Lord of the Lakes Council Meeting Notes February 16, 2021
Members Present: Pastor Kevin Heffernan, Wayne Ludkey, Jeff Jahnke, Sarah Miller, David Wein, John Macho, Kristen Bjornstad and Apryl Brantley
Devotion: Pastor Kevin
Devotion for March—Wayne Ludkey
Opening Prayer—Pastor Kevin
Approval of minutes: David Wein made a motion to approve the January 2021 Council Meeting Minutes. Sarah Miller seconded. Approved.
Pastor’s Report: *See Attached “Pastor’s Report” document. Overall things are going well and Pastor Kevin is optimistic.
Buildings and Grounds: *See attached “Team Reports” document. The new chairperson for B & G is Ben Manning. In regards to B & G looking to place shelves in the basement (see attached report) for the Boy Scout and Cub Scout equipment, Wayne and Pastor Kevin propose that LOL goes 50/50 with the Scouts (for funds and work). B & G should vote on this, but council is giving approval for LOL to provide 50% of the funds.
We Care: Pastor Kevin said that the We Care team has been busy. Youth are currently having a hard time (especially the high school kids). They are trying to get the youth group involved with the equine therapy.
Youth: Pastor Kevin relayed that the fundraising for the mission trip is going very well. The youth sold approximately 2000 pizzas!
MONEY MATTERS
Treasurer Report:
Lord of the Lakes Council Meeting Financial Notes – February 16, 2021
The Operating Budget Total Net Surplus YTD as of January 2021 $11,315
The Operating Budget Total Net Surplus for Month of January 2021 $11,315
Total Cash in Operating Checking Account as of January 2021 is $94,086.56
Total Cash in Special Events Checking Account as of January 2021 is $48,015.64
(this includes the $29,500.00 in Holding)
Total in Fortifi Investment Account as of December 2020 is $22,051.13
Operating Budget Explanation:
Our YTD income for Church Operations is higher than budgeted by $10,567. Our Regular Envelope/Vanco/Credit Card giving is higher than budgeted by $9,575. Our Loose Offering is higher than budgeted by $92.
We received Scrip proceeds as of January 2021 $1,500 of our Fiscal Year.
Summary
We did budget for a ($2,372) Deficit YTD and our Actual Surplus YTD is $11,315
Pastor Kevin noted that the year is off to a good start.
Jeff would like to see the Treasurer position become more of a business manager/analysis position rather than an accounting-type of position.
Apryl is feeling good about the position so far. Jeff suggested to Apryl that they keep the checklist of job duties [currently being worked out] for future use.
Wayne Ludkey made a motion to approve the treasurer report. John Macho seconded. Approved.
Stewardship: *See attached “Team Reports” document. Wayne added that he’s always trying to find ways to help the church and the community through stewardship. He suggested that, for Lent, members of the congregation save $1.00 per day ($40.00 for 40 days) which will go to the Good Samaritan fund. The question of how to separate the $40 for 40 days/Good Samaritan money from offerings was raised. Apryl suggested having a separate envelope designated for this purpose. Pastor Kevin said he would take care of this.
Wayne also noted that there is $3000.00 more in the endowment fund than last year. There is approximately $18,000.00 in that fund now. Pastor Kevin asked at what point we can use the endowment fund. Wayne replied that once there is at least $50,000.00 in the fund, the council can vote to use 4% of the dividends for specific expenses/projects annually. This would allow us to fund some things without dipping into the annual budget.
OLD BUSINESS
Employee Handbook: David said that this project is a lot more work than he originally anticipated. He suggests a team to put the handbook together. He feels that some actual employees should be part of this team. Pastor Kevin suggested Dawn Barber as she has an HR background which would be useful. He also suggested Geoff Hendren, Cindy Hendren and Jan Olson. Jeff said that we need to put this on the calendar and added that David can lead the team.
Constitution Update: Jeff said that another 40 people are needed in order to ratify the constitution. He will work on getting the communication out.
Electronic Communication: Web, email and Social Media strategy—Jeff is talking to someone who does the website for an Oshkosh church. This church has their website as their primary source of communication and information goes to Facebook from there. Jeff inquired whether the LOL website needs updating. Wayne and Sarah both confirmed that the LOL website is terrible. Sarah suggested having a separate meeting with someone who could help. Pastor Kevin encouraged that we lay out a dollar amount that we’d be willing to spend on the website before we engage someone. Jeff said that he has someone in mind, but he doesn’t think that he charges a flat fee. His fee would depend on how dynamic we’d want the site to be. Sarah added that she and Wayne have been trying, unsuccessfully, to recruit others for the Social Media team. They definitely need additional people. Jeff said to put these items on the 2021 calendar that he will hand out.
Reopening: “Faith over Fear”—council had an open discussion regarding the mask mandate and Covid. We discussed whether any changes need to be made once the state mandate is lifted. For now we will stick to our current reopening plan.
NEW BUSINESS
2021 Calendar of Events: Jeff handed out a packet and with a calendar for each month as well as a list of items that need to be completed. We need to establish a timeline for completion and get things on the calendar.
Sign—in March the file regarding the LOL sign will be reviewed. This topic will be revisited and we will need to get new bids. It was suggested that it would be nice to have a sign dedication coincide with the LOL 20th anniversary this year.
Constitution—Jeff is putting the ratification of the constitution on the calendar with a deadline of Mother’s Day (5/9/2021).
Electronic Communication—Jeff asked if we can put an August 1st deadline for the electronic communication redesign (see Old Business above). Sarah said, yes, but they need to meet to decide what is needed now. They may need to reevaluate this deadline later.
Employee Handbook—David will get a team together for the employee handbook in the next couple of weeks. They will go through the materials and establish a framework. Jeff would like an update to council in April and something useable by September.
Accounting/Gifting—Wayne noted that a large gift procedure was established already. It just needs to be made official and get the approval of council. The procedure was created by the Stewardship Committee (Wayne Ludkey, Kate Pfaendtner, Dennis Raatjes and Vern Olson). Jeff asked Wayne to bring the procedure to council for the March meeting.
Business Management Team: Jeff and Apryl have been discussing the Business Management Team. They feel that past council president(s) should serve on this team.
Wedding Procedures: Pastor Kevin has been getting a lot of requests for weddings since LOL is one of only a few places open.
Jeff Jahnke made a motion to allow Pastor Kevin to limit weddings to members of LOL or closely affiliated individuals for the foreseeable future. David Wein seconded. Approved.
Sarah Miller made a motion to adjourn. Apryl Brantley seconded.
Closing Prayer – Pastor Kevin
Next Meeting: 3/16/2021 at 6:30 p.m.