2016-12-08 Council Meeting Minutes

Meeting Minutes

TheDecember CouncilMeeting of the Congregation Council of St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Ardmore, Pennsylvania was held on Thursday, December 8that 7:15 pm in the Kugler Room.

CALL TO ORDER

Don Parman called the meeting to order at 7:15 pm. Council memberattendance is captured in the table below:

Name / Committee Chair / Council Role / Present / Absent
Bickert Ciarlello, Laura / Social Ministry / X
Clouse, Kevin / Education / X
DeLomba, Paul / Staff Personnel / X
Dry, Daniel / Property / X
Ertner, Robert / Financial Secretary / X
Freestone, Patrick / Technology / Secretary / X
Hammarberg,Carol / Stewardship / Vice-President / X
Horn, Andrew / Treasurer / X
Martin, Linda / Worship and Music / X
Norquist, Josephine / Evangelism / X
Parman, Don / Finance / President / X
Pierce, Louise / Cemetery / X

Also present were:

  • Pastor Jack Saarela (First half)
  • Pastor Laura Tancredi (Starting with Committee Reports)

DEVOTIONS

Pastor Jack led a prayer for devotions.

TRANSITION PROCESS

The group reviewed the job description for the new pastor put together by Don, Josephine, and Carol. A few small amendments were made.MOTION: Don moved to adopt the job description. Seconded and approved by council.

MOTION: Josephine motion to amend the job description again to include educational growth of the pastor as an expectation. This was seconded and approved by council.

Discussion was held around the decision matrix that was provided by Pastor Jack for helping to prioritization pastoral staffing options. The group discussed the 5 options put forth on the matrix (1 pastor as Laura; 1 pastor as a new pastor; 2 pastors with Laura as primary; 2 pastors with Laura as secondary; 2 pastors with Laura no longer at St. Paul’s).

The group discussed how to handle communication with the congregation of any decision that would be made regarding the calling of the pastor.

The group took a secret ballot to see where the group stood on the matter. The group made a unanimous decision to extend the call to Pastor Laura Tancredi as the sole pastor of St. Paul’s.

Next, the group had a discussion on timing for delivering items to the synod to move forward with the call.

The group talked about compensation for the decided approach.

PRESENTATION OF MINUTES

MOTION:Don made the motion to approve the minutes from the prior meeting and the motion was seconded andapproved by council.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Committee / Report
Pastor (Tancredi) / Pastor Laura stated that she is excited about the youth trip.
See the Appendix for the full report.
Administration / Nothing to note.
Technology / No report.
Worship & Music / Linda noted that Saturday is decoration day for Christmas.
She also stated that the committee has obtained the second estimate for work on the piano in the sanctuary.
See the Appendix for the full report.
Property / Dan noted that the parsonage work is nearing completion (bathroom, windows, painting).
Dan raised some concerns on the heating system in the church and that this was potentially on the horizon as a spend. Some numbers were provided and Dan noted that the cost was not insignificant.
See the Appendix for the full report.
Stewardship / See the Appendix for the full report.
Cemetery / No report.
Christian Education / See the Appendix for the full report.
Evangelism / See the Appendix for the full report.
Financial Secretary / See the Appendix for the full report.
Treasurer / See the Appendix for the full report.
Finance Committee / See the Appendix for the full report.
Staff Personnel / No Report.
Social Ministry / See the Appendix for the full report.

NEW BUSINESS/CORRESPONDENCE

  • Budget
  • MOTION: Don moved to approve the budget for the annual meeting. This was seconded and approved by council.
  • Building on Blessings
  • MOTION: Don proposed that the window expense $31,800 should come from Building on Blessings. Seconded and approved by council.
  • Estimate for work on piano is for $3,500. The request is to take the first $2,000 from Building on Blessings. MOTION:Don motioned to use $2,000 from Building on Blessings for the piano. Seconded and approved by Council.
  • There was discussion on why the music fund and youth fund were not part of the budget and had separate fundraisers.
  • Endowment
  • Discussion occurred around sidewalk updates and whether this should come from Building on Blessings. MOTION: Don motioned that up to $10,000 come from the endowment for the repair.
  • Successors for Council
  • The group reviewed all suggestions. Don gathered the lists and will send out the first five to ratify for approaching.

NEXT COUNCIL MEETING

The next council meeting will be held on January 12th at 7:15pm in the Kugler room.

ADJOURNMENT AND PRAYER

MOTION: Linda moved for the adjournment of the meeting. The motion was seconded and approved by council.

Laura led the Lord’s Prayer to close the meeting.

Respectfully submitted,

Patrick G. Freestone

Appendix

Meeting Minutes

CALL TO ORDER

DEVOTIONS

PRESENTATION OF MINUTES

COMMITTEE REPORTS

NEW BUSINESS/CORRESPONDENCE

OUTSTANDING BUSINESS

NEXT COUNCIL MEETING

ADJOURNMENT AND PRAYER

Appendix

PASTORAL REPORT

SOCIAL MINISTRY

TECHNOLOGY

WORSHIP & MUSIC

PROPERTY

STEWARDHIP

CEMETARY

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

EVANGELISM

FINANCE MINUTES

FINANCE REPORT

TREASURERS REPORT

PASTORAL REPORT

Pastor’s Report

8 December 2016

  1. On Sunday, November 20th, there was a community wide Thanksgiving service at MainLine Reformed Temple. Saint Paul’s children and youth choirs participated along with 6 other organizations. The offering collected is going to support Box Lunch and Book, a summer ministry of Zion Baptist church.
  2. Stephen ministry hosted a forum on dealing with depression and grief during the holidays on Monday, November 21st. It was well attended with 17 people. The presenters from the Center for Pastoral Counseling of Delaware County provided a lot of helpful information for both those in need of help, and for care-givers.
  3. This summer, 10 of our youth, along with myself and Stu Krissinger will be participating in a YouthWorks service trip from July 9-14. We will be working in Philadelphia with several different hunger related organizations, and also learning about urban hunger issues. We are very excited to have such a good turnout, especially from our younger youth in the 8th and 9th grades.
  4. On Sunday, December 4th, Zion Baptist Church hosted our annual joint Advent Service. I preached, and our children’s choir sang several pieces. Much thanks to Zion for their invitation, and for this continued relationship.
  5. Advent Dinner Church started on Wednesday November 30th, a very rainy evening. We had a small group of ten, but had great food and good discussion. Thanks to Carol Hammarberg for being our head chef. We will continue our theme of “We are an Advent People” on December 7th and 14th.
  6. Upcoming Advent/Christmas Events: Breakfast with Santa 12/10, Decorating 12/10, Lessons and Carols 12/11, Christmas Caroling, 12/18, Christmas Eve (5:00, 7:00, 11:00), Christmas Day worship at 9:30.
  7. Meetings/Events Attended: Thanksgiving Service, Stephen Ministry, Sunday School planning, Synod nominating committee, Dinner Church, Stephen Ministry
    Visits: 4

Respectfully submitted,

Laura Tancredi

SOCIAL MINISTRY

Greetings everyone,

Social Ministry did not meet in December, but hosted the Alternative Gift Fair and coffee hour this past Sunday, Dec. 4th. We highlighted the various charities/organizations that we participated with this past year (Aid for Friends, Ardmore Food Pantry, Community Garden, God's Global Barnyard, and Stop Hunger Now) and provided envelopes with a description of the organization if these were being used as gifts of donations being made in someone's name as well as Christmas tree ornaments as a thank you token for the donator.

We felt it was a successful event - members expressed appreciation that we brought this idea back and for new members that this was an event that was unique and much welcomed. We'll look to host this again next year and probably stick with the same format, excluding the fair trade items to keep it as a giving event rather than a purchasing event.

See you all tomorrow evening,

Laura

TECHNOLOGY

No report.

WORSHIP & MUSIC

Good Day to All:

The Worship and Music Committee did not meet this month. We have selected a different florist for altar flowers. The first delivery will be later this month. There will be a slight increase in the cost of the flowers beginning January 1, 2017. Thank you to Linda Burns for her work on this project. On Saturday, December 10, 2016 at 9:30 a.m. members of the congregation will gather to decorate the church for Christmas. Refreshments will be served. Our Committee will also provide light refreshments for a reception after Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 11, 2016. In January, 2017, the Committee will begin to prepare for the Committee’s first cook-off fund raiser which is scheduled for May, 2017.

Regards,

Linda Martin

PROPERTY

Property Committee Minutes

November 2016

Meeting was held on December 5, 2016. Attendees were Barb Henderson, Dave Curry, Stu Krissinger, and Daniel Dry

WORK COMPLETED/UPDATE ON PROJECTS

Parsonage Bathroom:

  • Work by Hyrig & Son Construction is complete.
  • Final cost is $19,289, of which $17,000 was funded from the endowment fund, with the balance coming from the property budget.
  • Rubbing of the glass shower door was found and immediately corrected by the contractor.

Parsonage Windows:

  • The window and storm door installation is almost complete.
  • Final cost is $31,800 and will be covered by Building on Blessings pending Council approval. The initial deposit of $9,540 needs to be reassigned accordingly as it was originally assigned to the Property budget.

Parsonage Painting:

  • The interior painting of the parsonage is ongoing.
  • Final cost is $9,385 and anticipated to fall within the 2016 Property budget.

Leaf Cleanup:

McKelvey and Sons completed the fall cleanup of leaves at the church and parsonage on November 22. They will do a second cleanup prior to Christmas.

NEW/ONGOING PROJECTS

Church heating system:

  • Herman Goldner investigated the ongoing issues.
  • Goldner confirmed that the Klenzoid water softening system is performing well with acceptable pH, although AQUA water has been getting harder. This means that the formation of rust in the heating system should be less moving forward.
  • The insufficient draft from the hot water heaters can be addressed through an upgrade to the powered damper, however local carbon monoxide monitoring shows no issues, so the Committee does not recommend action at this time.
  • An evaluation of the church heating system return lines was made as there is damage in the system and two of the three radiators on the right side of the church nave are currently turned off due to leaks in the pipes caused by the rust. Replacement of 8-10 return lines from radiators would cost at least $61,000, depending on the accessibility of the pipes, and would be a two-week project.
  • The Committee does not propose moving forward with return line replacement at this time, as there is sufficient heat in the church. This work should be considered within the next three years, and any emergency could necessitate an earlier project.
  • State biennial inspection of boilers was performed in November and passed.
  • The heating unit in the Kugler Room has failed, with the valve stuck in the OPEN position and causing high temperatures. Investigation and remediation is in progress.
  • Goldner also repaired gas leaks after a strong gas smell was noticed in the building on 10/30 and 11/2. PECO had found leaks in the stove and boilers during their inspection.

Church sprinkler system:

  • Marco is scheduled to perform the annual inspection of the sprinkler system and backflow valves in December.
  • They will be asked to investigate ceiling water leaks in the Meeting Room (near the door) and in the men’s powder room, which are suspected to be coming from the sprinkler system.

Church roof leaking:

  • It has been noted that the leak into the Meeting Room (near the window) is getting worse.
  • Brinkman Roofing will be asked to investigate the source of the leak during annual slate roof maintenance and gutter cleaning.

Parsonage (other):

  • No action has been taken yet on the washer and dryer in the basement.
  • Knob replacement, and relocation of both nearer to the window for fire prevention, is needed.

Large Farmhouse:

Quotes need to be obtained for front porch. This will be delayed until 2017, still within the endowment request timeframe.

Sidewalks:

Replacement will be proposed as an endowment request in coordination with the Cemetery Committee. The current quote is approximately $10,000 for all sidewalks on church and cemetery property.

Other:

  • The Committee reiterated that there are three large projects to consider in the next 3-5 years:
  1. Replacement of return lines for church heating system.
  2. Stone restoration on remaining sides of the church not already completed.
  3. Bell tower restoration and waterproofing.
  • Other future projects under preliminary consideration by the Committee:
  1. Increased lighting of the church entrance.
  2. Renovation of the parsonage kitchen.
  • The Torah Academy has informed the Committee that they will be performing a renovation that will reduce the parking lot by 2 spots and relocate the dumpster farther from the school (and closer to St. Paul’s) for security reasons. The dumpster will be fenced in and continue to be locked as is their current practice.

Property Committee

December 8, 2016

STEWARDHIP

The stewardship committee did not meet this month . We had 4 temple talks prior to Consecration Sunday in November.
As of December 7 we have 58 pledges totaling 248,514. Last year at this time we had 71 pledges for 280,946. We will be sending a letter encouraging members to make their pledge.
Carol Hammarberg

CEMETARY

No Report.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION

Hello everyone,

There are two upcoming events for the Christian Education Committee. This Saturday, Families with Young Children will be hosting their annual Breakfast with Santa event. This is always a well-attended event bringing in families from the community. On Sunday, December 18, the Sunday school children will be performing a Christmas pageant for the congregation. In other news, the Evening Christian Fellowship group has been continuing their in-depth discussion of the Gospel of John. The We All Have Questions group continues their discussion of the biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

See you on Thursday,

Kevin

EVANGELISM

All,

we did not have a formal meeting this month but each member is working on a few specific tasks to accomplish this week geared towards organizing a few things in preparation for the Christmas events and higher attendance. Examples are below

  • Arrange/clean out the visitor center stand and make sure updated fliers are up-to-date (e.g. Christmas-time events, description of St Paul's, etc)
  • Make surename badges are correctly arranged on the board
  • Clear out small fridge (if needed ) and check coffee supplies andassess what might be needed for coffee hour fellowship
  • Stuff mugs for delivery to visitors
  • Post Christmas events in Patches and Main Line Times

See you all tomorrow night

Josephine

FINANCEMINUTES

Finance Committee Minutes

December 6, 2016

Attending: Bob Ertner, Gail Feustal, Bill Henderson, Andy Horn, and Don Parman

  1. November financial reports

Given the short time between the end of November and the date of the meeting and priority accorded to recording pledges and issuing contribution reports, financial reports for November were not available for the meeting.

  1. Investment update

Bill Henderson updated the committee on market reaction to the outcome of the Presidential election. The vehicles in which the assets of the endowment, Building on Blessings and cemetery funds are invested had performed well through the period. After discussion, the committee endorsed the current investment strategy and mutual fund choices.

  1. Review of proposed 2017 budget

Don Parman presented a summary of a proposed budget for 2017. The major changes in respect of income were a reduction in the expectation of offerings to a level still in excess of historic results and a reduction in the percentage of the three-year average of the endowment fund to be transferred to support operations from 7% to 6%. The major changes in respect of expense were a reduction in (a) salaries and benefits based on an assumption that the congregation will move forward with a single pastor and (b) finance expenses based on a lower mortgage interest rate, offset by increases for social ministry and Christian education. After discussion, the committee recommended further refinement of the endowment transfer and an increase in benevolence to the extent that the new endowment figure increased income.

  1. Projects funded from Building on Blessings

The committee noted that council has informally endorsed allocation of funds from Building on Blessings for installation of new windows for the parsonage. The committee recommended that council approve allocations for the parsonage windows and $2000 of the total cost for restoration of the piano in the sanctuary. The balance of the cost for restoration would come from the music fund. Don Parman noted that at this time the only project under consideration for presentation to the congregation for funding from the endowment fund is concrete work for the cemetery and the sanctuary/parsonage area.

  1. Updating finance controls

This item was deferred to the next committee meeting.

Next meeting – Tuesday, January 10, 2017 at 7:30 pm in the Finance Room

Budget Outline for 2017

Elements of Income

Category2015 Budget2016 Budget2017 Budget