Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
March 13, 2012 (Approved)
Present: Tom Heinrich, Pastor Chad Brekke, Julia Sevald, Charlie Olson, and Allan Grant
Absent: Bill Fredrick
Call to Order: President Tom Heinrich called the meeting to order at 6:30 pm.
Devotions: Tom Heinrich led the opening devotions.
Adoption of the Agenda: A motion was made by Julia Sevald and seconded by Allan Grant to approve the agenda as presented. Motion Approved.
Approval of Previous Minutes: A motion was made by Julia Sevald and seconded by Tom Heinrich to approve the minutes from the February 8, 2012 Executive Committee meeting as written. Motion approved.
Reports of Officers:
Treasurer/Director of Operations:
Notable February activity:
- During the January Council meeting it was determined that the funds needed to replace the server would not come out of the general fund, but would instead come from a portion of the Thrivent Choice dollars received in February as well as excess funds in the Wedding fund and other designated funds (as approved by the owners). Therefore, the cost of the server ($10,000) has been removed from the budgeted disbursements for 2012.
- Pastor Jim has been approved for long-term disability and the church’s financial obligation for salary and benefits ended on February 29, 2012. Therefore, the budgeted expenses for the Associate Pastor role have been removed from the budget for the months of March and April. It is anticipated that additional ministry staff will be added by the May/June timeframe.
- February receipts are slightly unfavorable to budget by $1,373 and disbursements are also slightly unfavorable to budget by $897. Year to date receipts are unfavorable to budget by $11,408 and disbursements are on budget.
- The general fund activity for the month was a loss of $9,131. This is unfavorable to budget and prior year (loss of $5,826 in February 2011).
- Designated funds that had significant activity for the month were the Adult Mission Trips and Thrivent Choice Dollars.
- General fund receipts for February included $41,105 of pledged offering and $10,068 of unpledged offering.
A motion was made to accept the Treasures Report by Tom Heinrich and seconded by Allan Grant. Motion approved.
President’s Report: President Tom Heinrich reminded the Executive Committee that the Council would be serving the Lenten Supper tomorrow, March 14th.
Vice President’s Report:
Leave A Legacy Update: The total reported balance of funds in the Leave A Legacy accounts is $168,170.05. Team roles for 2012 are as follows: Jim McCarthy – Chairman, Kollett Kaehlert – Treasurer, Marilyn Smith – Secretary, and Bill Fredrick – Council Rep.
Leave a Legacy events planned for the year will include:
- Memorial Sunday, May 27, 2012, the LAL team will sponsor altar flowers, members can sign up for memorial gifts, and the opportunity to make gifts to the endowment fund.
- November 4, 2012, will be All Saints Sunday, also a ministry moment, altar flowers, and baked rolls between services.
- May 6, 2012, LAL is planning another seminar between services. The topic will be life changes. Food will be provided to encourage attendance. Marilyn Smith will chair the food. Jim McCarthy will contact Jerry Johnson to schedule the speaker
Secretary’s Report: No Report
Pastor Report:
Pastor Chad: Pastor Chad reported on the major changes to our staff with Pastor Jim going on Long Term Disability and Nate Bergengren beginning in his role of “Modern Worship Arts and Media Director. Pastor Chad gave special thanks to Rob Wavinak and Rick Soule for giving so much of their time and expertise to improve the acoustical challenges of the worship center.
Pastor Chad reported that Nate is off to a great start and there is a fresh Spirit blowing through our worship, which is evidenced by a significant increase in attendance and overwhelmingly positive feedback from worshippers. He reported that we are already seeing new people using their gifts to participate in leading the music at the 10:30 AM service. There is a new spirit of respect and collaboration between the 9:00 AM and 10:30 AM music leaders.
The other big staffing transition for Prince of Peace comes as the result of Pastor Jim going onto long-term disability as of the end of February and the need to fill our associate position. Pastor Chad reported that he has spent a good deal of time developing a position description for that role and pursuing a variety of possibilities to fill out and strengthen our ministry staff. He has been in consultation with our synod office and executive team along the way.
Pastor Chad ended his report with a paragraph taken from his very first report to the council, submitted ten days after he started serving as the new senior pastor. This paragraph will form the foundation of his vision for moving forward with a gifted, fully staffed ministry team.
From the Senior Pastor’s report submitted for the council meeting on October 11, 2011:
“First impressions…As I begin working with and observing our office and ministry staff, I can say that I am thrilled with the team I will be leading. In several cases, I cannot imagine finding a more gifted, committed and competent person to fill their respective positions if I were to do a national search. I see potential for certain staff positions to evolve over time in order to leverage some of these unique gifts and abilities.”
Unfinished Business: None
New Business: The Executive Committee discussed the lights behind the altar and the difficulty of getting them to be a positive asset to our worship center. President Tom Heinrich will meet with members involved with the lights and discuss next steps.
A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Julia Sevald and seconded by Allan Grant. Motion approved.
Respectfully submitted,
Allan Grant
Secretary