St. Michael Parish Council Minutes
Monday, September 28, 2015
Members Present:
Karen Basham, Leslye Biller, Jay Blair, Chris Bonbright, Helen Bryant, Stacy Davis, Charles Edelen, Bob Goodin, Denise Hampton, Karen Karem, Angela Kimbel, Kevin Popp, Brenda Rickert, Jim Smith, Mary Rose Stephenson, Fr. Dick Sullivan, Stacy Tackett, Teresa Watson
Members Absent:
Lori Elliott, Kathy Goodin, Rose Michels, Susan Robison, Gary Grieshaber, Lisa Wilhelmus,
Minutes Secretary: Teresa Watson
Opening Prayer: Fr. Dick Sullivan
Minutes: Minutes from the August 31, 2015 meeting were approved as written.
Opening Announcements:
1. Bob Goodin stated he would ask former members to return Parish Council binders no longer in use, and he encouraged all current members to bring their own binders for the papers they would receive for each meeting and a pad for note-taking.
2. Members were asked to sign up to lead prayers for upcoming meetings. The schedule is as follows:
Date / Opening Prayer / Closing Prayer10/26/15 / Karen Karem / Teresa Watson
11/23/15 / Brenda Rickert / Leslye Biller
12/14/15 / Jim Smith / Mary Rose Stephenson
1/25/16 / Helen Bryant / Karen Basham
2/22/16 / Stacey Davis / Denise Hampton
4/25/16 / Kevin Popp / Angela Kimbel
5/23/16 / Jay Blair / Charles Edelen
3. Generally, the meetings are held on the 4th Monday of the month. Committees are asked to submit their minutes to the Parish Council Chair a week in advance, then those minutes will be forwarded to the Council members who are asked to review them prior to the meeting.
4. Members are encouraged to send any agenda items or topics for discussion to the Chair in the week before the meeting.
5. A welcome was extended to new members.
Old Business:
1. The Ice Cream Social held on Sunday, September 27 was well attended. Estimated attendance was 150.
New Business:
1. The meeting dates for the coming year were reviewed and agreed upon:
October 26 November 23 December 14 January 23 *
February 22 March ** April 25 May 23
*The January meeting will be held on a Saturday, from 9:00 am-3:00 pm. Fr. Dick suggested it is time to set long range goals for the Church again, since most past goals have been achieved. With that in mind, the Parish Council will join with the St. Michael Staff for a joint retreat/annual planning day. Bob asked members to pass on to him suggestions for a possible facilitator.
**There will be no meeting in March due to Easter.
Committee Reports:
1. Communication, Chris Bonbright reporting: The recently completed Communication and Technology Report provides a good overview, but there are already some updates to be made.
2. Finance, Denise Hampton reporting: The last fiscal year, which ended June, 30, showed revenues of over $6 million. The debt is now under $10 million. Two members have been added: Sally Landherr and Brian Helm. Bob Goodin requested that financial statements be brought to the Parish Council meetings as part of their monthly report.
3. Formation, Karen Karem reporting: The RCIA Program has 16 participants. Some sponsors are still needed. This year participants will be asked to wear gold name tags and all parishioners will be encouraged to reach out and welcome them at every opportunity. The Tuesday morning Bible Study has over 40 participants.
4. Justice and Charity, Kathy Goodin absent: Kathy and others were assisting parishioners with a move during the time of the meeting.
5. Parish Life, Helen Bryant reporting: The Mom’s Club and the Women’s Club have new Chairpersons.
6. Stewardship, Lori Elliott absent: Bob reported that Lori is willing to chair the Stewardship Fair for this year but requested a co-chair willing to learn the process and take over the position of chair for next year. A date for the Fair has not yet been set.
7. Worship, Mary Rose Stephenson reporting: The All Souls Mass scheduled for Monday, November 2, will be held at 7:00 pm and will preclude the weekly 6:30 pm mass for that evening. Beginning in November an “incense-free” mass will be offered for those celebrations where incense is used. An Ecumenical Thanksgiving service will be hosted by St. Michael on Sunday evening Nov. 22. Thanksgiving mass will be offered on Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 25.
Round Table:
1. Mary Rose Stephenson complemented the committee reports that had been submitted to the parish council as great indicators of the amount of dedicated work that goes on behind-the-scenes in our parish on a regular basis.
2. Stacey Davis expressed a security concern from Grandparents Day. When she arrived, all the doors were open including the door which opens on the woods. Stacy Tackett responded that she is aware it happened that day and that she has found the door by the woods propped open fairly often. To help address this she has had someone in to review safety issues and is pricing security cameras on the two downstairs doors which will allow the office to monitor those doors.
3. Karen Karem reported that the Kroger store in the Tyler Center has added 24 hour security guards due to changes in the neighborhood – an indicator that St. Michael should show extra caution on our property.
4. Mary Rose Stephenson asked if the Parish Council minutes will be posted for the parish and suggested that doing so may raise awareness of the variety of committees and the need for help which may translate to more participation by parishioners. Chris Bonbright suggested this could be accomplished through the weekly e-newsletter. Initially an overview could be offered, then one committee at a time could be highlighted.
5. Kevin Popp raised the issue of the new apartments and subdivisions going up in close proximity to our church and suggested that this is an opportunity to invite any new Catholic neighbors to join St. Michael. Fr. Dick passed around an information card recently designed to use at area motels and suggested it could also be used at the new construction areas. The suggestion was made to offer the information cards to the management offices for inclusion in welcome packets. Fr. Dick and Mary Rose will deliver some of these cards to the areas discussed.
6. Angela Kimbel suggested creating a small worship aid containing the Nicene Creed and the Apostles Creed which are both used at Sunday masses. This idea was passed to the Worship Committee.
Principal’s Comments:
Stacy Tackett reported the current school enrollment at 597 with an additional 101 in the preschool program. For future meetings Stacy will bring the School Board minutes to share.
Pastor’s Comments:
1. There are currently three fairly new staff persons, a new principal and eight new teachers. Fr. Dick urged everyone to be encouraging and supportive of all of them.
2. Father will be meeting soon with several men interested in starting a Men’s Bible Study.
3. Father expressed a concern about the overlap of sports events and events in the church such as weddings, as they compete for the same parking spaces. Some thought may need to be given to avoiding conflict in this area.
Closing Prayer: Bob Goodin