St. Timothy's Church

Vestry Meeting Minutes – June 13, 2005

1. The meeting began at 6:35pm. In attendance were Sr. Warden Laurent Perkins, Pat Camm, Scott Brown, Elaine Fox, Tom Duffey, Carl McDaniel, Rebecca Sloan, Kent Davis, Betsy Goff, Schuyler Melby, Rector Fr. Russell Martin, Associate Rector Larry Eddingfield, Treasurer Gary Filer and Clerk Cindy Kaemmerer. Fr. Larry opened the meeting with prayer and Fr. Russell led a meditation on faith.

2. Minutes (attached) from the May 9, 2005 Vestry meeting were presented by Cindy Kaemmerer. A motion was made to approve the Minutes from the May 9 meeting. The motion was seconded and passed.

3. Financial reports were presented by Gary Filer. May income is down slightly but YTD is still over 100% due to some prepaid pledges. Rent from GTE and Utilities check from TBTH were not posted before the books closed and so are not included in the totals. Gary stated he needs to check on the Rector's Health Insurance payment, which seemed too high. The new Minolta copier lease agreement paperwork has not arrived, nor has the lease been paid on the new machine at this time, but May maintenance was $35. Kitchen expenses were high possibly due to the dishwasher or shed purchase. Gary will look into it. OSL still has a negative balance, as funds have not been transferred to cover Healing Mission expenses. A motion to accept the April 2005 financial reports and file them for audit was made. The motion was seconded and passed.

4. No update has been received from Sharlene Hower as to the new sign. The Koreans did present a disc with their logo on it but the sign's specs had already been ok'd and passed to Sharlene. Laurent reiterated the need to get some outside estimates on Plexiglas covers for the Sanctuary windows. Russell said he would take the lead on this project.

The Vestry was informed of a $1500 gift given for the purpose of upgrading the sound system and its components. A DVD from the givers will be shown to the congregation on Sunday, June 19 and plans are being made to say thank you as well. Laurent was asked to reprioritize the AV items list in light of the new donation.

A motion was made to authorize Laurent to investigate and purchase some new microphones, as specified in the AV requirements document he has put together, and to look further into getting a control console bought or made that will hold all the AV equipment. The motion was seconded and passed.

5. Fr. Russell gave the Rector's Report. Attendance figures were handed out (attached). Fr. Russell said that attendance seems to be up slightly and that several newcomers/visitors have expressed interest in joining St. Tim's. Some gift bags have been handed out and plans are still be made to redevelop that ministry as an outreach to new people.

Fr. Russell gave a review of the AAC Clergy and Board meeting with Bishop Mathes. He expressed concern at some of the things that were said, but he also expressed hope for a continued good working relationship with Bishop Mathes. Most of all he asked for continued prayers for Bishop Mathes.

He also gave a brief overview of the Anglican Communion Network with the hope of soon reaching a decision about whether or not to join as a parish. Laurent said he would send out more information about the ACN and asked every Vestry member to prayerfully consider the idea of joining the Network.

Fr. Russell stated that plans for a St. Tim's Vacation Bible School had been changed due to both scheduling and family health issues surrounding Michelle Macomber, and the fact that New Hope Church (just across the 56) is holding theirs at the same time. Schuyler has agreed to go and help out at the New Hope VBS with the express intention of taking lots of notes and seeing a program done before attempting to host our own VBS next year.

Russell reported that the 20-30's group has met twice and has begun a study on the book A Case for Faith by Lee Stroebel. They have also been met with prayer requests while dining out together and are planning a movie night and follow-on discussion group later this summer focusing on Harry Potter.

Russell said the ALPHA retreat he attended with St. Dunstan's was very successful and reiterated that he believes any successful ALPHA course should include a retreat away from the home campus.

Russell reported that some members of Morningstar Church have begun using our Parish Hall for music practice on Tuesday evenings and that they will be giving St. Tim's $50/month for the privilege.

Russell also gave feedback on a recent Diocesan Youth Ministers meeting with Bishop Mathes and again thanked the Vestry for their support, and the support of St. Tim's, in allowing him and Fr. Larry to be an ongoing part of diocesan youth ministry, especially with regard to New Beginnings and Happening.

Lastly he praised the people of St. Timås for stepping up in various ways as opportunities to witness and minister to others are given to them. He feels we are on the brink of a huge evangelistic leap and wants us to remain focused on who we are and whose we are during this crucial and exciting time. He also asked for prayers as he prepares to enter probate court over his father's estate as well as plan and hold a wake for his dad in Camarillo next weekend.

6. General Business

Confidential copies of the draft of the amended (by Payne & Fears legal counsel) Bylaws were handed out to Vestry members and Laurent asked that they be reviewed by next month's meeting in preparation for a vote to amend the current bylaws. Gary looked through the current bylaws and determined that a 2/3 majority at any regular Vestry meeting can make amendments. Confidential copies of a draft employment agreement between Fr. Russell and St. Timothy's were also passed out for review again with the idea that a vote can be taken on this matter at the July Vestry meeting. Any questions or concerns should be addressed to Russell or Laurent. Legal fees incurred thus far are $1535 payable to Payne & Fears for their work in getting these documents prepared.

Laurent is in the process of putting together marketing/selling guidelines for fundraisers, etc. at St. Tim's. Barbara Britain is assisting with diocesan guidelines and Fr. Russell said he would check with St. Dunstan's as well to see what guidelines they have in place. Laurent will speak to Perry Murphy about setting up a Sunday or two to show his mobility scooters at St. Tim's. The Women's Bean Soup Project will be selling their soup mixes in July with all proceeds going directly to Catholic Charities Women's' projects.

Laurent read a letter from Barbara Britain regarding Archdeacon Bill Dopp's Farewell Evensong and Reception being hosted by St. Timothy's on Sunday, June 26 at 5pm. She asked that donations be collected from the congregation for his farewell purse and that members of St. Tim's be encouraged to attend. Cindy will get the word out via email and the Sunday bulletin announcements.

Russell said that Crown Castle has been in touch with him about another possible buyout offer for the cell tower. They were offering $69,000 but Russell told them $75,000 might be a more likely figure. Kent and Gary will look into the options to determine if a buyout in the best interests of St. Tim's or if renegotiating a long-term lease would be a better deal. Russell said that St. Dunstan's gets between $1200-$1300 monthly for their towers whereas St. Tim's now gets only $720 a month with the current lease.

7. Portfolio review

Worship – Pat and Kent reviewed the issues presented at a recent Worship team meeting and said that there was ongoing discussion about several worship-related issues.

Fellowship – The Spaghetti Dinner/Auction and Men's retreat were both reviewed and declared successes! A possible October fellowship event is being planned next.

Discipleship – Betsy and Schuyler reiterated the new VBS plans and said discussions were underway about summer Sunday School also. Schuyler also requested a teacher appreciation time on a Sunday as a method of spurring interest for future programs.

Ministry – Laurent presented a draft of a Time & Talents pledge card to be updated and used at the upcoming Ministry Faire, tentatively planned for September 11. All Vestry members are asked to make corrections, additions and other comments or suggestion about the draft card. It was suggested a section delineating specific talents and skills be added. Tom announced that the next Soaking Prayer is this Saturday, June 18 from 630-830pm. Carolyn Burns and Gary Filer are leading.

Evangelism/Mission – Rebecca, Fr. Larry and Kelli Elliott are beginning plans for the Fall ALPHA course and want to begin the course in early September. Their goal is 240 participants and they hope to schedule an ≥away≤ retreat, be able to hand out scholarships if needed and purchase some round tables to facilitate discussion groups. They are working with Greg Wilkinson to put more ALPHA information on the web site. Rebecca also reported that she went to a great conference called Share Your Faith and hoped we could host something like that sometime. Russell said that St. Tim's is hosting an evangelism conference in Feb. 2006 sponsored by Acts 29 Ministries and that churches from all over the diocese and area would be invited to participate.

8. Next Vestry meeting will be Monday, July 11 at 6:30pm.

9. The meeting ended at 9:05pm with prayer and was then adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Cindy Kaemmerer, Clerk of the Vestry