Sts. Joseph & Paul Catholic Church

 Minutes of Past Parish Council Meetings










 

Parish Council Minutes
May 1, 2006 

Meeting began at 6:30 p.m. in the Fr. Tucker Center.   

Members present: Tony Kraus, Tom Hayden, John Little, Mike Hagan, Gene Hamilton, Ron Greene, John Wells, Pete Johnson, Hal Mischel, Debbie Luedke, David Danhauer. Staff members present: Fr. Brian, Rick Rhodes, Heather Hayden, Martha Little, Ken Caselden. 
Members absent: Carol Alvey  

1.  Opening prayer led by John Little. 

2.  One correction to the April 3 minutes – the youth minister will be hired for an average of 35 hours per week (not 20-25 hours as stated in minutes). With correction, minutes were approved.  

3.  Tony reported that the ad hoc committee to look at the nomination process for the parish council has not yet met. Information has been received from St. Pius Tenth and St. Stephen regarding their processes. The committee will meet soon and this issue will be brought before the council at a future meeting. 

4. Gene Hamilton submitted a letter of resignation from the parish council. Gene said scheduling conflicts prevent him from fully carrying-out his duties. Everyone thanked Gene for his work on the council and his involvement with the parish community. 

5.  Fr. Brian recommended that someone from the Hispanic community should be asked to fill Gene’s position on the council. This was agreed upon by the council. Fr. Brian will work on finding an appropriate person and inviting him/her to join us. 

6.  Rick gave an update on the capital campaign. As of 4/30/06, a total of $372,103.63 has been pledged on the second phase of the campaign (from 293 families).     Rick said that all of those who did not respond to the initial letter from the second phase were called. Those who could not be reached by phone have been mailed another letter. 

7.  Ron provided an update on the Good Samaritan home. Everything is still going very well. Ron said there has been a tremendous outpouring of help from the parish. At this point, the floor joints have been laid and the floor should be finished this week (weather permitting). The next step will be putting up the walls. Ron said he will make sure that everyone who signed up to help with the project will be called. 

8.  Fr. Brian introduced the new parish Youth Minister – Ken Caselden. Ken said he is excited to begin working with our youth. A “get-to-know-you” social gathering will be held in the near future. Everyone welcomed Ken to the staff, and offered him the council’s support. 

9.  Fr. Brian passed out a document from the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops titled – Renewing the Vision – a Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry.  

10.  We began initial discussion on goal-setting:  

A. The Education Committee (March 9 meeting) provided the following goals/wish list): 

  • A parish Marriage Encounter
  • More interaction with the Hispanic community
  • An overnight retreat for women
  • A retreat for seniors

B.  The parish staff (April 19 meeting) provided the following goals/wish list: 

              I.      Embrace our parish youth

·         Create at least two events per year that involve parish youth of all ages. One event should be liturgical and take advantage of a time in the Liturgical Year that would celebrate youth and family, i.e.; Advent, Mardi Gras, St. Patrick’s Day, Ascension, etc.  The second event would be an outdoor activity, such as a camp experience that would include faith-building and family activities.

·         Employ a full-time Youth Minister (note: this was accomplished).

·         Enlarge our Middle School ChristTeens program to include 6th grade (6-8).

·         Stay in contact with our parish collegians through cards, e-mail, care packages, etc.

·         Develop a youth link to the parish website. 

           II.      St. Vincent de Paul

  • Reorganize the “in-house” process for handling local needs.

         III.      Stewardship

  • Continue the life-time call to conversion through preaching and education.
  • Strive for 100 percent active involvement in the life of stewardship.
  • Enhance the entire stewardship appeal of the parish by developing a full-color, professional-looking booklet for parish members (and new members).
  • Begin to emphasize the “treasure” component of the parish stewardship appeal – a continued call to conversion regarding the Biblical mandate of tithing.
  • Promote the local and international stewardship conferences.

         IV.      Capital Campaign

  • Continue to support and bring the campaign extension to completion.

           V.      Hispanic Ministry

  • Work on having a full-time Hispanic priest presence.
  • Make intentional efforts to be bilingual in music and education.
  • Have a Hispanic presence on the parish council.
  • Work on having community-wide involvement with the Hispanics, especially in the areas of education, stewardship, parish activities and social concerns.

C.  We will continue to discuss goals at the June meeting. All committee liaisons were asked to bring this matter before their committees prior to the next council meeting if at all possible.  

11.    Fr. Brian closed the meeting with prayer at 8:07 p.m. 

12.  David Danhauer will lead the opening prayer at the June meeting. 

13.  Next meeting – Monday, June 5 at 6:30 in Fr. Tucker Center.    

Respectfully submitted,

John Little – Council Secretary

 

sdrose@bellsouth.net
7-5-2006