|
Bethlehem Lutheran Church Congregational Meeting
Part 1 of 2007 Annual Meeting
February 11, 2007 Minutes
A quorum was established with 72 voting members in attendance.
The meeting was called to order by Council President John Natterstad at 1:10 pm.
Pastor Walles led the opening devotion.
A motion was made to approve the written minutes from the Part 2 of the Annual Congregational Meeting of November 19, 2006. The motion was seconded. The motion was unanimously approved.
Council President John Natterstad asked to amend the agenda so that the Unfinished Business of the Creek Restoration on 10 Acres East of 67th would move up to the Elections part of the agenda as it will be on the ballot with a yes or no vote in writing. A motion was made to approve the amended agenda. The motion was seconded. The motion was unanimously approved.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer John Hulbert explained the Balance sheet on page 15 of the annual report. We ended the year with a $13,000 deficit. He read the resolution to clarify disbursement of funds raised by the RSVP Campaign in 2003. John answered questions regarding the resolution and extra principal payments. The extra principal payment for funds collected in 2006 has not been made but will be shortly. Any funds that were clearly marked on the giving envelope to go to capital fund for debt reduction will go towards an extra principal payment on the mortgage. Going forward, the giving envelopes will need to change to reflect that the capital fund line item has been eliminated. Giving can still occur, but it will be a pass through account.
Report of the Senior Pastor
Pastor Richards referred to his written report on pages 23-24 of the annual report. He offered his thanks to Sharon Richards for helping to keep the ledger up to date for the congregation. We are a baptized congregation of just over 1450. Only about 2% of the ELCA congregations are larger than ours. He would like to see our worship attendance number grow to over 500 so we are encouraged to continue to extend the invitation to others. Pastor Richards stated that his request for 2007 was to balance the ministry needs and the paying down of the debt. We did raise $165,000 in 2006 for items that were not part of the original budget. There will always be tension between ministry and mission. But we need to be mindful of what it means to be a great congregation in a growing community. 2007 will have as many as if not more opportunities for our church. He gave thanks for the things we did do in 2006 such as hosting a wonderful seminary intern, Matt Knopf. We were blessed many times over by him. We continue to be blessed by our partnership with Trinity as we now host intern, Ryan Brown who has become a valuable part of the Youth Ministry. We raised money for Hurricane Katrina, we had an auction to help raise funds for a youth trip to LA and we helped support a solar food dehydration program in Tanzania. All were very worthy causes. Again he stated that his request for 2007 was to balance the ministry needs and the desire to pay down the debt. Pastor Richards along with Pastor Walles gave thanks for the many, many, many years of service that Kathy Blake has provided as first the treasurer and then financial secretary to our congregation. She was honored with a standing ovation and a gift certificate to a spa in Snohomish for a day of rest and renewal.
Report of the Associate Pastor
Pastor Walles stated that he did not want to be a part of a church that did not have a mortgage payment. A church that doesn’t have debt is a church that doesn’t take risks and he isn’t interested in being a part of that kind of a church. Again he poked fun at the portable video system that is currently broken and had to be quickly rigged together for the meeting and expressed hopes for getting something more permanent in place soon. Pastor Walles feels that our congregation is being called to do more for less. We need to do less, concentrate our funds more and hone down things so that what we do will reach people better with a greater emphasis and strength. He offered to work with any committee that needs help.
Nominating Committee Report
Roger Isaacson introduced the Nominating Committee and thanked them for a job well done. Ballots were handed out. The floor was opened for nominations to be added to the ballot for each position and Pastor Walles wrote nominated names on the overhead screen. The candidates were introduced. After all introductions were made, Roger Isaacson turned the floor back over to John Natterstad to discuss the Creek Restoration issue on the ballot.
Creek Restoration on 10 Acres East of 67t
John Natterstad reminded everyone that entering into the agreement with the county could be a ten-year obligation. Another option is to put the land into a nature conservancy, which was Bly’s original plan but he didn’t carry it out. We would receive anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 from the county to do creek enhancements but we would need to be willing to put sweat equity into the work. If we would go with a nature conservancy, we would need to actually sell the land to the conservancy and then we would have no use of the property. If the vote is yes, work could begin on the creek as soon as June. John answered as many questions as he could during a lengthy question and answer time. A motion was made to refer this matter to the Property and Grounds Committee to come back with more information at a later time. The motion was seconded. Voting took place by show of hands. Yes votes were 41. No votes were 27. The motion carried. Do not cast a vote for the Creek Restoration project on the election ballot.
A motion was made to close nominations. The motion was seconded. The motion was unanimously approved. Ballots were filled out and collected for counting.
Council President John Natterstad noted that Roger Isaacson would not be staying on as Vice President. Instead Roger has been asked to be the Kitsap property sales representative for the council. John also gave thanks to each of the outgoing council members and thanked them for their service.
Music
Tom Frodsham led the group in singing two verses of the LBW hymn #369 – The Church’s One Foundation. He also expressed his thanks for the support the congregation has given to him and his family for the past six years.
Council President John Natterstad asked Ernie Fosse if he would like to speak to the group regarding the Trinity Relocation decision. Ernie reported that Trinity has entered into an agreement to obtain the old federal building on Colby Street in Everett. The building has been completely refurbished to be a state of the art college. They have also entered into a purchase agreement with the Drumheller family to purchase a building and parking lot. When it is all said and done, Trinity will own almost the whole city block in which it can do urban ministry and education. This will put Trinity on pretty secure footing for the next hundred years. Ernie also gave thanks to Pastor Walles for the wonderful job he did at leading devotions for Trinity’s board meeting.
Unfinished Business
Wilcox Kitsap Property Sale – Roger Isaacson reported that he really didn’t have anything new to report since the last update. Two people have shown interest in the property but there have been no offers made yet. There is still much to be done such as a visit to the property, obtaining an agent and determining the value of the land.
Outreach Campus – Pastor Walles reported that a couple of grants have been applied for that would help provide funding for programs if we decided to go with the interim step of building playfields on the 15 acres. Just because we have applied for the grants doesn’t mean that we have decided to move forward with this idea. He will keep us posted on the status of the grants.
New Business
Appoint/Authorize a Task Force for Calling Worship/Music Person – Pastor Richards clarified that a motion needed to be made authorizing the council to gather a job description and move forward to find a candidate for this position. A motion was made to authorize the council to form a task force with the purpose of calling a worship/music person. The motion was seconded. The motion was unanimously approved.
Results of Elections Announced
Council President John Natterstad read the election results as follows:
Vice President – Rick Hart
Secretary – Michelle Bach
Evangelism – Jill Maas
Stewardship – Amy Goheen
Worship and Music – Edi Dirkes
Social Concerns – Larry Beach
Children’s Ministry – the council will appoint someone to this position
Endowment Committee – Bruce Bashforth and Kathy Schaefer
Josephine Home Representatives – Jean Hovet and Richard Hovet
Bethany of the NW Representative – DiAnne Shoup
Synod Assembly Representatives – John Natterstad, Roy Wenzel, Maureen Mitchell, Julie Sailer and Krista Sparks.
Pastor Richards led the closing prayer.
Council President John Natterstad adjourned the meeting at 2:58pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Jodi Ankrom
Council Secretary
|
