction, after which the pastors, deacons, and others leapt up and cheered.

Two days after her installation, the bishop further reflected, “The installation was both an inspiring and humbling experience. Mostly, I loved seeing the church come together, and it felt like I was being held and surrounded by so many communities that have helped shape me—as a person and a pastor. I remain deeply grateful for the church and humbled that I am called to serve in this capacity.”

November is a season for giving thanks, and in the days following this historic installation, our synod has much to celebrate. Join Lutherans across North Carolina in giving thanks for the Bishop’s Transition Team—faithfully led by Deacon Tammy Jones West—as they conclude their work, which included honoring Bishop Tim Smith’s tenure and coordinating this monumental installation service.

We also give thanks for the NC Synod Council, which commissioned a new crozier for the synod. Presented to Bishop Emily just after the bishop’s cross, it was a complete surprise. Beautifully designed and handcrafted by Larry Hilbert (Holy Trinity, Raleigh; spouse of Pastor Louise Hilbert), the crozier will serve as a meaningful symbol of the bishop’s office for years to come.

And finally, thanks be to God for you—the faithful givers of this synod—whose generosity sustains the vital ministry we share.