MINUTES OF A CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING ON FEBRUARY 9, 2006

 Present: Pastor Joan, Pastor Chris, Mary Backlund, Dave Brabec (president),
         Aimee Jambor, Elizabeth Sawdey, Ernie Teie and John Windh
 Absent: Jim Eitrheim, Sharon Ingvoldstad, Tami Lueck and John Wallin

Call to order at 7:11 p.m.
  1. Pastor Joan led devotions.
  2. The minutes of January 12, 2005, were approved after noting that her request for designating salary as housing allowance must come from Pastor Joan and that we really under-funded our 2005 Synodical Benevolence by $9,900, not $8,900 as reported at the January meeting. M/S/P (Sawdey/Teie)
  3. Treasurer's report. Mary Backlund reported encouraging news indeed, that our January offerings substantially exceeded those of January 2005. In fact, they equaled fully one-twelfth of our total 2005 receipts, though less than one-twelfth of our budgeted 2006 receipts. She has sent the synod the first $2,500 of our 2006 Synodical Benevolence. M/S/P (Meier/Jambor) to accept this report and approve the treasurer's actions.
Committee Reports at 7:45
  1. Youth - Elizabeth Sawdey
    1. Youth worship January 29th and snow tubing January 22nd went well. Parking for the Ice Fishing Extravaganza raised far less than a year ago. Sr. High youth will pack food for Kids Against Hunger February 22nd, conduct a Potato Bar fundraiser on Ash Wednesday, and serve an Easter breakfast.
    2. Acting on a request by Stacy Johnson, council approved asking Thrivent Financial for up to $1600 in matching funds to support our summer youth trips (M/S/P Sawdey/Backlund).
  2. Worship and Music - Ernie Teie
    The Worship and Music committee has recommended a Hymn Of The Month program, an expanded role for acolytes, and involving more children in worship. It has also discussed our Lenten worship plans and it invites more people to assist in our services (as cantor, usher, greeter, reader and communion assistant).
  3. Outreach - Aimee Jambor
    Aimee expressed thanks for our financial assistance in her recent medical mission trip to Tanzania and spoke movingly of her experiences there. Council urged her to share those experiences with the congregation at morning worship.
  4. Property
    John Wallin's report mentioned non-performance issues with the organ pipe supplier, hiring a different snow-removal contractor, Perry Setterholm's decision to retire at the end of the spring, and Jerry Williams' efforts to ceiling-mount our video projector in Chapel Hall. 
  5. Education
    Tami Lueck's report mentioned that the process is underway to hire a new Director of Children's Ministry, that a calendar of children's activities through Easter has been mailed, and that staff and volunteers have met to plan and carry out our education program for the upcoming months.
  6. Congregational Life - no report
Pastors' Reports
  1. Pastor Joan at 8:15
    1. Pastor Joan pointed out the increasing need for personnel background checks.
    2. There will be a staff retreat on February 16th.
    3. An advertisement for the position of Director of Children's Ministry will appear in local papers beginning February 12th.
    4. The job description for our Office Manager position will soon be finished. Then we will address other staff job descriptions and performance-review procedures. 
    5. We have received a wonderful undesignated bequest of $25,000 from the Clarence Holden Trust, for which we will send a thank-you.
    6. She continues to attend a weekly text study and a monthly ecumenical group, and will be a presenter at the Luther Crest Winter Women's Retreat. The Transition And Head Of Staff seminar she attended last week was valuable.
    7. Lastly, Pastor Joan proposed a two-stage visioning and planning process.
      1. First she proposed a “Forty Days of Purpose” campaign starting April 20th. Based on Rick Warren's book The Purpose-Driven Life, this program features much lay leadership and many small groups meeting in peoples' homes. It is intended to engage all of us--from Sunday School through adult education--in a shared, unifying experience. Council gave strong support to this campaign.
      2. She then proposed for the fall a focused strategic planning initiative facilitated by an acclaimed paid planning consultant from the Alban Institute. It would produce a vision statement, five-year plan and specific goals and strategies, to be reflected first in our 2007 budget. Council supported the concept and asked for a choice of facilitators.
  1. Pastor Chris at 9:00
    1. Pastor Chris also found his recent continuing ed workshop (Jan. 28-31) refreshing and instructional. He's been focused primarily on evaluating our Sunday School and Children's Ministry programs. He's encouraged that we have a dedicated and energetic core of volunteers and that we have now begun to hire a new Children's Ministry director.
    2. Dates have been set for Vacation Bible School (June 5-9), Luther Crest Day Camp (June 9-13), for the Rite of Confirmation (April 23), and for the first-communion Sunday morning curriculum for 5th graders (March 19 through Palm Sunday with first communion April 13th).
Unfinished Business at 9:07
  1. Council acknowledged that we didn't present our recent appeal to make up our 2005 Synodical Benevolence shortfall very clearly or forcefully.
  2. The process to update our constitution and bylaws continues.
  3. The organ-pipe project has hit unexpected and frustrating delays.
  4. Dave scheduled money handlers.
New Business at 9:10
  1. Council voted (M/Windh, S/Meier) to encourage each council member to read the scripture or serve as a communion assistant this year but tabled a motion to encourage each council member to introduce him/herself at morning worship and say a little about his/her role on council (M/Windh, S/Meier) (M to table/Meier, S/Teie).
  2. Council thought it unnecessary to vote on asking our synod delegates to present a brief convention report to the congregation at morning worship.
  3. There was a request for data. . to include the number of LCC baptized and confirmed members, number of giving units, number of students in Sunday School, Jr. High Youth, Sr. High Youth and confirmation, a chart naming all our committees and to whom they report, etc.
  4. Council thought now was not the time to vote to schedule the January 2007 congregational meeting at a time other than between the morning worship services.
  5. The following questions were asked but there was no time to discuss them: How will we know when it is time to create a full-time staff position in Christian Education? How do we raise our total annual benevolence giving to a tithe, to 10% of income? Do we need a congregational Evangelism committee? An empowered Stewardship committee? How do we raise our awareness of church matters beyond our own congregation, in our synod or in the national ELCA? To balance the broad attention we give to the needs of our own members, how do we make outreach a higher congregational priority . . to better serve the unfortunate and downtrodden in our own community and in the world? Since our constitution/bylaws are currently being updated cosmetically, it was also noted that this would be a good time to consider more fundamental changes such as electing new council members at the January congregational meeting, electing all council members at large, and electing all council members to three-year terms. Again there was no time for discussion, though Pastor Joan suggested scheduling a council retreat for such questions.
  6. Someone asked LCC to consider taking out terrorism insurance. Mary will bring to the next council meeting more information about terrorism insurance.
  7. Dave invited more of us to sign up to serve the Lenten supper on March 8th.
The meeting closed with the Lord's Prayer at 9:47 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
John Windh, secretary
February 14, 2006


Contact us:
Lutheran Church of the Cross
On Hiway 13 just east of Hiway 371 at Sportland Corner
P.O. Box 29
Nisswa, MN 56468
Phone: 218/963-2564     Fax: 218/963-0294
Email: lcc@lccnisswa.org