Vestry Minutes
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE VESTRY
OF ALL SAINTS CHURCH
Omaha, Nebraska - May 22, 2012
Burgess Memorial Library - 5:30 PM
MEMBERS PRESENT: Paul Prentiss, Senior Warden; Bryan Peterson, Junior Warden; Pam Barsness,
Becky Connors, Phil Cosimano, John Fickle, Sue Fisher, Matt Payne, Lynn Pirruccello, Lori Schneider, Gary Tesar, Mike Wheeler.
MEMBERS EXCUSED: Doug Lacey, Treasurer; Steve Swanson, Stacey Taylor.
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STAFF: The Rev. Thomas O’Dell, Rector; The Rev. Liz Easton, Associate; Linda Rafael
Opening Hymn – At the Lamb’s High Feast (vs. 1&4) Meditation – Sue Fisher
Study - A discussion of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, chapters 1 & 2.
Approval of minutes of April meeting.
Pam Barsness moved to accept the minutes as mailed out, Becky Connors seconded the motion and it carried.
Treasurer’s Report.
The Treasurer's Report, was presented. Gary Tesar moved to accept the report. Pam Barsness seconded the motion and it carried.
Reports
Report of the Senior Warden - Paul Prentiss
Paul outlined the schedule of upcoming Vestry meetings: June 12, July 10, NO meeting in August, September 25 and October 16.
He reported on his recent Habitat tour on May 13th. He was impressed with their what they have accomplished. He was also impressed by how well organized a group they are. He is eager to participate in this years’ “build” and encouraged members to also become involved.
Report of the Junior Warden - Bryan Peterson
Bryan reported that the asbestos has been removed from the Nursery area and the retaining wall in the Retreat Center has been replaced. As soon as a bid from the construction firm has been accepted, a contract will be negotiated, he estimates this could take a couple of weeks. Work can begin soon after that, possibly in a month.
Information
Fr. O’Dell reported on the success of the Newcomers Event held at his home on Sunday. Over 20 new people attended.
Women’s Ministries – Becky Connors reported on the growing participation at both the Book Club and Bunco Night. The book club has decided to meet monthly through the Summer which will allow some to participate who might not be able to during the fall and winter. Women’s Night Out – Bunco Night has also been well attended. Their next meeting is July 30th.
Men’s Ministries – Gary Tesar reported that His Helping Hands was organized by a small group of single men who were either divorced or widowed as a study, social and service organization. It was later decided to include all men of All Saints. The group meets monthly, often with a guest speaker. They have an annual Men’s Retreat every fall. The group has work projects off and on the premises
They make repairs and do ground maintenance both at All Saints and for elderly parishioners who have a need. They assist with parish activities (hosting Sunday Coffee & Conversation, help with set-up for Rummage Sale, Spaghetti Supper, etc.). They plan and organize the meals and volunteers for the Annual Firemen/Police Appreciation Day in August. Needless to say, HHH is an active part of the All Saints Christian Community.
Ministry with our Young People – Linda Rafael quoted Hank Hilliard: “Youth ministry used to be about forming relationships with teens so that they would come to your programs. Today, programs are not the end goal. Instead, programs serve as open doors for building relationships.” She reported on the activities of the Tweens (grades 5 & 6), Rite-13 (grades 7 & 8), J2A (grades 9 & 10) , and Almost to Adults (grades 11 & 12) groups. The results have been gratifying. It is exciting to watch these relationships grow – individually and as families become involved in their fund raising activities toward the Pilgrimage and Mission trips. Because activities on Wednesdays has become difficult, this fall more activities will be scheduled on Sundays which appears to be a better day for attendance.
Reminder: Pentecost is this coming Sunday – and the parish picnic will follow the 10:30 service.
Summer Worship: The AxS (9:00am) service will resume on August 12th with our annual “Blessing of the Backpacks.” Until August 5th, our 10:30 worship service will incorporate some of the aspects of our AxS service. The service will begin by “Greeting our Neighbors.” There will be one song from AxS in each service. We will incorporate drama into a few of the services. Occasionally, we will use the AxS format of Prayers of the People. The Saturday 5:00pm service and the Sunday 8:00am service will remain the same throughout the summer.
Laughter & Lemonade will replace Coffee & Conversation for the summer. This summer, we are offering a new fellowship time called “Laughter & Lemonade,” immediately after the 10:30 Sunday service. This will be a lot less labor intensive than our Coffee and Conversation and in fact, hardly any labor at all. Lemonade will in the refrigerator and cookies will be delivered to our serving tables upstairs. The hosts will just have to move the tables outside the front doors...if the weather permits it...and get the napkins and cups out of the cabinet right in the narthex. Serving will last about 30 minutes or so and everything is disposable!! The upside is that we will still have a wonderful fellowship time that has minimal preparation and set up and we can all get off to our summer time activities. We are even hopeful that some will grab their refreshments and head around to the playground for awhile. What we do need is a family, couple or friends to sign up for the following dates to host. We feel this can be accomplished with as little as 2 people per Sunday. We only have ten Sundays to host. So we are asking for people to sign up for a date as soon as possible if this is a ministry you can help with on a one time basis.
Plans for Kick-off Sunday include the Pancake Man – and will be served by the playground.
Reminder: Vacation Bible School July 15-18 includes an Adult Offering.
Wednesday Night Activities (WOW) resume June 6th. Eucharist at 6:00 pm outdoors followed by a pot luck picnic (church will provide fried chicken).
Fr. Tom will be on sabbatical from July 19th to September 23rd. This will be a period of study, rest, travel and prayer.
Reminder: Vestry Retreat – February 8 & 9, 2013.
Bryan Peterson presented the results of the bids for Restoration & Renovation. The architects (B.V.H.) have recommended we accept the bid from Lund-Ross Constructors of Omaha NE.
Minutes of the Vestry (continued) May 22, 2012
page 3
Bryan also reported the R&R team have suggested obtaining a loan from the Endowment Fund to cover the immediate costs of work being done, to be repaid as pledges have come in. This will be a five year loan and can be extended, at 3% interest. Jeff Pirruccello is preparing the note, with assistance from John Hancock and Lori Schneider.
Decision
Paul Prentiss moved to accept the Bid of $876, 268.00 as submitted by Lund-Ross Constructors of Omaha NE, Sue Fisher seconded the motion and it carried.
John Fickle moved to secure a promissory note of $600,000.00 from the Endowment Fund. Becky Connors seconded the motion and it carried.
The meeting stood adjourned at 7:00 PM.
Respectfully submitted, Sue Norman
Secretary to the Vestry