Summary by Larry Weiner | Board Secretary
The UUSM Board met on Tuesday April 12, 2022, by way of Zoom, to review committee work and the congregation’s overall operations.
Gathering
Beth Brownlie called the Board Meeting to Order. Norm did a reading and lit the chalice. The Church theme for the month is “Awakening.” All present did a personal and theme based check in.
Membership
Our membership remains at 259. Karen Patch and Allee Harati moved away.
Standing Monthly Reports:
Motion: A unanimous motion was passed that all the board committee standing reports and the March 8th Board minutes be accepted as presented.
Minister’s April Report
In his Introduction Jeremiah announced that “Awakening” was the Soul Matters theme for the month of April. He mentioned that this month has the multi-religious aspects of Ramadan, Passover, Easter, and Earth Day all in the “soup” with a dash of Stewardship for seasoning. It is a time to reflect on what all these sources provide in the way of inspiration as we and the earth reawaken from the winter and as our spirits become “verdant green” in the glow of service to life.
Recent Worship has included 5 services:
- a memorializing of the life of Thich Naht Hahn
- a service on fellowship given by Reverend Rick Hoyt
- conversations about mystery offered by Rev. Dr. Kikanza Nuri-Robins
- the poetry of awakening offered by Rima Snyder and
- a Stewardship Sunday service to kick off our Stewardship drive in which Jeremiah explored UU Muslim Identity and practice in the holy month of Ramazan.
Jeremiah mentioned that he took time off to celebrate turning 40. He acknowledged the worship associates for taking on beautifying the chancel including the purchase of a new lectern to support social distancing.
The blending of the Pastoral Care Associates and the CareRing continues to move forward. There was a heart/brainstorming session that included Chairs Linda, Denise, and Jeremiah.
In a Tech Ministry Update it was announced that after interviews that involved Saunder and Aubrey, Mia Bringas has been hired as our new Audio-Visual Coordinator. Please make her feel welcome.
The Stewardship Campaign was launched. We offer our heartfelt thanks to Jacki Weber for her hard work and leadership for implementing our process.
There will be two Bylaws Refresh Town Halls designed to bring the congregation up to speed on what the task force has created and to get feedback from the membership.
We have applied for a Spirit Level Grant to help complete our repairs. The grant has the potential to raise $100,000 if we can raise the $50,000, which they will match. The plan is to have Autumn and Spring Concerts as fundraising events. Saunder will use his genius to devise a plan for these projects.
We are considering a proposal to bring on a Consulting Minister to help us rebuild our RE program and augment our professional ministry.
The COVID Steering Committee did not meet in March but we are moving ahead with our reopening. Our attendance is growing as we keep one eye on the new COVID variant. More to follow.
Ushers and Greeters are back and are helping to keep our services as safe as possible.
There are no major updates from our Anti-Racism, Anti-Oppression Commission.
Beloved Conversations has launched for Spring. Jeremiah continues to participate with the UCLA Hospital Ethics Committee and finds it fascinating and worthwhile.
In Conclusion, Jeremiah hopes that we are emerging from the worst of the pandemic and acknowledges the hard work and leadership of the Board during this difficult time.
Stewardship
Jacki talked about the timeline for the Stewardship drive. The Stewardship letters have gone out and the emails will begin soon. There will be a Stewardship table at the church after the service for the next several weeks to collect pledge cards and answer questions. Larry volunteered to person it with Jacki this coming Sunday. We will be making calls to members with Eileen coordinating and that will also start soon.
Website
Lois Hutchinson gave us a tour of the new website and talked about how it is 90% ready. The last 10% will be a heavy lift. It looks engaging and fresh. There was a question about the best way to display our financial documents and also whether we will need to budget for a consultant on an ongoing basis moving forward. Website security may be an issue.
OWL
Beth Rendero talked to us about what might be possible moving forward. She will not continue as our OWL coordinator. The classes we were planning to start this Spring did not generate enough students to fill them. Beth acknowledged Linda, Mike, and Larry for being OWL facilitators. Shanna Shaked and Nick Henning want to train others. OWL is a premier program for us and we just have to figure out how to get from here to there.
Treasurer’s Report
Vilma said that there are no major surprises this month. She wants to move the financial town hall to June 5 and hopefully only have one meeting that will be in-person. She anticipates we will approve the budget for the next fiscal year at the May board meeting.
Facilities
Abby reported that the permit to repair the Forbes Hall entryway on Arizona Ave. could be approved as soon as tomorrow. The contract is in place and the contractors are ready to go. Karl Lisovsky gets a big high five for refinishing the exterior of the wooden doors. We have a member who has the expertise to do a physical needs assessment.
COVID Steering Committee and Youth RE reopening
We are reopening to the point that we need to consider parking, coffee, and cookies and what to do with the kids who are attending. We are averaging 4 to 6 in the different age groups. We need a point person to manage the children and may hire an older teen for coordinating this. Perhaps Nurit can hire someone. The parents may be able to help.
Motion
A motion was unanimously passed that the meeting be adjourned.
Respectfully Submitted,
Larry Weiner, Board Secretary
