Parish Council Minutes
June 16, 2008

<p>Meeting began at 6:37 p.m. in the Parish Office building. 
M embers present: Ron Greene, Tony Kraus, John Little, Pete Johnson, Debbie Luedke, Laura Baker, Carol Alvey, John Wells, David Danhauer, Connie Caceres.
Staff members present: Fr. Carl, Ken Caselden, Martha Little, Alan Sims,  Kay Beth Riney
Members absent: Juan Fernandez, Tom Hayden, Mike Hagan
Guest: Darrell Howard
1.  Opening prayer led by Martha Little
2. Minutes from May 5 meeting were approved.
3. Continuing Education – Debbie Luedke spoke on the topic of volunteers and how to make them feel appreciated. 
4. Youth Ministry Report 
A) Ken said the recently held 3YD (Three Young Disciples) retreat was outstanding. He said the young people got out of their comfort zone and grew by leaps and bounds both emotionally and spiritually. He said this experience will be a great foundation for next year. 
B) The decision has almost been finalized that the middle school and high school youth group members will meet at the same time next year. Portions of the gatherings will be having everyone together, and there will be times when the age groups are broken up. He feels this will help everyone involved.
C) The Adult Core Team is working on involvement with the St. Paul parish celebration.
5. Senior Ministry Report
Martha met with a group of seniors in the parish and discussed what they would like to see. One main area was helping our young people (and everyone) rediscover reverence and respect in church. We have such a rich tradition and this can be lost in the “noise.” In general, the seniors are happy. Martha will continue to speak with them and get their ideas when they return to the regular gatherings in the fall.
6. Hispanic Ministry Report
Chris was unable to attend the meeting. No report at this time.
7. Old Business
A. Technology and Liturgy update – Ken has tested how to record audio at Mass. He provided a sample of what can be done. The recorder will cost approximately $100. Our current vision is putting the Mass on CD and giving it to our shut-ins when Communion is taken to them weekly. If they do not have a CD player, we may be able to help furnish them one. We will need someone to volunteer to duplicate the CDs during the week and get them ready for distribution. An item concerning this will be in the bulletin this weekend. All agreed this was a great idea and we need to see how to implement the program as soon as possible.
B. Open Parish Council meeting follow-up. The questions and answers brought up at the meeting will be placed in the bulletin during the upcoming weeks and months.
C. Chapel at Daviess County Detention Center update – the cost has been lowered to approximately $155,000. They are less than $10,000 away from having the money they need. Sts. Joseph & Paul has contributed $1,000 towards this project. It is hoped that the chapel will be built by Christmas. In addition, Jim McBrayer 
will be giving tours of the jail to our youth group members in the near future. 
He is open to giving tours to anyone who is interested. 8. New Business A. 
Future of the Good Samaritan Home. A great deal of discussion took place on this 
topic. There are many areas to consider. These include: The building has been 
empty for some time. This creates liability in regards to insurance and the 
stability of the building. While the two families who have been housed in the 
Home provided us with a great opportunity for Gospel outreach, there were also 
problems. At times we were “over our head” and really didn’t know how to help 
them. There were also issues with the families that could have caused major 
problems, which were thankfully avoided. We are often at the whim of the 
government in Washington in regards to refugees. Laws seem to change quickly and 
without reason. There may be times when the house will be empty for long periods 
of time. There is a family from Iraq that is currently in Bowling Green at the 
International Center. There is the possibility that this family will come to our 
Home in the very near future. Are we ready to help another family? How will 
someone from Iraq be treated in Owensboro? Are there resources in Owensboro that 
can help a Middle Eastern family? If we change the nature of the building 
(moving away from it being a refugee home), there are Canon Laws that say 
certain procedures need to take place. No concrete decisions were made. This is 
a complex issue. The next step will be for Fr. Carl and Tony Kraus to travel to 
Bowling Green to talk to the International Center representatives in order to 
get a better idea of whether bringing the Iraqi family here is practical or not. 
If needed, the Council will be called to an emergency meeting. If this does not 
happen, we will discuss the issue more at the September meeting. B. 
Congratulation cards being sent to parishioners celebrating various occasions – 
this idea was brought forth to the council. It was generally agreed that it 
would be a good idea, although Fr. Carl already sends out such notes. We will 
discuss more at the next meeting. C. The following items were tabled and will be 
discussed at the September meeting: Discussion of the by-laws in regards to 
council elections Parish disaster plan Child care being offered on Sundays D. 
The next Joint Committee gathering will be August 11. 9. The next Council 
meeting will be Monday, September 8, 2008. 10. Meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m. 
11. Council was called into a closed session.</p>