Trinity Lutheran Church Council January 27, 2015 Trinity Lutheran Church, at lower level Called to Order at 7:04 p.m. Attendees: Tina Grenlie, Debby Kinison, Charlene Kuenzi, Pastor Jennifer, Dave Peterson, David Leder, Nancy Johnson, Tom Johnson, Pastor Andy Behrendt, Steve Johnson, Marshall Lysne, Jeff Riddle, Mya Berzsenyi, Maurice Staube, Bonnie Schneider, Nancy Ross, Pastor Marilyn and Mike Claussen. Devotion Dan missing. Prayer by Pastor Andy for guidance through transition. Introductions of new and old members. Secretary Report: deferred. Treasurer s Report Nancy Johnson Nancy explained the report format for new members. December report reveals that the deficit was reduced to $9,500.00. Debbie K. moved; Charlene K seconded; approved. Pastor Reports Pastor Jennifer, Pastor Andy and Pastor Marilyn Committee Reports Property and Grounds Debby Kinison explained that we changed insurance companies and saved $4,800/year Personnel Dave Petersen Insurance would be less expensive if we instituted background checks for any employees or volunteers who work with minors. Health Bonnie Schneider disclosed that the committee did not meet due to her health issues. Membership and Evangelism Maurie Staube discussed the distribution of T-stop Bible verses and responses. Maps will be used to design neighborhood group. The committee is reviewing its purpose and goal. New members are sought for additional ideas. The committee requests guidance with specific evangelism strategies. Mission - Marshall described upcoming monthly themes. Also plan to target millenials for participation. February will focus on nutrition and health. Meals and wheels needs more volunteers. The program serves 65 people in the area in their homes and dozens on site. Background checks will be required for some volunteers. Parish Education nothing for council action. Worship and Music Spectacular concert will be February 9, 2015. Proceeds go to youth ministries. Family and Youth Mya said nothing needed council action.
Future Planning Steve Johnson said that transition team is on hold while call committee works to find new lead Pastor. TLW Deb Kinison described plans for Lenten meals. Old Business Policy for Emergency closing. Move Tom J. and Seconded Steve J passed. New Business Steve Johnson s committee assignments for 2015 are on the way. February 24, 2015 meeting is at 6 p.m. Food will be provided. Location may be changed as well. Bishop requests attendance at Spirit Leed Spring Shaped: Our Journey Together Bonnie Schneider is going to Greenville February 7, 2015 at 8:30 a.m. Finally, Consitutional changes will be described, distributed and eventually voted on. Prayer; adjourn: Move Marshall, 2 nd Nancy, passed. Council Report December 2014 and January 2015 Pastor Jennifer The time of transition at Trinity continued in the last two months. I did not get the two-thirds vote needed on December 7 th to become the lead pastor. After the vote, many congregational members expressed words of appreciated for my work and ministry here at Trinity. Also expressed was concern about the process. One thing I did hear over and over was that there were many people voting who active members had never seen before. I am not sure what to make of this but in the future voting could be handled differently such as having people sign in so that everyone who is voting is an active member. The congregation will be voting for a new lead pastor and it would be good for leadership to have a process that feels fair to the congregation. Interim Pastor Beth Macha ended her ministry with us at the end of December. She did come back once to meet with the newly formed Call Committee to help them get started. As Pastor Beth was leaving, I was working with the synod office to hire Marilyn Lange as our pastoral assistant. Pastor Marilyn is a seminary graduate but not ordained, so she cannot do baptisms, weddings or preside at Holy Communion, but she can do everything else. We have a five month covenant agreement with Pastor Marilyn. She began the second week of January and has been doing a great job. As always, December was an eventful month in worship. We had the Madrigal Singers, the Men s Cantata, the Sunday School Programs, and our Christmas Services. This year we had so many worshippers at 4pm -554- that we had to use the couches in the Koinonia room to accommodate everyone. This year we also had only one service on the weekend after Christmas which worked well. In December, we also had a baptism and 4 funerals. January began with a funeral and we will have another 4 by the end of this month. Surprisingly, we will also have 2 weddings. Our Trinity Lutheran Women had their annual
meeting on Sunday, January 11, and they have four new women on the board which makes a total of seven. The Mission/Stewardship Committee met in January and we are working on a project to educate the congregation about our benevolent giving and encourage members to give their time and resources. Pastor Andy s report Jan. 27, 2015 The past two months have been loaded with new developments, and I ll start with the one that s most personal and makes all the other good news below even better: I can hear clearly again. Between Christmas and the start of the new year, my (left) better ear gradually became my good ear again. I still think I have lost some low-tone hearing (just as my right ear has suffered substantial permanent hearing loss), but, when I saw my audiologist two weeks ago, the left ear s hearing tested just as near to normal as it did in early July, just before things headed into an almost constant slump. Best of all is that I ve gone almost a month without any seriously diminished hearing, which is the longest such stretch I ve had since last March. I m grateful to God (and to my doctor in Milwaukee, whose last-ditch effort to increase my medication before recommending surgery seems to have made a huge difference). After the past nine months, it s just indescribably great to be able to communicate clearly and even listen to music like I thought I d never be able to do again. Seeking further renewal, I joined Heidi Fischer, Tim Gauerke, and Susan Elandt for the daylong Recharge conference in suburban Minneapolis on Jan. 10. This was the fourth one-day training session I ve had with Tiger McLuen s Youth Leadership organization in four months. This time with others joining me for the full day of workshops, the four of us came back with a wealth of new insights on topics such as helping teens in crisis, ministering to parents, leading small groups, addressing special needs, and ministering specifically to teenage girls. Last week, Susan shared her take-aways on that final topic with the Family & Youth Team, which is also considering a sample Safe Church Manual that Heidi gleaned from one of the presenters. As fired up as I am after that event, I think I m even more excited about the new leadership roles that our young people are taking. It s wonderful to have Mya Berzsenyi breaking new ground as a high-schooler serving on the Church Council for at least the next year to complete Tim Boehnlein s term. Already serving as our synod Youth Board s president, high-school senior McKenna Meza is not only serving on Trinity s Call Committee but also set to be one of two summer interns we ll have this year. She and college freshman Josee Waitrovich will provide us with some extraordinary potential for ministry this summer and beyond as they each seek to tackle priorities that could really benefit from their unique gifts. Last but not least, I m glad to have Jeff Riddle serving as a rare and gifted young adult among the Council officers. Jeff helped to start our still-embryonic ministries to and through young adults four years ago, and he s also giving Mike Psenicka and me a boost as another leader for Trinity s second annual service trip for young adults. This year, Mike and I have set our sights on South Bend, Indiana, where we ll once again work with Habitat for Humanity while staying on the Notre Dame
campus. Over Christmas break, we got the word out to lots of college students and other young adults who are now considering this June 8-14 experience. The other, even bigger summer trip the Faith Ventures journey to Detroit for the triennial ELCA Youth Gathering that 38 of us are making in July continues to take shape. As coordinator, Susan Elandt has squared away travel details while leading us in fundraising. But we need lots more help! Scrip and stock sales continue, and sales of candy bars just started this week. We re also thankful to be the recipient of proceeds from Feb. 8 s Second Annual Trinity Spectacular Concert, at which the teenage travelers will assist and, in many cases, perform. The following week, on Ash Wednesday, our annual silent auction will begin. Along with the auction will be the opportunity vote with money whether I should shave or keep my beard through 2015. The most significant development and biggest undertaking of the past two months might well be the Family & Youth Team s leadership of the Wednesday-evening dinners during Lent. With some of the women from Trinity s circles looking to step down from their longstanding leadership of the annual Lenten soup meals, the Family & Youth Team s budgeted plan to host Wednesday dinners has a sudden opportunity to take shape. Heidi is furiously lining up leaders for each night of the modest meals, which will at least raise more money for the big Detroit trip this year and hopefully even lead to the return of the regular Wednesday dinners that used to be a staple of Trinity s youth program. With thanks for all that the circles have done for the dinners in years past (and continue to do for the Lenten lunches), we re likewise grateful for this chance to raise funds while hopefully building community, especially for the families in our congregation. Our high-schoolers will be busy with that initiative while continuing to raise money for Geofrey, the 7-year-old Kenyan child whom the high-schoolers chose to sponsor through Compassion International. Last month, the teenagers earned the opportunity to put a pie in my face due to their successful November push to catch up with our sponsorship costs instead of spending money on less important stuff. Even better, we just received a new photo of Geofrey in which he looks much healthier than he did in the original photo we ve had since 2013. The other big upcoming undertakings for the high-schoolers will be more artistic reflections for the Wednesday-evening Lenten services and simultaneous, specialized lock-ins for girls and boys March 14-15. The confirmation year had an unfortunate start with the cancellation of touring speaker Tasha Schuh s Jan. 7 appearance due to the cold. While awaiting her postponed appearance April 15, we re looking forward to this weekend s Middle School Lock-In, this year with Kim Rowland and Chris Boehnlein joining Katy Johnson as co-coordinators. I m thankful that Pastor Marilyn, who has already blessed our congregation in many ways this month, will also lead a piece of the event. For years, the Lock-In has been the biggest event of the confirmation year (aside from Affirmation of Baptism itself), and our synod s Junior Youth Gathering is quickly becoming another highlight. I ll be one of seven adults joining 30 middle-schoolers (only about two-thirds of whom are required to attend as sixth-graders) for the Feb. 21-22 event in Neenah. I ll also serve as presiding pastor for this year s gathering. Meantime, we re back on track for our monthly presentations with Ron Pehlke and John Kenowski speaking on being a light against the dangers of drugs and drinking on Feb. 4. In other news, a fourth batch of seventh- and eighth-grade families survived my Christianity & Sexuality class Jan. 17. And breaking news: as officially discussed today, Jim and Jenny Peglow will host an inaugural camping weekend for eighth-graders in May.
There are a lot of bolded names in this and other council reports; I m thankful to so many volunteer ministers who serve our young people and families, and we ought to be able to recognize them all formally. We took one step in that direction last Wednesday when we presented Dean Sondrol with a national Servant of Youth award for his service to the Trinity community over the past 20 years, as well as his longtime local involvement with Boy Scouts. On the family front, Chris Boehnlein and Becky Liegl are ready to roll with Trinity s new Where Moms Connect ministry for mothers of various ages. A start-up meeting on Sunday drew only one other participant, but, since that participant happened to be my wife, Tracy, who offered rave reviews, I know this will definitely be something that s worth the time of busy moms during the education hour on the third Sunday of each month, starting Feb. 15. And the next day, Feb. 16, a Monday off from school, will be our second annual Heroes Day Off for gradeschoolers. Luther s Tap started the year off right last Tuesday with our first double-digit turnout in months and even went global, thanks to Allison Yest and her new husband, Christiam Espinosa, joining us just before leaving the country for their honeymoon, en route back to their home in Panama. Finally, a word of thanks to all the outgoing Council members, especially President Tina Grenlie, who had the unenviable job of leading our membership through one of the most eventful and transitional years that Trinity has had in decades. And a word of welcome to the other new council members I haven t already mentioned. 2015 will be no less of an important year, and I thank God for all of you on the Council who are taking an active role in leading us forward! Report from Marilyn Lange, Pastoral Assistant January 5 January 26, 2015 What a wonderful welcome I have received! This has been a busy first few weeks getting to know people, liturgies, logistics and the rhythm of daily life here at Trinity. I m taking advantage of opportunities to immerse myself in as many activities as possible during my time serving here. This month I attended several meetings and events/potlucks of the Trinity Lutheran Women. I have enjoyed getting to know them and plan to attend more circle meetings and events in the future. I attended their annual meeting, a board meeting and the secret sister luncheon. I enjoy meeting people in the community and am grateful to have connected with other clergy in the area. Within the greater Waupaca area, I m learning my way around in visiting homebound. I ve also become familiar with the hospitals in the area through visiting. Other pastoral duties this month included assisting and preaching at worship services, attending staff meetings and pastoral counseling. This month I taught a Sunday morning adult education class on the topic of Baptism. The class was well attended and discussion was fruitful. I am also teaching weekly Confirmation classes
and have enjoyed getting to know the students. I am very grateful for the assistance and presence of small group leaders in Confirmation class. I attended Membership and Evangelism committee meeting and am getting to know the group and all that they do. This group is excited about plans for outreach in the greater community. I m truly blessed to be at Trinity as I wait for a full time call. I couldn t ask for better mentors than Pastor Jennifer and Pastor Andy. The staff is very supportive and helpful, too. What a joy to serve in such a welcoming and vibrant faith community!