ADDITIONAL MATERIALS PERTAINING TO THE CALL OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE PRESBYTERY OF THE MIAMI VALLEY

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1 To: From: Teaching Elders, Member Churches of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley, and Ruling Elder Members of Presbytery Ruling Elder Gidget Collins, Moderator Ruling Elder Larry Hollar, Stated Clerk Date: January 8, 2018 ADDITIONAL MATERIALS PERTAINING TO THE CALL OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE PRESBYTERY OF THE MIAMI VALLEY Tuesday, January 16, :00 pm (registration begins at 3:30 pm) Memorial Presbyterian Church 1541 South Smithville Road Dayton OH In accordance with the Bylaws of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley, a special meeting of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley has been duly called, by announcement last Friday, January 5, for the purposes listed in the docket that follows on page 2. This additional announcement provides below the motions and appendices pertaining to those purposes which are on subsequent pages. These materials will also be available on the presbytery web site, 1

2 DOCKET FOR THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE PRESBYTERY OF THE MIAMI VALLEY Tuesday, January 16, 2018 Memorial Presbyterian Church, Dayton, Ohio 1541 South Smithville Road, Dayton OH :30 pm Registration 4:00 pm CONVENING PRAYER Ruling Elder Gidget Collins, Moderator PRELIMINARY BUSINESS - Ruling Elder Larry Hollar, Stated Clerk o Statement of Quorum & Formation of the Roll o Attestation to call of the meeting o Clarification of process for special meeting of Presbytery TRUSTEES OF THE PRESBYTERY Teaching Elder David Foubert, Chair o Motion 1 to approve the Dayton: Southminster Presbyterian Church entering into a letter agreement related to a cell tower (pp. 3-8). o Motion 2 to approve the First Presbyterian Church of Middletown, entering into a contract of sale of the Church Manse (p. 3). EXECUTIVE PRESBYTER SEARCH COMMITTEE Teaching Elder Diane Ziegler, Committee Moderator o Motions for the examination, election, and approval of the terms of call for the Rev. Terry Kukuk to serve as Executive Presbyter for a five year term commencing on or about March 1, 2018 (pp. 9-14). o Additional motions related to the Search Committee s expenses and expressing gratitude to the Search Committee for its work (p. 10). CLOSING PRAYER ADJOURNMENT Please note: In connection with the election of the Executive Presbyter, the Executive Presbyter Search Committee cordially invites you to take part in two activities enabling you to get to know better the candidate for Executive Presbyter, Rev. Terry Kukuk. Just prior to the special meeting, from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, January 16, Rev. Kukuk will be glad to meet you for informal conversation in the narthex area outside the sanctuary of the Dayton: Memorial Presbyterian Church. In addition, following the special meeting, you are invited to stay for a simple soup and bread supper in the fellowship hall of the church, at which time Rev. Kukuk and her family will be happy to share additional time of fellowship with you. Detailed motions to be offered at this meeting, as well as related Appendices, follow. 2

3 Leadership Council Trustees of the Presbytery January 16, 2017 Motion 1: That the presbytery approve the Dayton: Southminster Presbyterian Church entering into a letter agreement between the church and Crown Castle Towers 09 LLC, previously approved by the Southminster congregation, for the acquisition of a 40 year term easement and assignment of lease on a designated parcel of the church s property related to a cell tower (see Appendix A, pages 4-8 below, for a copy of the Letter Agreement; additional Exhibits are available on request to the Stated Clerk). Rationale: For nearly two decades Southminster Church, with the presbytery s approval, has had a contractual relationship with cell brokers for easements and other permissions to build and operate a cell tower on the church s property. The proposed action is a new agreement with a different broker, at more advantageous financial terms for the church, to provide the necessary easement and assignment of lease to continue that operation. Over a period of 20 years, the church would receive $1,800, as the purchase price for this agreement. This agreement is very positive for the church and, from the presbytery s standpoint, essentially maintains the status quo and does not change any existing rights of the presbytery Motion 2: That the presbytery approve the First Presbyterian Church of Middletown, Ohio (Seller) entering into a contract of sale of the Church Manse located at 3007 McGee Avenue, Middletown, Ohio 45044, with Arthur W. Frasik III (Buyer), for $159,000.00, a sum which the church session has determined is the fair market value of the property, the congregation having approved the sale by action on October 22, (A copy of the entire standard residential property sale contract, with the above terms, is available on request to the Stated Clerk.) Rationale: The Middletown church has found this an opportune time to sell its manse, particularly in view of the pastor and his family s interest in purchasing a home for themselves. The Trustees and Session, in consultation with professional real estate services, have determined that the contract of sale meets their expectation of fair market value. Closing is planned for no later than Feb. 16, The session has agreed that the sale proceeds will be used to offset the cost of a housing allowance for the pastor

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9 The Executive Presbyter Search Committee January 16, 2017 Motion 3: (a) Examination of the Candidate: That the presbytery examine the Rev. Terry Kukuk, a Teaching Elder member of the Missouri Union Presbytery, concerning her Statement of Faith and her fitness, readiness, and sense of call to serve in the position of Executive Presbyter of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley. (See Appendix B for background information on Rev. Kukuk; Appendix C for her Statement of Faith; and Appendix D for the Search Committee s rationale for selecting Rev. Kukuk as the candidate). (b) Election and Approval of Terms of Call: Upon completion of that examination and opportunity for discussion, that the presbytery: (i) elect the Rev. Terry Kukuk to the position of Executive Presbyter of this presbytery for a term of five years pursuant to Section 2.04 of the PMV Policy and Practice, with the term to begin when her work commences on or about March 1, 2018, at the following terms of call; and (ii) upon approval of these terms of call, that the 2018 presbytery budget approved in November 2017 be amended to include the correct amount for Executive Presbyter Medical dues of $18,750, rather than $18,375, with the additional costs to come from presbytery reserve funds: Executive Presbyter Terms of Call for Rev. Terry Kukuk Effective Salary: $75,000 (including cash salary of $46,867.68, housing allowance of $25,000, dental supplement of $1,632.32, and medical expense reimbursement of $1,500) Moving Costs: Up to $20,000 Estimated Board of Pension Dues (total of Medical, Disability and Pension): $27,750 SECA reimbursement (up to 50% only): $5, Continuing Education Reimbursement: $3,000 Professional Expense Reimbursement (including auto at IRS rate): $9,000 Annual Vacation Leave: 4 weeks Annual Continuing Education Leave: 2 weeks Budget rationale: With one technical exception, the terms of call reflected above are identical to those approved as part of the presbytery budget in November This includes the commitment to reimburse a portion ($5,737.50) of Rev. Kukuk s expenses for SECA (Self-Employment Contributions Act, which pastors, who are deemed selfemployed people, must pay in lieu of Social Security deductions known as FICA--that apply to other occupations). This SECA expense can be accommodated under the FICA line item in the approved 2018 budget. The required technical change to the approved budget is to amend the line item amount for Executive Presbyter Medical to reflect an increase of 0.5% in Board of Pensions medical dues for That new figure is $18,750 9

10 rather than the $18,375 included in the 2018 budget approved in November (which mistakenly reflected the 2017 rather than 2018 Board of Pensions medical dues). The extra $375 will come from presbytery reserves. Process rationale: Following the Search Committee s identification of Rev. Kukuk as their candidate, the presbytery s Committee on Ministry interviewed her by Skype as a Teaching Elder and voted to (a) approve the designation of the position of Executive Presbyter as a validated ministry beyond the jurisdiction of the church in this presbytery, and (b) approve Rev. Kukuk to be a Teaching Elder member of this presbytery if the presbytery elects her to that position, and following that election to request transfer of her membership from her current presbytery. (COM, Nov. 14 and Nov. 28, 2017) (c) Call Papers: Upon approval of motion 3(b), that the presbytery elect the Executive Presbyter Search Committee members present at this meeting to sign the call papers. Leadership Council January 16, 2017 Motion 4: (a) Executive Presbyter Search Committee 2018 Expenses: That the presbytery authorize the Executive Presbyter Search Committee (EPSC) to expend not to exceed $2,500 from 2018 presbytery funds for expenses related to the completion of the search process, with such amounts to come from presbytery reserves. Rationale: The EPSC underspent its overall budget in 2017, in part because certain expenses expected to be incurred in 2017 are now payable in 2018 due to the meeting to elect the new EP occurring this year rather than The 2018 presbytery budget approved in November did not include a line item for 2018 EPSC expenses nor did it carry over unexpended 2017 funds for that purpose. This authorization motion allows the Committee to complete its work within the general parameters of the original amounts it had available to spend. (b) Gratitude to the Committee: Upon approval of motion 3(b) above, that the presbytery express deep gratitude to the Executive Presbyter Search Committee for its diligent work to present a candidate for election, commend the Committee to continue its work to help welcome Rev. Kukuk and her family to our midst, and dissolve the Committee at the conclusion of that work with the presbytery s heartfelt thanks

11 APPENDIX B Rev. Terry Kukuk Brief Summary of Ministry and Experience The Rev. Terry Kukuk is the Senior Pastor/Head of Staff at First Presbyterian Church in Mexico, Missouri. In addition to her twenty years of experience as a pastor, she has been active in the life of Missouri Union Presbytery. She has served as moderator of the Coordinating Council and the Committee on Ministry. She has served her presbytery as both moderator and vice moderator. She was a teaching elder delegate to the 220th General Assembly in Pittsburgh, PA, as a well as a commissioner to the Synod of Mid- America. (Rev. Kukuk s last name is pronounced Coo (like what a dove does) Coo with a K at the end, and with the accent on the first syllable. ) Other involvement in the presbytery includes being on the board of trustees, the Planning and Evaluation Committee, a member of the Stewardship Task Force, and the search committee for a transitional general presbyter. She has been a mentor to new pastors. In addition to her Presbytery leadership, Rev. Kukuk has been a strong leader in her community, serving as the catalyst for a community wide Help Center offering food assistance, job training and help with life skills, and being a voice for issues of poverty, domestic violence, and mental health and how these issues affect the community. She also has a longstanding commitment to ecumenical relationships in her community. Originally from North Dakota, the Rev. Kukuk has a B.A. from Jamestown College and her M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary. She is currently enrolled in a D. Min. program from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, MI. The Rev. Kukuk is married to the Rev. Brad Sheppard. Rev. Sheppard currently serves as the Executive Director of a homeless and transitional shelter and pastors a rural congregation, Bethel Presbyterian. They are the parents of two energetic and outgoing sons, Jadon and Ian. As a family they enjoy travel, outdoor activities and movies. 11

12 APPENDIX C Statement of Faith The Rev. Terry L. Kukuk I believe in the triune God Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who creates, redeems, sustains and transforms. God is above all and through all, and in all. We are God-breathed human beings; wondrously created; given breath that we might praise God; given life so that in God we move and live and have our being. God says, I love you for no other reason than this, you are mine. I have set my heart upon you. This act of benevolent grace is too wondrous for us to completely grasp. Yet, this benevolent grace gives shape to our lives. Our days are best lived learning how to embrace the gift of life we have been given. I believe that through the power of the Holy Spirit, God is incarnate in Jesus Christ. During his earthly ministry Jesus Christ taught us what it means to live with and for God and with and for our neighbor. Jesus Christ is the fullest revelation of God. He is at one time fully divine and fully human. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the giver and renewer of life. The Holy Spirit gives comfort, courage, and challenges us to live into our identity as beloved children of God. The Holy Spirit reveals God to us, enables us to proclaim Jesus as our Savior, and to work for justice and freedom. It is the Holy Spirit who inspired the writings of the Old and New Testaments and helps us interpret these scriptures today. I believe the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord s Supper are signs and seals of God s grace. In baptism we are marked as Christ s own as we participate in Christ s death and resurrection. We die to that which alienates us from God and we are raised to new life. We are set within the covenant community of faith. In the Lord s Supper the Holy Spirit lifts us up into the very presence of God. At the table we remember the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and eagerly anticipate the time when Christ will return. Until that day comes we depart from the table renewed in our commitment to serve Christ in our daily tasks. From the call to Abraham and Sarah to the summoning of fisherman by the Sea of Galilee, from the conversion of Lydia to our own stories of saying yes to God, God has always been a calling, gathering, shaping, and sending God. God has gathered God s people into a covenant community of faith. This covenant community of faith is a reminder that the people of God are more than a specific location, institution or statement. This calling is a wonderful and weighty responsibility to go wherever God sends in order to be a part of God s mission in this world of making all things new. 12

13 APPENDIX D Executive Presbyter Search Committee Rationale For Selecting the Rev. Terry Kukuk as Candidate The work of the Presbytery s Nominating Committee possibly goes under-noticed at times, but in reflecting on the candidate that we present to you for the next Executive Presbyter of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley, it seems important to take a moment to recognize the work of this group here. The Nominating Committee s efforts resulted in an Executive Presbyter Search Committee (EPSC) that was a diverse group; members ranged in age from 30 something to 70 something, with a little extra emphasis on the 30- something end as three of seven members are in their 30 s. (We believe this is a good thing as we look to the future of the church.) The group represented different ministry contexts and communities, different roles in congregations, a range of theological views, and duration of being part of the Presbytery of the Miami Valley. The EPSC was a great group, but the diversity of the group could have been challenging to this process. You will see why that becomes so important. The Committee s efforts built on the foundation prepared by the Transition Visioning Team, including input and information provided by the Presbytery through focus groups and discussion, and a carefully prepared job description. Building on this firm base, the group committed to two things that were very formative to the approach that we took. The first was to include the study of Acts in each of our meetings. We sought the word of God and the wind of the Spirit in the work we were doing. The second was that we did not - - even in times of great temptation to do so - - stray from the process that we had committed to. Our consultant, Rev. Jill Hudson, in times of trial would repeat her mantra, Stick to the process. These two commitments provided common ground and clarity for the task. Thanks be to God, the process was fruitful. The candidate that we present to you, Rev. Terry Kukuk, did not submit her resume because she thought she would make a great Executive Presbyter. She came to us as a referral. When we asked her why this work was of interest to her, she talked about how others colleagues, mentors, friends, and teachers had been identifying the gifts for mid-council work for some time, and how she was responding in humility to that call. We liked that; she wasn t coming to us as an applicant with all of the answers. She was coming to us as someone seeking to be faithful and responding to the call that she was hearing God make to her through voices in the faith community. Collectively we were inspired at her interest not only in the questions, but in the people. She is a relationship builder. To build relationships, to strive to excel in building up the Church, and connecting people to the covenant community of faith are the core of who I am, she wrote. And we experienced that in her inquiry, her attention to detail, her memory of names and contexts. As part of her people skills, Terry brings a sense of humor, and an understanding of the reality of each day. She comes offering her German- Reformed theological grounding, her North-Dakotan, farm girl willingness to pick up a shovel if that be the need, and a passion for diversity. 13

14 In every assessment, be it written, by Skype, or in person, Rev. Kukuk, across the paper piles of each of the committee members, was identified as our top candidate. The unanimous conclusions were rapid and consistent. This clarity was significant for the Committee and for Terry. Throughout the process the Committee faithfully kept the job description that we had been provided in front of us. Rev. Kukuk s theology, call, energy, and passions - - we believe - - by the power of the Holy Spirit, reflecting the things that the Presbytery articulated needing, wanting, and being called to. We are very excited to be in and at this day. And we look forward to the opportunity for you to hear from and interact with Rev. Kukuk as we move into God s future for The Presbytery of the Miami Valley MATERIALS FOR THE JANUARY 16, 2018 SPECIAL MEETING CONCLUDE HERE 14