SSELC CONGREGATION COUNCIL MINUTES DECEMBER 22, 2013

Transcription

1 St. Stephen s Evangelical Lutheran Church Congregation Council Class of Class of 2014 Class of 2015 Youth Repres. Barbara Harmon Ivan Black Gayle Clark Jim Brittingham Greta Morris Gregg Mills Greg Dahl Ryan Hawsey Ike Reynolds Johnnie Peechatka Bert Davis Benjie Rhoad Ron Redd Ken Howell Treasurer Becky Robinson Paul Rouillard Brant Taylor Mary Keisler Pastors: The Rev. Dr. Patrick W. Riddle; The Rev. Dr. Dennis R. Bolton Executive Committee: President, Benjie Rhoad; Vice-President, Brant Taylor; Secretary, Becky Robinson; Assistant Secretary, Gayle Clark; Treasurer, Mary Keisler; Pastor Pat Riddle; Pastor Dennis Bolton Staff Shannon Burnett, Director of Family Life Ministry; Beth Haggard, Director of Preschool Members Absent: Ivan Black, Ron Redd, Paul Rouillard, Bert Davis, Jim Brittingham, Mary Keisler, Beth Haggard. All absences excused. The December 22, SSELC Congregation Council meeting was called to order at 12:30 p.m. by President Benjie Rhoad. Following the devotion given by Gayle Clark, President Rhoad recognized Bob Lowman, representing the Cemetery Committee. Bob Lowman gave a brief history of each section of the cemetery, A, B, and C. The Cemetery Committee presented to the Congregation Council a recommendation that the rules and procedures that apply to Sections B and C also apply to Section A. Section A is the oldest section and is located on the corner of Butler and Lady Streets. A motion by Gregg Mills to approve this recommendation from the Cemetery Committee was seconded by Greta Morris and approved by Council. The minutes of the November 24, meeting were reviewed. The motion to approve the minutes was made by Ken Howell, seconded by Johnnie Peechatka, and passed by Council. President Rhoad presented the Treasurer s reports in the absence of Treasurer Mary Keisler. Johnnie Peechatka made the motion to approve the Treasurer s reports which was seconded by Barbara Harmon, and approved by Council. SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 1

2 Income through November 30: $616, Expenses through November 30: $615, Difference: $ 1, November Synod will not be paid until December. The Preliminary 2014 budget was presented to Council for information and input. The final budget will be presented at the next Council meeting for approval. The following staff reports were presented: Pastor Pat s Congregational Council Report November Sermons Sunday Morning: 4 Sermons/Services other: 4 Children s Sermons: 0 Pastoral Visits: 14 Hospital Visits: 31 Meetings: 15 Counseling: 5 Classes Taught: 4 Wedding Rehearsals : 0 Weddings 0 Weddings Attended 0 Funerals Conducted: 2 Funerals Attended: 0 Funeral Visitations: 2 Chapel 2 New Members: Chris, Mary, Gage, and Gavin Gaskins - The motion by Gayle Clark to approve these new members was seconded by Greta Morris and approved by Council. SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 2

3 CHURCH COUNCIL REPORT Pastor Dennis November25-December 22, CHRISTIAN EDUCATION 3 Adult SS classes 2 Pre-school Chapels WORSHIP 8 Sunday Services PASTORAL CARE 20 Hospital/Nursing Home visits 4 hours counseling 3 Funerals: Howell, Hundley, Black STEWARDSHIP/FINANCE 2 Meeting NUTURE/OUTREACH 1 Meeting: Christmas baskets ADMINISTRATION 3 Staff mtgs 1 Prime time lunch 1 Prime Time trip 1 Choir Christmas party 2 Upward Devotionals Vacation : 18 days taken (July 8-11)(August 5-13)(October30-November 3) Remaining 12 days includes1sunday and 1 day Continuing Education : 1 week remaining Reflections: Thankful for the year Shannon Burnett, Director of Family Life December Youth Events: November 24 th Planning meeting December 8 th Game night December 15 th Bake sale December 20 th Lock-in (postponed) JCREW: December 22 nd - Caroling SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 3

4 Lunch Buddies: December 11 th Katie Dawkins Meetings/Classes: Staff meetings December 3 rd - Joint Circle Meeting December 8 th Bus meeting Children s Sermons/Worship/Chapel: Enlarged lesson copies placed on lectern weekly Children s activity pages copied weekly; bags restocked weekly Children s sermon December 1 st and 15 th Assisted with worship Dec. 15 th Chapel December 17 th and 18 th Christian Education: WNL! will begin again on January 8 th Small Groups meeting will be January 13 th with Mt. Horeb s director of small groups The Happy Birthday Jesus party will be held in conjunction with the 3:00 Children s Service on Christmas Eve Update from the 7 th and 8 th grade SS class from Ms. Tami WE DID IT!!! WHOOO HOOOOOO!!!! 44 brushes and comb sets 44 deodorants And all the gifts for our two residents were dropped off! Thanks to all of you, our two adopted residents and 44 more on the special needs floor are going to have a much brighter Christmas! Thank you all for helping to put a smile on these folks faces this season! Mailings/Announcements: Weekly reminders for Lay Readers, Order of St. Stephen s, and Greeters Website: Posted minutes from November Sent out newsletters via SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 4

5 Updated web calendar Just a reminder - If changes need to be made on the website, please print out what is on the web, make changes in writing, and I will submit them to Ron Wells. Random events: Announcements sent to Carole weekly Newsletter info sent to Carole monthly Took baptismal picture and put on bulletin board Order of St. Stephen s completed for January, February, and March Worship assistant assignments made for January, February, and March Lessons printed for lay readers to pick up Greeter nametags printed End of Year reports completed for Christian Education, Youth, and Prime Time Run for God program culminated with the Patty Packs 5K on December 7 th Continuing work on fire evacuation plans Blue dividers for UPWARD were fixed Completed Richardson baptismal banner Worked the UPWARD games on Dec. 14 th and did devotions Set-up gym for UPWARD (Dec. 6 th, 13 th, and 20 th ) Prime Time/Good Time Travelers: December 18 th Catered Christmas Luncheon Follow-up: 1. Last month we talked about possible ordering an additional set of bleachers for the gym. I have a quote from Park N Pool for $ I did purchase an additional basketball rack. It was around $70. Where do I take the money from? 3. Life Touch has given us access to an on-line directory. Every member has a profile. Member information can be updated/changed on-line. There is a Mail Merge PDF with individual letters to each member in SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 5

6 the directory with their username and password and instructions on how to get started. Any suggestions on how to get this info out? 4. Time and Talent Brochure It has been mentioned several times that the Time and Talent brochure needs to be changed/updated. I reached out to a few other churches for ideas and these are the responses I got: I just learned that our church only does this for new members and has not done one for current members in a while. I would be very interested in talking and learning about what you find. Well, at St. Paul s it is not working very well either. We ve tried a lot of different approaches, but nothing seems to get much response. Typically we hand them out in worship and have them returned during a special offertory.. this year though we had a lot of transitions and our stewardship committee didn t even do them.. I haven t really see it work all that well cause you only get the people that are in worship that specific day.. and it s usually the same people that fill them out year after year. **Just ponder this and let me know if you have suggestions. Beth Haggard, Director Preschool Ministry December Council Report Fire Drills were supposed to be held Dec. 3 & 4, but were cancelled due to inclement weather Preschool Staff meeting was held Dec. 3 Mrs. Claus and her Elf visited preschool Dec. 10 & 11 Four year olds presented their Christmas play for the Prime Time luncheon on Wed., Dec. 18 Last day of preschool was Thurs., Dec. 19 Return to school on Wed., Jan. 8 Preschool recently donated 237 lbs. to LICS after our Stuff a Turkey campaign. Registration for will begin on Monday, January 27 for church members and those already enrolled. Registration form has been sent to Webmaster so it can be placed online at the church web page. Registration will open to the community on Monday, February 10. SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 6

7 Committee Task Force Reports LICS AND LUTHERAN MEN COUNCIL REPORT FOR SEPTEMBER Ron Redd LICS Our totals for December so far equal 854 lbs. of food. For the year, we donated 10,406 lbs. of food. Your response for the year has been phenomenal. The impact of your donations is tremendous. I will have the end of the year report in January. LUTHERAN MEN No one has stepped up to take President of LMM. Dick Robinson has agreed to assume responsibility for the monthly programs. Ed Smith and Pat Caughman have agreed to take responsibility for scheduling people to cook the meals each month. Planning for the convention continues and is getting into the final stages. Ann Jodie has agreed to be responsible for decorating the social hall and gym for the convention. Nursery Report for November -Greg Dahl, Nursery Committee Liaison Meagan Schneider continues to proactively address issues as they arise related to our nursery/childcare services during worship, and all is running smoothly. The volunteers are well integrated into the system Meagan has put into place, and we continue to experience a high degree of stability with our identification and contact seeking replacements for those that will be unable to cover their respective Sunday morning service. The numbers attending Nursery are on the rise. Things are working very smoothly. Evangelism Committee Report December - Gayle Clark, Chairman Benjie, Becky, Greta, and I met recently for the purpose of redesigning the Ritual of Friendship form as the supply on hand is almost exhausted as well as to capture more up- to- date information. The new form will ask for the same information from visitors with a few additional questions including names and ages of children, cell phone numbers, and e- mail addresses. This new form will be made into pads for the folders in the pews. It has been taken to Pine Press for a quote. We are also keeping an up- to- date log of all visitors in an excel program and plan to begin entering this information into a specific database for this purpose. Paul Rouillard and Pastor Pat are in the process of selecting the program now. After this is established, it is my plan to create a committee to visit and/or call prospective members on a regular basis. We have discussed but not confirmed some possible remembrances to leave with visitors to let them know we welcome them into our fold. SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 7

8 I have spoken with Carole Allen about placing the devotional booklets into the racks. I did this for the month of December and plan to continue in an effort to alleviate this task from the church staff s responsibilities. Old Business: Members of Council were reminded that Annual Reports for are due January 10, Council discussed nominees for Council Positions that need to be filled. Members are still being contacted to serve. New Business: Council members received the proposed budget for Discussion followed and the input will be presented to the Finance Committee. Other Business: Connor Rouillard Eagle Scout Award Ceremony and Reception January 19, 2014 at 3:00 p.m. The following note of appreciation was received from SC Synod Bishop Hermon Yoos: Dear Benjie, I want you to know this Monday at our Synod Staff Meeting we prayed a prayer of Thanksgiving for the many ministries of St. Stephen s Lutheran Church. In particular we lifted up your youth mission trip and your Wednesday night activities. Thank you for your leadership there and for your willingness to see the Mission DVD and use the Bible Study that went with it. We also are very thankful for the ways you generously offer the use of your family life center for Synod sponsored events like the recent Youth Reformation Celebration, WELCA Conventions, and Lutheran Men in Mission events. Thank you for the generous partnership in the gospel that is shared in so many ways through your ministry there. Peace, Bishop Hermon Yoos. Announcements: January Council Person Benjie Rhoad; next meeting-january 19, 2014 at 1:00 p.m. The change in date and time is to accommodate the schedule for final approval to the 2014 budget. Staff was excused and the Council convened in Executive Session after which we adjourned with the Lord s Prayer. Respectfully submitted, Becky Robinson, Secretary SSELC Congregation Council Minutes, December 22, Page 8