Jan. 8, 2012

Dear Pastor Jack, Andy Mathisen & Steve Miller:

Before I present copies of this to the Council on Jan 11th I would like to get your reaction to it.

Council had decided back in November that we would wait until the new year to ask members of the congregation offering their time and talent.

The information in the attached pages comes from several documents that I received in the pat from Steve Miller and other sources. I simply tried to pull it all together for consideration.

It seems that some areas and activities are rather well staffed and probably don't need any or much more staff or committee members. And some committee descriptions seem to contain similar or overlapping areas of responsibility or activity.

I would appreciate the advice of Council as to how to go about asking members to get involved in church activity with their time and talent. I think we need to first identify those areas where we think we need help.

I'd appreciate your opinion.

Time & Talent for GoodShepherdLutheranChurch

Congregational Council: consists of 12 members. Members are nominated by a Council Nominating Committeeand are elected by the congregation at the January annual meeting. The council meets monthly andmanages all affairs of the congregation. The council elects officers of the church.

Officers of he church:

President, Andy Mathisen, Presides at all meetings of the council and the congregation. Is a member of all committees.

Vice-President, Steve Miller, Presides in the event the President is unable to serve.

Secretary, Gary Westerwelller, keeps accurate minutes of all meetings of the council and congregation and distributes them to members of the council and to the church newsletter for publication and maintains a permanent record of meetings in the church office.

Co-Treasurers, Pat Miller and Tom Tehve, keep the financial records of the congregation, receives and disperses all funds and makes reports on the church's financial status on a monthly basis to the council and the congregation. All financial records are kept in a computer program called "Church Windows". The treasurer also provides data to aid the finance committee in creating the annual budget. The financial records are audited annually by an Audit Committee appointed by the Church Council.

Financial: Chaired by Tom Tehve with Andy Mathisen & John Crump, receives and keeps records of all income from all sources.

Community Outreach Group: Nancy Fitch

Memorial Fund: Dick Alberti

"The Voice" Publisher: Clem Hergenham

Liaison to GermanSchool: Gil Vatter

Liaison to "Little Chiefs": Patricia Vatter

Committees of the Congregation:

Christian Education Committee:Chaired by Sharon Oberkehr, Supervises Sunday School heldevery Sunday morning before regular Sunday service from 9:00 to 9:45 am. All children between the ages of 3 and 11 (5th grade) are welcome to join. During class time, stories from the Bible are read and discussed and the children discover how God is in our everyday lives. Fun activities are also used to reinforce the lessons learned.

During Christmas the students perform a Christmas Pageant. They re-enact the events that took place in Bethlehem the night Jesus was born, complete with costumes and carols.

VacationBibleSchool is held during the summer for one week the Church transformed into a new environment, fully decorated according to the chosen theme. Children from all over MonmouthCounty come to learn and have fun.

Property Committee: Chaired by Steve Miller, uses a large variety of skills to maintain and protect all property of the congregation, and keeps it in good repair. Congregation members are encouraged to volunteer to tackle any project on a long "to do" list, or participate in quarterly work days.

Evangelism Committee: Chaired by Lil Nemcik with Karl Torjussen & Steve Miller, leads the congregation in spiritual activities, provides material to attract and greet visitors to the church and is responsible for community relations press releases and advertising.

Fellowship Committee: Chaired by Debbie Blackburn, supports and enhances the social and celebratory functions of the church. It provides planning, notification, food and entertainment for such events and encourages all members to participate as volunteers to support all aspects of the church's social activities.

Finance/Stewardship Committee: Co-Chaired by Karl Torjussen and ______, prepares a new budget each year and submits it to the Church Council for its action and later presentation to the congregation at the annual meeting for final approval. The committee oversees all financial affairs of the church, including investments and its total insurance program and teaches the Christian use of money to the congregation. The Treasurer is an ex-officio member of the committee.

Social Ministry Committee: Co-Chaired by Mike Carp and Gil Vatter, is concerned with the congregation outreach to the local, national and international community by the congregation. In the past year, the church provided food and household goods , service and funds for Calico Cat in Middletown, St. Mark's Food Kitchen, and Project Paul in Keansburg, Lunch Break in Red Bank, and interfaith neighbors in Asbury Park, participated in local clothing drives, special holiday collections, the Monmouth County Crop Walk, the Souper Bowl of Caring, the National World Hunger Appeal, and Your Grandmother's Cupboard in Tom's River.

Worship and Music Committee: Chaired by Andy Mathisen, meets monthly with the Pastor and Minister of Music to plan, organize, execute and evaluate the church's total music and worship ministries, so as to provide regular worship in accordance with the liturgy of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and a Christian music ministry of excellence, involvement, and inspiration for each season and festival of the entire church year. Develops budgets for all music and worship organizations, arranges for the purpose of supplies and music as required and oversees the maintenance, repair of all music supplies, equipment and instructions.

Supervises, recruits, and instructs the church's Alter Guild, usher corps and lay readers and develop with the Alter Guild, artists who provide a visual ministry of worship through seasonal decorations, permanent art, and other objects which will enhance our understanding of God's creativity and beauty. Seeks to expand worship and music opportunities for the congregation with the Pastor, the Minister of Music , and the church's musicians.

Mutual Ministry Committee: Chaired by Clem Hergenham, provides the Pastor and other staff members with a group of trusted advisors who will attend to their spiritual, personal and professional needs, and at the same time attending to the needs of the congregation. The committee will act to offer mutual support and advise in a confidential environment.

Youth and Family Committee: Chaired by Mike Carp, provides facilities and activities for members of the congregation from early adolescent years through adult years. The youth ministers are young people and adults working together so that the young people may grow and actively contribute to and participate in the activities of the church.

Good Shepherd Senior Choir: Chaired by MiaePark, is made up of members of the congregation who love music and wish to contribute their voices to the enhancement of worship and leadership in chanting the liturgy. The choir is directed by a professional musician who is also the church organist. Choir rehearsal is held each Thursday evening, when an offering anthem is prepared for the following Sunday and music for future Sunday's is practiced.

Other musicians from the church and outside the congregation are also used to enhance both the Sunday services as well as special services throughout the year.

Good Shepherd Bell Choir: (At present there is no Bell Choir).

The Alter Guild of Good Shepherd: is made up of members of the parish, including Marion Williamson, Nancy Hergenham, Andy Mathisen, Lil Nemcik and others, who offer their time and artistic talent to prepare the sanctuary for regular Sunday services, special holidays throughout the church year, and for weddings, baptisms or funerals. They are responsible for arranging the flowers used to decorate the alter and for all banners which designate the church season or any special event.

Ushers and Lay Readers: Ushers are responsible for greeting and seating arriving worshipers, gathering the offering and presenting all the elements for communion to the Pastor. The Lay Readers assist the Pastor during the service to offer the lessons for the day, the Psalm, Holy Communion, or for other rituals as they are needed.

Offering Counters: Offering counters are volunteers from the congregationwho count the offering at the end of each Sunday service, prepare the money for delivery to the bank, make out all necessary bank forms, and make sure that the members of the parish are properly credited for their gifts to the church.