Meeting Minutes of February 3, 2011
Recorder: Suzanne Lindner
Attendees: Sandy Dyer – Co-Chair, Sarah Randall, Jan Bosse, Richard Parker, Mike Kasputes, and Suzanne Lindner.
Opening Prayer: Richard Parker offered opening prayer.
January Minutes: Minutes from the January 6, 2011 were approved with one revision noted: $200 is to be given as an honorarium to our guest speaker on Mission Sunday.
Treasurer’s Report: Presented by Mike Kasputes who noted that both the Elder Program and Social Witness ministries budgets have been lowered from last year.
Minister’s Moment:
• Elsa noted that the educational process is already planned.
• Noted that she had spoken to the guest speaker for Mission Sunday and that he will be at both services. Also noted that he has stated that he does not need us to worry about his accommodations; he will be able to make his own plans.
• News of Budget: the budget was passed this Sunday with no discussion. Two things that pertain to us:
- We were note given the increase that we asked for
- Council is undertaking a project. They will be looking at staffing, giving, etc,and how we are using our assets. This should start soon and they will be looking to us for information. They know that we are looking into our groups that we give money to.
• Elsa brought a mock up of the Mission Sunday bulletin.
OLD BUSINESS:
Mission Sunday Service: Noted that all pieces should be e-mailed to Elsa and the following was confirmed:
• Call to Worship – JanBosse
• Unison Prayer – Laurie Carey
• Children’s Time – Mike Kaputes
• Prayer of Illumination & Scripture – Kristen Silvia
• Prayers of the People – Elsa Peters
• Tithes & Offerings – Jan Bosse
• Benediction – Suzanne Lindner & Sarah Randall
• Hymns – Elsa suggested switching Be Thou My Vision to be the first
song. Committee agreed. Order of hymns was agreed to be:
1) Be Thou My Vision
2) What Gift Can We Bring
3) I The Lord of Sea & Sky (Here I Am Lord)
Elsa asked what we wanted on our Bulletin cover. Committee decided we would
use a picture of Acadia.
Request was made to Elsa to mention at this week’s service that there will be envelopes in the pews this Sunday. Committee then discussed and decided that we will wait until week of the service to put envelopes in the pews as the information on the Mission Sunday service is already in the Bulletin and Sandy will mention the envelopes in “Life of the Church.”
Elsa reminded us to say at the beginning of the service that any offerings not in the envelopes will go to the church.
Preparation for Discussion of Donation Guidelines with John McCall in March: John’s e-mail to the Committee asking us to focus on those charities that are not receiving money from other sources was read. Also his request for us to examine the charities that we do give money to was discussed.
• Noted that we need to come up with a filter/criteria when considering
charities. Noted also that once we have the criteria, we will then need to consider how we prioritize. Lastly, we will then need to balance the needs in some way: food, shelter, etc. Many needs to balance.
• Elsa suggested that it comes down to: Who are we? Who do we support to express that?
• Homework: Each committee member should think about what criteria they think are important. Elsa suggested that we look at scripture, too, to gain insight into the work that we do. Richard also suggested that we should look at things that are supported in other areas of the church as that might help us to know what to focus on, too.
Thank You Notes:
Received by Good Shepherd Food Bank, Long Creek Youth Development Center (for the presents), Preble Street.
With regards to the Mission Mall, thank you’s were received from Cancer Community Center, Animal Refuge League, Hospice of Maine and Preble Street.
NEW BUSINESS:
One Great Hour of Sharing Material: Noted that this will happen on April 3rd.
• Discussed Bulletin inserts and envelopes.
• Noted that it is predetermined where the money will go.
• Noted that we will ask Laurie how we do this.
• Decided that we can hang posters to remind people that it is coming and that
we will wait until March to do this.
• Discussed that we will want to place notices in two Beacons: February 28th
and March 14th.
How to Divide Distributions This Year Based on the 2011 Budget:
Decided we will determine this after next month’s discussion and be more fluid in how many organizations we give to and how much money we give based on prioritization, special needs, etc.
Jan noted an increased need for housing security deposits because the stimulus money is all gone now. Jan noted that she would speak to Crisis Ministries.
OTHER BUSINESS:
Committee discussed the membership of our team: Who will be here, who will not, what we need.
• It was decided that we will need to discuss again in one of our next meetings.
• Discussed the limit for membership in the Committee is two 3-year terms.
• Discussed how many members we are allowed. It was noted that the by laws state at least six members but that we currently have nine members.
• Realized that we will potentially need 3 new members.
• Noted that we need to turn in information in May for new members in June.
Closing Prayer: Richard Parker offered closing prayer.
Next Meeting: Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. in the Laity Room
• Co-Chair: Sarah Randall
• Devotions: Jan Bosse
• Recorder: Laurie Carey
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Church Council
Meeting Minutes of February 17, 2011
Recorder: Bob Morse
Present: Roger Addor, Matt Early, Andy Ellis, Sally Hinckley, Nancy MacLean, John McCall, Bob Morse, Carl Murphy, Peggy Murray, Robin Reinhold, John Shoos, Carrie Skeffington, & Phil Whitney.
Absent: Elsa Peters
Guests: Rick Angell & Stan Jordan
Nancy MacLean, Moderator, opened the meeting at 6:35 p.m. Bob Morse read a reflection questioning whether meaning and enjoyment in life can be found solely by keeping score.
January Minutes: Reviewed and Accepted.
Usher Emergency Guidelines: Reviewed a draft created by Rick Angell and Stan Jordan.
Broad areas: Fire Emergencies, Medical Emergencies and Security Emergencies.
Guidelines to be simple and streamlined so usher can readily see them.
• A laminated copy will be located at the back of the church for ushers.
• Not necessary to post on wall anywhere
Concern: There is nothing about the Sunday School in these Guidelines.
• Evacuation drawings no longer located in each room. Important to replace them - refer to Admin Team.
• Teachers are given "fire drill" guidelines - they lead children to parking lots.
• Parents need to be informed that they are not to go to classrooms.
- If a parent removes a child, the child’s teacher or emergency personnel may have no idea where that child is.
• Concern that rotating parents in the nursery have never been given instruction on what to do in case of fire. They need to be informed.
• Question: Do Fire drill guidelines go to parents? Just to teachers?
Editorial suggestion for Usher Guidelines:
• Decision: Reference to separate Sunday School Guidelines needs to be added to Usher Emergency Guidelines near the bottom. " See separate guidelines for the Church School".
• Add a set to Actions by Ushers: Notify Worship Leader that a problem exists if they are not in a position to see it.
Suggestion to identify ENTs and doctors in advance who might be in church when a medical emergency with a parishioner occurs.
• Reflection about possibility of training some members in CPR.
If the church loses electrical power:
• Does the fire alarm system have a battery back-up? Yes. Who checks it? How often?
• If a cell phone were used to dial 911, would it be possible to know where the person calling is located? Yes. South Portland has a GPS system for just that reason.
• If people were in the church elevator, could they get out? Need to mark where key is located.
With power, would someone be able to successfully operate the church telephone?
• Suggestion that instructions need to be placed on each phone on how to use them for emergencies. Refer to Admin Team for signage.
Thanks and appreciation given to both Rick Angell and Stan Jordan for their excellent work with these Emergency Guidelines. Stan will prepare another draft incorporating suggestions.
Web Page: John McCall reported that work for the past three weeks has been intensive with a goal of working out every bug. It is very intuitive, adaptable, and flows well. It should be ‘live’ on Monday, February 21. Possibility of demonstration at some time in Davidson Lounge to show how it works.
Scholarship Committee: They have done excellent work. Council unanimously agreed that special approval is not needed for Committee to request donations to the Scholarship Funds.
Budget Adjustment: Nancy Foran will be taking a Sabbatical from mid-June to mid-October, and will not be paid for her Sabbatical. However, one month of the four months is her vacation, for which she will be paid ($474.25). There was a mix-up in the budget. It will not be changed to reflect the additional vacation payment: we will simply be aware of this over-ride at the end of the year.
UCC Conversation, Part I: At the Council’s request, John McCall shared a diagram of “The Covenant Partners in the United Church of Christ” - individual, local, state, national. Emphasis was placed on the importance of covenant, since lack of hierarchy might suggest we can do whatever we want, thus losing track of meaningful relationships within the larger UCC. “Our glue is covenant.” We make mutual promises to each other, and hold each other “gently accountable.” John talked about the UCC as the merging of 4 historical denominations, but emphasized this does not change the reality that each church remains autonomous.
Financial Futuring:
Questions:
• How do we manage to live with a limited amount of money and do everything that we want to do?
• How do we fund what we want to be as a church?
• How do we apportion our resources? How do we decide to do that?
Realities and Questions:
• Membership trends are down in progressive protestant churches.
• Who will be in the pew in 2015, and how will they be supporting the church?
• We need to be thinking of the long-term. What is a realistic change in our income in the next five years?
Defining Role of a Working Group to be set up to consider facts and trends:
• Financial forecasting through fact gathering from similar churches
- Percentage of staff compensation.
- Percentage of budget for mission outreach.
- Personnel Committees and what they deal with.
• May find reluctance to share, protectiveness, and a level of resistance.
• Will quite certainly be a need to look outside Maine for comparisons and trends.
• What about alternative worship services? How do we attract new members to the church?
• How to we think about and look into the possibility of renting out more space?
• Possible exploration: Tolerance for a congregation to spend money from endowment
• What time line are we thinking about for this to take place? December 2011 for the 2012 Budget year; AND 2015 long term.
Need for sharp focus on what we are asking the Working Group to do -- a Mission Statement.
• John McCall and Nancy MacLean will meet to prepare a draft for the next meeting.
Gratitude and Appreciation: Nancy passed around a thank-you card from three Harle siblings for financial support which enabled them to attend camp at Pilgrim Lodge.
Meeting Adjourned: 8:30 p.m.
Next Meeting: March 17; Robin Reinhold - Opener/Recorder
Recorder: Bob Morse
Present: Roger Addor, Matt Early, Andy Ellis, Sally Hinckley, Nancy MacLean, John McCall, Bob Morse, Carl Murphy, Peggy Murray, Robin Reinhold, John Shoos, Carrie Skeffington, & Phil Whitney.
Absent: Elsa Peters
Guests: Rick Angell & Stan Jordan
Nancy MacLean, Moderator, opened the meeting at 6:35 p.m. Bob Morse read a reflection questioning whether meaning and enjoyment in life can be found solely by keeping score.
January Minutes: Reviewed and Accepted.
Usher Emergency Guidelines: Reviewed a draft created by Rick Angell and Stan Jordan.
Broad areas: Fire Emergencies, Medical Emergencies and Security Emergencies.
Guidelines to be simple and streamlined so usher can readily see them.
• A laminated copy will be located at the back of the church for ushers.
• Not necessary to post on wall anywhere
Concern: There is nothing about the Sunday School in these Guidelines.
• Evacuation drawings no longer located in each room. Important to replace them - refer to Admin Team.
• Teachers are given "fire drill" guidelines - they lead children to parking lots.
• Parents need to be informed that they are not to go to classrooms.
- If a parent removes a child, the child’s teacher or emergency personnel may have no idea where that child is.
• Concern that rotating parents in the nursery have never been given instruction on what to do in case of fire. They need to be informed.
• Question: Do Fire drill guidelines go to parents? Just to teachers?
Editorial suggestion for Usher Guidelines:
• Decision: Reference to separate Sunday School Guidelines needs to be added to Usher Emergency Guidelines near the bottom. " See separate guidelines for the Church School".
• Add a set to Actions by Ushers: Notify Worship Leader that a problem exists if they are not in a position to see it.
Suggestion to identify ENTs and doctors in advance who might be in church when a medical emergency with a parishioner occurs.
• Reflection about possibility of training some members in CPR.
If the church loses electrical power:
• Does the fire alarm system have a battery back-up? Yes. Who checks it? How often?
• If a cell phone were used to dial 911, would it be possible to know where the person calling is located? Yes. South Portland has a GPS system for just that reason.
• If people were in the church elevator, could they get out? Need to mark where key is located.
With power, would someone be able to successfully operate the church telephone?
• Suggestion that instructions need to be placed on each phone on how to use them for emergencies. Refer to Admin Team for signage.
Thanks and appreciation given to both Rick Angell and Stan Jordan for their excellent work with these Emergency Guidelines. Stan will prepare another draft incorporating suggestions.
Web Page: John McCall reported that work for the past three weeks has been intensive with a goal of working out every bug. It is very intuitive, adaptable, and flows well. It should be ‘live’ on Monday, February 21. Possibility of demonstration at some time in Davidson Lounge to show how it works.
Scholarship Committee: They have done excellent work. Council unanimously agreed that special approval is not needed for Committee to request donations to the Scholarship Funds.
Budget Adjustment: Nancy Foran will be taking a Sabbatical from mid-June to mid-October, and will not be paid for her Sabbatical. However, one month of the four months is her vacation, for which she will be paid ($474.25). There was a mix-up in the budget. It will not be changed to reflect the additional vacation payment: we will simply be aware of this over-ride at the end of the year.
UCC Conversation, Part I: At the Council’s request, John McCall shared a diagram of “The Covenant Partners in the United Church of Christ” - individual, local, state, national. Emphasis was placed on the importance of covenant, since lack of hierarchy might suggest we can do whatever we want, thus losing track of meaningful relationships within the larger UCC. “Our glue is covenant.” We make mutual promises to each other, and hold each other “gently accountable.” John talked about the UCC as the merging of 4 historical denominations, but emphasized this does not change the reality that each church remains autonomous.
Financial Futuring:
Questions:
• How do we manage to live with a limited amount of money and do everything that we want to do?
• How do we fund what we want to be as a church?
• How do we apportion our resources? How do we decide to do that?
Realities and Questions:
• Membership trends are down in progressive protestant churches.
• Who will be in the pew in 2015, and how will they be supporting the church?
• We need to be thinking of the long-term. What is a realistic change in our income in the next five years?
Defining Role of a Working Group to be set up to consider facts and trends:
• Financial forecasting through fact gathering from similar churches
- Percentage of staff compensation.
- Percentage of budget for mission outreach.
- Personnel Committees and what they deal with.
• May find reluctance to share, protectiveness, and a level of resistance.
• Will quite certainly be a need to look outside Maine for comparisons and trends.
• What about alternative worship services? How do we attract new members to the church?
• How to we think about and look into the possibility of renting out more space?
• Possible exploration: Tolerance for a congregation to spend money from endowment
• What time line are we thinking about for this to take place? December 2011 for the 2012 Budget year; AND 2015 long term.
Need for sharp focus on what we are asking the Working Group to do -- a Mission Statement.
• John McCall and Nancy MacLean will meet to prepare a draft for the next meeting.
Gratitude and Appreciation: Nancy passed around a thank-you card from three Harle siblings for financial support which enabled them to attend camp at Pilgrim Lodge.
Meeting Adjourned: 8:30 p.m.
Next Meeting: March 17; Robin Reinhold - Opener/Recorder
Adminstration Team
Meeting Minutes of February 3, 2011
Recorder: Deb Sandler
Present: Ron Bennett, Guy Gledhill, Chris Mills, Jim Otis, Rod Redstone, Deb Sandler and Cyndi Alden (Business Manager).
Call to Order: Chris called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m. Deb agreed to be secretary for this meeting and Jim agreed to be secretary for the March 3 meeting.
Minutes of the Admin Team January 6, 2011 Meeting: Reviewed and accepted as written.
OLD BUSINESS:
Financial Statements and Budget:
Financial results for the month of January were reviewed. The year is 8.3% complete. Revenues stand at 8.3% of the year’s budget.
Expenses are about 10.7% of the year’s budget. Overall, actual income and expenses vs. the budget appear reasonable. The financial report was unanimously accepted. Once the Discovery Center has provided Cindy with their year-end data she will be prepared for the annual financial review with Smith & Associates which will take place on February 8. The Discovery Center and Holly Daze Bazaar are included in that review as requested by the Council in 2009.
Tenant Update:
509 Sawyer Street: Guy and Tom will do an inspection of this house this month to check on several electrical issues brought forward by the tenant. Pending the inspection the A-Team will decide whether it is time to return the rent to the original cost of $1000/month.
331 Cottage Road, 1st Floor: The Art Gallery held its Open House in January. The new inside basement door was installed to create privacy from those people bringing rummage sale items to store in the basement. 2nd Floor: All’s well.
Church Insurance Renewals:
Cyndi sent a copy of our insurance policy to the team in January. We tabled any further discussion until we hear a review from Scott Stacy.
Team Member Replacement:
Chris agreed to take a list, provided by Cyndi, of the current Counting Members and write a letter asking if any of them would be interested in serving on the A-Team in the future.
Committee Reports:
Counting: All appears to be working smoothly.
House: The door has been installed. Signage has been ordered for the Narthex/coatroom area. Placement for those signs will be determined with the help of David Allen. The committee will meet soon to discuss the bids for painting the Sanctuary which Tom has been busy compiling.
Planned Giving: Ron agreed to run the same 4 articles, which he wrote last year, in the Beacon later on this year.
NEW BUSINESS:
Annual Meeting: Both Ron and Deb expressed gratitude to Matt Early for the excellent job that he did explaining the 2011 Proposed Church Budget at the Annual Meeting last Sunday. His presentation was so clear, concise and complete that the vote was taken with no questions needing to be asked. Thank-you Matt!
Date of Next Meeting: Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 7 p.m.
Meeting adjourned 7:55 p.m.
Recorder: Deb Sandler
Present: Ron Bennett, Guy Gledhill, Chris Mills, Jim Otis, Rod Redstone, Deb Sandler and Cyndi Alden (Business Manager).
Call to Order: Chris called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m. Deb agreed to be secretary for this meeting and Jim agreed to be secretary for the March 3 meeting.
Minutes of the Admin Team January 6, 2011 Meeting: Reviewed and accepted as written.
OLD BUSINESS:
Financial Statements and Budget:
Financial results for the month of January were reviewed. The year is 8.3% complete. Revenues stand at 8.3% of the year’s budget.
Expenses are about 10.7% of the year’s budget. Overall, actual income and expenses vs. the budget appear reasonable. The financial report was unanimously accepted. Once the Discovery Center has provided Cindy with their year-end data she will be prepared for the annual financial review with Smith & Associates which will take place on February 8. The Discovery Center and Holly Daze Bazaar are included in that review as requested by the Council in 2009.
Tenant Update:
509 Sawyer Street: Guy and Tom will do an inspection of this house this month to check on several electrical issues brought forward by the tenant. Pending the inspection the A-Team will decide whether it is time to return the rent to the original cost of $1000/month.
331 Cottage Road, 1st Floor: The Art Gallery held its Open House in January. The new inside basement door was installed to create privacy from those people bringing rummage sale items to store in the basement. 2nd Floor: All’s well.
Church Insurance Renewals:
Cyndi sent a copy of our insurance policy to the team in January. We tabled any further discussion until we hear a review from Scott Stacy.
Team Member Replacement:
Chris agreed to take a list, provided by Cyndi, of the current Counting Members and write a letter asking if any of them would be interested in serving on the A-Team in the future.
Committee Reports:
Counting: All appears to be working smoothly.
House: The door has been installed. Signage has been ordered for the Narthex/coatroom area. Placement for those signs will be determined with the help of David Allen. The committee will meet soon to discuss the bids for painting the Sanctuary which Tom has been busy compiling.
Planned Giving: Ron agreed to run the same 4 articles, which he wrote last year, in the Beacon later on this year.
NEW BUSINESS:
Annual Meeting: Both Ron and Deb expressed gratitude to Matt Early for the excellent job that he did explaining the 2011 Proposed Church Budget at the Annual Meeting last Sunday. His presentation was so clear, concise and complete that the vote was taken with no questions needing to be asked. Thank-you Matt!
Date of Next Meeting: Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 7 p.m.
Meeting adjourned 7:55 p.m.
Growth Group
Meeting Minutes of 2/14/11
Recorder: Elinor Redmond
Members Present: Rick Angell, Elinor Redmond, Dave Allen, Sue Ross. Guest: Sarah Bloom.
Dave opened with a reading entitled ‘the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee’.
1. Sarah Bloom is a new member of our church who agreed to share her experiences and impressions. Sarah grew up in the Catholic Church and had not attended any church in many years, except for a UCC church on Cranberry Island. She had visited several churches in the Portland area and happened to talk with her neighbor, Ellie Chatto, who suggested Sarah try our church. Sarah appreciated all the information she received on visiting the church, being especially impressed with the history of the church and the statement of faith. She read all of the pamphlets in the welcome envelope thoroughly and saves the bulletin each week. She felt welcome from her first visit. She joined the bell choir. John called as he does with all visitors. As an oboist, she thoroughly appreciates the quality of the music at our church. The only negative she has found is the fact that people chat during the prelude and the postlude. She wants to use that time for prayer and to appreciate the music. Dave asked her what is what like the first time she came. She came alone and went to the coffee hour where people reached out to her – and she reached out to others. She preferred attending services alone as she was evaluating the experience and did not want to be distracted by another (she would not have wanted to have a ‘parish host’). She appreciated the flexibility to learn as she wanted to learn. She recommends that more current members attend the Inquirer’s meetings.
2. SL&W and Welcome Packets: Rick read from the SL&W meeting minutes concerning the ‘vigorous discussion’ held by members. The church staff has the responsibility to determine what information is in the pew racks and what is included in the welcome envelopes. Our group continues to be very interested in having the brochures updated so that they are easier to read (simpler, with bullets instead of long sentences). Sue is making a list of the brochures presently in the envelope.
3. Elinor will represent GG at the 3/3 EG&F meeting.
4. Welcome Brochure: Dave will pass along the wording changes to Bryan.
Update on activities:
5. Welcome Notes: Sue called Darla twice. There have not been any new visitors leaving contact information.
6. Friendship Pad Options: Elinor brought information on a cloth covered pad (~$10) which may hold up better than the vinyl covered version. Also, Staples yielded few options. Elinor brought in a ‘sheet protector’ which seemed too flimsy. Dave is going to continue the search. We want to see samples of the options.
7. Bookmarks: not much to report. Bryan will work on them in March.
8. Signage:
• An individual is very upset at the thought of having any signage in the narthex.
• The A-team has ordered sign.
• Rick and Stan are working on emergency signage.
9. Homework: Each member will review our ‘idea’ materials and bring 1 idea for the group to work on. Dave will e-mail the ‘ideas’.
Next Meeting: Monday, March 21.
Recorder: Elinor Redmond
Members Present: Rick Angell, Elinor Redmond, Dave Allen, Sue Ross. Guest: Sarah Bloom.
Dave opened with a reading entitled ‘the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee’.
1. Sarah Bloom is a new member of our church who agreed to share her experiences and impressions. Sarah grew up in the Catholic Church and had not attended any church in many years, except for a UCC church on Cranberry Island. She had visited several churches in the Portland area and happened to talk with her neighbor, Ellie Chatto, who suggested Sarah try our church. Sarah appreciated all the information she received on visiting the church, being especially impressed with the history of the church and the statement of faith. She read all of the pamphlets in the welcome envelope thoroughly and saves the bulletin each week. She felt welcome from her first visit. She joined the bell choir. John called as he does with all visitors. As an oboist, she thoroughly appreciates the quality of the music at our church. The only negative she has found is the fact that people chat during the prelude and the postlude. She wants to use that time for prayer and to appreciate the music. Dave asked her what is what like the first time she came. She came alone and went to the coffee hour where people reached out to her – and she reached out to others. She preferred attending services alone as she was evaluating the experience and did not want to be distracted by another (she would not have wanted to have a ‘parish host’). She appreciated the flexibility to learn as she wanted to learn. She recommends that more current members attend the Inquirer’s meetings.
2. SL&W and Welcome Packets: Rick read from the SL&W meeting minutes concerning the ‘vigorous discussion’ held by members. The church staff has the responsibility to determine what information is in the pew racks and what is included in the welcome envelopes. Our group continues to be very interested in having the brochures updated so that they are easier to read (simpler, with bullets instead of long sentences). Sue is making a list of the brochures presently in the envelope.
3. Elinor will represent GG at the 3/3 EG&F meeting.
4. Welcome Brochure: Dave will pass along the wording changes to Bryan.
Update on activities:
5. Welcome Notes: Sue called Darla twice. There have not been any new visitors leaving contact information.
6. Friendship Pad Options: Elinor brought information on a cloth covered pad (~$10) which may hold up better than the vinyl covered version. Also, Staples yielded few options. Elinor brought in a ‘sheet protector’ which seemed too flimsy. Dave is going to continue the search. We want to see samples of the options.
7. Bookmarks: not much to report. Bryan will work on them in March.
8. Signage:
• An individual is very upset at the thought of having any signage in the narthex.
• The A-team has ordered sign.
• Rick and Stan are working on emergency signage.
9. Homework: Each member will review our ‘idea’ materials and bring 1 idea for the group to work on. Dave will e-mail the ‘ideas’.
Next Meeting: Monday, March 21.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Spiritual Life and Worship
Meeting Minutes of 2/3/11
Attending: Rick Angell, Dana Wiggins, Deb Riley, Elaine Brownell, Tex Haeuser.
Meeting Start: 7:00 p.m.
Opening Prayer: Once again Elaine offered a prayer of hope and thanksgiving. Deb added her thoughts and prayers for Elaine’s father who recently passed away.
Review of January Minutes: Approved without correction.
Minister’s Time: John was attending a conference and was unable to attend the meeting.
Ash Wednesday, 3/9/11 at 7:00 a.m.: Dana provided the group with an outline of the activities drawn from previous years experience that need to be accomplished for a successful breakfast this year. Decisions on food, personal support, material needs and activity time frames were made. A final review will be made at the 3/3/11 meeting.
Dana is the Team Leader.
Maundy Thursday Communion, 4/21/11
Good Friday Soup Supper, 4/22/11 at 5:30 p.m.: A brief discussion was held covering amount of food required, personnel required and equipment needs. More detailed planning will be done over the next two meetings on 3/3 and 4/7/2011.
Elaine is the Team Leader.
Easter Vigil: Bryan Wiggins will provide a sign up poster that will be placed in the Narthex and near the Wright Pavilion at various times beginning on March 13 and going through April 17 at least. Sign up notices will also be placed in the Beacon and Bulletin.
Easter Sunrise Service: Several members have volunteered to help John/Elsa at the service. A more detailed planning is required over the next two meetings.
Elder Luncheon, 6/5/11: Tex provided the group with a detailed outline listing all of the functions needed to be performed to put the luncheon together. The who, what, and when of each item needs to be identified and them monitored by SL&W.
Tex is the Team Leader.
Possible agenda items for the next meeting:
- Finalize Ash Wednesday plans.
- Maundy Thursday planning.
- Good Friday Soup Supper planning.
- Easter Vigil update.
- Easter Sunrise Service update.
- Elder Lunch detailed planning.
Meeting Adjourned: 8:00 p.m.
Next Meeting: March 3, 2011 at 7:00 p.m.
Attending: Rick Angell, Dana Wiggins, Deb Riley, Elaine Brownell, Tex Haeuser.
Meeting Start: 7:00 p.m.
Opening Prayer: Once again Elaine offered a prayer of hope and thanksgiving. Deb added her thoughts and prayers for Elaine’s father who recently passed away.
Review of January Minutes: Approved without correction.
Minister’s Time: John was attending a conference and was unable to attend the meeting.
Ash Wednesday, 3/9/11 at 7:00 a.m.: Dana provided the group with an outline of the activities drawn from previous years experience that need to be accomplished for a successful breakfast this year. Decisions on food, personal support, material needs and activity time frames were made. A final review will be made at the 3/3/11 meeting.
Dana is the Team Leader.
Maundy Thursday Communion, 4/21/11
Good Friday Soup Supper, 4/22/11 at 5:30 p.m.: A brief discussion was held covering amount of food required, personnel required and equipment needs. More detailed planning will be done over the next two meetings on 3/3 and 4/7/2011.
Elaine is the Team Leader.
Easter Vigil: Bryan Wiggins will provide a sign up poster that will be placed in the Narthex and near the Wright Pavilion at various times beginning on March 13 and going through April 17 at least. Sign up notices will also be placed in the Beacon and Bulletin.
Easter Sunrise Service: Several members have volunteered to help John/Elsa at the service. A more detailed planning is required over the next two meetings.
Elder Luncheon, 6/5/11: Tex provided the group with a detailed outline listing all of the functions needed to be performed to put the luncheon together. The who, what, and when of each item needs to be identified and them monitored by SL&W.
Tex is the Team Leader.
Possible agenda items for the next meeting:
- Finalize Ash Wednesday plans.
- Maundy Thursday planning.
- Good Friday Soup Supper planning.
- Easter Vigil update.
- Easter Sunrise Service update.
- Elder Lunch detailed planning.
Meeting Adjourned: 8:00 p.m.
Next Meeting: March 3, 2011 at 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Church Council
First Congregational Church, UCC
South Portland, Maine
Meeting Minutes of January 20, 2011
Recorder: Andy Ellis
Present: Matt Early, Sally Hinckley, Phil Whitney, Roger Addor, John Shoos, Robin Reinhold, Carrie Skeffington, Elsa Peters, Cyndi Alden, Carl Murphy, Bob Morse, Andy Ellis, John McCall.
Absent: Peggy Murray, Nancy MacLean
The meeting was opened at 6:30 p.m. opening by Matt Early followed by a reflection and prayer by Andy.
The meeting minutes from the December meeting were approved.
Minister’s Time:
Elsa reported that she had checked in with pastor parish relations committee as part of the ongoing 360 review process and had very good conversation.
John described current progress on website. There is no “go live” date yet, but Chris Keiter is working with web developers and we will be updated on progress.
Discussions:
A special fundraising request was brought to the Council for the Maine Seacoast Mission trip in July. A spaghetti dinner and auction is planned for the 26th of March. Elsa anticipated that there will be about 20 people on the trip. There is an enthusiastic group planning the dinner and auction and they are hoping to raise enough money so that all interested people can go without paying out of pocket. The Council approved the request.
The Mission Team has decided that half of the Christmas offering will also be used for the Maine Seacoast Mission trip. It has also been requested that there be an additional special offering for the trip on February 13th in which people can designate (by noting in subject line on check, or on the outside of pew envelope) that the offering should be used for this special purpose. The Council approved this request as well.
Discussion of Proposed Budget:
Matt Early reviewed work of the budget committee with input from Cyndi Alden and the other Budget Committee members (John Shoos, Andy Ellis, Elsa Peters and John McCall).
Income: Actual pledges seem to be holding steady. The pledge number in budget is has been increased by 6% (over pledges received so far) based on historical performance of budgeted pledges vs. actual. Rental property figures are based on rents from current tenants. Expected interest income / endowment support is based on a formula that has been used in the past (may be slightly optimistic, but endowment has seen some recovery in past year). The “Revenue Other” line includes rummage sales, Holly Daze bazaar, and other gifts. The Per Capita contribution campaign was successful last year, so this income line was raised vs. last year’s budget.
Expenses: The Committee reviewed expenses trying to trim where possible. Matt discussed long-term examinations that we will need to undertake in order to establish a balanced budget in the future. Mission had asked to have budget raised back to 2008 levels, but committee proposed staying at current level. Matt discussed OCWM Conference giving, and the fact that we may not be able to maintain current levels in the face of declining membership and revenues.
Other than Mission, Personnel is the other major expense category. For the second year in a row, there are no staff pay increases slated for this year. The overall Personnel expense line is fairly static despite increases in benefit costs because of some other changes (the Youth Minister position has been eliminated and Nancy Foran, the Elder Chaplain, is taking leave of absence.) It was suggested that the Congregation will need to take the opportunity to examine personnel and expense issues over the next year before we draft our next budget.
It was noted that we are very fortunate to be in such good financial shape compared to many other churches in Maine.
Teams have done a very good job of cost containment. Education Growth & Fellowship has reduced their budget request from last year. The Budget Committee will recommend that a few line items in the Music budget draw from designated funds (Easter Brass, etc.) and suggest that monies requested for chair replacement in the rehearsal room be drawn from Major Maintenance. Phil Whitney also reported that the Eskimos will be donating money from their annual fudge and cookie sale for replacement chairs. Expenses for Spiritual Life & Worship are budgeted to be in line with last year.
It is expected that heating expenses will go up this year, along with benefit costs.
Actual revenues were well above what we forecasted for 2010, leaving less of a deficit than we had expected for the current year. The budget deficit for 2011 is projected to be slightly under $15,000.00 with the ability to support from retained earnings (now at $31,746).
Matt Early discussed the packet that will be presented at the Congregational budget meeting, including informational reports of past year activities related to the endowment, the Major Maintenance Fund, and Community Crisis Ministries. Reports for the Discovery Center, and Holly Daze Bazaar will be included later in the Annual Report.
The history of the retained surplus and current income trends were discussed. The retained surplus had been approximately $100,000.00 at its height several years ago. Current giving has leveled off as expenses have trended higher generally and the retained surplus has diminished over time.
The Council approved the proposed budget.
The Council discussed the relationship of the Discovery Center to the Church. Nancy MacLean had reported in an earlier email that Dan Cummings has offered to speak with members of the council about the history and intent of establishing the Discovery Center as separate corporate entity. The Council looks forward to that hearing the details of that conversation.
Roger Addor suggested that we thank the Stewardship Committee for their hard work this year and John Shoos thanked those who assisted in making calls, including Roger Addor, Phil Whitney, and Bob Morse.
Matt Early discussed current financial status of the Discovery Center and the Council reviewed balance sheet and profit and loss. The Discovery Center has suggested a repayment plan for their earlier loan in which payments would be made during the school year only as tuition revenue is received. The Council accepted the plan.
Bob Morse reported on the selection of delegates to represent the Church at Association and Conference meetings:
We now have 6 potential lay delegates to UCC meetings. Rick Angell, Peggy Murray, Dick & Barbara Merrill, and Adam & Jean Siulinski.
John discussed future series of discussions about structure of UCC, Maine Conference, and Cumberland Association. These discussions could help the Council to understand some of the issues in the budgeting process such as our Church’s giving to OCWM. The Council agreed that they would like to have these discussions, and they will start in February.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 p.m.
South Portland, Maine
Meeting Minutes of January 20, 2011
Recorder: Andy Ellis
Present: Matt Early, Sally Hinckley, Phil Whitney, Roger Addor, John Shoos, Robin Reinhold, Carrie Skeffington, Elsa Peters, Cyndi Alden, Carl Murphy, Bob Morse, Andy Ellis, John McCall.
Absent: Peggy Murray, Nancy MacLean
The meeting was opened at 6:30 p.m. opening by Matt Early followed by a reflection and prayer by Andy.
The meeting minutes from the December meeting were approved.
Minister’s Time:
Elsa reported that she had checked in with pastor parish relations committee as part of the ongoing 360 review process and had very good conversation.
John described current progress on website. There is no “go live” date yet, but Chris Keiter is working with web developers and we will be updated on progress.
Discussions:
A special fundraising request was brought to the Council for the Maine Seacoast Mission trip in July. A spaghetti dinner and auction is planned for the 26th of March. Elsa anticipated that there will be about 20 people on the trip. There is an enthusiastic group planning the dinner and auction and they are hoping to raise enough money so that all interested people can go without paying out of pocket. The Council approved the request.
The Mission Team has decided that half of the Christmas offering will also be used for the Maine Seacoast Mission trip. It has also been requested that there be an additional special offering for the trip on February 13th in which people can designate (by noting in subject line on check, or on the outside of pew envelope) that the offering should be used for this special purpose. The Council approved this request as well.
Discussion of Proposed Budget:
Matt Early reviewed work of the budget committee with input from Cyndi Alden and the other Budget Committee members (John Shoos, Andy Ellis, Elsa Peters and John McCall).
Income: Actual pledges seem to be holding steady. The pledge number in budget is has been increased by 6% (over pledges received so far) based on historical performance of budgeted pledges vs. actual. Rental property figures are based on rents from current tenants. Expected interest income / endowment support is based on a formula that has been used in the past (may be slightly optimistic, but endowment has seen some recovery in past year). The “Revenue Other” line includes rummage sales, Holly Daze bazaar, and other gifts. The Per Capita contribution campaign was successful last year, so this income line was raised vs. last year’s budget.
Expenses: The Committee reviewed expenses trying to trim where possible. Matt discussed long-term examinations that we will need to undertake in order to establish a balanced budget in the future. Mission had asked to have budget raised back to 2008 levels, but committee proposed staying at current level. Matt discussed OCWM Conference giving, and the fact that we may not be able to maintain current levels in the face of declining membership and revenues.
Other than Mission, Personnel is the other major expense category. For the second year in a row, there are no staff pay increases slated for this year. The overall Personnel expense line is fairly static despite increases in benefit costs because of some other changes (the Youth Minister position has been eliminated and Nancy Foran, the Elder Chaplain, is taking leave of absence.) It was suggested that the Congregation will need to take the opportunity to examine personnel and expense issues over the next year before we draft our next budget.
It was noted that we are very fortunate to be in such good financial shape compared to many other churches in Maine.
Teams have done a very good job of cost containment. Education Growth & Fellowship has reduced their budget request from last year. The Budget Committee will recommend that a few line items in the Music budget draw from designated funds (Easter Brass, etc.) and suggest that monies requested for chair replacement in the rehearsal room be drawn from Major Maintenance. Phil Whitney also reported that the Eskimos will be donating money from their annual fudge and cookie sale for replacement chairs. Expenses for Spiritual Life & Worship are budgeted to be in line with last year.
It is expected that heating expenses will go up this year, along with benefit costs.
Actual revenues were well above what we forecasted for 2010, leaving less of a deficit than we had expected for the current year. The budget deficit for 2011 is projected to be slightly under $15,000.00 with the ability to support from retained earnings (now at $31,746).
Matt Early discussed the packet that will be presented at the Congregational budget meeting, including informational reports of past year activities related to the endowment, the Major Maintenance Fund, and Community Crisis Ministries. Reports for the Discovery Center, and Holly Daze Bazaar will be included later in the Annual Report.
The history of the retained surplus and current income trends were discussed. The retained surplus had been approximately $100,000.00 at its height several years ago. Current giving has leveled off as expenses have trended higher generally and the retained surplus has diminished over time.
The Council approved the proposed budget.
The Council discussed the relationship of the Discovery Center to the Church. Nancy MacLean had reported in an earlier email that Dan Cummings has offered to speak with members of the council about the history and intent of establishing the Discovery Center as separate corporate entity. The Council looks forward to that hearing the details of that conversation.
Roger Addor suggested that we thank the Stewardship Committee for their hard work this year and John Shoos thanked those who assisted in making calls, including Roger Addor, Phil Whitney, and Bob Morse.
Matt Early discussed current financial status of the Discovery Center and the Council reviewed balance sheet and profit and loss. The Discovery Center has suggested a repayment plan for their earlier loan in which payments would be made during the school year only as tuition revenue is received. The Council accepted the plan.
Bob Morse reported on the selection of delegates to represent the Church at Association and Conference meetings:
We now have 6 potential lay delegates to UCC meetings. Rick Angell, Peggy Murray, Dick & Barbara Merrill, and Adam & Jean Siulinski.
John discussed future series of discussions about structure of UCC, Maine Conference, and Cumberland Association. These discussions could help the Council to understand some of the issues in the budgeting process such as our Church’s giving to OCWM. The Council agreed that they would like to have these discussions, and they will start in February.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 p.m.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Mission and Outreach
Meeting Minutes of January 6, 2011
Recorder: Kristen Silvia
Members Present: Maureen Clancy, Richard Parker, Laurie Carey, Sarah Randall, Sandy Dyer, Jan Bosse, Mike Kasputes, Kristen Silvia.
Opening prayer offered by Maureen Clancy.
Treasurer’s Report was presented by Mike Kasputes. No concerns were raised regarding the report.
Minutes from the December 2, 2010 were approved with the following change: “Our Christian World Mission” should be “Our Church’s Wider Mission”.
OLD BUSINESS:
Mission Sunday Service
• The order of service and each member’s role was reviewed.
• Maureen will submit a Beacon announcement regarding the Service by January 24th.
• Final draft of the service and hymns will be submitted to the office by February 7th.
• Laurie will create envelopes for the pews for members to donate to the Maine Seacoast Mission trip.
• Elsa will contact the Director from MSCM regarding his plan for the sermon and his preferences regarding accommodations.
• Maureen will contact the SMCC McKearnan Center about accommodation rates if the Director prefers staying there.
Coffee Hour
• Members volunteered to bake, setup and cleanup for the two upcoming coffee hours we are hosting on January 9 and January 16.
Upcoming Meeting
• John will be joining us in March to discuss our protocol for deciding which organizations to which we donate money. At our February meeting, we plan to develop a framework for discussion of this important topic.
NEW BUSINESS:
Thank You Notes
• Received from Bangor Theological Seminary, Wayside Soup Kitchen, Maine Council of Churches, FCCUCC Food Pantry, Preble Street, and Family Crisis Services.
Email from Carol Zechman
• This email involved a request for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Champion(s) in our church to help support local agriculture and promote CSA shares.
• We decided to redirect this to Social Witness Ministries. Maureen will contact Carol to let her know.
Closing Prayer was offered by Maureen.
Next Meeting: February 3, 2011 in the Laity Room
• Co-Chair: Sandy Dyer
• Devotions: Richard Parker
• Recorder: Suzanne Linder
Recorder: Kristen Silvia
Members Present: Maureen Clancy, Richard Parker, Laurie Carey, Sarah Randall, Sandy Dyer, Jan Bosse, Mike Kasputes, Kristen Silvia.
Opening prayer offered by Maureen Clancy.
Treasurer’s Report was presented by Mike Kasputes. No concerns were raised regarding the report.
Minutes from the December 2, 2010 were approved with the following change: “Our Christian World Mission” should be “Our Church’s Wider Mission”.
OLD BUSINESS:
Mission Sunday Service
• The order of service and each member’s role was reviewed.
• Maureen will submit a Beacon announcement regarding the Service by January 24th.
• Final draft of the service and hymns will be submitted to the office by February 7th.
• Laurie will create envelopes for the pews for members to donate to the Maine Seacoast Mission trip.
• Elsa will contact the Director from MSCM regarding his plan for the sermon and his preferences regarding accommodations.
• Maureen will contact the SMCC McKearnan Center about accommodation rates if the Director prefers staying there.
Coffee Hour
• Members volunteered to bake, setup and cleanup for the two upcoming coffee hours we are hosting on January 9 and January 16.
Upcoming Meeting
• John will be joining us in March to discuss our protocol for deciding which organizations to which we donate money. At our February meeting, we plan to develop a framework for discussion of this important topic.
NEW BUSINESS:
Thank You Notes
• Received from Bangor Theological Seminary, Wayside Soup Kitchen, Maine Council of Churches, FCCUCC Food Pantry, Preble Street, and Family Crisis Services.
Email from Carol Zechman
• This email involved a request for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Champion(s) in our church to help support local agriculture and promote CSA shares.
• We decided to redirect this to Social Witness Ministries. Maureen will contact Carol to let her know.
Closing Prayer was offered by Maureen.
Next Meeting: February 3, 2011 in the Laity Room
• Co-Chair: Sandy Dyer
• Devotions: Richard Parker
• Recorder: Suzanne Linder
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