MQHR Parish Pastoral Council Minutes (unapproved) for August 26, 2014
PPC Members in attendance
Fr. Miguel Alvizures, Norma Flores, Phil Heink, Kevin Lamping, Walter Leachman, Carol Lee, Erich Maul, John Mitchell, Andrew Moore, Karen Morgison, Cora Mudd, Fr. Dan Noll, Bill Rood, and John Tibe
Absent: Mary Grace Allen, Anna Byrd, Brian Carlson, and Inocencio Muñoz,
Opening
The meeting began at 7:00 PM in the Media Center of the Education Life Center (ELC) with a prayer led by Phil Heink.
Approval of Minutes
The minutes of our previous meeting on June 24th were approved without revision.
Unfinished Business and Updates
Update on Renovations to the Church and School (Walter L.)
Walter listed a number of renovations and repairs that have recently been completed, are in process, or are planned for the near future.
- The parking lot is being resealed and resurfaced (at a cost of $25k). There will be a meeting with Alan Cloud (contractor and parishioner) on 8/27 to determine when the work will be complete.
- The flooring changes in the church building will cost $24k.
- There is still $29k in the budget for other facility improvements aimed at improving our hospitality.
- The control units for the ELC are being changed now and the controls in the church will be changed after that.
- The lighting fixtures will be changed (to improve energy efficiency and reduce operating cost) in September.
- The HVAC units for the gymnasium have been replaced and the replacement of units for the cafeteria is in process.
- The energy savings projects (HVAC, lighting, controls, etc.) are part of a $415k project.
2013/2014 Financial (Walter L.)
To begin, Fr. Dan requested feedback from all PPC members with the goal of improving the clarity with which this and future financial reports are communicated to the parish.
A one page summary of our income and expenses for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2014 was distributed and a copy of this is attached to these minutes as Appendix A. This was discussed with the following remarks.
- Beginning halfway through this year (and in the future), capital contributions will be included as part of the offertory collections.
- 15% of our income this past year was in the form of “restricted donations and bequests”. This is an uncharacteristically large sum in our experience and we shouldn’t assume that this will recur regularly.
- The item described as “Bond Principal” on the summary might better be described as “Debt Reduction”.
Much of the remaining discussion centered on the item marked “Net Income” and the significance of the “committed extraordinary donations” line.
Plan for Evangelization (Fr. Dan)
Fr. Dan stated that all of the recommendations made in our last PPC meeting have been approved and are being implemented.
A proposed additional Mass on Sunday morning at 9:30 and in Spanish was proposed during a Liturgy Committee retreat and Fr. Miguel will speak about this later in this meeting.
The PTO will meet and focus on the evangelization of the parents of children in our school.
Fr. Dan will prepare a series of homilies on evangelization in which he will propose a personal survey of non-attending acquaintances. Explicit instructions as to how to do this will be provided. He will also tie into this a homily series on the “Care of Creation” in which he will discuss what we can do and are doing in our parish.
New Business
Additional Sunday Mass (Fr. Miguel)
With reference to the interaction between Jesus and the Canaanite woman in Mathew 15:21-28, we don’t want the Hispanic ministry to feel that they are entitled only to “our leftovers”. We are establishing a 9:30 am Sunday Mass in Spanish (in addition to the existing 1:00 pm Mass) as it will serve our parish better and particularly many of our Hispanic parishioners who cannot make it to the 1:00 pm Mass. This new 9:30 Mass will begin on September 7th.
Some anticipated problems that were discussed are an increase in parking lot traffic and the fact that religious formation classes are currently taught during that same time (from 9:30 to 10:30). We talked about possibly using parish personnel to help direct traffic and the benefits of the added Mass are judged to outweigh the inconveniences associated with the formation class schedule.
The Mass will be advertized using fliers placed in restaurants and possibly using notices on a local Spanish language radio broadcast. We will also mail information to those of our 600 currently registered Hispanic parishioners that do not pick up the information after Mass.
Shared Parish Task Force Report (Fr. Miguel)
The parish staff is studying the book “Best Practices for Shared Parishes: So That They May All Be One” and this resource suggests beginning by welcoming our Hispanic parishioners. We will also work on improving the availability of bilingual parish materials and increasing the bilingual capabilities of the parish staff. We are also looking for more opportunities to share activities and celebrations between our English-speaking and Spanish-speaking communities.
Fr. Dan asked for a commitment by the PPC to participate in the study of the “Best Practices…” book along with the parish staff and leaders of the Hispanic community. Fr. Miguel (citing the book) suggested first meeting on this topic separately and them moving toward meeting jointly.
It was suggested and then agreed to by the Council that the PPC, parish staff, and any interested parishioners would meet from 6:00 pm until 9:30 on September 23rd, 2014 (the date of our next scheduled PPC meeting) to discuss the book and how it applies to our parish. Walter will reserve a room for this meeting, Fr. Miguel will provide copies of the book to PPC members, Karen will find volunteers to provide refreshments, and the PPC will read the book prior to the meeting on September 23rd.
Help for Time, Talent, and Treasure Weekend (Kevin L.)
Kevin L. asked for volunteers from the PPC to help in handing our envelopes after Mass on the weekend of November 1st and 2nd. Please send Kevin an email (klamping@riteaid.com) to volunteer for a time after one of the weekend Masses.
Parish Pastoral Council Elections (Erich M.)
Erich M. handed out a timeline for elections to replace Phil H. and Karen M. who are completing their first terms on the PPC. The PPC was asked to personally approach potential candidates asking them to run for these positions. The election weekend will be October 18th and 19th. Prior to this, we will have announcements from the pulpit prior to Mass on the weekends of September 6th and 7th and on September 13th and 14th. There will also be fliers placed in the bulletin with more information.
Help for Homebound Parishioners (Cora M.)
Cora M. asked how we might help homebound parishioners, suggesting perhaps sitting with them while their regular caregivers are running errands. It was agreed that this might be something that the existing Health Ministry might be properly called upon to lead.
Next PPC Meeting
Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014 at 6:00 pm. It will focus on ideas described in the book “Best Practices for Shared Parishes: So That They May All Be One” as described in the “Shared Parish Task Force Report” above.
Closing prayer and adjournment
A closing prayer was offered by Andrew Moore and the meeting was then adjourned by Karen M. at 8:45 pm.
Appendix A.
last updated 08/31/2014 jm
