The Vestry of St. John’s Church, Elizabeth City Parish, was called to order on February 22, 2025, at 3:25 p.m. Present were Bettyrene Pope, Linda Curtis, Darden Barrett, Scott Curtis, Brad Norris, Bob Harper, Anne Rutherford, Andrew Mackey and The Reverend Lisa Erdeljon. Ellen Griffith and Ron Kindley were absent.
Ascertainment of Quorum: A quorum was present.
Substitute Registrar: The Rev. Lisa Erdeljon agreed to fill in as the Registrar for this meeting.
Approval of Minutes and Agenda: A Motion was made by Scott Curtis to approve the Minutes of the January meeting, the Minutes of the Annual Meeting, and the Agenda, seconded by Bettyrene Pope. The motion was approved unanimously.
Election of Officers: A Motion was made by The Rev. Lisa Erdeljon to elect Darden Barrett as Senior Warden, Bettyrene Pope as Junior Warden, Ellen Griffith as Registrar, and Linda Curtis as Treasurer, seconded by Bob Harper. The motion was approved unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report, Linda Curtis: Linda presented the final December budget, see attached. This is the 2024 year-end budget, with a closing balance of $0.00, after surplus was moved to Reserves Fund.
Linda Curtis presented the January budget report, see attached. Budgeted and Actual income looks significantly off due to the beginning of the year, as well as pre-paid pledges that came in last year. The actual amount is much closer. Linda reminded the Vestry that the budget is set up with an evenly spread 12-month income and expense distribution, even though that is not reality. Some expenses go out in one month but cover multiple months—for example, Property/Liability Insurance was paid in January, covering the first quarter of 2025. Lay Pension has an increase due to the increase in salaries for staff. Boilers in the church were repaired, as well.
One Hoffman House tenant has not paid rent in December or January. St. John’s has never had to process an eviction due to non-payment and the building manager does not recommend doing so now.
The Rev. Lisa Erdeljon asked that the Vestry have a copy of the leases for the Hoffman House, as well as a copy of the Priest-in-Charge Letter of Agreement.
A motioned was made by Darden Barrett to approve the December 2024 and January 2025 financial reports, Brad Norris seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously.
Parochial Report: Staff are continuing to work on the Parochial Report. A draft will be emailed within the next two weeks, to be approved at the March meeting.
WiFi Proposal: Patrick Crandol prepared a proposal to increase the WiFi speed of the Parish House and Church, through Cox Fiber. This increase in speed would allow a smoother streaming experience for all online work, especially the worship service streaming; it also increases the expense by $103.00 per month. Discussion included how many people watch the streamed service and if another vendor is available in the area at a cheaper price.
A motion was made by Bob Harper to approve the proposal pending investigation into a less expensive option offered by Verizon Fios, seconded by Scott Curtis. The motion was approved unanimously.
Adjournment: A Motion was made by Bettyrene Pope to adjourn the meeting at 4:22 p.m. and seconded by Darden Barrett. The motion was approved unanimously.