Minutes from September 11, 2008 Leadership Council Meeting

The leadership council met Sept. 11, 2008 with 12 people in attendance.  Colin Rice called the meeting to order and Rev. Staton opened the meeting with prayer. 

Martha Vaughn had nothing new from the Worship Committee.

Mary Meece reported for Harriet Byrd and the UMW.  Harriet requested that leadership approve a committee to work with her on Education.  Rev. Staton answered that the committee can be formed without a Leadership vote.  The UMW had no new report.  Donna Taylor’s health is allowing her to work on the cookbooks again. Mary reminded everyone that the MERCI mission trip is Sept. 27th and she would like everyone to attend.  No new information was reported from Mary as the Lay Delegate to Conference.

Dave Strohpaul had no report from the Stewardship Committee.

Lois Snyder still has the three ongoing projects:  Dec. 6th will be the Craft Fair.  There will be room for 22 vendors and she is going to contact different groups to ask if they would like to provide food for the fair.  Her suggestion was that 25% of the food profits go to the general fund.  The trip to Mike’s Farm is scheduled for Dec. 15th.  Lois will prepare flyers and have them in the Narthex Oct. 26th.  The UMW Tea is Nov. 1st and other ladies from other area churches as well as pastors will be invited.  Jean Hawley will be in charge of food, Lois will handle the program and Faye Strickland will handle devotions.  Other churches will be asked to bring displays of their activities.

Sam Snyder gave the trustees report that he, Bruce Williams and Billy Martin had changed light bulbs in the sanctuary and Sam had changed some in other areas.  The estimate to repair the broken window is $206.00.

Jim Vaughn gave an update on the Nov. 16th New Consecration Sunday.  The first meeting with the guest speaker, Rev. Bruce Stanley, will be October 5th.

Cindy Faulk gave information about the Family Fun Day on Sept. 13th and Student Day at Duke which is Sept. 27th.

Sandy Taylor passed out the August Operating Fund and Building Fund Budget Reports. Things are beginning to improve.  Lois asked if there was an amount that could be paid toward our apportion-ments now but no motion was made toward that.  Sandy has been seeking information and attended a seminar in Jacksonville about the finances.  Two things need to be changed with the way finances are being handled.  One is the way that the money is counted; there must be copies of checks and envelopes that contained cash and checks made.  The other is that there can no longer be in-kind giving.

Bill Feige said that the pending project of video taping Worship Services is on hold until after the yard sale.

Rev. Jesse then gave his report.  1.  The beach service was a fine experience.  2.  We just hosted the Bishop and cabinet for their annual meeting and hosting it should keep us in good stead, we think they may want to come back next year.  3.  People are being recruited to attend the Sept. 14th District Meeting in New Bern.  4.  Community Garden – Rev. Jesse took a course, then met with the Ladies breakfast group about the garden.  Kirk Binning has agreed to be the manager and the Trustees have said we have the land.  The UMM will be asked for up front funds and then we will apply for a Duke Endowment to fund the project.  Martha made the motion and Bill Feige seconded that we approve a committee to handle the project.  The motion was approved unanimously.  5.  Charge Conference is Sept. 29th at 7PM.  6.  The Young Adults are doing a great job of organizing themselves into a group that will meet the first Friday of each month until the end of the year.  7.  The special offerings from the Advent and Lenten seasons will go toward our Mercy Abounds ministry.  8.  Friday emails were discussed and whatever anyone wants to go in them will be sent in the message.  Articles are due by 9AM on Thursday.  9.  Saturday, Jan. 24th there will be the planning retreat for the Leadership Council.

Before the meeting was adjourned, Martha Vaughn asked about the newsletter, if we had a standardized plan.  Rev. Jesse answered that Mary Meece is working on a communications committee.  Mary then said that Faye Strickland will be chairing the committee as of January.  Much discussion was then held concerning the newsletter.

After a closing prayer, the meeting was adjourned.

Minutes from August 7, 2008 Leadership Council Meeting

The leadership council met Aug. 7, 2008 with 14 people in attendance.  Sam Snyder called the meeting to order in the absence of Colin Rice.  Rev. Staton opened the meeting with prayer. 

Lois Snyder reported that the current project for the Hospitality Committee was gathering and making gift baskets for Rev. Greg Jenks and his family.  They will be here Aug. 9 – 16 with Rev. Jenks delivering the message here on the 10th about the ZOE ministry.  Thank you to Cathy Medlin for arranging the housing this year. The Fall Bazaar will be Dec. 6 from 10-2 here at Faith Harbor.  Booths and tables will be available for rent and Lois is contacting various artists, craftsmen, etc. about renting space.  Lois will follow-up with Sunday School classes, UMW, and the UMM to raise additional money if needed.  The trip to Mike’s Farm is Dec. 15.  The Aug. family night dinner went very well with good attendance. Everyone enjoyed the hymn sing.  $98.00 was collected in the donation basket.  Jean Hawley is working on the instruction book for the kitchen. The Christmas brunch this year will be Dec. 7th.

Harriet Byrd announced that there will be an organizational meeting for Disciple I on Aug. 18th and

for Disciple IV on the 19th, both at 6:30.  Discussion was held about spreading word about Disciple classes to the community.

Dave Strohpaul spoke for the Stewardship Committee and said they had decided to continue with a “soft sell” method for now since there would be future campaigns for increased offering.  Members will also periodically speak on stewardship on Sunday morning.  He then turned the stewardship report over to Jim Vaughn who gave details about the New Consecration Committee and their plans for fall.  Letters will be going out and a special speaker, Rev. Bruce Stanley, will be coming in to speak on Nov. 16th. 

For the UMW, Doris Davis passed out the attached report that lists all the circles and their missions.  Lois added that the UMW Tea would be Nov. 1 and that area churches would also be invited.  Invitations will go out to the churches and they will be invited to bring literature about their missions, etc.

Doug Medlin reported that the Staff Parish Relations committee had met on Wed. Aug. 6th, to discuss salaries for 2009.  Their recommendations have been given to the Finance Committee who will review and report at the Sept. Council meeting. 

Sally Scott had a handout for the Rainbow Circle and explained their efforts towards their project, a cookbook.  She represented Donna Taylor in asking that the council approve this project with profits going toward the building fund.  Several suggestions and recommendations were discussed.  Mary Meece asked for clarification on whether the funds could be used for our current building debt or only for new projects.  Sally said that Donna had just requested for the building fund in general.  Martha Vaughn moved and Harriet Byrd seconded it that the project be approved and the motion carried unanimously. 

The beach service is going very well according to Worship Committee chair, Martha Vaughn.  Average attendance is approximately 70 people.  The Aug. 3rd, Baptism and New Member Sunday went well and we are looking forward to Advent.

The finance report (attached) was passed out by Doug Mewborn.  Roughly $28,000 was received in July, for 2 weeks that was due to large checks but now the offering seems to be more across the board.  Doug also reported that the UMW has requested that they receive no funds from the yard sale.  The breakdown now for distribution of profits is:  25% each for Building Fund, UMM, Missions and the remaining 25% will be used where it is needed at the time.  Harriet made the motion to approve and Dave Strohpaul seconded with the motion carrying unanimously.  The conversion to the ACS accounting system is going well thanks to the hard work of Sandy Taylor.  Bill Moore added that Sandy had been entering some of July now into ACS.  Bill thanked the Council for helping to spread the budget information to the congregation.  The 2009 budget requests are due by Aug. 15th.  No apportionments have been paid to date. 

Sam Snyder reported for the Trustees that he is waiting for someone to repair the broken window in the Sunday School room.  The front door has been rekeyed and keys are being distributed.

Rev. Staton first addressed the Beach Service.  The goal was to have it right by the end of August with the focus being:  “What do we want to accomplish with this service”?  A report is attached that gives the basics of “The Seven Pathways”, an excerpt from Bishop Al Gwinn’s “2006 State of the Church Address”. 

The 2009 apportionments will be approximately $39,000.  Rev. Staton thanked the Stewardship and Finance committees for their hard work and diligence on the matter of the budget.  He then asked Lois Snyder to explain the “Study Hall” that has been going on this week.  After Lois’ explanation, the idea was well received.  Jesse is also making a concerted effort to meet with our 20-something young men and this program is called, “Pilot House”.  He announced that Mary Meece and Virginia Platts had approached him with a suggestion for a community garden.  Hopefully, they will follow-up on this idea and Rev. Staton will attend a Duke Endowment seminar Aug. 11-13 and one class will focus on the community garden.  The last Beach Service will take place on Aug. 24th.  Also, on that day there will be another short session about Methodism following Sunday School and then at 12:30, there will be a luncheon for young adults.  The plan is for an “Aldersgate Class” to be formed from that luncheon.  Annual Charge Conference will be Sept. 29.  Rev. Staton explained everything that has to happen prior to Charge Conference and that Charge Conference is the Legislative Body of the Church.  Also included in his report were the following:  The Rainbow Circle has volunteered to take on some duties and he has email Sally Scott a list of suggestions, a Membership Secretary is needed to keep up with membership records such as baptisms, new members, transfers, etc.  Sept. 8-10, the Bishop and his Cabinet will again meet at Faith Harbor.  Oct. 23-26 Jesse will attend the Walk to Emmaus, Nov. 16th is New Consecration Sunday with Rev. Bruce Stanley speaking.  Jan. 25-30th, 2009 Rev. Staton will take a Study Leave to attend classes at Duke. 

Minutes from April 24, 2008 Leadership Council Meeting

The leadership council met April 24, 2008 with 12 people in attendance.  Colin Rice called the meeting to order and Rev. Staton opened the meeting with prayer. 

Sherry Mewborn is the chair of the new Building Committee.  She presented a proposal for 1500 sq.ft. of additional space in the form of a room on the back of (south) side of the building.  The committee recommends Shay Clark as architect.  He is the UM Conference architect so is well qualified and his fee is 8% as compared to 10-16% from another architect.  The estimated cost is $150,000.00.  The motion was made and carried to approve this so a called charge conference will be held May 11th.

Lois reported that RSVPs are being received from homecoming invitations.  The men’s group will be providing tents (we have 40 tables) and others will be working on the decorating and other committees.  Confidence was expressed that it would be a wonderful event.

Rev. Staton reported that Karen is working on putting pictures together for a DVD for homecoming.  So far, 1600 photos have been reduced to 600 by sorting out duplicates, etc.  This will be on display on a TV placed in the Narthex.  Rev. Jesse proposed making extra DVD’s and selling them.  Concerns were raised about the privacy and protection to have the children’s images on public display.  Jesse proposed that we go ahead with the presentation for homecoming but do research on the distribution.

Lois handed out a sheet on Family Night Suppers for the committee to review.  There were lists of concerns and options to make changes.  Lois added that all share with their small groups and gather input to discuss at the next meeting.  Also, a committee will be formed to meet on May 15th for kitchen/special events planning. 

Doug Medlin stated that fellowship is very important to our church and he would not want this to go away.  Dave Strohpaul agreed with Doug that fellowship and church are both important.

Doris Davis reported that the UMW will focus on individual ministries with a display table for two Sundays for each ministry.

Doug Mewborn gave the report from the finance committee and a proposal for a memorial fund has been formed.  Discussions were held and agreement was made that memorials will be accepted in accordance with the Book of Discipline.  Also, the copies of the current financial status were distributed and discussed.  There is a budget shortfall and ways of dealing with this were discussed.  Dave Strohpaul stated that we need to maintain the spirituality of the church.  Jim Vaughn will be working with the building committee on raising funds.

Martha Vaughn stated that the Beach Service preparation is going well.  Revising the shepherding

program was discussed and Martha will work on getting it organized again. 

Doug Medlin reported that the SPR committee continues to work on job descriptions and will be establishing employee files.

Mary Meece is the delegate to Annual Conference and informed the group that General Conference is online.

Rev. Jesse’s report was next and he reminded everyone about the workshop Sun. Apr. 27th.  The administrative work has been done for Colin Snider to return as intern for the summer.  Rev. Jesse goes to orientation May 5-6.  Colin will manage the beach service.  Kick-off for the beach service is Sun. May 4th and description of the service was given.  Confirmation and Growing in Christ classes have just completed studies, a report and discussion followed concerning their activities and placement of the cross the class constructed.

After a closing prayer, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Sandy Taylor/km

Minutes from March 27, 2008 Leadership Council Meeting

The leadership council met March 27, 2008 with 12 people in attendance.  Colin Rice called the meeting to order and Rev. Staton opened the meeting with prayer. 

Martha Vaughn reported for the Worship Committee that the Lenten Season and communion went well.  She received positive feedback from the Easter lilies being placed in the Sanctuary.  Plans are ongoing for the new Beach Service which begins May 11 at the Roland Street Crossover, Surf City.  Many people have expressed positive comments about the living cross. Thanks were expressed to Doris Davis for providing the flowers and Bruce Williams for building the cross.

Lois Snyder stated that plans for the May 18th Homecoming are well underway.  She has committees in place and the correspondence committee will have invitations out before the end of the month.  They are considering a hymn sing during the Sunday School time and are contacting the proper people for that.  Hopefully, the weather will cooperate and the meal will be served outdoors with the men handling tents.  Ideas for the first time visitor bags and effective means of delivery are underway and new cups will be ordered for the bags and to also use at festivals, etc.  Lois mentioned the possibility of some change to the Wed. Family Night Suppers.  It was decided that a task force of two people be formed to formulate ideas and then to meet with Pastor Jesse.  Their plan would then be presented at the next council meeting.  Lois & Sam worked on our existing coffee makers and have them in working condition so the item discussed at the last meeting to purchase new makers & pots is tabled until such time there is need.

Sam Snyder & the trustees are meeting Sun. March 30.  Next week, the irrigation pump will be replaced and during the past month Sam has gotten all outdoor lighting working.

Doris Davis represented the UMW as she is President.  There are new circles being added and they continue to work on the Wednesday night Suppers

Bill Moore represented the Finance Committee and gave the financial statement.  He also said past reports have been studied by the committee and they have been investigating variances in statements.  There had been an error made during posting of deposits for a few months and therefore the current balance is approximately $11,000.00 less than earlier reported.  There is a $31,000 reserve which will allow the current budget to continue to be met.  By the next Council meeting reporting will be much better because they are in the process of converting to a general ledger system and then will also use the ACS accounting system.  Attached to these minutes will be a copy of the incorporation papers for future reference.  Sandy Taylor has been working very hard to get old files converted to the new ledger system.  Attached are also copies of the current statement and report.

Jim Vaughn and Dave Strohpaul reported for the Stewardship committee that a stewardship campaign will begin in the fall which will likely include pledge cards, letters, leading towards a “New Consecration Sunday” tentatively scheduled for Nov. 16th.  Tentative plans also include asking Rev. Bruce Stanley, CEO of the Methodist Home for Children to meet with leaders and committee members and then preach on that Sunday.  Dave reminded people that we will also focus on the fact that stewardship is prayers, presence, gifts and service.

Pastor Jesse announced that the stewardship committee will make monthly presentations during worship service.  He thanked everyone for their work to make Holy Week special and said he had received a phone call at home from someone to say that there were lots of different faces working and that it just seemed that everyone was enjoying the Easter festivities.  Preparations are still underway for final plans for the beach service.  Jesse also suggested that plans start after homecoming this year for our ten year anniversary.  Faith Harbor is on the cusp of a paradigm shift but we needs skills to enable us to reach out into untouched areas.  We need to be prepared for changes to come and as a way of doing that we will have the follow-up council retreat on April 27th with a speaker from New Song UMC in New Bern.  There will also be a group going to New Song either Friday, April 4th or 18th.   A final report from the Long Range Planning Committee was given (copy attached).  The report was accepted as is.  Jesse advised the council that building projects are governed by the Book of Discipline.  Experts from Raleigh (NCCUMC) have been to FHUMC to give their recommendations.  When a project such as this is in front of you, it needs a leader with enthusiasm and responsibility, the suggestion was made to make Sherry Mewborn that person.  Bill Feige made the motion and Dave Strohpaul seconded, the motion carried that Sherry would be the chair of the Building Committee for the first phase of construction.  She will form her own committee, which much consist of three people, according to the Book of Discipline.  Sherry and the committee will be work through the guidelines set forth in the Book of Discipline.  The goal is additional space without extra debt. 

After a closing prayer, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Karen Martin

Secretary

Minutes from February 28, 2008 Leadership Council Meeting 

The leadership team met February 28, 2008 with 9 people in attendance.  Colin Rice called the meeting to order and Rev. Staton opened the meeting with prayer. 

Martha Vaughn reported for the Worship Committee and Trustees.  The worship committee is currently focusing on the Lenten and Easter services.  Martha is also working with Rev. Jesse on the upcoming Beach Service which begins May 11 and also on the consecration of the Beach Service workers which is May 4.  For the Trustees, she reported that they now have a regularly scheduled meeting every other month.  A trustee is closing the church on Sundays now – she and Sam have been rotating that.  Also, the trustees have had the front doors worked on and appreciation was expressed for that. 

Cindy Faulk reported that the Basic Youth Group had a lock-in in January which was very successful with about 15 youth attending.  Dawn & Harriet have begun Jr. Basic on the second and fourth Wed. of each month.  This also has been successful and they are currently preparing boxes to mail to our troops.  The children also have a pencil drive going on to collect pencils to send to Africa.  There will be a fundraiser on March 22 in the form of an Easter Carnival.  Cindy expressed appreciation for all the hard work that has gone into the preparations for these.  It has been decided that for the summer of 2008, VBS will be the focus and not Day Camp. 

Bruce Williams and Colin Rice spoke about skate board ramp for the youth.  They would make it out of wood and it would be made so that when not in use it could be stored.  An investigation will be pursued as to how this would be handled with liability insurance. 

Lois Snyder has been talking with Marion Shade and the UMM about the May 18th homecoming plans.  She is also planning to approach one of the ladies circles and ask that they handle correspondence for May 18th.  In this way everyone who has been involved in Faith Harbor from the beginning would be invited to attend.  These preparations have just begun so she will report details at a later meeting.  Lois and Martha Vaughn are investigating the purchase of new coffee pots since the ones we have are not doing well.  The options would be to continue leasing as we are vs. purchasing the pots and coffee.  Decisions will be made after gathering all the needed data.  The two large hospitality focuses for 2008 will be homecoming on May 18th and the Christmas Mike’s Farm trip on December 15th.  The usher and greeter program is going smoothly. 

Harriet Byrd reported that there are still 2 Adult Sunday School classes which are thriving.  The 40 Day Lenten study is also well attended.  Future plans may include a Christ Care group for single adults.  The UMW has purchased books on the UMW reading list and there is a new circle which will focus on the reading program. 

Doug Mewborn distributed copies of the current budget status.  The finance committee has been hard at work transferring from the old bookkeeping system to the ACS system that FHUMC uses for membership and contribution records currently.  The main area of concern this year is apportionments and they will focus on raising money this year to handle those and other expenses.  Doug asked Mary Meece to speak about the Duke Endowment fund.  Mary had done research and explained that many steps need to be taken soon to start the qualification process for the additional funds. 

Bill Moore is the new church treasurer and has been working on the ACS conversion.  He feels this will give a better reporting system as well as streamline the financial process. 

Rev. Jesse Staton, Jr. then expressed his appreciation for the hard work that was being done on all the many things going on.  Dates of upcoming events were given.  These included the United Methodist General Conference in TX from April 23 – May 2.  This will be available via live streaming on the web.  There will be a follow-up retreat of the Leadership Council on April 27th following worship service.  We will have a guest speaker from New Song UMC near New Bern.  Our confirmation class, which this year is “Growing in Christ”, includes all youth who were interested in learning more about the ways and traditions of the church.  There are 14 youth with 4 mentors and is a dynamic program.  “Ten Brave Christians” will be offered this summer and Harriet Byrd will determine if there will be one or two classes.  Rev. Jesse is exploring starting a “Christian Believers” class in the fall.  In addition, Rev. Jesse reported on the men’s ensemble “The Chanteymen”, which is a group of about 9-10 men who meet on Thursday nights to learn and sing old hymns.

The next meeting is March 27th at 7PM.

After a closing prayer, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Karen Martin

Secretary