Church Council Meeting - December 18 , 2002

Cheryl Patrick called the church council meeting for December 18th, 2002 to order at 7:40 P.M. in the Shelton Congregational Church Library. The meeting opened with a prayer offered by Rev. Greg Schmidt. A quorum [6] was met, with 7 being present [P] and 5 being absent [A].

The minutes from the November 20th, 2002 meeting were reviewed and accepted after the following errors were noted. 1. There was no mention of the church survey results or Bill Barker's comments and opinions pertaining to such results. 2. The Financial Secretary was absent, but, Assistant Treasurer and Nominating were not noted as absent also. Cheryl Patrick then called on the officers and committee chairs for their reports.

MINISTER- Rev. Dr. Greg Schmidt- December 22nd, 2002 will be a very busy Sunday. We will have the Fourth Advent Candle Lighting, Children's Pageant and the Choir Christmas Concert. Help will be needed to move the piano and center altar. Christmas Eve Service will be 7 PM and there will be no communion. New Year's Eve will start with a pot luck dinner at 10:30 PM with services starting at 11:30 PM. We will write down what we are grateful for and read the responses at the Peace Pole. The service will end with communion.

TREASURER-Bruce Nichols-During the month of November the church had expenses of $8,984.99 and income $13,127.58 for a net surplus of $4,142.59. Expenses for the month were reduced to some extent by an early payment of the minister's salary in October. Income was bolstered by the sale of Greg's father's car for $3500.00. On November 8th, $6000.00 was transferred from Fidelity to the checking account. Shares of the Fidelity Short Term Bond Fund were sold to cover this transfer. Net worth for the church at the end of November stood at $244,694.36, up $11,968.41 from the previous month. The increase reflects a corresponding rise in the value of the church portfolio during the month combined with the additional income from the sale of the car.

CHRISTIAN EDUCATION- Jan Wells-Betty Ogden -No report.

DEACONS-Gene Ogden- No report.

TRUSTEES-Glenn Wells-Bill Barker reported trustees would have a workday on January 25th , 2003 starting at 8 AM. Dick Conklin has donated floor tiles for the Youth Group Room in the parish house. Lesley Barker will lead this project. The lead abatement on the parish house is 3/4 done. All outside abatement work is deferred for winter. The project has cost $7,000.00 instead of $10,000. The church has been notified the appeal has been received in Hartford. Uncertain as to when we will hear back. Replacement of 14 windows in the church basement, on abatement list, will cost $3700.00. This will be reflected in the 2003 budget. The council approved a "Buy a Window" offer to be made to the church membership. A window would cost approximately $250.00. Dick Conklin has donated a salt bucket for the front sidewalk. It will be kept in the narthex. Next meeting will be January 15th, 2003 at 6:30 PM.

OUTREACH-Lesley Barker- Outreach met on December 1st, 2002. Spooner House will be served on December 21st, 2002. Shelton P&Z has asked the pending Spooner House application be postponed for two months to study the parking issue. All 20 gifts for the Angel Tree were supplied. The Christmas Card Tree did OK. Next meeting will be January 5th , 2003 after worship services.

MEMBERSHIP-Walt Crosby- Bill Barker reported our membership went from 162 to 175 members this year. We had a loss of 3.

NOMINATING- Lucille Wells-Kathey DeMarco- Lucille reported all committee positions as filled with the exception of one opening on Nominating.

FUNDRAISING- Betty Ogden-The 110th Anniversary Party was good time and well attended.

WOMEN'S FELLOWSHIP-Lucille Wells-The Christmas Fair was excellent. The pot luck dinner was held on December 10th, 2002 and discussed was how to improve next year's fair. No meetings are scheduled for January and February.

STEWARDSHIP- Sharon Schmidt- Greg reported 57 commitments totaling $49,193.00. Fifteen are outstanding for potentially $9,734.00 more. The estimated total for 2003 is 73 commitments totaling $58,927.00. This represents a $9,673.00 increase over the current year. So far 33 pledges are new or increased (more than half). The Consecration Sunday Program was a success both on the educational and financial front. The committee is developing a Thank You card for the office to use when members chose to send in their pledge in a lump sum and people who give to a specific fund drive. We need to pay more attention acknowledging our gifts rather than just asking for them.

BUDGET COMMITTEE-Bill Barker-Next meeting scheduled for January 2nd, 2003.

OLD BUSINESS:

1. The Congregational Survey requesting data on members is tabled until the first of the year.

NEW BUSINESS:

1. Driving by the church Lesley Barker noticed the lack of a sign or banner promoting our church theme. Could this be something we could do? The idea was tabled until the January council meeting to give members an opportunity to think about it.

2. Lucille Wells asked about the red bibles just replaced in the pews and what was going to happen to them. A suggestion was made to sell the bibles for $1.00 or free to those who wished them. A motion was made by Bruce Nichols and seconded by Bill Barker. The vote was unanimous.

The next council meeting will be held on January 15th, 2003 at 7:30 P.M. in the Shelton Congregational Church Library. The Rev. Greg Schmidt led the council in saying "The Lord's Prayer." The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 P.M.

Respectfully Submitted
Betty Ogden, Clerk