The 173rd Annual Meeting of Second Congregational Church was held in our sanctuary on Sunday, February 27th. There were 34 church members and 4 guests in attendance. Our Moderator, Barbara Larkin, opened the meeting with very thoughtful words of thanks and appreciation to committee members, staff, choir, TV and radio listeners, and basically everyone who has carried this church through the last 2 trying years of the pandemic. Rev. Bruce led with prayer and a reading of the names of members who have sadly passed in the last 2 years.
The church body voted to accept the reports of the Pastor, Clerk, Treasurer and Moderator and approved all other reports. We also received a slate of officers, committee members and boards for 2022 with a few vacancies remaining. The Diaconate has 2 openings, Financial Affairs, 2 openings, Property Affairs, 2 openings, Memorial Gifts, 1 opening, and the Pastor, Staff, Parish Relations Committee, 1 opening.
Our Auditor, Elaine Korhonen, presented the financial reports with an explanation of our balance sheet. She noted that we were able to balance our 2021 budget thanks to the $27,000 PPP loan we received (otherwise we would have had a shortfall of $27,000!). This year we will not be receiving a PPP loan so a barebones budget with a $23,026.00 deficit was presented. The only change to the budget was a $3,000 increase to the fuel line item. All members were encouraged to think on any possible fundraiser ideas to help offset this deficit. Any gap remaining at the end of 2022, up to $23,026.00 shall be covered with funds taken from the Union Evangelical account first, then the Future Needs account second. Conference dues are no longer being collected from the congregation, instead the church is expected to donate 4% of the pledges to the Conference. The 2022 budget was approved.
It was decided a By-Law sub-committee to work on updating our current By-Laws is very necessary as many items in those By-Laws are outdated and not relative to today’s high tech world. With all the possible committees needed this year, including fundraising, 175th anniversary, and a pastor search committee, a motion was made to let the Executive Council handle a sub-committee for the By-Laws. The motion was approved.
Other business included a brief discussion on the procedures involved in finding an Interim Pastor to fill our retiring Rev. Bruce’s huge shoes. The area Conference Minister will present a zoom power point to the Executive Council to help us form an outline to begin the process. We hope to have an Interim Minister by June and they in turn will help us to find a settled pastor. This year is the church’s 175th anniversary! A motion was made and approved to form an anniversary committee that will plan and carry out a celebration for this milestone. Keith Hooton spoke passionately about our need for a Youth Pastor as a way to bring in younger families. Several people spoke up about the youth needing “something” in their lives, something to turn to. This was validated during the meeting by Ben Les, one of our very own confirmands! A motion was made and approved to support Keith’s Youth Pastor/person and it was decided to wait and involve a new Interim Pastor in this process.
Finally a lively discussion ensued about the 2020 proposal to remove the latticework in the sanctuary. Many spoke up about the pros and cons of having the latticework but in the end, the motion to remove did not carry.
Thank you to all who came to the meeting with their “two cents”….that’s what it takes to make a congregation a living and vital part of the community!