Heard It at Council (November 2015)
November 10, 2015
Council met to continue the work of Old South Church as the year winds down. The main topics were Capital Campaign planning and the Annual Meeting.
Moderator Deb Washington opened with a devotional that reminded members of the close conversations that are had with God in prayer as an expression of the heart.
The budget update was given by Treasurer David Vogan. The year continues to track toward the projected targets although congregational giving is increased overall.
The Annual Meeting will take place February 7, 2016. This year it is proposed that the entire congregation come together for a joint service at 10 am with Godly Play offered for children. At 11:15 am the Annual Meeting would occur followed by a short lunch. This proposal has merits, namely bringing the whole church together in worship and bridging the early and late services, although Council recognizes this configuration may not be ideal for all. As an alternative, it was suggested that the Annual Meeting be held at the 10 am hour, however this makes it difficult to accommodate the choir and again may not meet the scheduling preferences of all. More discussion will be had.
The Capital Campaign case statement continues to evolve. Wayne Davis and Todd Krohne presented the current iteration. Since last month, the target has increased from $6.5 to 7.5M. The rationale is based on the evolving picture of Old South Church’s aspiration and vision, which have emerged from the two-year listening process. This process of refining goals, assessing targets, and elaborating categories is complex, hence the evolving nature of the case statement. The next step will be listening sessions with more targeted groups, perhaps after the next iteration. Council recognizes all of the hard work of the Capital Campaign Committee to ensure wide-listening and comprehensive fact-finding when it comes to items of interest to the congregation in pursuit of the church’s Vision. Tremendous progress has been made!
The three main ministries (themes for programs or platforms) remain: 1) Do Justice, touching on social justice, homelessness, and community outreach; 2) Love Mercy, focusing on widening Old South Church’s reach through the internet, social media, and technology; and 3) Walk with God, training leaders as interfaith organizers and peace-builders in the world.
The main difference in the new version is replacement of some of the budgeted programming and platform issues with money toward two endowed staff in the Do Justice and Love Mercy categories (one each). Also, the priorities for structural updates and building renovations have been reclassified, not with the main ministries but as a separate section. Some of the goals for renovations have been reduced and it was acknowledged that many of these could be deferred. It was clarified that accessibility remains a top goal. Part of the next round of listening will be to infer the priority of structural work.
Council was glad that prior concerns about the total fund appearing as a five year “spend-down” were addressed in the new statement, reflected in the proposed endowed staff. Without endowment, it would be likely that new staff would need to be reduced at the end of five years. However, Council next raised an opposite concern: since so much would need to be allocated to endow these positions, it seems little is left for programmatic and platform budgets. For example, the Micah Fund for social justice is now deleted. Also, the Walk with God budget is reduced. Council asked: on what budget would the new staff execute their work? Furthermore, is the Committee enough informed about the potential for volunteers to lead initiatives? The 350th anniversary fund remains and is somewhat increased by the proposal for a memorial garden. In summary, Council encouraged the Committee to continue to refine the document, taking the feedback to heart.
Various committee updates were heard. Jake Maliel was approved as a new member of Leadership. Christians in Formation held a well-received series on dying well and will now focus on Advent with an interfaith theme. The Christmas Pageant will be held at 9 am First Worship this year on December 13th. The Trustees are vetting new property insurance proposals. Christian Service and Outreach proposed $5,600 toward a one-month operating cost of Boston Warm; council approved. Consecration Sunday is November 15th and all are encouraged to attend the luncheon and consider faithfully their pledges. Mary Norton Society held its annual dinner with readings from Ben Franklin’s will, which were inspiring.
Lisa Mahnke, Clerk