Council Members Present: Marianne Brown Airin Cherian, Pastor Ross Goodman, Anne-Louise Klaus, Mark Olson, Dana Ramish, Alison Roberts, Heather Sheridan, Brian Sniffen, Wendy Stack, Marilyn Waehler.
Also Present: Sergia Hay, Vicar Andrew Heisen, Ken Heyda, Kirsten Lienhard, Don Mitchell, Jen Nahn.
Absent: none
A quorum was gathered and we came together in God’s name at 7:38pm. A candle was lit to remind us that Christ is present with us as we meet.
We welcome the new Council members and thank Sergia and also Darcie and Beverly in absentia for their service. Mark Olson asks us to consider why we are on the Council and what we have gained from our work here.
Some of the old council brought cookies!
The agenda was accepted.
Wendy Stack then led a devotion on Matthew 6:21:
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Next month, Dana Ramish will lead devotions.
We sing Lord, speak to us, that we may speak (676).
The minutes of both January meetings were accepted with an amendment to the description of the attendance of the congregational meeting.
This coming Sunday will be the Lenten Workshop during the education hour, in place of ordinary Godly Play classes. Two new members (Maria Jones and Amy Holbrook) have been welcomed to the Christian Education committee as Marilyn Waehler resigns after long service.
Jen and some of the teachers will be seeking outside Godly Play training over the summer, allowing them to return this training the teachers here. We’ll also be looking at new curricula for the middle and upper grades who have graduated from Godly Play.
First Lutheran Church in Waltham has a Vacation Bible School. We’ll be pointing some of our families there and also offering teachers and youth to help them out.
Ken Heyda briefly describes the reports offered each month by the Treasurer’s office.
Don Mitchell reminds us that we have mail folders outside the meditation room. He describes the line-by-line breakdown of the principal Financial Secretary’s report. We had a five-week month and had two months of payment from MetroPCS, so we start with a very nice cushion.
Motion 1 We appoint Mark Olson to continue as President, Marianne Brown as Vice President, and Brian Sniffen to continue as Secretary. moved, seconded, carried.
Motion 2 We appoint Kirsten Lienhard as Treasurer. moved, seconded, carried.
Motion 3 We approve the request of the Personnel committee to hire Alicia Kapogiannatos as nursery attendant at $11.50 per hour beginning 9 February 2010. moved, seconded, carried.
Mark discusses the possibility of e-mail motions. We prefer to avoid business in e-mail, but for urgent needs it’s the most effective way to do business quickly. If we can’t get replies quickly, we’ll call special meetings in person. Please acknowledge receipt even if you aren’t prepared to vote—it helps the conversation proceed. Future e-mail motions will have a five-step process: announcement of the motion, discussion and an option to table the motion until the next meeting, a call for a vote, votes, and announcement of conclusions.
Pastor Goodman describes the work that Jen Nahn and Andrew Heisen have been doing for and with the youth. He describes a role in fostering Christian relationships, inspiring and leading youth fellowship, and the difficulties interns have had in maintaining a long-term involvement.
Alison asks whether we could use a term limit to encourage the Council to celebrate and reward those who continue in such jobs for long periods of time.
Motion 4 We appoint Stacey Hammerlind as Volunteer Youth Leader. moved, seconded, carried.
Ken Heyda has been doing this job for some time, managing our computers and our phone and Internet connections. We’re concerned that his lack of official position leaves him at risk if things go badly. We are also very grateful for his work these many years.
Motion 5 We appoint Ken Heyda as Volunteer Information Technology Coördinator. moved, seconded, tabled.
We have already allocated February’s money to the Gateway
Motion 6 We allocate the balance in the Coffee Hour Fund p7 at the end of January to the support of the Gateway families. moved, seconded, carried.
Motion 7 We approve the Social Ministry Committee’s request to use $1361.98 from N4 (Coffee Hour Funds) and $1443.02 from N7 up to a total of $2800.00 to go to the ELCA Disaster Relief Appeal for Haiti. moved, seconded, carried.
Motion 8 In response to a request from the St. Paul Youth Group, we designate the coffee hour funds raised on 7 February 2010 to be used for the support of the Gateway families. moved, seconded, carried.
Pastor Goodman reminds us that Lent begins a week from Wednesday. We have an evening prayer schedule planned based on Luther’s Large Catechism. Any and all are welcome to join him for contemplative prayer after those services. By the time we meet next month, he hopes to have a candidate Business Administrator. He thanks Ken, who found a wonderful description of the duties of such a role. He has a draft of a job description prepared with Mark, and the Personnel Committee is ready to move at full speed.
Former Vicar Judy Converse has been ordained. The Waehlers, the Stevens, and the Hays attended. The Bishop of the Slovak-Zion Synod of the elca was there in Bishop Payne’s stead.
Vicar Heisen reports on the status of the Hillside House. As with any ministry, this has its challenges as well as its successes. The news that one boy has run away is most challenging. One boy has joined us last Sunday for church, and another may join us in a few weeks. These young men have very complicated stories. The congregation has already done much to reach out to them, and may do more. He’ll be spending several weekends this spring at Calumet with youth or the young adults.
The work with Pastor Mark Huber is re-starting after Pastor Huber’s return from travel. Early progress can be seen at http://stpaularlington.org/joomla/. Next month, perhaps we can have a council photograph to add to the web site.
Pastor Goodman gathers us in prayer and leads communion at 9:27pm.
Respectfully submitted, Brian Sniffen
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Next regular council meeting: 8 March 2010 at 7:30pm.
These minutes can be found online at http://evenmere.org/~bts/Church/.