Vestry Update
Vestry Update from Meegan Burbank, Senior Warden
We are very excited to have met with Bishop Brown and the diocesan transition minister Suzanne Roberts in the middle of a blustery snowstorm on Saturday, March 4th. We are full of ideas and energy and a strong sense of direction after a very fruitful meeting. The vestry plans to do a deep dive into developing St. Giles’ roadmap for the future. We continue to be blessed by the Rev. Ralph Moore’s as our supply priest through Easter.
The vestry joins the congregation as we wish Dana Stivers the best of luck in her full-time position at the Incarnation Center in Connecticut.
PAST UPDATES:
Vestry Updates from Senior Warden, Dotti Meyer
The vestry met on January 10th, our last meeting before the Annual Meeting when new members may be elected. Aowyn and Wendy guided the discussion of the final chapter of our book How to Lead When You Don’t Know Where You Are Going: Leading in a Liminal Season. The vestry will usewhat we have learned moving forward.
Appreciation was expressed for all who helped ‘un-green’ the church on the 8th.
Tom shared our finances using the Budget vs Actual figures for 2022 and the proposed budget for 2023. These will be shared with the parish at the Annual Meeting on January 29th.
Charles has been very busy working on water issues and cleaning out the utility room. Big improvements are evident. Thank you Charles.
It was decided to continue using the individual cups for wine during Communion. This will be revisited in the Spring.
There was discussion about the great need for support of the Ecumenical Coalition for Homelessness Prevention. We have donated money as possible when asked during crisis situations, Rev. Dana has also used her Discretionary Fund for assistance. We will explore how to make regular contributions to this organization as the needs in our area increase.
Previous Months:
The November Vestry meeting opened with our new tradition of reading the Vestry Covenant. This was followed by a discussion of chapters three and four of our book ‘How to Lead When You Don’t Know Where You’re Going Leading in a Liminal Season’ led by John and Dana. Get Well prayers were sent to Tom and Wendy as they missed our meeting due to pneumonia.
Charles is planning to install the window inserts after church this Sunday. If you have a few minutes he could use your assistance.
We have had positive input about Coffee Hour and are trying various ideas to keep it going. For now we will try a clipboard with Sunday dates listed. If you can provide a treat and some cream, sign your name next to the date you want. The coffee, sugar, napkins and cups are provided in the library. Questions? Ask a vestry member. And THANK YOU!! We discussed the Maine Children’s Home Christmas Program. If you go on their website mainechildrenshome.org you will find an Urgent Needs List to click and an Amazon Wish List to click. Amazon will provide a detailed list of toys to purchase that will be delivered directly to Waterville. Charles will bring donations brought to the church to Waterville after the November 20th service.
The St. Giles’ Vestry met on Tuesday, October 11th via Zoom as usual. We had our first session discussing ‘How to Lead When You Don’t Know Where You’re Going’ by Susan Beaumont. This is a book we chose to read and share together to help us become a solid leadership team for our parish. After sharing the Preface and 2 chapters we agree it is a bit of a challenge, but a good choice. Thank you to Wendy and Linda for leading our first session.
Looking ahead we have decided to try Coffee Hour in the Library after our service. Nancy Saulniers will take the first Sunday this week, October 16th, John and Charles on Oct. 23rd and Dotti Oct. 30th. We would love volunteers as we move forward.
A decision was made to make masking optional. Please feel comfortable choosing what works best for each of you.
Our Stewardship Campaign is continuing with speakers each Sunday until the Ingathering on November 13th. You can expect a call from a vestry member soon. We hope that you will take a minute and share your thoughts, concerns and positive comments with us. Your input is so important to our work. Thank you John Atwood, Tom Eichler and Cathey Sell for leading this campaign.
Stay tuned for information on our annual Home for Little wanderers Christmas Collection which takes place in November.
Always grateful,
Dotti Meyer
SEPTEMBER VESTRY UPDATE
The vestry was happy to welcome Rev. Dana back from her vacation! The meeting opened with the reading of our newly created Vestry Covenant and I think that strengthened the bond we share. Rev. Dana and Charles had worked on a Wolf Fund Grant Application in August which would pay for books to use in a study group during our vestry meetings this fall. We received the grant, and Charles secured copies of a book ‘How to Lead When You Don’t Know Where You Are Going” by Susan Beaumont . Thank you Charles and Rev. Dana.
We are all set for our ST. GILES” DAY celebration this Sunday, Sept. 18th. By-laws vote, family style picnic, Blueberry Bash, cleaning/organization of the shed outside. We hope to see you there!
A lot of time was spent discussing updates for the Memorandum of Understanding we have with the Food Pantry. If you ever have questions regarding the Food Pantry, John Atwood is our Liaison. John is also Chair of the Stewardship Committee and he reported they have a campaign ready for Kick-Off on September 25th . Please make a note to join us and hear all about it!
And looking ahead, Information will be coming concerning the Blessing of the Animals on Oct. 2nd this year. This will be an outside service and we encourage you to bring your animals…large and small.
August Vestry Recap
After Rev. Dana’s opening prayer, we got right to work on our Vestry Covenant. It did not take too long to fine tune, rearrange, and feel satisfied with our work. Our Covenant will be shared with parishioners and posted on our website.
Reports indicated lots of activity happening at St. Giles’. It was noted that every vestry member was involved with our recent Country Fair . Vestry member Aowyn Burbank was thanked for sharing her musical talents along with her friend Sophia Scott during July.
A good deal of time has been shared organizing the Celebration of Life for Colby Dill on August 13th. Rev. Dana has been working with the family to create the service, Dotti has been working with the ECW to prepare the reception following the service, and Charles has arranged for the Columbarium to be open for the interring of ashes.
The collection of school supplies will continue through August 21st and the Food Pantry will share them with families on August 24. Plans are underway for our Fall Stewardship Campaign and a parish Picnic in September. Stay tuned for more information on these important events.
As you might guess, Rev. Dana is looking forward to some well deserved vacation time at the end of this month and into September. Our Sunday Services will be covered by the Rev. Molly Scherm and the Rev. John VanSiclen, both dear friends of St. Giles’. We are feeling mighty blessed right now.
JULY VESTRY UPDATE
The focus of the July vestry meeting was to complete the St. Giles’ Covenant. After reviewing what we had accomplished previously and revisiting our Job Description, we agreed on the content of our Covenant. All that remains is to fine tune the order of statements and share these documents with the parish. Many thanks to our vestry members on a job well done.
We discussed the current Covid situation and mask wearing at St. Giles’. It was clear the vestry prefers continuing our policy of wearing masks inside. This policy will remain. Starting in August we will bring back coffee hour (outside!).
John Atwood presented an updated Memorandum of Understanding between St. Giles’ and the Food Pantry which was approved by our vestry and passed along to JACFP. Thank you John.
A Stewardship Committee was established for our Fall Campaign. Vestry members John Atwood, Tom Eichler and Wendy Eichler volunteered and will be looking for a parishioner to serve on the committee as well. Please consider this opportunity.
I think a cheer went up when Charles told us the roof project was complete! Finally!
The Diocese is offering another grant for technology needs. We are looking for someone to help write the grant…any volunteers?
Many, many thanks to ALL the members of our vestry for their time and thoughtful input regarding our work and service.
Dotti Meyer
June meeting:
The June vestry meeting was focused on creating our covenant. After reading about what a covenant is and it’s purpose, and studying many examples at our May meeting we were asked to submit our ideas of what should be in a vestry covenant for St, Giles’. Rev. Dana shared these and we began the process of writing our document based on our common ideas. Our goal is to complete this process at next month’s meeting.
In other business, the roof repair is near completion…come on sun! We have resumed our Food Pantry Sunday Donations concentrating on snacks for seniors. The Food Pantry is very appreciative. There is lots of work going on planning upcoming events and occasions. Some dates worth noting:
Community Sunday June 26 Stepping Stone Housing speakers
July 10. CHIP speaker
Country Fair. July 30
May meeting…
The May 10th vestry meeting began with our continued study of vestry covenants. We shared our reflections after reading several examples from other churches. Our goal is to have a completed covenant for St. Giles at our next meeting. We look forward to sharing this with the parish.
Linda reported from the Ecumenical Council for Homelessness Prevention that the needs are great at this time. We voted to send $300 from our Outreach Fund to assist with current requests.
A discussion was held concerning how to include our Zoomers more and enable them to see the congregation during our service. This is a work in progress. If you have suggestions please share with a vestry member or Meegan, our tech guru. If you are a Zoomer in need of a Book of Common Prayer or Hymnal, please reach out to Dotti or Dana.
A message from our Sr. Warden:
The April vestry meeting began with a review of what we had determined to be ‘the role of St. Giles’ vestry’ at our March retreat. Our next step is to create a vestry covenant. We began a discussion of what that looks like and will finish that at our May meeting.
The business portion of the meeting highlighted our need for volunteers as we move forward. Rev. Dana shared what her one-third time position looks like on a weekly basis and it is very limited. Our Community Services are helping to bring St. Giles into the community while freeing up time for Dana to pursue other pastoral needs. Volunteers are leading these services, finding speakers and sharing knowledge.
Our major fundraiser will be held July 30th . We hope to hold an event similar to last year’s Jump into Fall and it’s time to begin planning. Volunteers are needed on all levels.
ECW has two projects lined up and volunteers will be needed.
The Junior Warden has started a list of clean up and repair tasks. Volunteers will be needed.
Watch and listen for the volunteer opportunity that will allow YOU to share your time and talent
