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Meeting Commencement:
11:15am
I.
Opening Prayer: Lead by the Rev. David J. Marshall
II.
Ministry Review: The Rev. David J. Marshall
A. 2009 was an amazing year; a journey with many blessings.
a) When the Episcopal Church is seeing a drop in attendance – the average attendance for a church in the US is 70ppl; Grace Church is seeing an increase in attendance since last year with an average attendance of 100ppl.
b) While the Episcopal Church is seeing a decrease in giving; Grace Church is seeing and increase of 15% over last year.
c) While other Episcopal Churches are struggling to get youth attendance in church; Grace church now has two regular youth groups.
d) In addition, the choir is growing – and it is often said that the choir is a barometer for the growth in a church.
B. 2010 will bring continued growth.
a) Grace hopes to add a 5pm Service on Sunday. This will take a lot. Prior to starting the 8am Legacy service, there had been concern over a new service separating members of the church. However, there seems to be a need to provide a service to those who cannot make a morning service.
III. Budget Ministry: Steve Gordon & Bettie Wolfe
A. Reference Monthly Comparison Composite and Balance Composite Sheet (attached)
B. At the end of 2009, Grace dropped in our reserves approximately $22,000 to balance the budget.
C. In 2010, our goal is to not have a need to draw on reserves at all. Using tactics of line by line examination of the budget we hope to save and make up the $13,000 deficit. (Reflectively, the deficit is perhaps as little as $4 per week per parishioner.)
D. Grace is adding a Finance Committee that will meet once a week and report to the Vestry. They will give the budget and budget goals constant attention.
E. Referencing page 2 of the Annual Meeting Packet (attached)
a. Pledges are up 15% over last year.
b. The Plate estimate is conservative. (We hope that continued trends in growth lead to a higher actual plate donation.)
c. As we grow, the Diocesan gives us less. Our goal is to not need their support at all.
F. Reference Expenses (attached)
a. Change in personnel: For 2010 we will not support a full time office administrator. Fr. Dave and a rotating schedule of volunteers will complete office work. This will save roughly $12,000 for the year.
b. The bulletin will be copied in black and white only, saving an estimated $2,500
c. Weekly flower donations, or donations as little as $35, will cover flowers for a week.
G. Currently our reserve is approximately $19,000.
H. Budget was unanimously approved.
IV. Pioneers: The Rev. Dave Marshall
A. In May we will hold a celebration of the Church Leaders who have helped guide Grace since the split over three years ago.
V. Election of New Vestry Members: the Rev. Dave Marshall
A. Milt White, Amy Held, Betsy Schaffer were all unanimously elected to hold positions on the vestry.
B. Still needed are a Coordinator of Fellowship, a Clerk and a Nursery Leader. It was approved unanimously by way of a nod that vestry have the authority to fill these positions as they see fit.
D. Steve Gordon was introduced as New Senior Warden.
VI. Convention Delegates: the Rev. Dave Marshall
A. February 13, 2010 Convention Delegates will be Joy Leiber, Emily, Steve Gordon. These delegates were appointed as no delegates were elected last year at the annual meeting.
B. 2011 Delegates volunteered and were approved, including three alternates.
Ron, Pam Wheatland, Irene
Alternates: Craig Justice and Cindy Gordon
VII. Closing Prayer: Lead by the Rev. Dave Marshall
Meeting adjourned:
12:05 p.m.
AGENDA
Grace Episcopal Church
Annual Meeting
January 31, 2010
Ø Opening prayer – Fr. Dave
Ø Ministry Review – Fr. Dave
§ Discussion of Grace’s Ministries in 2009
§ Where we are being called in 2010
Ø Budget Ministry – Bettie Wolfe and Steve Gordon
· 2009 Budget Review
· Formation of Finance Committee
· Changes in 2010 Budget
· Vote to accept 2010 Budget
Ø Pioneers – Fr. Dave
§ Recognition of Church Leaders who’ve help guide Grace
since the split over 3 years ago
Ø Election of new Vestry members
§ Introduce names on ballot
§ Nomination of names from the floor
§ Vote for new Vestry members – Vestry serve 3 year terms
Ø Election of Delegates to 2011 Diocesan Convention
§ Open floor for names to be submitted –
3 Delegates attend convention
§ Vote on Delegates
Ø Closing Prayer – Fr. Dave
2010 Budget
Expenses
Building & Maintenance 3,000
SDGE 3,200
Insurance 3,700
Grounds Keeper 3,200
Property Tax 250
Waste Disposal 1,100
Water 3,300
Vacation Bible School 2,000
Other Outreach 2,500
Clergy 100,000
Admin expense 2009 3,600
Accounting 4,000
Choir Director 11,605
Organist/Accompanist 13,400
Sexton 4,000
FICA 2,570
Medicare 500
Computer Related 550
Copier 5,000
Office Supplies 600
Postage 500
Telephone 3,000
Stewardship 300
Altar & Flowers 2,000
Evangelism 1,500
Fellowship 1,000
Children/Youth Education 500
Music 100
Youth Ministry 800
Mission Share 16,000
Travel/Conferences 500
Capital Maintenance 2,500
Kitchen/Cleaning 1,000
Misc. Bank Charge 100
Income
Pledge 114,000
Plate 22,000
Diocesan Support 35,000
Memorials 700
Interest 1,200
Misc. 1,000
Weddings 1,500
AA 2,400
VBS 1,500
Other Outreach 2,500
Fellowship 200
Flowers 1,800
Birthday/Anniversary 800
Total Income 184,600
Total Expenses 197,875
Vestry Reports
Senior Warden, Emily Harmon.
It has been my great privilege to serve as senior warden since Sept. 2006, and a gift to me, personally, to have been able to see Grace through a challenging, yet exciting time of unprecedented change.
In particular, 2009 was a year of getting to know each other and settling in. We have been so blessed to welcome not only Fr. Dave and his family, but also the many other new individuals and families who have joined us in the past year.
The Diocese has been incredibly generous in their support of our congregation during this period of transition and growth. In the coming year, the financial assistance we receive will be reduced by 42% percent, to $35,000. The vestry is committed to continuing to reduce this amount over the next few years, until Grace is completely self-sustaining again, and to returning our full support to the Diocese and the wider church, with gratitude for all that God has given us.
As 2010 begins, we are poised to expand our ministries and prepared to extend the Lord's loving arms to our community and the world. As we continue to grow physically and spiritually, Grace will shine the light of Christ's Gospel more brightly than ever.
Stewardship, Ann Harjo
The Stewardship Team knew that our 2010 budget would be greater than in previous years and the committee established its approach to requesting donations from our growing congregation carefully. In October, we “kicked off” our efforts gently and with caring by explaining giving. Ann Harjo asked the congregation on three separate occasions to look deeply in giving to Grace. Steve Gordon and Amy Heald presented their request in two humorous and timely skits. With your help, the team succeeded in increasing pledges in 2010. We added 13 new pledging units. And the average pledge increased to $2,060. Our pledging income increased 15% to $114,000. The goal for 2010 is to add 10 new pledging units during the year. Thank you sincerely for your financial support of Grace.
Pastoral Care, Janet Marseilles
Fr. Dave, Fr. Bill and I worked closely at the beginning of the year to give the pastoral care ministry a more defined structure and purpose. The following is an outline of many areas encompassed by Pastoral Care.
Lay Eucharistic MinistryCalling On People In NeedMinistry To People Via Cards, Letters, or PhonePrayer Chain Ride Ministry Knit Wits Healing Ministry
Each area is going strong. We trained four additional individuals as Lay Eucharistic Ministers. A monthly birthday list is generated from the church database and birthday cards are mailed. The prayer chain has been updated with a new format and is sent out weekly to a faithful network. The Knit Wits continue to meet on a monthly basis. There were two healing services held this year but implementing an on-going healing ministry has been a challenge.
In the fall we facilitated a six-week grief support group. It was well received.
Fr. Bill organized several informal gatherings at the home of a parishioner. A lay Eucharistic minister administered communion and it was a wonderful time of fellowship.
Fr. Dave, Barbara Velivis and I attended a senior resource fair sponsored by the San Marcos Senior Center. Over 100 pieces of literature from Grace were handed out.
2010 In the coming year we hope to continue to meet the needs of the congregation and surrounding community with love and compassion.
Outreach, Tanya Galvan
As I begin my fourth year as Outreach chair at Grace, I am, as always, humbled and in awe of the incredible generosity of my fellow church members. It seems that, no matter how many projects and programs I come up with, there are always kind-hearted Grace members that rise to the occasion with their time, financial support, and compassion for those less fortunate among us. Here are some highlights from the past year:
Throughout 2009 we collected cans and non-perishables for the North County Food Bank (which acts as a distribution center for food pantries and soup kitchens throughout the North San Diego County area) during the Lenten season and again in the fall harvest season. We once again accumulated a large amount of food for the homeless and hungry in the North County. In light of mounting job losses and economic hardship, this help was greatly appreciated by multiple agencies.
In February, we took part in the Interfaith homeless shelter program. (This took place during the week of February 2). It went very well, with members of our congregation supplying dinner and a person to host the shelter each night. We had an eager group of youth who created hand-made crosses for the guests. This year we seemed to have more homeless children than usual, and several volunteers approached me saying they were greatly moved by their plight. Some of us have kept in touch with these homeless families and continue to assist them in their struggles.
For the Easter season we had multiple community projects.
First, we discovered that the number of homeless teens in the North County had increased exponentially. Therefore, instead of our usual collection of donations for Easter Lilies for use in the church’s Easter decorations, our youth groups colored an image of an Easter lily. Members of the congregation then took the lilies and returned them to Grace with gift cards to local grocery stores. The lily pictures were then "planted" into the ground around the church on Easter Sunday morning, as a glorious testament to the congregation’s compassion. The gift cards (which totaled over $1300.00!) were blessed and presented to the Vista Unified School District’s homeless liaison officer, who then distributed them to her neediest students. The North County Times article about the Grace lily project on April 11, 2009 was highly complementary of our efforts.
The second Easter project involved our youth groups collecting and filling plastic Easter eggs for our “adopted” classroom of 45 pre-school Headstart children. Grace members brought in their donations and we were able to provide some Easter fun for children who would otherwise not have this treat.
Over the summer, we had many different community-building experiences. In June, a group of us got together and worked with the City of Escondido in a neighborhood clean-up project, which included light gardening and trash pick-up for low-income housing areas. This was done in conjunction with the Escondido Neighborhood Services Division, which assists low-income residents with their homes.
In July, we purchased Padres baseball tickets for low-income Head Start families, many of whom had never been to a professional sports event. In all, we sponsored nine families.
Also in July and August, we collected school supplies for homeless and disadvantaged students in the San Diego County area. These were distributed by University of Phoenix student-teachers, who selected the neediest among their poverty-level students.
In September, we organized the most ambitious program I have ever seen at Grace. Through the non-profit group “Operation Showers of Appreciation,” (a volunteer- based organization that assists active duty and reserve military and their families who are expecting or recently had babies by holding baby showers for them), we put on a baby shower for 9 military moms in our sanctuary. Each family received well-over $100 worth of baby-related items including strollers, car-seats, baby monitors, clothing, etc. We also provided a full meal and cake as well as games and entertainment for the families. It was a wonderful accomplishment and we should all be proud of our actions in support of our military.
In October, we got together and helped the City of San Marcos “Volunteer
Improvement and Beautification Program” helping clean-up, paint
and landscape low-income areas in San Marcos. The home we were assigned to was owned by an elderly couple who had become unable to keep-up with their yard work and upkeep. It was gratifying to make a transformation of the home in just a few hours, along with many other residents and church groups in the San Marcos area.
This past Christmas season as always, everyone found a way to give to others. We continued with our annual holiday project with the San Marcos Head Start program. This year, we adopted 4 needy families, providing them with gifts, food, and gift cards. Our church also arranged for Santa to personally hand out to each Head Start student at the San Marcos center a Christmas gift bag including coloring books, crayons and candy canes with money collected during a December bake sale in the coach house.
Once again, I thank the members of Grace Episcopal Church for allowing me this opportunity to show the community how we make Christ known by doing his works.
Ministry of Evangelism, Cindy Gordon
You are wonderful! Thanks to your new or continued support of Grace, our average Sunday attendance in 2009 increased to 100 people. This is due to you coming almost every week and bringing your friends and family. Your warmth, smiles and welcoming nature have continued to greet everyone who enters Grace. In 2009, we ran fewer ads (saving money) and still experienced an increase by seeing more positive press releases focused around our Outreach into the community, as well as sending weekly emails with Father Dave’s “Reflections”. We hope to continue our growth trend in 2010. We are off to a great start with having formed a Welcome Team, who will be instrumental in helping to achieve a lofty goal of an average Sunday attendance of 150 by December. We have re-implemented the Friendship Tablets during service, will be delivering Welcome Bags again, and hosting four Newcomer Brunches this year. We will also be enjoying our Invite a Friend Sunday again this year. We are also excited about receiving our Pictorial Directories next month, which help each of us remember faces and names better. I would love to hear from you with any suggestions or offers to be a part of this dynamic ministry.
Fellowship Georgia Schulz
“More, More, More” best describes fellowship activities throughout 2009.
More opportunities for worship with two Sunday services meant the family gathered twice for coffee, snacks and conversation. More volunteers provided goodies for those gatherings. (Thank you for your help!) And most blessedly, more people are calling Grace their home. We continued to host Shrove Tuesday pancake supper and coordinate soup suppers during Lent. Mother’s and Father’s Day brunches are tradition that is enjoyed by all the family. New for 2009 included Fellowship joining in service with Education, Outreach, Evangelism and Stewardship committees for several amazing activities. We worked with Education to coordinate family summer suppers that included adult Bible study and study/play programs for the kids. We supported Outreach with Showers of Appreciation, baby shower for military mothers. We co-hosted luncheons with Evangelism and Stewardship for new-comers and ingathering celebrations. As I leave vestry, I excitedly look forward to the new eyes and hands that will be guiding Fellowship. I thank you all for supporting me the past 4 years. I have been blessed by the gift of you giving of yourselves and allowing me to serve you and our amazing Lord and God.
Worship, Steve Gordon
On Sunday, we all come together in our various ministries to help make our church that open and welcoming place to all where you can give thanks and praise and feel the love of our Lord. We are blessed with a congregation filled with a willingness to serve and comprised of members who possess a wide range of talent! It is through everyone’s effort that we grew our congregation in average Sunday attendance this past year as well as our outreach to the community!
As we move through 2010, we ask for each person to pray and reflect on where they are being called to serve our Lord. There are many ways to serve within our congregation; Acolyte, Adult Education, Altar Guild, Chalice, Choir, Fellowship, Greeter, Knit Wits, Lector, Men’s Group, Nursery, Office Volunteer, Sunday school, Usher, Vestry, Welcoming Committee or in helping to maintain the church grounds! Wherever your talent or interest may be there is a ministry at Grace!
If you have any questions or would like more information on any of the ministries listed above, please feel free to ask on Sunday, email Fr. Dave (revdavidmarshall@gmail.com) or call the church (760-744-7667).
Education Barbara Velivis
Our Education programs are actively thriving. The major events of the year are Vacation Bible School and the Christmas Eve pageant. Thanks to a wonderful team, these were both a great success. Vacation Bible School 2010 planning is already underway.
Some of the children’s accomplishments include painting Easter lilies to benefit homeless teens, performing a puppet show for the Easter egg hunt, planting 2 plum trees on our church grounds, collecting toys during VBS for poor children, and gifting the congregation with their talents at Christmas. We also had fun surfing, going to pool parties, and pumpkin carving!
As of January 2009 we now have 2 youth groups at Grace, The G-Unit for 7th – 12th grade, and T-Unit for 3rd - 6th grade. Each group meets once a month and we have plans for the year which include a study of the Gospel of Mark, camping, surfing, and continued Outreach. They are forming solid, lasting friendships while studying and having fun together.
Sunday school has seen some scheduling upheaval; however we are back on track with increased attendance. We teach every Sunday during Arise! except for the 4th Sunday when the youth participate in all aspects of the service.
Adult education is very well attended with lively discussions.
Thank you for the privilege of instructing your children. We are blessed to have so much energy, talent and personality in our congregation. They are a vital part of Grace.
