October Mustard Seed - Council Notes

Wednesday, September 11, 2019
Council was called to order by President Debbie Hollenbach and commenced with devotions from Linda Kratz from Psalm 124. Pastor G also prayed a prayer of remembrance for 911.

New Business:

• The Lower Montgomery Conference Assembly is on Tuesday, October 8, at 7 PM at Good Shepherd in King of Prussia where a new Dean is being elected. Debbie Hollenbach and Dale Foster will be our representatives, with Gary as back-up if needed.
• Several employees have laptops purchased by the church, so we need to create policies and procedures for their use. Debbie and Linda will get corporate templates to use as a basis for creating our own policy for Council to review.
• As a result of a car accident, our sign was destroyed. The accident was reported to our insurance company where we have a $1000 deductible and a limit of liability on the sign. All parties involved in the accident are insured. It will take a while to sort out but all should be covered by one of the accident insurers. Due to the length of time required to go through insurance, it was agreed that we should purchase temporary signage for now, then look into permanent signage after the insurance process completes. Adam Feldman is looking into options. Dale and the Property Team will review options and consult with Lauren Allegrezza on content. Options will need to be brought to Council for a decision.
• There was extensive discussion regarding the letter to council regarding the ELCA. Each person provided their own response to the letter and concerns. Pastor G then provided a synopsis of the ELCA and a fact check to make sure we were all on the same page. Council agreed that the issue should be revisited after the completion of her Adult Forum series on the ELCA taking place this month and next. In order to address the member’s concerns, it was decided to have Pastor G and Lauren create a draft of the response to the member, then provide to Council for approval.

Treasurer’s Report:
Council reviewed the August report with Denise Bailey. With the decrease in pledged giving, Pastor will meet with Janet Hill to discover if the members who have died or moved are the main cause for the drop.

Pastor’s Report:
Pastor will be out on September29and arrangements have been made for a substitute.

Transition Team:

• The MSP was completed on September 8 and submitted electronically. It was accepted by the Synod, but we are still able to make modifications.
• Council reviewed the submission and questioned the lack
• of review time by Council and the congregation, as well as some of the information presented (especially in light of the recent letter).
• After the meeting, Pastor G noted that she will combine the feedback from the Council into a new MSP, review with the Transition Team and Council. We will also have a copy posted for members to review.
• Any questions, concerns, or comments can be relayed to the Call Team via the prayer bowls in the front of the sanctuary.
• The Call Team consists of Nancy Allegrezza, Carol Taylor, Anita Halpern, Gail Achilles, and David Bonthu. They will begin their work shortly.

Ministry Team Reports:
Christian Education:

• The Christian Education Team met on Sunday, September 1, 2019. The teachers for 2019-2020 will be Anita Halpern, Donna Renner, Dale Foster, and Gail Achilles along with Nancy Gansner and Anna Friedrich. We will have two classes, age 3 to 7 (PreK- 2nd Grade) and 8 to 12(3rd -6th grades). K-2 will meet in the red room (room at the end of the hall) and 3-6 will meet in the green room (middle room). The teachers will be rotating each week. Team will meet again in December to go over how it is going and any concerns.
• Adam is going to paint the Sunday School rooms and adjust the tables and chairs accordingly.
• Melissa Prunkel has been looking for a padded carpet for the middle room so the children can sit on the floor. The cost is about $260, which she has budget for; therefore, she can purchase it.
• Make sure that all teachers have updated Clearances on file in the office.

Finance:

• Klara Campbell gave a donation of $500 toward mortgage reduction.
• The Finance Team met on Tuesday, September 10, and have a 2020 budget prepared. Unfortunately, we ran out of time and will need to review in October.

Fundraising:

• The Sundae World fundraiser in August netted $56.32.
• Remember to buy your GIANT gift cards!

Property/Building Usage:

• Morgan Street is not township property. It is co- owned by the church and the adult daycare. The dealership does use this road as a back entrance, but they have the permission of the owner of the adult daycare. Dale Foster attempted to get the dealership to help fund the repairs, but they refused. Next step is to draft a letter to the daycare about sharing costs with us.
• Pastor Shin and his congregation will be using the Sanctuary on the first Sunday of the month until 5:00 PM for a Prayer Meeting. Their regular service will return to 2:00 PM.
• Chris Jones is in the process of cleaning the upstairs rooms and moving things to the former music room for storage. Adam has been painting the Blue and Red rooms for Sunday School. The library and round rooms have been set up as a meeting room at this time.
• The BJ membership card renewal is in October. $50 for 2 cards is in the Property budget. Since Pastor Nelson’s name is on the second, we will be changing it to Debbie Hollenbach until a new Pastor is called.
• Fall Workday has been scheduled for Saturday, October 12, 9-noon.

Social Ministry:

• September’s project is socks (children sizes 5-12) for Cradles to Crayons.
• The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 17, to set the schedule of projects for 2020.

Stewardship:

• E-giving launch is set for September 15 – Jack Walls will present to both the 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM services.
• Pledge procedure for 2020 budget – it is recommended that we add the sheet where we ask for volunteers for talents (Lector, Greeters, Communion Assistants, Acolytes, Altar Guild), and ministry teams (Talents and Treasure).

Worship & Music:

• What used to be the Adult Forum room is officially now the Music Team room and practices have resumed starting September 5. Thanks to Adam for all the hard work.
• A recommendation was made that a laptop with word processing and email be purchased for Laura so that she can produce lists of music and answer emails. Currently she does not own a computer and is trying to do this from her phone.

Mutual Ministry:

• The team met on August 29, and a report will be reviewed at the October Council meeting

Old Business:

• Community Movies. It was determined that the correct license was already in place for showing the movies. A further discussion between Pastor G, Debbie and Adam determined that the Eagles game could be shown.
• Pastor G send out an explanation of the process that should be followed when someone comes up with a great idea. Will discuss this in a temple talk and Mustard Seed in the future.

Next Meeting: October 2 at 7pm.