The vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Elizabeth City Parish, was called to order on November 16, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. Present were: Senior Warden Charlie Edmonson, Junior Warden Bettyrene Pope, Anne Abraham, Greg Brauer, Dan Clark, Doug Perry, Registrar Emily Klotz, Treasurer Linda Curtis, The Reverend Samantha Vincent-Alexander, and The Reverend Mark Riley. Absent: Elizabeth Zimmerman, Jay Hogg. This meeting was held in St. John’s parish house.
The meeting opened at 6:30 p.m.
Audio/Visual System Greg reported on improvements made in the quality of streaming sound, especially for the choir and organ. He is still balancing the sound, and requires an installer to clean up exposed wires and mount microphones up high. The equipment does not need an operator; it just needs to be turned on before services. Motion by Charlie Edmonson, seconded by Anne Abraham: Vestry approves up to $2,000 for materials and labor to install the audio/visual equipment. Approved unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report, Linda Curtis Linda reported that October was a good month financially. She has not needed to pull money out of the Hoffman House fund or the reserves, and she believes that she probably won’t need to. As of the meeting, St. John’s had received 57 pledges totaling $155,610.
Vestry minutes of 10/19/21 were accepted.
Rector’s Report, The Reverend Samantha Vincent-Alexander
December Vestry Meeting: The vestry will have a brief meeting followed by food and drinks on December 14 at 6:30 p.m. Everyone is asked to bring something to share.
Christmas Eve Schedule: Services will be 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.
New Endowment Member: Val Bowen stepped down from the endowment committee and needs to be replaced. Motion by Charlie Edmonson, seconded by Greg Brauer: Vestry appoints Jim Klotz to the Endowment Board to fulfill the remainder of Val Bowen’s term. Approved unanimously.
Safe Church Policy: Vestry members need to complete an abbreviated version of Safe Church training. Email Susan Allen at the diocese to set up online training. Motion by Dan Clark, seconded by Anne Abraham: Vestry approves the Safe Church policy. Approved unanimously.
Letter Writing: Samantha distributed a list of parishioners who have not attended services in awhile, and asked vestry members to write notes to them, reminding them of service times.
Assistant Rector’s Report, The Reverend Mark Riley
Thrive: Over 400 children will be receiving Christmas gift cards through Thrive. The will be distributed from 12:00-3:00 p.m. in the parish house.
Senior Warden’s Report, Charlie Edmonson
Asset Documentation: Charlie asked that the vestry document their assigned areas by the end of November.
Charitable Trust: Vestry needs to re-approve the articles of incorporation. Motion by Doug Perry, seconded by Dan Clark: Vestry approves the amended and restated articles of incorporation of the Charitable Trust. Approved unanimously.
Committee Reports
Christian Formation: Emily reported that on November 14, 10 children (representing 5 families) attended a hot dog roast and s’mores making event. Children played on the new playground, enjoyed the food, and lit sparklers. Samantha added that on the same evening, 12 people gathered for a young adult event at The Vanguard.
Outreach: Doug reported that he and his neighbors moved another Afghan refugee family. Anyone wishing to help these families can purchase needed items from an Amazon wish list set up by Commonwealth Catholic Charities.
The meeting adjourned at 8:05 p.m.