Vestry Town Hall Meeting Transcription
Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church
Sunday, May 14, 2006
10:00 a.m.
[Questions 1-21 were answered at the Vestry Town Hall Meeting. The answers have been edited by the presenters for clarity and, in some cases, additional information has been added.]
Question #1 Can you address the rumors of St. Michael’s starting an elementary school, supposedly to be built on the recently acquired property?
David Martin It’s a rumor. We do not have definitive plans for any of those pieces of property at the moment other than getting ourselves positioned for future expansion for this parish. We do certainly have some very pressing needs which we hope to resolve by using some parts of that property. Specifically, expansion of our various youth programs at this parish where we’re just plain busting at the seams. Mother’s Day Out is busting at the seams. With respect to the school, as I think all of you are aware, there is a rolling three-year agreement that we have with ESD. Either party can give notice to the other party but there is a three-year notice period required and that contract keeps renewing itself on an annual basis. To date, neither party has given notice to the other party about any activities with respect to ESD vacating their premises here at St. Michael’s property.
Question #2 We have a budget of $5.4 million and pledges of $4.8 million. How do we plan with pledges less than the budget?
Allen Lassiter Our current year pledges are only part of our revenues for the year, although certainly the biggest part. We also collect prior year pledges. As you know, we had a shortfall at the end of last year in collection of current year pledges so we expect a substantial collection of prior year pledges that we are budgeting. Another source of revenue is the plate which is a substantial amount of money that comes in throughout the year and that’s part of our budget, as well as other contributions that normally come in. And often people will contribute more to the church than they have pledged and we have some statistical predictability on that, on a historical basis, so we budget this as well. There are also several other sources of revenues for the Parish that we budget to come up with the total.
Question #3 What input has the bishop had in the formulation of the strategic plan?
Cullum Clark The strategic plan has been an SMAA internal matter. The good news is we’ve had gigantic input from the parish: 600 + people participating in our meetings all through 2005 and early 2006, but we’ve not had formal conversations, at the level of the strategic plan committee, with the bishop.
Question #4 In what capacity has Julie Seigel joined our staff? Who does she report to? Is she full-time or part-time? And what was the thought process in bringing her on board?
David Martin Julie has been working very closely CA Rundell and his staff in the Capital Campaign, helping us in our fundraising efforts. Interest had been expressed on the part of the stewardship committee to have her assist the stewardship campaign. Julie has become a member of the staff at St. Michael’s and predominantly will be focused on development and fundraising activities.
Question #5 How are delegates educated on the candidates for the presiding bishop?
Sharon
Alexander The website of ECUSA has information and the Episcopal Church USA has a lot of information as well. Episcopal Life has been running a series of articles about the different candidates. Websites have become a very common way to educate people. I don’t know whether the Diocese of Dallas is doing anything formally with the deputies, but the ones I know have been seeking out the information on their own and my bet is they are meeting and discussing this.
Question #6 Are any of the candidates for Presiding Bishop or Diocesan bishop considered controversial?
Sharon
Alexander I think controversial is a difficult word to define. If the question is “Are any of them in same-sex relationships?”, the answer to that is no. In California, there were three candidates for bishop that were in same-sex partner relationships but none of them won. It was the Suffragan Bishop from the Diocese of Alabama, Mark Andrus, who is married and has two children, who won. The candidate for Bishop of Northern California has been divorced twice and some may consider this to be controversial. In addition, four of the seven nominees for Presiding Bishop (Gulick, Alexander, Sauls and Schori) voted for Gene Robinson at the 2003 General Convention, but none participated in his consecration, and some may consider this to be controversial. Finally, the candidate for Bishop of Albany appears to be a supporter of the Network (the Diocese of Albany is a member of the Network), and some way may consider this to be controversial. However, none of the candidates rise to the level of controversy surrounding Gene Robinson in 2003. We will update this response if any relevant controversial information arises.
Question #7 Why has St. Michael’s not withdrawn from the Network (as the Church of Ascension has)? When will we withdraw?
Sharon
Alexander The Vestry met right after the Diocesan Convention voted to have the Diocese join the Network, and we sent a letter to the parish in October, 2004. It essentially said that we are not going to support the Network and we are not going to oppose the Network, we are going to wait and see what the Network is and what it may become. From what I have seen, the Network has not had much impact on St. Michael at all; positive, negative or otherwise. I’m not sure what action would be relevant to take at this point.
Question #8 Where do our delegates stand on same-sex marriage? Are they for or against the Windsor report?
Sharon
Alexander As far as the Windsor report goes, the Vestry voted in October 2004 overwhelmingly to put St. Michael on the record, which was about eight months before the Diocese did this, that we support the Windsor Report and support its processes. I’m sure that there may be individuals here who do not support the Windsor Report, but as for your Vestry and your other leaders, the parish is on the record as being a strong supporter of it. When we had a Special Convention of the Diocese in May last year, all of Saint Michael’s delegates voted to support the Windsor Report. No one has polled our current Delegates to the Diocesan Convention on same sex issues, but it is not likely to be an issue since the Diocese already has a Canon prohibiting same sex blessings. I’m pretty sure, knowing the Deputies from Dallas to the General Convention, that they will not be voting in favor of any resolutions supporting same sex blessings or marriages, and they will support the Windsor Report.
Question #9 Please reconsider the June 10th meeting.
Sharon
Alexander One of the reasons we canceled it was because Laura Allen, who’s been helping do these, will already be gone to General Convention. We can absolutely have a session and have an update. I’ll commit that we will find a place and let you know about that.
Question #10 Are there any individuals living in open same-sex relationships among the bishop candidates to be considered by the national convention?
Sharon
Alexander No.
Question #11 The controversy about the new canons seem to be that they would apply to all lay, not just leadership of the laity. What is the purpose of the proposal for the canon revision?
Sharon
Alexander The purpose of the proposal is the theology that we have in the Episcopal Church, which is that everybody has a ministry. There is a ministry of bishops, priests, deacons, and of the laity. The underlying idea is to make sure that everybody is treated equally. In my opinion, this hasn’t been articulated particularly well in the proposed Canons. The revisions are well drafted and complicated. They are a sweeping change from what we have had before, and are controversial primarily for that reason. All of the canon lawyers I know, who have looked at it, are not particularly happy with the way the proposal has been drafted. If it passes, it likely will not be in the form that it has been submitted; certainly not without considerable debate.
Question #12 Outline the process for the rector search.
Rusty Smith The search committee was put together approximately late February. We have a tentative schedule which has the search committee bringing a candidate to the vestry in August or September of 2007. Our next procedure is to put together a questionnaire for the parish asking what you want in a rector. It’s going to be several pages long, asking you to tell us what you need. We will then put together a profile, that will occur in late or middle September. We will get the answers and put together a profile of the parish. We will then send that profile to the bishop who will send it on to ECUSA and we will receive candidates from both the bishop and ECUSA. In the meantime, we will be receiving candidates from the parish. We will hand out forms for you fill out if you know someone you think would do a good job here. We’d like to have their name, address, and the best way to get in touch with them. Then during the spring, we hope to have that list of candidates, start breaking them down, talking to many of them, and eliminate many of them. The committee will hear several speak and then make a presentation to the vestry.
Question #13 Are there any restrictions on considering some of our own ministers for rector?
Rusty Smith The bishop, not canon law, has his own set of rules and regulations in the diocese. If there is anybody on the staff of a church that wants to be considered as the rector of that parish, then they are to leave the parish during the period of that search.
Question #14 What can we do to get Father Chip made our permanent rector?
David Martin The vestry perceives that it has two principle responsibilities facing us right now. The first of those is finding the right long-term solution for St. Michael’s; the best solution we could possible provide. The second of those responsibilities is to ensure that we have the best leadership in the interim for this parish. The vestry has charged the search committee with the responsibility of meeting that first challenge: finding the best long-term solution for St. Michael’s. The vestry feels very fortunate in being able to reach agreement with Father Chip to become the interim priest in charge of St. Michael’s. In that capacity, the vestry, Chip and the bishop have all concurred that it is in the best interest of all involved, that he not be an active candidate for the rector.
Question #15 Why does allocated money for choir and music not get used for choir and music?
Allen Lassiter We have designated funds set aside specifically for future use in the music program and that is available for supplies as well as for increasing our voices and other music programs. On an annual basis, we budget for the choir and for our music program as part of our overall operating budget process. Our 2006 budget includes a 13% increase in the Music department. We know that our music program is extremely important to our worship, and to our overall parish, and it’s a big focus area for us going forward. We are going to be increasing our emphasis on that area.
Question #16 Has the vestry considered a co-generation or combined heat and power plant as an alternative to boiler replacement?
Allen Lassiter That is one of those questions that I know Howard Templin has thought about and addressed. I think we can answer that one later on our website. I understand those options were considered, but were deemed to be more expensive. I know that we looked at several bids on the boiler replacement and we hope that we’re going to have some favorable news on the amount of the bid versus our original estimates. We certainly can’t promise that. It’s one of those things that you won’t know how much it is going to cost until you open up the machinery and see what’s there.
Howard Templin We are replacing the boiler and some air handlers of the same vintage. This will not involve the chiller. Regarding geothermal; it is a good system, however, it isn’t cost effective for us. Here are the reasons:
1. We already have a complete system that was designed and installed many years ago. We would have to make significant changes to our existing system to make it work.
2. We would have to drill a large number of wells scattered around the site to get the volume of water necessary for our demand.
3. We don’t have the money for the retrofit.
Regarding co-generation, we did consider this but, based on Marvin Thedford’s evaluation, this is not a cost effective solution for us due to the small size of our new boiler, high gas prices and the cost of equipment necessary for this process.
I have a project now that is using geothermal and it is very promising. I know it is being used on a lot of new schools in our area. Certainly in the future it will be considered for new construction.
Question #17 Does the Vestry make the final decision on the rector or does the parish? Does the Bishop have any input?
Sharon
Alexander It is the job of the Search Committee to bring the candidate to the Vestry and the Canons provide that the Vestry makes the decision. According to our bylaws, it takes a 2/3 vote of the Vestry to issue a call. By virtue of being the leader of the Diocese and our working with the Diocese on the search process, the Bishop does have input. Canonically, within 30 days after the Vestry makes a call, the Bishop can raise an objection to the person the Vestry decided to call, and the Vestry then must meet and consider the objection, but it is not required to go with the Bishop’s recommendation. (See Canon 18 of the Diocese of Dallas). Practically, however, this is a collaborative process between the parish and the Diocese and likely the Vestry will vote on a candidate that has already met the approval of the Bishop. The Bishop and Canon Lambert have both expressed that they do not plan to interfere with or micromanage the process - their role is that of assistance.
Question #18 In reference to the capital campaign, how do you intend to raise the remaining money for expansion?
C.A. Rundell We have strong leadership in this church and people who are committed to its growth. We’re very happy with the success we’ve had so far. We’re excited, and I want to thank all of you who participated in that. We’re trying to raise $12.5 million on top of about $8 million that was raised for the chapel and for the properties we already own. Park Cities Baptist Church sailed past their $33 million budget for their parking garage and office building, with essentially the same membership that we have. I don’t think we’re going to have any large difficulty in finding the other $5 million or so when we get around to it. You have been very receptive so far. We appreciate that and we expect it to continue.
Question #19 Do the names from the bishop and ECUSA represent people who have already indicated their availability for a move?
Rusty Smith In several cases it is. They may know people who deserve to go on to more responsibility. For instance, a bishop in another diocese may recommend one of their priests who are in a small parish but he thinks can take over a parish like St. Michael’s, they will recommend them. From ECUSA, what you have are a lot of folks who are looking for a job. The bishop will also recommend the people that he knows throughout other diocese.
Question #20 Can you please summarize the bishop’s comments from Wednesday evening for those unable to attend?
Sharon
Alexander We are almost out of time, so we do not have time to summarize that now. The presentation was videotaped. We will request a copy of the video and make it available for viewing.
Question #21 What is the salary range for the new rector?
Rusty Smith We will be competitive.
[Note: These answers are current as of June 1, 2006. Please re-visit the SMAA website for future updates.]