VESTRY MEETING AGENDA FOR APRIL 23 rd (1st revision) St. Thomas of Canterbury Church

11:30AM – Opening Prayer

11:40 – Group Learning – Scott Stoner – Healthy Behavior Norms

12:15 – Approval of Consent Agenda (attachments follow)– E-motion– March vestry meeting minutes– March financial report– Reports

12:25 – Standard Business– Task list– Calendar review– TBA

12:35 – Old Business– TBA

12:45– New Business – Bill Giving Tree– Ministry Fair– TBA

                                   1:10 – Closing Prayer and Adjournment 

1:20 – Post Meeting Vestry Photographs (attempt 2!)

Vestry Meeting March 19th, 2017

St. Thomas of Canterbury Episcopal Church, Greendale, Wisconsin

Present:  Paul Stoving, Senior Warden; Margaret Done, Junior Warden; Scott Celsor; Gary Heaney; Kathie Hein; Mark Lamson; Ross Worzalla; Mark Moore, Rector

Guests:

Absent: Kris Reed, Treasurer; Gail Pedersen, Clerk; Lisa Chmielewski

Email Motions:  

Call to Order:  The meeting was called to order at 11:40am. Fr Mark Moore led our opening prayer. 

A. Group Exercise:  Vestry Members were shown an example of the problems rumors and gossip can have on a Parish. Fr Mark mentioned several families who have left in the past year or two, who, when asked, said they were leaving as a result of gossip, rumors or overall negativity. It was stressed how important it is for Vestry members to model better behavior and stop the gossip when they hear it. In the coming months, Vestry members will continue to be trained in techniques to help lovingly stop gossip and other negative behavior. 

B. Standard BusinessConsent Agenda:  

Motion:  Mark Lamson moved that we accept the consent agenda; Gary Heaney seconded. The motion was approved by all present. 

Task list:  Vestry went over the task list 

Calendar:  The calendar was gone over and updated as necessary.  It was clarified that Jiu Jitsu has been canceled for all of Holy Week, to avoid conflicts. 

Business in Progress

a. Wish List:   Mark Lamson reported on the quotes for the Panic Bars. He said there is a significant difference between some of the quotes, and we need to determine which hardware we’re going to use. It was pointed out that the doors next to the Sacristy are only opened 3-4 times per year, while the front doors are used 20+ times per day, so it’s not necessary to install hardware on the side doors that is as robust as what is needed on the front doors.  Mark Lamson is going to clarify some of the quotes. Mark is having a hard time connecting with 

the Greendale building inspector to verify that the proposals would meet code. It was suggested that this was perhaps an over-cautious requirement before moving forward, as the contractors should know what building code requires. 

C. New Businessa. Parochial Report: The Parochial report for 2016 was reviewed. It contains the membership and financial information we provide to both the Diocese and National Church. It was suggested that it be made available to the Parish, and its availability advertised. Overall, membership increased by 2 people in 2016. Motion: Paul Stoving moved that we approve the 2016 Parochial Report for submission. It was seconded by Margaret Done. The motion was approved by all present

b. Newcomer’s Packet: Margaret Done passed around a newcomer’s bag that she and Kris Reed had received while making their church visit for CDCI. STOC has stopped making up bags from lack of materials to put in them. The sample bag had several things that we could use. Margaret also reported a local company that will provide up to $500 of free promotional material to qualified non-profits. Fr Mark suggested that we could include some of the STOC mugs that are in storage. Kathie Hein is going to research the options and attempt to restart the expanded Newcomer’s Packet. 

c. Vacuum Cleaner: The Kirby Vacuum Cleaner the altar guild has been using is in desperate need of repairs.  The estimate is $121.  Motion: Ross Worzalla moved that Altar Guild be authorized to spend no more than $125 for the repair of the vacuum cleaner, to be taken from the memorial funds already designated for Altar Guild’s use. Mark Lamson seconded the motion. It was approved by all

d. Date of April Vestry Meeting: The 3rd Sunday of the Month in April falls on Easter Sunday.  By consensus, the meeting has been moved to April 23rd. 

D. Upcoming Dates: The next vestry meeting is April 23 rd  all reports except financials are due by April 13th      financial report is due   April 16   th     requests to remove items from the consent agenda are due by April 21st   .    

Adjourn: Fr Mark Moore recited a closing prayer. The meeting adjourned at 12:57pm 

Respectfully submitted,

Kathie Hein

Rector’s report April 2017

Easter preparations have dominated the landscape this past month but there have been some other note-worthy items as well.

First I had the pleasure of attending and offering the blessing for the swearing in of a new officer in the Greendale police department. After that ceremony the chief asked me to discuss a new peer support group with some of the officers. We will meet again on April 24th to begin that process.

I am pleased with the last two open forums. I am very happy that you all chose to continue in my absence in February and that we were able to continue the discussion last month. I have received at least 5 or 6 compliments on those meetings with special thanks for addressing the subject of negative talk and rumors. I have contacted Scott Stoner of Living Compass Ministries to see what he might have to offer us in terms of training and inspiration as we continue to deal with how we communicate with one another and keeping those communications open and honest.

And, as I seem to write about often, our attendance seems to remain low but we have had several new people come to join us recently. I truly think this is a pivotal time in the life of this parish and we are headed in the right direction. Our new outreach projects seem to be a lift to the spirits for both newcomers and our regulars. I thank you all for your dedication and support of these efforts.

Peace always,

Fr. Mark

STOC Vestry Report – Worship – April 2017

Ministry Area: WorshipReported by: Paul Stoving

Changes in the past month:

Lent, Holy Week, and Easter services are now behind us. Many worked hard on these services. We will be meeting on April 24th to discuss how these services went and to prepare for the summer. We have returned to the contemporary setting of the Lord’s Prayer for Easter. We will be holding Morning Prayer on Sunday the 23rd; please plan on attending and supporting this service. The choir and the altar guild are planning on presenting at the ministry fair later that day. The choir is also planning a pair of outreach concerts for June 3rd. Needs for the future:

Short Term: Help support Morning Prayer by attending the service on Sunday the 24th.

Long Term: Please be the worship committee’s ears in the congregation, and provide feedback you hear or other input if you have any.

Next Meeting: April 24th at 6:00.

Respectfully submitted,Paul Stoving

STOC Vestry Report – Finance and Stewardship – April 2017

Ministry Area: Finance and StewardshipReported by: Paul Stoving

Changes in the past month:

Our pledge income is below budget by nearly $2,600. (Actual $9,004, Budget $11,575). While most expenses are in line with the budget, because income is low, we are getting behind in our bills. We will likely need to “borrow” some money from ourselves in the Money Market account to pay some of these, although we may get some extra income from the plate during Easter.

The Finance/Stewardship Committee has twice in the past month (March 20th, April 3rd) and will meet again on April 17th to discuss balancing the budget and moving forward with stewardship. We have decided to create a “bill giving tree,” which will be debuted on April 16th. This will allow parishioners to pick a bill and contribute towards paying that bill. We believe that this will present a different experience than our “special asking” drives of the past couple of years.

We will also be holding a ministry fair on April 23rd. This will be the same morning as the blessing of our new community garden, and should be an excellent time to showcase our ministries to ourselves and our neighbors.

Needs for the future:Short Term: We will be holding our ministry fair on April 23rd. Vestry liaisons should contact their ministries and ask them to prepare for this.

Long Term: We must all be prepared to discuss our budget with the congregation, and find ways to grow in stewardship.

Next Meetings: April 17th at 5:30, TBD after that.

Respectfully submitted,Paul Stoving

Communications Vestry Report April 2017

Ministry Area: Communications

Reported by: Kathie Hein

Fr Mark has requested some changes to the Welcome Pamphlet, to be discussed and implemented in the near future

Research is being done on welcome bags

The Rummage Sale task force has contacted me about spreading the word about the Rummage Sale, set for Mid-June

Needs for the future:

Short Term: Vestry Pictures

Building and Grounds Vestry Report for April, 2017

Ministry Area: Building and Grounds

Reported by: Mark Lamson

Changes in the past month:

Waiting for responses on new quotes for crash bars.

Scheduled for delivery of lumber for fence around the Community Garden on April 17th.  Will be starting work on the garden fence on April 20th, and 22nd.

Needs for the future:

Short Term: Planning on the date of May 7th, for Spring clean-up after Church services.  Will be posting Garden Angels sign-up sheet for the gardens around the Church.

Long Term: Regrading the ground around the south side of the Church for better drainage.

Education Committee Report

April, 2017

I have contacted members of the Men’s Tuesday Night Bible Study, the Women’s Bible Study, and the Sunday School program, concerning the Ministry Fair on Sunday, April 30, during the blessing of the Community Garden. The Sunday School program and the Women’s Bible Study have committed to having some form of outreach available on that day. The Men’s Bible Study was quite positive about it as well, but they need time to formally discuss it among themselves and approve it.

I have also been in contact with both Erika Stoving and my wife Donna concerning the direction of Sunday School. Attendance has not improved since the resumption of Sunday School last month. If anything, attendance has dropped further. A new member, Kathie, who was director of Christian education at a nearby Catholic parish for many years, has agreed to speak with us sometime during the summer concerning our program, in order to discern our way forward. Sunday School will conclude on Sunday, May 14th for this term.

Scott Celsor