ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC CHURCH PARISH COUNCIL MEETING Thursday September 18, 2014, Dausch Room Council Members Present: Dan Matonak President John Gildee Vice President, Fundraising Com. Mary Jo Ashburn Joan Barr Luke Becker Judie Coleman Jim Fetchu Fred Nugent Committee Members Present: Mary Hellane Social Life Kathleen Pleasant Liturgy Michael Parsons Social Justice Staff Members Present: Msgr. Richard Hilgartner - Admin Angie Viar Parish Manager Tim Barr Sacramental Preparation Linda Becker Religious Education Neil Becker Youth Group Other Attendees: Margarita Cabral International Dinner Rep. Juan F. Rodriguez Hispanic Community Rep. President, Dan Matonak called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. OPENING PRAYER: Dan opened the meeting with a prayer. APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MINUTES: - Minutes were approved with modifications to staff contacts. ADMINISTRATOR REPORT: Archdiocesan Clergy Convocation Fr. Rick described some of the events and themes of the clergy convocation he just returned from. There was specific discussion about the New Evangelization and the tools available in today s modern world to spread the word and live the faith. He also mentioned that it was discussed that evangelization happens primarily at the parish level. Phone and internet service The parish will soon be switching from Verizon to Comcast for internet and phone service. This will lead to better service at a lower cost. Christmas Mass Schedule Fr. Rick brought up the idea of adjusting the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass from 12am to an earlier time. Last year s Midnight mass was lightly attended while the 4:30 and 6:30 masses are very heavily attended. It was agreed that staff would collect mass schedules from other parishes and the matter would be further discussed at the next council meeting. Blessing of the Animals Fr. Rick will be performing the Blessing of the Animals in celebration of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi on Saturday October 4 th at 5pm. This time and date was chosen as a compromise of all conflicts and considerations. COORESPONDENCE: Thank you notes were received from the Salvation Army, The Williamsport Food Bank, The Greater Clear Spring Ministerium, and the Shepard s Staff for donations received. A letter was also read from the South Washington County Military Support Group pertaining to opportunities to support their Holiday Card Drive. Neil Becker mentioned that the Junior Catholic Daughters were discussing preparing cards for this effort. Copies of all correspondence are attached.
STAFF REPORTS: Education: Linda Becker submitted a report for review. Classes began on Sept. 14 th. 79 students were initially registered but that number is now up to 90. A new dismissal policy is in place, parents will pick up their children in Riggie Hall. Linda mentioned that they only have 2 volunteers currently for the Children s Liturgy during the 10:15 masses and could use more help. Sacramental Preparation: Tim Barr submitted a report for review. A time and date for Confirmation has been set for April 27 th, 2015 at 7pm at St. James. There are currently 14 candidates for confirmation although Tim still needs some registration forms and materials. Fr. Rick asked about the number of First Reconciliation candidates and Tim confirmed it was 13. Fr. Rick is going to make contact with the other priests to make sure there are three available for the First Reconciliation event. Tim mentioned that alter server training recruitment was under way but to date no forms were received back. Fr. Rick indicated it might help if he and/or Tim stopped by the classrooms to discuss the opportunity with the kids. Jim Fetchu indicated that based on his own experience with his daughter that it would go a long way towards recruitment. Youth Group: Neil Becker handed out a list of events the youth group is looking to hold. The next event is a REACH planning pot luck on November 9 th. A discussion was also held about a car wash fundraiser during church services, Fr. Rick mentioned a similar fundraiser he had witnessed at another parish where the kids washed all the windows of all the cars and collected donations afterwards. Neil also discussed that he and the group are looking into various options for a mission type trip. Maintenance: No report other than the grounds look very nice and some fall decorations have been set up. COMMITTEE REPORTS: Social Life: Mary Hellane submitted a report for review. Mary thanked all the council members who were able to attend and help out at the picnic. Mary also mentioned that Lotto sales for September were up from August. The craft group will conclude their efforts next Tuesday and shift gears to production of the Christmas Hard Candy on Tuesdays and Thursdays through the end of October. The Christmas Bazaar and Bake Sale will be held November 13-15 and after masses on the 16 th. Mary asked for continued support of the sale with donations of holiday crafts. Liturgy: Kathleen Pleasant submitted a report for review. Month by month sign-up sheets for all positions are located on the table outside of Riggie Hall. Kathleen also mentioned that RCIA will begin next Wednesday at St. James and there are two confirmed attendees and three others who previously expressed interest. Social Justice: Michael Parsons submitted a report for review. The first delivery will be this weekend September 19 th. Mike indicated they were still recruiting Backpack Angels to fill spots vacated from the previous year. Jim Fetchu challenged the members of the council to make donations in support of the program so the council as a group could sponsor one or more of the Angel slots. A collection was held and $200 was turned in at the end of the meeting to Angie for this purpose. Hispanic Community: Margarita Cabral spoke about the plans for the International Festival to be held on November 8 th from 6-10PM. Tickets have been printed and she would like help organizing and selling tickets. The cost is $8 for adults and $4 for children. The hope is to have various ethnic
restaurants and parishioners donate ethnic specialties for people to try in exchange for advertising as well as music and dancing. Finance: Luke Becker handed out finance report documents for review. Luke mentioned that a Finance committee meeting was held on Monday night September 15 and that an invitation was made, based on expressed interest, to Jim Fetchu to join the committee. Jim indicated he was interested in attending the next meeting but wished to withhold joining the committee as a full member at this time. All the rental properties are currently rented and should bring in $31,800 in revenue per year. A new policy is being put in place that will have payroll audited quarterly and statements audited monthly. A full review is also being made to ensure the policies in place for the parish finances are in line with archdiocese policy. Luke also indicated that the committee was looking into having thermostat security boxes installed to reduce unnecessary electrical usage. Fr. Rick opened a discussion about his role in reaching out to the congregation from the pulpit regarding the need for additional financial giving and a possible follow up in the pews. MaryJo offered, based on her experiences with the Capital Campaign, that asking people to sign on to a guaranteed giving amount will put people off. Judie mentioned that in previous discussion the idea of explaining to people that if everyone increased their current offertory by a certain percentage, say 13%, it would go a long way towards the parish meeting its goals and that this may be easier to swallow. Fundraising: John Gildee discussed the various upcoming FUNdraising events including the Spaghetti Bingo on October 17 th, the International Festival on November 8 th, the Bazaar and Bake Sale November 13-16 th, and Breakfast with Santa on December 6 th. John handed out copies of the Policies and Procedures for the Collection and Placement of Fundraising Monies. The policy describes and standardizes the way money for all events at the church should be handled. No money collected at the church should leave church grounds and no purchases are to be made with monies collected. Reimbursements and fundraising advance forms are to be forms are to be used for purchases. Jim Fetchu described the ongoing efforts for the Spaghetti Bingo. Jim mentioned that Judie was doing a great job organizing ticket sales after masses but that slots were still availablefor the next two weekends in September if anyone could help out. Spaghetti and sauce donations continue to come in and it appears we already half about half of what we will need. Maryann Miller has been contacting various restaurants and stores for food donations. Fred mentioned that Sanders Cookie Jar, Quiznos, Red Lobster, and Martins have donated in the past. Dan noted that it was difficult to read the Bingo portion of the sign in front of the church and Jim said he would see if anything could be done. SPIRITUAL LIFE: No Report
OLD BUSINESS: Constitution and Bylaws Dan included with the agenda a copy of the Constitution and Bylaws as it is known to currently exist. Council members were asked to review for possible discussion at the next meeting. Dan also asked is anyone knew of a digital copy of the bylaws and Jim indicated he believed a Microsoft Word document copy existed on the website. General Parish Structure Dan indicated that the handouts for the parish structure were being updated and would be distributed prior to the next meeting. SHIELD Fr. Rick indicated that new packets of information were available from the Archdiocese but he did not receive one to date. Linda Becker noted that she had received new information via email and would share with staff. Music Ministry Fr. Rick is continuing to look into options. NEW BUSINESS: Archdiocesan Consultation on New Pastor Selection A three person visitation team from the Personnel Board will be at the church on Tuesday October the 14 th. They will meet first with staff at 5:30 then with the rest of the Parish at 7pm. Due to schedule and the rules of procedure Fr. Rick will not be present. It was asked that all Council Members, Staff, and Committee Chairs make every effort to be at the meeting. Marriage Prep Fred Nugent wanted to let everyone know that he and his wife Karen, who have been long time Marriage Prep counselors, were seeing an uptick in the number of couples preparing for marriage and that this was an encouraging sign. Catechists Linda Becker reminded everyone that the PSR Catechists will be commissioned on Sunday morning September 21 st at the 10:15AM Mass. She also noted that the Archdiocese supplied very comprehensive Prayer books for the PSR families and there were extra copies available to anyone interested. Webpage Jim Fetchu noted that the webpage was 6-9 months out of date and at a minimum needed to be revised to remove out of date information. This led to a discussion led by Fr. Rick of possibilities for using social media to provide information in new ways. The discussion touched on various possibilities such as an entirely new webpage, Facebook, Twitter, Constant Contact, podcast, etc. The opportunity to involve younger more technology savy members of the parish was discussed. In the short term Neil and Jim are going to reach out Denise Kuhna, the previous webmaster, to try to bring the current webpage up to date. Discussions about future opportunities were tabled for future meetings and possible committee formation. NEXT MEETING: October 23 rd @ 7PM ADJOURNMENT: Msgr. Rick closed the meeting with a prayer. Meeting adjourned at approximately 8:45.
ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC CHURCH PARISH COUNCIL MEETING Thursday, September 18, 2014 Attendance Council Members Name Role Phone Number Email Present Dan Matonak President 301-582-4070 DMatonak@myactv.net X John Gildee Vice President 301-665-1248 J.Gildee@myactv.net X Ben Forrest Recording Secretary 301-766-7365 OSfan98@GMAIL.COM Melissa Noel Corresponding Secretary 301-573-9973 MNoel@noelsfp.com Mary Jo Ashburn Member 301-791-2059 CopTeach55@myactv.net X Joan Barr Member 301-797-0736 JJBarr5@juno.com X Luke Becker Member 301-733-0217 LMJB87@myactv.net X Judie Coleman Member 301-582-2234 Jude@myactv.net X Jim Fetchu Member 301-366-3935 JFetchu@hotmail.com X Vicky McKenzie Member 301-223-4304 VMckenzie@myactv.net Jim Micco Member 301-842-3169 MLM399270@myactv.net Fred Nugent Member FNugent@washco md.net X Parish Staff Msgr. Richard Hilgartner Administrator 301-797-9445 RHilgartner@archbalt.org X Angie Viar Parish Manager 301-797-9445 StJoe319@verizon.net X Jay Jay Klapka Accountant 301-797-9445 KlapkaJJ@aol.com Tim Barr Sacramental Preparation 301-790-1610 TSBarr@live.com ; Timothy.Barr@archbalt.org X Linda Becker Religious Education 301-733-0217 LMJB87@myactv.net ; Linda.Becker@archbalt.org X Neil Becker Youth Group 301-797-5064 NeilBecker@hotmail.com X Randy Furry Maintenance Manager 301-797-9445 Committee Chairs Luke Becker Finance Committee 301-733-0217 LMJB87@myactv.net X John Gildee Fundraising Committee 301-665-1248 J.Gildee@myactv.net X Greg Hannigan Spiritual Life 301-797-3367 JGHannigan@rcn.com Mary Hellane Social Life Committee 301-797-7493 CheezDoodleH@aol.com X Michael Parsons Social Justice Committee 301-797-0587 ParsonsM64@gmail.com X Kathleen Pleasant Liturgy Committee K.Pleasant@myactv.net X Donna Reid Social Life Committee 301-582-2892 Nitza Riviera Hispanic Community 301-991-3424 N.R.Teach@hotmail.com Other Attendees Margarita Cabral International Dinner Rep MCcleaningservices8@gmail.com X Juan F. Rodriguez