St. John’s Episcopal Church
March 2007
The Vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Elizabeth City Parish, Hampton, Virginia, met on March 13, 2007. The Very Reverend Donna-Mae Siderius presided. Members present were John Chiasson (Junior Warden), Betsy Clark, Scott Curtis, Charlie Edmonson, Kevin Eley, Connie Heath (Treasurer), Whit McKinney, Sanford Pankin, Bettyrene Pope (Senior Warden), and Chuck Zimmerman. The Reverend James “Skip” Hutton III also attended. Sandy Smith was absent.
Donna-Mae opened the meeting with prayer, and Scott offered a devotional centered on Matthew 14:23 – “It is hard to listen for God if you’re not quiet.”
Minutes
The February Vestry Minutes were approved as presented.
Treasurer’s Report
Connie Heath presented the February Income and Expense Statement, the Special Accounts Report, and Balances of Designated Offerings Report. The Checking Account Balance was $46,122.86. February income totaled $35,865.94, with total expenditures of $43,780.66.
Under Special Accounts, the Memorial Fund received income of $3,815.63, reflecting partial bequests of David Adamson and Rebecca Fontaine received in January and designated by the Vestry in February. The Parish Improvement Fund received $7,000 from these bequests, and expended $3,500 to repay a parishioner loan for the parking lot construction, and $375.00 to refurbish the Heffelfinger plaque.
Junior Warden’s Report
John Chiasson is developing a “laundry list” of items requiring maintenance and repair at St. John’s, and is distributing a flier to parishioners (attached) asking them to identify items needing attention. John plans to set up a master binder with sections devoted to various systems and projects, with maintenance schedules, project history and status, etc. The development of this comprehensive record will help staff and Vestry analyze and prioritize projects and repairs, and ultimately help the budget process. John’s ambitious undertaking was highly praised by the members.
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The Heffelfinger Plaque was refurbished thanks to Jim Tormey, reframed by John, and re-hung in Williams Hall.
John thanked Jack Pope for his ongoing, tireless efforts to help maintain and repair various items in the Church and parish house
Senior Warden’s Report
Bettyrene Pope, Chuck Zimmerman and Whit McKinney attended the Bishop’s Vestry Day at Powhatan High School on March 3rd, attending various workshops and seminars. They all praised the information they received and the overall experience.
Associate Rector’s Report
Skip Hutton had just returned from a long overdue, very enjoyable vacation, and was busy preparing for his next lecture in his series on the history of St. John’s and the Elizabeth City Parish.
Rector’s Report
Donna-Mae began by commending the Church staff for their compassion and ongoing efforts to model Christian values during the course of their work. They have all gone beyond their stated duties to reach out to those in need, both within our congregation and outside.
Donna-Mae reported on many ongoing activities at St. John’s:
( Morning Prayer is being held each Wednesday morning during Lent, with many sharing responsibility for leading it.
( There were four baptisms in February, which was the first time in many months that baptisms outpaced deaths in the Parish.
( The Jail Ministry has welcomed new leaders in Karen Lytle, Amie McLenaghan and Betty Boykin, in addition to Donna-Mae.
( The Widow and Widower Group meets monthly, with about 20 attendees average.
( The Wednesday evening Lenten programs are well attended
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( Mission Outreach activity is increasing; each month, a different organization is highlighted, or another way to be involved in outreach is explored, including H.E.L.P., feeding ministries, etc.
( Donna-Mae has been very active on various capacities in our community. She recently gave the invocation at the annual awards meeting of the Conference on Community and Justice. She served on a panel for the ‘Family Strengthening and National Service Conference’ sponsored by Queen Street Baptist Church, and is co-chair, with John Johnson of the Hampton Citizen’s Unity Commission, for the Faith and Diversity Event, April 27th. This is part of the “Explore Hampton and Jamestown 2007” weekend. The Faith and Diversity Event will involve many faith communities in our city in a celebration at Mill Point Park, Friday evening 6:00 -8:00 pm.
( Donna-Mae reported that she is beginning a review of St. John’s youth ministries to identify our current resources and possible gaps, and is planning to meet with staff, parents, youth leaders and youth to gather information. This review will help identify the best uses of our resources in meeting the needs of Christian formation, youth and young adult/family ministries.
( Vestry members were polled regarding their attendance at the Vestry Retreat on March 23-24 at Chanco.
( The death of Warren Spratley created a vacancy on the Board of Trustees. Donna-Mae moved that the Vestry appoint Bill Hudgins. This motion was seconded and unanimously passed by the Vestry.
Action: Bill Hudgins, Jr. is appointed as Trustee of St. John’s Episcopal Church
( Donna-Mae reported that Alison Clock is working with Beverly Gundry researching and cataloguing church artifacts. Barbara Carson, a retired professor of American history at the College of William and Mary, and Carl Loundsbury, a current professor at the College and a foremost expert on Anglican churches in America have agreed to come spend the day at St. John’s on Tuesday, March 27th to help do an assessment of our records and artifacts in order to help us start to organize them.
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Other Business
A general discussion was held regarding the current events in the Episcopal Church in the USA and the worldwide Anglican Communion, with Donna-Mae providing Vestry members background information on the Canonical Structure of the Church and the Communion. Recent developments have been highly politicized by the press and by certain constituencies within the Communion. The Vestry confirmed that while we should monitor developments within the wider Communion and continue to educate ourselves regarding the issues, we are committed to focus our energy on building our parish activities and fulfilling our mission here at St. John’s in communion with the Diocese of Southern Virginia and the Episcopal Church of the USA.
Thanks to:
( Jack Pope, permanent and everlasting thanks for all he’s done for St. John’s (see above!)
( The Men’s Group for another delicious, fun pancake supper.
( Elizabeth Phillips, Connie Heath, Judy Moore, Kay Olson for an outstanding Chili Cook-off Supper
Tack Light Awards
( Donna-Mae awarded the Tacky Light to Kevin Eley
( Betsy Clark kept the Mission Tacky Light to continue praying for another month
The Rev. Skip Hutton closed the meeting with prayer.
Betsy Clark