APPROVED

St. Paul's Church in Brookline

Minutes of the Vestry Meeting

April 27, 2010

Present: The Rev. Jeffrey Mello, Rector, Steve Kelley, Senior Warden, Georgia Smith, Junior Warden, Bev Estes-Smargiassi, Treasurer, Steve Morrissey, Acting Clerk, Jeff Brown, Roger House, Elizabeth Laurencot, Jim Margolis, Fred Muehter, Madeleine Taylor, and Ginny Willcox.

The meeting opened at 7:30 p.m. with a prayer.

Agenda

The agenda was approved.

Minutes

The March minutes were approved.

Church Growth Theory

Jeffrey Mello described church growth theory, where St. Paul’s currently stands, and the direction in which we are moving.

Warden’s Report

Clinton Path is planning a 10’ sandbox structure in the rear play area. The building committee will review the plans.

Jim Santagati will begin as our new sexton on May 3, working Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings from 6 to 9, Saturday for two hours after 4, and Sunday from noon to 5. Walter Mucha will provide training.

Landscaping work will begin between the church and the rectory, as described in an e-mail message from the Buildings and Grounds Committee.

The new parish directory will be available by summer.         

Treasurer’s Report

The church’s financial situation is good, with increased pledges and plate offerings. We are taking less from the endowment than last year. Now that renovations are complete, we will assess utilities use and costs. Line-by-line treasurer’s reports will be distributed quarterly rather than monthly.

Parochial Report

The numbers of communicants and the church financials, operating and capital, were presented to the vestry, which voted to approve them, as revised, for the parochial report.

Rector’s Report

The diocesan Clergy Conference is scheduled for April 28 through 30.

It was agreed that the vestry item for the St. Paul’s Silent Auction will be a collection of movie DVDs. Each vestry member will contribute a favorite movie and the reasons it was chosen.

The Worship Committee is assessing the activities of Holy Week 2009.

Sacristy Update: an environmental cleaning service will be needed for the tower and the screened windows at the top. Until the tower has been cleaned, the sacristy will continue to operate from its temporary home in the chapel.

Upcoming Events

Walk for Hunger: interested parishioners will meet at the church at 7 a.m. or at the cathedral at 8 a.m. on May 2 and will walk from the Common to St. Paul’s, arriving in time for the 10 o’clock service.

The annual USPS letter carriers’ food drive is on May 8.  Help will be needed from 12:30 to 6:00 that afternoon to sort and store donations to the Brookline Emergency Food Pantry.

On May 9, Rogation Sunday, we will process around the boundaries of the church property.

The annual Silent Auction will be held on May 15. Contributions are encouraged.

Pentecost Ministry Fair (May 23): Elizabeth Laurencot is coordinating the service and the fair, which will take place in the Great Hall after the service, with a table for each program or ministry at St. Paul’s.

Youth Sunday (June 6)

Church Picnic (June 13)

Yard Sale (September 11)

Homecoming (September 12)

Stewardship

Jim Margolis distributed pledge statistics for 2009 and 2010, highlighting the substantial increase we have seen this year.

Parish Retreat

Madeleine Taylor described the Incarnation Center in Connecticut, where we propose to hold our parish retreat on October 22.

Children’s Steering Committee

Georgia Smith discussed the new church school curriculum for the lower grades, a Bible-based program that we will purchase. The curriculum for the youth group and the confirmation group is being explored. Teacher recruitment is the next task; six or more new volunteers are needed. Georgia plans to institute formation days for church school teachers.

The meeting closed at 9:15 with a prayer.

The next vestry meeting will be on Tuesday, May18, at 7:30 p.m. Mutual Ministry Review will be discussed.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Morrissey

Acting Clerk

APPROVED

St. Paul's Church in Brookline

Minutes of the Vestry Meeting

March 16, 2010

Present: The Rev. Jeffrey W. Mello, Rector; Steve Kelley, Senior Warden; Georgia Smith, Junior Warden; Beverly Estes-Smargiassi, Treasurer; Benjamin Norton, Clerk; Jeff Brown, Liz DeSelm, Elizabeth Laurencot, Jim Margolis, Steve Morrissey, Fred Muehter, and Ginny Willcox

Not Present: Roger House and Madeleine Taylor

The meeting opened at 7:30 p.m. with a prayer.

Agenda

The agenda was voted and approved.

Minutes

The February minutes were approved.

Rector’s Report

Vestry Retreat Review

The Rector facilitated a discussion of vestry members’ experiences at the Vestry Retreat.  People shared important “take-away” reflections and questions from the day such as: Where is God in your life? What door brought you to Saint  Paul’s? What doors do you hope your Saint Paul’s life will open for you?

Forming a connection with an urban parish was discussed, including re-establishing a relationship with St. Mary’s in Dorchester through the B-SAFE (Bishop’s Summer Academic and Fun Enrichment) Program. 

A desire to find ways to better articulate the many groups and ministries at St. Paul’s was discussed.

Church Size and Church Growth

The Rector began a discussion of Church Growth theory.  Specifically, how this theory helps us to understand how churches best operate for their given size. How do we foster ministry in the congregation without creating a ‘bottleneck’ at the leadership level?  As we grow, how might we staff for this growth? 

David’s Farewell Lunch

Ginny at the helm of the Hospitality Committee did an outstanding job hosting David’s Farewell Lunch. The event was well attended.

Interim Sexton

Walter is working very hard to minimize water damage from recent storms, in addition to covering all three positions introduced in the Warden’s Report.

Children’s Steering Committee

The group of 14 enthusiastic volunteers developed a mission statement. The enhancement of the support structure for the nursery, grade school, and junior/senior groups was discussed.

Holy Week Update

The refinement of the schedule, flyers and programs for Holy Week are moving along smoothly.

Ministry Fair at Pentecost

Continuing in the Pentecost tradition, we are planning an event to celebrate Pentecost as the church’s birthday. The Ministry Fair will include tables for each ministry area (acolytes, altar guild, Honduras, M.O.P., Sunday School, etc.) to introduce their respective activities to the parishioners first hand, and provide an opportunity for increased involvement in these ministries.

Warden’s Report

Staffing Update

The position of Sexton will be restructured to three positions Evening Sexton, Concert Coordinator, and Landscaper/Cleaner.

Clinton Path Update

At the annual March meeting, admission priority for St Paul’s parishioners’ children for Fall ’11 enrollment, and rent adjustments were discussed. Clinton Path will reply after their Board meets.

Capital Campaign Update

The Capital Campaign is beginning the final project review which will include the identification of outstanding projects. A strong third year will ensure parish-wide enthusiasm and participation.

Directory Update

Lifetouch Studios will be take photos for the directory on April 13^th and 14^th. Photo submissions will be accepted. Parish members will be able to securely access the directory online. Printed directories will be produced every three years.

Treasurer’s Report

A trainer is being sought to help Beverly, Genae, Lydia, Pat, and Lucy get up to speed on the new QuickBooks accounting software. Usher training, which will include the development and implementation of a checklist for handling the offertory, is needed to comply with diocese guidelines.

Announcements

New Shepherd Lists were distributed by Elizabeth.

The meeting closed with a prayer.

Respectfully submitted by

Benjamin Norton, clerk

APPROVED

St. Paul's Church in Brookline

Minutes of the Vestry Meeting

February 23, 2010

Present: The Rev. Jeffrey W. Mello, Rector; Steve Kelley, Senior Warden; Georgia Smith, Junior Warden; Beverly Estes-Smargiassi, Treasurer; Benjamin Norton, Clerk; Jeff Brown, Liz DeSelm, Roger House, Elizabeth Laurencot, Jim Margolis, Steve Morrissey, Fred Muehter, Madeleine Taylor, Not Present: Ginny Willcox.

The meeting opened at 7:30 p.m. with a prayer.

Introductions

Junior Warden Georgia Smith, returning Vestry member Fred Muehter, and new Vestry members Jeff Brown and Roger House, were welcomed to the Vestry.

Agenda

The agenda was voted and approved.

Minutes

The January minutes were approved as amended.

Warden’s Report

Building and Grounds Update

Steve Kelley reviewed the structure and details of cost reconciliation from our architects, Donham and Sweeney, for the construction and remodeling of the parish hall and rectory.

Clara Batchelor has completed landscaping mock-ups. An arborist observed the large tree next to the playground, and voiced structural concerns. For safety reasons the tree will be removed.

Interior and exterior signage, dehumidification in the rectory basement, and re-sanding of the sanctuary floor, are in the works.

Clinton Path Update

Meetings are planned to determine the future rate structure. Clinton Path will be encouraged to set aside some spots for Saint Paul’s parishioners’ children. Storage space issues will also be discussed.

Treasurer’s Report

Software Update

A web-based version of Quickbooks has been introduced to integrate the efforts of the four people working on church finances, including Lucy’s take-over of various responsibilities. Training sessions are planned for those unfamiliar with the application.

Messiah Sing Update

Memorial funds were sought to cover some of the expenses of the Messiah sing. Voted and approved.

Rector’s Report

Vestry Retreat Update

The retreat on March 6^th at the Bethany House of Prayer in Arlington will focus on spiritual and community growth and goal setting to help prepare for our mutual ministry review in June. Materials were distributed for participant review prior to the event. 

Parish Life Update

Everyone in the office has been very busy in the ramp up to Holy Week. Andy, Lucy and Jeff have been meeting often to plan and coordinated the extra services. There will be an early Good Friday service with material specifically chosen for its child-friendly content. Banners will be used to promote the services. Vestry “shepherds” will get the word out so all parish members will know about the service schedule. Eli will contact Arlene to arrange the hand-over of “flock” lists.

Jeff is doing six-month reviews with all staff members.

The meeting closed with a prayer.

Respectfully submitted by

Benjamin Norton, clerk