Council Summary from March 19 and March 20 meetings 2020
When Council held two “conference call” meetings last week, the situation caused by the Covid-19 virus was just beginning for ACC. We discussed adjustments occurring in worship and ministry, possibilities for Holy Week, and looked at progress on the Medical Debt Relief offering which on March 19 stood at $1679 from ACC. Nate’s ministry continues with online services and phoned “visitations’ to members. The online ministry is spreading far beyond the membership, a very exciting development.
The Council is looking at the financial impact on the Church due to canceled rentals of all groups using the church social hall and meeting rooms. We agreed to close rentals until the end of the shelter-in-place order.
This is a considerable loss of income, yet we felt returning both fees and deposits is the right thing to do. We are communicating with the schools who are renting our space and closed when the West County School District closed for Shelter in Place. A Crisis Response Finance Committee has been formed including Randy Laferte, David Hertzer, Elena Caruthers, and myself to begin looking at the consequences of Covid-19 closures on our finances for different periods of time up through the Summer. The information gathered will guide Council decisions. Stabilizing pay for our staff has been a top priority. We’re giving Jacob more time in the office to take care of some long neglected tasks, and Javier has shifted his work to deep cleaning and painting.
Faith gave us a thorough report of the activities of the boards: Hospitality and Outreach, Missions and Social Justice, Faith Formation, and Deacons (Worship). We continue to Be the Church.
In Building and Grounds improvements, we have paid the balance of the Labyrinth project cost, approved funds and completed the patio landscaping, and put on temporary hold the replacement of the sidewalk in front of the church. We continue to explore an esthetically pleasing and clear sign for the building to be placed on the balcony over the steps. We have temporarily slowed down the exploration of feasible designs for bathroom remodel due to Shelter in Place orders. Two plumbers have agreed to give us feasibility advice when we can begin bringing folks into the building.
Council is nearly finished with revising and updating ACC Policies. A next step is forming a small committee to draft procedures for tracking and acknowledging memorial gifts. If you’d like to help with this, please let Sara Laferte know.
The Care Clusters are keeping us in “Community” as we work through this difficult and unpredictable time. On the behalf of the Council, I’d like to wish the members of the Congregation Well as we Shelter in Place.
Linda Young
Moderator, ACC