Ministry Council
November 15, 2004

Present: Jim & Cheryl Wolff, David & Marie Fornof, Pam Rowley, Fred Venable, Dale & Kathy Balu, Lisa Hajek, John Merchant, Janet Forbes, Jenita Rhodes, Martha Boon, Ralph Lawrence

Martha opened the meeting with a reading and then asked for things that we have to celebrate.  We celebrate the success of Jesus Christ Superstar.  It looks like we will reach the $10,000 mark for the DenUM gift.  We also celebrate the success of the Pumpkin Patch with a $26,000 profit, which will go towards Youth Missions and the van.

Finance Report

John reported that we had received 279 pledges, with a total of $731,000.  This compares with 249 pledges and $583,0000 3 weeks into the campaign last year.  We ended the 2004 campaign with almost 400 pledges and $794,000. 

John presented documentation of our current budget requests, these totaled $1239,400.  This figure includes the Next Step items that groups identified.  John estimates with additional pledges during our follow up that we should be able to support a $1,050,000. Budget this year.  This would mean an additional $200,000 in pledges and significant decrease in our current budget requests, probably most or our Next Step requests.

We then proceeded in an exercise to highlight our strengths and areas of desired growth.

Ministry Team Area of growth Resource required

Education

Adult

Speakers                         500

Training                         2100

Additional TV’s                 1400

New class                        870

Youth

Youth Room Finishing         2000

Outreach Youth Concert     2000

Youth Choir                     1000

Increase for all programs     1200

Children’s

Training for staff                1000

SLY Jr.                             500

Partitions for Goliath           900

Fellowship & Support

Churchwide Team

Better support of events     500

Ministry Development

Lay & staff leadership retreat         0

(carry over from 2004 budget)

Missions

Mission Team

Local Missions                 600

International Missions        8250

Worship

Music                                 7150

Drama                                 15000

Worship Team                        1000

Altar Guild                             2000

Operations

Evangelism 0

(decrease in budget from $25,000

to $6500) $3000 in continuation of

Activities, $3000 for external resources/

training)

Stewardship

General Operations         2000

Celebration                    9375

Communications                         0

Trustees

Repair Entryway                 4000

10% increase in insurance     2800

33% increase in utilities         2000

Upkeep                             10000

Staff Parish Relations Team

Retirement                            10000

Raises                                  19400

(If no timing change,

14,000)

New staff                             29000

MDT & Youth

It was suggested that some of these items could be added to our wish list and therefore be removed from the budget, such as TV’s, training, Stephen’s Ministry and books.

Janet then spoke to us about Visioning.

She said that we are in a time of Corporal Spiritual Discernment or very creative time.  This is a time where we need to listen even more carefully to the needs of the people.  Two questions keep rising to the forefront:

1.  Will our children have faith? And

2.  Will our children be safe?

1.      The bulk of our families are raising children.  We have 1200 children under the age of 18 in a 1300 member congregation.

2.      Generations and Security.  Issues of fear are important.  There are deaths among youth, a sense of not being safe. We ask, Is every generation secure enough in their faith to be able to model it and pass it on?

Our primary voices in leadership are Postmodern, i.e. born in the 60’s.  The modern era are those born in the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s. 

We don’t want to impose a modern viewpoint on a post-modern people.  We need people in leadership that will build a postmodern church.  We have to ask ourselves what it means to be a Church in this postmodern era.

Our Process for Visioning.

            Advent will be a season of Prayer and Preparation.  Epiphany and Lent will be the time for action, planning and reflection and then at Easter we can articulate our goals.

We then took time to look at the areas of growth that had been identified and talk about where we see our priorities in light of the questions Janet had identified.

We highlighted the following areas

            Children’s Ministry

            Youth Ministry

            Missions

            SPRC- addition of Associate Youth Minister

It was also stated that a reduction in our mortgage would free us for more Ministry spending.  It was suggested we look at Fund Raising for some items.

Next steps:

A smaller group will meet to draft proposals for a final budget.  This will include Ralph Lawrence, EB chair, Martha Boon, MC chair, Janet Forbes and John Merchant, Finance Chair.  Church Conference will be held, Monday, Nov. 22.  Ministry Council will meet again, Sunday, Dec. 5 at 12:30 to discuss a final budget.  This will go to EB for a vote on Sunday, Dec. 12.

Other Business

Dale Balu asked for guidance on selling of items here at St. Lukes to raise money.  It was identified that we need churchwide guidelines for this, as there is discussion of having a bookstore and we have begun to sell tote bags etc.  This discussion was tabled due to time, however Dale asked for guidance with a request from Missions to sell a Homeless Newspaper on Sunday mornings.  It was suggested that we make a donation to the Newspaper which is housed at DenUM as part of the gift from JCS and then have papers available for the congregation to read or take home.

Meeting was closed in prayer.

Next meeting, Dec.6 at 12:30 in the Conference Room.  Lunch will be provided.

Respectfully submitted,

Martha Boon