Bangor, Maine
March 13, 2007
Present: Fr. Wingert, J. Perry, S. Brakey, E. Hikel, J. Pickering, C. Leick, C. Palmer, G. Creaser, D. Lewis, J. Blanchette, H. Souweine
Excused: E. Patches, J. Wilson, and S. Gormley
Opening Prayer: Fr. John opened the meeting with prayer.
Agenda Review
E. Hikel asked to be added to speak on the Diocesan Council meeting. Adam George would like to speak during the Finance Committee report to request funding for a trip to Honduras.
Minutes from February Meeting
C. Leick asked that E. Patches’ request from last month for the placement of the sawhorse with the handicapped sign be put out again on Sundays. Fr. John said that the sawhorse has not been used since he has been at the parish. J. Perry said that he would ask Steve Getchell to put it out on Sundays. A motion was made and approved to accept the February minutes.
Treasurer’s Report
There is no financial report because the bookkeeper has left for another position. D. Lewis said that this poses an immediate problem for the church because there is no one to count and post the offering on Sunday, as the Treasurer is not supposed to sign checks and handle money. Don has the computer password from Travis, and he can fill in for the near future, but a new bookkeeper needs to be found as soon as possible. Fr. John asked if the church should advertise for the position. D. Lewis replied that it is better to have someone from the church as bookkeeper because they are more aware of church issues and they must be here on Sundays to count the offering. D. Lewis also said that any recommendations for a bookkeeper should go to Fr. John.
The Audit Committee met on February 17. It was brought up that those persons who serve as heads of committees should not be on the audit committee and that next year the Finance Committee should perform the audit. It should be noted that this is a procedural audit only. The committee also recommended that an outside entity review the books once a year. Fr. John asked how are we doing financially. D. Lewis replied we are doing well: operating funds and the loan payment account have good balances, and we are receiving more than we are spending.
D. Lewis said that UBS made a presentation to the Finance Committee and that he feels that they are an efficient business that will manage our accounts well. The church has approximately $170,000 still at the Bank of America; it will be at least another 3 months before the church can get these funds. D. Lewis was told that St. Johns would receive this money at the beginning of the year. The church is receiving dividends on this money but it is not being invested well. Also, there is approximately $25,000 in the Allison and Raymond Floyd fund that is to be used in perpetuity at the rector’s discretion. The Diocese felt that this language meant that they were to hold the funds in perpetuity. D. Lewis would like the Vestry to vote to bring the fund back to the church accounts. This will be taken up under New Business.
Senior Warden’s Report
G. Creaser is working on a new format for the newsletter, website technical issues, and general communication issues including e-mail and phone calls. He is also working with Liz O’Donnell to go through the Parish rolls and update this. J. Blanchette said that he would give G. Creaser any names that came back in the mail from the stewardship campaign. E. Hikel will provide G. Creaser with the name of someone who has volunteered to help with the website.
G. Creaser reported that he was unable to do Second Saturday this month and this caused a lot of confusion. As a result he will work on a handbook to guide others through the steps necessary to put on the meal and try to find a few people to train. In addition, he is looking for help with the Easter brunch.
C. Leick requested that the agenda be presented to the Vestry ahead of time. G. Creaser and Fr. John will work on this.
Interim Director’s Report
Fr. John asked if someone could organize a lunch for the Bishop. J. Blanchette replied that the alter guild is doing coffee hour that day. G. Creaser will contact them and ask them to organize the lunch. The Sunday 4:00 pm service during Lent is growing each week, and the Tuesday night service has had steady attendance. Vestry training is March 31 at 9:00 am. Fr. John has left 5 messages with Detective Small with only one reply.
Committee/Commission Reports
Finance Committee: Adam George made a presentation to the Vestry requesting $1,305 for a trip with All Souls to Honduras. A motion was made and approved to pay approximately $1,305 from the St. John’s portion of the money earned from the Joseph production to Adam George for his trip to Honduras.
Stewardship Committee: No report.
Communications Committee: S. Brakey is working with Jen on Easter press releases.
Property Committee: J. Perry said that he is waiting to get a plumber into the church and an electrician to look at the lighting. Steve Getchell has made a list of small items to be repaired around the property. As far as major repairs, at the church there are the windows and the furnace that need to be replaced, as well as painting. At 243 French Street half the windows still need to be replaced, the roof and the siding. Jeff will compile a list of items that need to be maintained on a regular basis. Cleaning of the attic is scheduled for March 24.
H. Soweine said that there is mold in the corner of the nursery. J. Perry said that this is from years of leakage and that a contractor will need to take an inventory of areas that need to be gutted due to water damage. G. Creaser suggested that the portion of the damaged carpet in the wigglers room be cut out and the space covered with a rug until the carpet can be replaced. C. Leick asked why is it taking so long to have repairs done. J. Perry replied that he is using a small individual contractor who may take longer but will be cheaper in the long run. J. Pickering said that the nursery and wigglers room should be priorities on our repair list. Fr. John cautioned that any action taken with the mold should be done carefully because certain areas of the undercroft could be closed as a result. G. Creaser has the name of a consultant who can assess the situation. J. Perry will look into a temporary block for the mold. Fr. John, Steve Getchell, H. Soweine, and Travis have new keys. J. Perry will look into replacing the cylinder because the master is not working.
Education Committee: The Sunday school has now grown to 28 kids. C. Leick reported on the middle school group meeting on Sunday. She felt that there was too much talking by the adults. In addition, the adolescents were able to handle the length of the meeting, but the younger girls in the group could not. C. Leick also reported that the existing furniture in the first and second grade room is too small. She has picked out 2 new tables and 10 chairs, totaling approximately $520 to $600. J. Perry suggested that 2 additional chairs be purchased to allow room for growth in numbers. A motion was made and approved to allow the purchase of 2 tables and 12 chairs with funds from the production of Joseph.
Worship Committee: J. Pickering is going to chair the first meeting of the worship committee to discuss coordinating the various activities during Holy Week. The members will discuss areas that need help and share information. C. Leick added that one idea that came out of the middle school group meeting was that the youth wanted to be more involved in worship, therefore she suggested that a member of that group serve on the worship committee. E. Hikel nominated Hal Wheeler and Fr. John nominated Nancy Dymond for the worship committee..
Discernment Committee: E. Hikel reported that the committee hopes to have a recommendation for the Vestry on May 8. D. Lewis asked if the Vestry would receive a report on the various candidates before that time. E. Hikel and S. Brakey said that there would be some type of profile of the candidates presented to the Vestry. Fr. John suggested that the candidates informally meet with the Vestry as part of their visits. J. Pickering replied that the first candidate is coming on March 25, and that the schedule did not build in this type of a visit. D. Lewis said that the Vestry could meet with the candidate at 5:30. Several Vestry members indicated that they would feel more comfortable in voting for a candidate if they had a chance to meet them in person. The Vestry agreed to have informal visits with each of the candidates that will visit St. John’s. These visits will be to meet and greet only. The first visit will take place on March 26 at 5:00.
Old Business
E. Hikel is a representative to the Diocesan Council and he reported on their February meeting. He said that they discussed the upcoming convocation on May 5 and a gift acceptance policy. In addition, the Council had $52,000 in net income at the end of 2006. It was decided that $10,000 would be used for outreach and $42,000 for expenses in bringing in the new bishop. The Council also discussed a family from Aroostok County that needs a place to stay while they are here for medical issues. E. Hikel will give further information on them if it is available.
E. Hikel reported that the Council spent some time discussing the Windsor Report. He has drafted a letter stating that the Council should follow the directive of that report and offer only candidates that concur with its recommendation. E. Hikel asked if the Vestry would add its support to the letter. J. Pickering replied that the Primates Report is out and it is even stronger than the Windsor Report on this subject. D. Lewis felt that the Vestry should add its support to the letter endorsing the Windsor Report, G. Creaser agreed. A motion was made and approved for the Vestry to add its support to E. Hikel’s letter to the Council.
G. Creaser said that at this time there is no need for vestry open forums. The paging system has been ordered. Fr. John reported that the loan approved to a parish family last month couldn’t take second position because the property is in foreclosure and therefore there is not clear title at this time. G. Creaser asked if the foreclosure was proceeding as scheduled, Fr. John replied yes. D. Lewis recommended that the Vestry go forward with the loan as planned and the Vestry agreed.
New Business
D. Lewis asked the Vestry to authorize creation of an assistant treasurer position. Fr. John replied that the by-laws allow for this. D. Lewis said that Ken Huhn would take this position. Fr. John said that when he revises the by-laws he will include a provision that the treasurer can hold the position for no more than three years and that an assistant will also be appointed. This could be done for the Junior Warden and other offices as well.
D. Lewis reported that the current policy is to have 2 signatures on all checks over $5,000. The Finance Committee recommended that this should be changed to all checks over $2,000. G. Creaser asked if this recommendation came from the cannons. D. Lewis said that this is in the audit guidelines. A motion was made and approved to require 2 signatures for all checks over $2,000. A motion was also made and approved that the Junior and Senior Warden, the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer be authorized to sign checks.
D. Lewis also reported that the Finance Committee recommended that an outside accountant go over the church books. Fr. John asked D. Lewis to get an estimate for how much this will cost by the next meeting. D. Lewis said that a policy needs to be established regarding reimbursements. In the past a form was required to be filled out in order to get reimbursed. This will be tried again. D. Lewis asked for authority to have the remaining part of the Alice and Raymond Floyd trust transferred to the St. John’s UBS account. A motion was made and approved for the Alice and Raymond Floyd trust to be transferred to the UBS account. D. Lewis also stated that the church received a donation of $5,000 from the Kellogg family with no restrictions. He suggested that it be put in the capital account to reduce the mortgage. A motion was made and approved to put this $5,000 in the capital account.
Under open decisions, the free offering for Steven will take place on March 18. The Vestry discussed Steve’s importance to the church. G. Creaser confirmed that Sexton is Steve’s official title. A second sound system has been acquired for $233 more than the previous one. Fr. John has not had any success on getting a crosswalk put on the street. He will talk to the police department this week. The leak in the tower cannot be fixed until warmer weather.
C. Leick asked about the cell phone for Fr. John. Fr. John replied that the problem is that cell phone companies require that phones be billed to a credit card, and that credit card companies want to have someone listed as a responsible party for billing. J. Perry suggested that Fr. John take out the phone in his own name and have the church reimburse him monthly. D. Lewis said that a direct bill could be sent to the church. Fr. John will take care of this. C. Leick asked that the handicapped parking sawhorse be kept on the list until it is located. Fr. John will ask Steven where it is.
Summary of Votes:
The church will pay approximately $1,305 from the St. John’s portion of the money earned from the Joseph production to pay for Adam George‘s trip with All Souls to Honduras, approved.
The Vestry will add its support to E. Hikel’s letter to the Diocesan Council asking for support of the Windsor Report, approved.
2 signatures are required for all checks over $2,000, approved.
The Junior and Senior Warden, the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer are authorized to sign checks, approved.
The Alice and Raymond Floyd Trust will be transferred to the St. John’s UBS account, approved.
The donation of $5,000 from the Kellogg family will be put in the capital account to reduce the mortgage, approved.
Items Still Open
Crosswalk lines in the street and a yellow sign for Sunday School Children
Tower leak
Contact with Detective Small regarding registered sex offender next door
The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Cassandra Palmer, Clerk