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| 725 Pine St. Winnetka, Illinois 60093 847-441-3400 |
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Councilors absent: Kimberly Brya and Bob Linn. Pastors and Staff present: Joseph Shank, Bill Mueller and Floy Schrage. Others present: John Blix and David Blake.
Gathering and Opening Prayer Before the beginning of the business portion of the Council meeting, Council members, pastors and staff gathered in Little Chapel for worship and prayer at 7:00 p.m. Preliminary Matters The Chair, Steve Dyer, called the business portion of the meeting to order at 7:25 p.m. asking Senior Pastor Joseph Shank to share the pastoral concerns of the congregation. The Chair then asked for approval of the February 12, 2008 Council minutes. Betsy Holden so moved, seconded by Georgie Geraghty. Approval was unanimous. Floy Schrage, Business/Facilities Manager, gave the Treasurer’s report. She called attention to the Variance Report for the period ending December 31, 2007 that shows only a slight deficit (4,247.) compared to the 2007 budgeted deficit of 25,328. So far in 2008 income is up over budget. Expenses are up a bit (due mainly to the all church survey) but mostly things are progressing well. John Blix and David Blake reported on the 2008 Loyalty Pledge Drive. They handed out a detailed report of the pledging activities of the congregation over the last four years, which also included a well thought out list of questions for Council’s discussion. The report states that the pledge dollars of 861,000 fell short of the goal of 1,000,000. Pledge dollars have declined the last two years with an overall drop of 8% since 2004. Among the questions at issue: What is our potential total number of pledge units? What is 100% participation? Will future gains come from increased participation or larger pledges? Also, what steps would Council like John and David to concentrate on in the next few months? A discussion of the overall issue of pledging, the annual pledge drive and what we need to do followed. Council then thanked John and David for all their work. Business Floy Schrage reported that the limestone of the front portico of the church as deteriorated to the point where it has become both a tripping hazard and a liability issue. The mortar is higher than the stone. A bid for the repair work was gotten last July but the work deferred until the organ was installed. Estimate for the repair work is $26,000. and is an off budget item. A motion approving replacement of the limestone on the front portico of the church at a cost of $26,000. for the project, including a guarantee of the work, was made by Jack Jadel, seconded by Brek Peterson. Motion passed unanimously. The Chair called attention to the upcoming Organ Dedication Recital on Sunday, April 27, at 5:00 p.m. with Douglas Cleveland (who was the accompanying organist on several of the WCC choir trips to England). A lecture and demonstration regarding the organ with Marin Pasi and Mark Brombaugh will be held on Saturday, April 26, at 10:00 a.m. He also reminded Council members to come back to the May Council meeting with two names from each group for consideration of the Helms Award. Outreach Councilor Jodi Stewart reminded that this year’s rummage sale is Thursday, May 8, from 7:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Council then went into Executive Session to discuss staffing issues. Returning from Executive Session at 9:30 p.m., the meeting was adjourned. A closing prayer followed. Respectfully submitted, Peggy McNamara, Clerk
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