Prince of Peace

COUNCIL MINUTES FEBRUARY 2018

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Prince of Peace Lutheran Church

Council Meeting Minutes

February 20, 2018

Present: Pastor Chad Brekke, Pastor Natalia Terfa, Allan Grant, Lynn Anderson, Patti Amstrup, Joel Odens, Jodi Spoden, Jeff Hanson, Linda Forkey,, Lynell Keller

Absent: Melissa Johnson, Julia Sevald, Scott Reitz, Cole Antilla

Call to Order: President Allan Grant called the meeting to order.

Opening Prayer: Allan Grant led us in an opening prayer.

Adoption of Agenda: A motion was made by Lynn Anderson and seconded by Jeff Hanson to adopt the Council agenda.  Motion approved.

Approval of Previous Minutes: A motion was made by Lynn Anderson and seconded by Jodi Spoden to approve the minutes from the December 19, 2017 Council meeting as written.  Motion approved.

Reports of Officers:

Treasurer’s Report:

President’s Report:

  • The synod Tool Kit workshop is available, but not required. Look over the packet.
  • Thank you for submitting your council forms

Vice-President’s Report:

  • First aid training went well, the new AED was installed. We will wait to request the money to get a better idea of where to take it from.

Secretary’s Report

  • Please submit all written reports by the Saturday before the monthly council meeting. Melissa will send out the monthly council packet by Sunday or Monday night, at the latest.

Ministry Team Reports

Property Report

Current Projects

  • HVAC – Marsh – Wi-Fi (computer operated) – two thermostats installed
  • Window coverings complete
  • AED installed
  • Roof leak – Bill Fredrick is working with Insurance Company
  • All ushers took CPR training
  • Next 12 Months (This year)
  • Roof bubbling
  • Tree in courtyard
  • Tuck point building
  • Clean holding pond south side
  • Short Term (5 Years)
  • Security lights
  • Computer-operated lighting
  • LED lighting out side of building
  • Fire alarm panel
  • West metal door separating
  • South metal door not closing
  • Long Term (10 Years)
  • Parking lot
  • Carpet replacement
  • Replace boiler system
  • Spiritual Growth 
  • None
  •  
  • Sunday Morning Experience
  • SME Committee was joined by the Property Management Committee at meeting on February 5 to discuss an Emergency Response Plan for our Congregation. The Committees decided to work towards developing a Plan.       Next step is for Wayne of Property Committee to connect with Wayne Boike and see if our insurance provider can offer assistance in developing a plan as part of their risk management efforts.
  • Head Usher updates: SME facilitated CPR\AED training for Head Ushers on January 25. 7 of the 11 Head Ushers attended with another 18 Prince of Peace members for a total of twenty-five. The Plymouth Rotary proved the training at no cost, and have offered to return again in two years for a refresher. The SME Committee is looking for one additional Head Usher who can start in December, 2018, and one additional Head Usher to have a total of twelve for 2019.
  • Visitor and New Member Welcoming: The SME Committee has updated the Welcoming Bag contents to include Natalia’s book Uplift, a note pad, a pen, and a card with PoP service times. The Welcoming Bags are stored in the office. WE Team coordinators will attempt to staff the Welcome Table as available.
  • The Committee discussed new ideas for Volunteer Recognition beyond the SME Committee to include all congregation volunteers.   Planning will be discussed at the March SME meeting.
  • Pew Organization & Clean Up continues with the same reliable team performing weekly.
  • WE Team Coordinators gathered to review current WE Team volunteers and discussed how to rejuvenate the WE Team participation with a focus on 10:30am service participation.
  • Next SME Team Meeting is Monday – 03/05/2017 at 6:00 pm

 Outreach

Upcoming Events

2/23 – Winter Wonderland – Park Brook

  • Request sent to Lynell to include volunteer request in upcoming Take Note or Enews communications.
  • Volunteers are needed from 5:15 – 8 p.m. for set up and staffing games and activities.
  • Sign-up sheet will be placed on the kiosk on Sunday 2/18

2/23 – Avenues Feb Birthday Party – Jodi

  • There is one February birthday on 2/23. Jodi will drop off cake, ice cream and gift for Niyanna.
  • Jodi will also confirm any March birthdays and deliver on or before 3/5.

3/22 March Park Brook Music Concert/Meal

  • Menu: All beef hotdogs, chips, apples, cookies, punch, buns, condiments
  • Supply needs: Paper plates, napkins, cups
  • Projected Attendees: 125
  • Food and Supply Purchase: Craig and Cathy will ask Cub and Hyvee for donations and/or purchase at Restaurant Depot or Costco
    • Outreach reimbursement – Craig and Cathy will submit. Last year we spent about $300.00
  • Volunteers: Craig and Cathy Krogstad, Sally Onstad and George Umolac. Looking for 2-4 more. Volunteer requests sent to Jodi’s Group Life team and Brent to recruit student volunteers who may need some volunteer hours.
  • Timeline:
    • Cook 4:30 – 5:30. May do the cooking at POP. If so, Craig to send Lynell a room reservation request. He will also confirm if we can borrow a roaster and punch tub
    • Serving 5:30 – 6:30
    • Clean-up – 6:30 – 7:00

March CEAP Food Share Month

  • March 1 – CEAP will drop off food barrels
  • March 1 – 24 – General food donation collection
  • Palm Sunday – Dollar Sunday
    • Monetary donation collection
    • Rachael Hickok from CEAP will do a Ministry Moment to thank us for our support
  • Maundy Thursday- Bread making supplies (flour, canola oil, salt, sugar, dry yeast)
  • Good Friday – Rice and beans
  • Easter Sunday – Breakfast foods (peanut butter, jelly, pancake mix, syrup, fruit juice, cereal, powdered milk)
  • Jodi sent requests to post in eNews and Take Note as well as on sanctuary screens

Feed the Need – Brent is looking for volunteers to help with Feed the Need, another March Food Share Month event. Volunteers pass out flyers about MN Foodshare Month to Cub shoppers and collect donations in barrels outside Cub. Some volunteers may also staff a table inside where shoppers can purchase pre-bagged donation bags.

  • Date: Saturday, March 24
  • Location: Brooklyn Park Cub near church
  • Shifts: 10–12:30 and 12:30–3
  • Jodi to print flyers and a create a sign-up sheet for the POP kiosk

4/23 – Blood Drive

  • Craig made reservations made with Memorial Blood Centers
  • Drive is scheduled from 2:30 – 6:30
  • Craig to promote in Take Note for March/April and submit room reservation request for a table set-up for sign-up Sundays and for the day of the event.
  • Craig will also email past donors.

New Project Ideas

  • The POP youth are going to Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota this summer for a mission trip from 7/8 – 7/13. Sally will reach out to Brent for ideas on how Outreach can partner with him and the youth. Last time the youth went on a mission trip to Pine Ridge, we did a book collection.

Completed Project Reports

1/10 – Cancer Support Group – “Conversations with Kelly” – well attended and very inspiring event. Kelly signed and sold copies of her book after the event.

1/25 – Annual Clean the Kitchen Party- Cathy and Craig Krogstad, Teri Revell, Jo and Frank Fachman, Geri Schroeder and Ann Barron volunteered for this much needed and much appreciated task. Thank you!

Jodi created a project report template that project chairs will use to document key details about projects. We’ll store these for future reference.

Next Meeting:

  • Jodi will be gone in March so we discussed alternative dates or cancelling the meeting. We decided to cancel and just keep everyone informed about upcoming project details via email.
  • Next Outreach Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, April 10 at 7:00 p.m. in the Welcome Center

Community Life

  • The first event will be a music trivia party on Friday, March 2.
  • We have 24 people signed up, and our capacity is 36.
  • Patti has started a database for targeted emailing. Anyone who signs up for music trivia will receive notifications about future events. She also had a signup sheet the last 2 Sunday’s for people who just want to receive the targeted emails, even though they cannot attend music trivia.
  • Patti texted people she knew, created a Facebook event for her PoP friends, had Nate share it to the congregation Facebook page, made a poster for Sunday morning, and Natalia let Group Life Leaders know. Patti is working to improve communication which has proved to be a barrier for the Community Life team in the past.

Congregational Care

None

Staff Reports:

Children and Family Ministry:

LOOKING BACK/MOMENT OF PRAISE

  • Being on leave for 12 weeks was great – and it was nice to know that things were left in the capable hands of Haley Reiser and MANY volunteers. Thank you for your support in allowing me that time – however, I am happy to be back!
  • The Christmas program was great and it was a new experience viewing it as a parent.

 

CURRENT

  • Sunday School is settling back into a regular routine now that we have passed the Stewardship/Advent/Christmas hump. Our next Family Worship Sunday is on Sunday, February 18th where we will be decorating bed sheets for the Jamaica Team to take with them
  • We continue to see new young families walk in our doors, so I am constantly looking for ways to be reaching out to them and encouraging participation
  • We will once again be doing Minnesota Food Share with CEAP. They have had great success in the past and they are very grateful for the work that we do on their behalf.
  • Summer Day Camp is out and ready for registrations. We will be offering 10 weeks this Summer with taking the week of July 4th off. (The 4th is on a Wednesday so it makes it hard to figure out when to offer it – IF a lot of people request something for that week, we might pull something together)
  • WAPO Registration is also open – Plant Sale information will be available in March and will end on Palm Sunday
  • Currently working on the last group of lessons for this Sunday School year.

LOOKING AHEAD

  • May possibly be looking into new ways “to do Sunday School.” Not sure if any changes will be made for the 2018-2019 School Year, but may have a task force in place to look at what is working and what isn’t
  • Will be working on staffing for Summer Day Camp – looking to maybe add a 4th person to allow a little more supervision and flexibility.

 

Youth and Family Ministry:

Axis  – With Lent comes our 1 on 1 mentoring. This is a highlight of the year for many. We look forward to seeing the building filled with our young people & their mentors having caring conversations.

Revolution  – In addition to experiencing Lent worship services, Revolution will use this season as an evaluation period. Adult leaders & youth participants will meet together to talk about what things have gone well & what things might need improvement/changes to better reach an increasingly busy population.

Parent workshop – We’ve just booked April 4th, 6:30-8:00pm, for a parent workshop on phone/social media/technology use among young people. It’s free & open to the community so help us spread the word! See the POP Facebook page for event details.

Pastoral Reports:

Pastor Chad’s Report:

  • Ash Wednesday went over well.       Lots of positive feedback
  • Council retreat is April 7, from 9-noon. We will watch and discuss a video presentation of the state of the church today. There will be a kick off of a book that presents seven conversations that the council will read and discuss periodically throughout the year.       All council members will receive a copy of the book
  • Council members should do what you do. The leadership gives you autonomy. Ask if you need help, but you are empowered to do what you do best for the church.

Pastor Natalia’s Report:

  • GroupLife just finished up the winter session and it was so great. We have had meaningful conversations around some topics about Jesus posed by authors and theologians in the videos from “The Work of the People.” Our spring session will begin the week of April 8th (one week after Easter) and we will focus in on some women in the Bible and what they can teach us about our own faith and also ourselves. Natalia is really excited to write this one!
  • Lent is going with our mid-week worship services, at 7pm, focusing on a theme of “Vessels of faith.”  We will spend each week thinking not only about the vessels that are used in worship and in our daily lives, but how we are vessels, and what that means for us returning to God during this season of Lent.
  • Natalia participated in her final “First Call Theological Conference” (a three year requirement) in early February and was challenged and moved by our speakers and the community of new clergy that are a part of this church of ours. The conversations were meaningful and powerful and she returned with renewed energy for her own call and our church here.
  • Also, in mid March Natalia will attend her 3rd “Why Christian?” conference, this year all the way in Durham, North Carolina. This conference challenges church leaders to yearly ponder why we still do this church thing, by hearing stories around the question “Why Christian?”
  • Lastly, our Council retreat will be on Saturday, April 7th, from 9am to 12pm. Location TBD. Mark your calendars now!
  • Pastoral Acts (December 15-February 15): Funerals: 3  Weddings: 0  Baptisms: 1

Unfinished Business:

None

New Business:

  • Council meetings are open to the congregation, so if you think some of your team would like to be a part of the book discussion, invite them. The book encourages conversation.
  • Council members should model good communication. Please steer anybody with an issue to the person directly. Pose the question, “Have you brought this to the pastors?”
  • SME and Property discussed creating an emergency plan. Ex. Fire, tornado, etc. In case of fire in the sanctuary, a gate drops over the big doors. Tornado shelters are the bathrooms, choir room, media room, and the interior rooms.
  • SME would like an all-church volunteer recognition.
  • We have applied for a Lily grant from Augsburg with the Riverside Innovation Hub which is a grant that researches young adults, and provides a paid coach.
  • Council Retreat April 7th, 9:00-noon. Place to be determined
  • Lynell Keller: went over the folders and explained what is inside
  • Check contact info to see if it is correct.
  • Fill out room reservation forms for everything and send it to Lynell.
  • Get a key card or Master. Fill out the form and make sure you check to see if the security system is off. At the end of whatever meeting you are having, make sure to arm the system.
  • Publications are to be turned in the Monday before the last Sunday
  • Ask to be put on the distribution list.
  • Fill out a reimbursement form for money. You will need your budget code. If you collect money, fill out a white sheet and put it in the safe. You have a copy of your tax-exempt number.
  • If you make copies make sure you secure the correct copyright
  • The child safety training is done by Brent in the spring and by Katie in the fall.Action Items:
  • Our next meeting will be April 17, 2018 at 7:00 pm.
  • NO MARCH COUNCIL MEETING. However, turn in a report as if we were meeting. Executive council will still meet.
  • Our 2018 Council retreat will be held on Saturday, April 7th from 9am-12pm (location TBD). Mark your calendars!
  • Turn a Bio into Lynell in the next couple of weeks for the website.

A motion was made by Linda Forkey and seconded by Lynn Anderson to adjourn the meeting.  Motion approved.  Meeting adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Melissa Johnson

Council Secretary