Session Update
· The Session held its annual retreat on January 15th. Ron Young and Phillip Wright rotated off the Session and we welcomed two new members, Jessica Roberts and Shaun Townley.
· The Session would like to extend a sincere thank you to Ron and Phillip who saw us through the sale of the old church and the building of our new facility. The process was lengthy and at times frustrating, but they were there every step of the way.
· This was also the last Session meeting for long time treasurer Troy Ivey. After 8 years of service, Troy is stepping down to give someone else a chance. Troy will be a hard act to follow and we are thankful to him for steering our financial ship through the recent move.
· Troy presented the final budget review for 2021. He then led a discussion of the proposed 2022 budget going through the major budget lines. The Session discussed the proposed budget and voted to adopt it as the balanced budget for 2022.
· The Session decided to task the Finance Committee with overseeing our finances. The committee will divide up the tasks of the treasurer between Rosie Sanislo, Lizz Savard, Andy Sanislo and Phillip Wright. Rosie will become New Hope’s new treasurer and oversee the process. Lizz will work with Leslie Burton to check on expenditures and balance the checkbook. Andy will coordinate with Edward Jones regarding our investments. Phillip will continue to handle the weekly deposits of offerings, etc.
· The clerk led a discussion of online access to church records and gave a brief tour of the church’s website. Up to date information about church activities is needed to keep the website up to date. Please let Peter know of any church news that would be appropriate for the website.
· Lizz Savard presented a preliminary plan for developing new church missions. Now that the building project is complete, our thoughts and efforts need to turn toward being effective participants in our community guided by the Presbytery’s Mathew 25 Project. Lizz identified our physical community and the demographics of those who live here. She then presented several possible areas of need in the community and how New Hope could address those needs. This will be an ongoing discussion and the Session will be involving the congregation in planning and executing mission projects in the near future.
· The Session is in the process of identifying tasks that are necessary for the operations of our church and spreading the word of God. Some of the tasks which were previously necessary are no longer needed and there are new tasks that have evolved because of our new situation. The Session will organize these into a new committee structure. We will be asking individuals in the congregation to be participate on these committees so that things don’t become overwhelming.
· Marilyn Suber gave a review of the congregation’s caregiver program. Work on this will continue.
· The Session spent sometime reviewing what it means to be an “elder.” We used a series of videos provided by the Presbytery to reinforce what being an elder is really all about. This was a fruitful discussion and reminded us all of why we are here doing God’s work.
· The Session held its yearly corporate meeting to elect officers for 2022. Ron Young will remain president with Lizz Savard as vice president, Peter Savard as secretary/clerk, and Rosie Sanislo as treasurer.
Submitted by
Peter Savard
Clerk of Session
