Parish Pastoral Council

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PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL Members of this council assist the Pastoral Team as a consultative body whose primary function is to lead the parish in its faith journey through leadership, service, and planning. Recommends to the Pastoral Team a plan for the development or renewal of the ministries and life of the parish. Members are selected through an annual discernment process.

 

ST. MARY MAGDALENE PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL MEETING MEETINGS FEBRYARY 28,2005 Council Members Present:  Ann Abraham , Marcie Andrews, Fran Bubley, Jim Ezzo , Sister Joan Franklin, John Kosek, , Father Ted Lucas, Mary Kay Markel, Donna Rudersdorf, Mark Speth, Chris Trock, Samantha Valez, Father Ron Wearsch Council Members Excused:, Darlene Bednarz, Deacon Carl Toomey, Beth Cramer and secretary – Bonnie Stangry Absent – Tim Spahlinger The meeting began with a Gospel Reading from John by Father Ron about the Man Born Blind. After the Gospel, each person shared their thoughts about this Conversion Story. Growth and Learning:   We viewed the video, “Celibrate .What’s Right with the World” by Dewitt Jones.  This was about a photographer from National Geographic who gave an upbeat message about being positive.  We noted how well the video went along with the Scripture that we had just discussed.. The message seemed to be, “Turn a negative into a positive.  Find beauty in everything.” Welcoming Packet:    The Welcome Packet that we currently use can be overwhelming to folks.  It is just too much to read and absorb for new folks.  Father Ted met with the subcommittee and they decided to simplify the information and use the formula of the bulletin that we now have., A follow-up phone call for newly registered people was suggested. Finance Council:   Minutes from the February Finance Council were shared.  These were not available when the packet was prepared for our meeting.  Time was given to read the minutes and comment or ask questions. Question – Will school space be rented out to Day Care? Answer, Not at this time.  We are doing a feasibility study of the school and may need  the space for future use. Question – What did the audit report mean regarding weaknesses in the money counting area? Answer.  Father  Ron explained that new guidelines from the Diocese of Cleveland went into effect last summer and we are not in compliance.  E.g , Married couples should not count together.  Some married couples have been doing this together for a long time.  Father Ron suggested a “grandfather clause” be recognized and that we would not schedule couples in the future. Other question were raised regarding the festival etc. Bingo  Father Ted passed out a sheet with four consideration regarding Bingo.  These were Volunteers, (figured we need 75 per month), Facilities Use, (our gym is used 7 evenings a week), income, (estimate $50,000.00 in a twelve month period if all goes well) and Bingo and the proclamation of the Gospel, (does Bingo help or hinder the preaching of the Gospel?)  Father Ted asked for a sign of consent from the Pastoral Council and the Finance Council whether we should proceed with this.   We were asked to consider the things talked about and at the April meeting come to some consensus regarding Bingo.. Rich Bonde sent a list of new Willowick residents and Darlene will send a letter to tell them about our church and School. The gym Roof will be repaired in the Spring. Father Ron, Darlene and others from our diocese will attend a Stewardship Meeting in Wichita Kansas this week.  They hope to get some ideas regarding tithing and will report to us and the finance council when they return. The council was told that there will be no March Meeting since it is Holy Week.  Next Meeting – April 25th, 2005 The Meeting concluded with a prayer. Minutes submitted by Ssister Joan in Bonnie’s absence..

 

ST. MARY MAGDALENE PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES January 24, 2005 Council Members Present:  Ann Abraham, Marcy Andrews, Darlene Bednarz, Fran    Bubley, Jim Ezzo, Sister Joan Franklin, John Kosek, Beth Kramer, Mary Kay Markel,        Mark Speth, Deacon Carl Toomey, Chris Trock, Father Ron Wearsch Council Members Excused:  Father Ted Lucas, Donna Rudersdorf, Tim Spahlinger, Samantha Valez The meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m. and began with a gospel reading by Chris Trock.  The subject of the reading was the Beatitudes.   VPL DOCUMENT The Vibrant Parish Life document was discussed.  There were multiple questions posed regarding the needs of our Parish.  A list of the revised questions was passed out for discussion.  The discussion centered on the areas of greatest interest for collaboration.    St. Mary Magdalene collaborates with other churches in our district, but there are areas to change this collaboration.  What do we need to change at the parish/district/diocesan levels?  Topics such as the shortage of priests and measures to work within that framework were discussed.  VPL was created to foster collaboration. Council members were requested to review the form and return it to Sister Joan who will make sure that they are turned in. RICH BONDE Rich Bonde (Mayor of Willowick and a Parishioner of St. Mary Magdalene) was present to provide an outlook for the city.  He mentioned that 65 percent of the residents of Willowick are parishioners.  He posed a question on “how can we help each other?”  He stated that Lake Erie is a “goldmine” and that we should take advantage of that.  We should use it.  Shoregate is also a huge part in the future of the city.  Demolition has already begun on the West side of the shopping center, with the renaming to “ Shoregate Town Center .”  In addition to a gas station being built in front of Giant Eagle, there will be 140 homes built, and a park will be behind the East end.  The lakefront building project will be upscale.  It is anticipated that in 3 to 4 years, there will be an additional 300 to 350 new families.  Mayor Bonde will give us a list of the new families to contact if we are interested – we WANT!!! There is also the possibility that the Vine Street parking lot will be sold to Laketran.  The corner lot could be developed into something befitting the mission of the Parish.  There is a question of selling the rectory – not a benefit other than getting money for the land.  The old convent is presently being used as a “warehouse” which is in violation of the zoning laws since it is in a residential area. CENSUS Father Ron talked about the “technical delays” with the Parish database.  People Suite The Family Position field includes children, even adult.  When are children considered to be “adults”? Deceased parishioners are so noted.  “D” means deactivated-died-or moved, etc.  Do we want to delete this information? It was discussed that 21 was a desirable age for “adult.” Emails would be helpful – we can do a mass email. Databases can hold a LOT of information – what do we need/want? At the next meeting, a discussion will take place as to what information needs to be on the registration forms STEWARDSHIP INITIATIVES Handout – Stewardship and Young Adults Workshop possibility in Wichita , Kansas , on stewardship – strong focus on tithing Will send quarterly contribution statements – two-thirds of the parishioners contribute nothing CENSUS FORMS Spring 2005 – there will be anew form for new registrants The meeting ended with prayer led by Chris Trock.

 

PASTORAL COUNCIL MEETING MEETINGS   December 13, 2004 Council Members Present:  Ann Abraham, Jim Ezzo, Sister Joan Franklin, John Kosek, Beth Kramer, Father Ted Lucas, Mary Kay Markel, Mark Speth, Chris Trock, Samantha Valez Council Members Absent:  Marcy Andrews, Darlene Bednarz, Fran Bubley, Donna Rudersdorf, Tim Spahlinger, Deacon Carl Toomey, Father Ron Wearsch The meeting began with a Gospel reading by Beth Kramer.  After a short discussion of the reading, Ann had the group listen to several songs that she had chosen to be appropriate for the season. Prior to the meeting, each Council member was given a pamphlet on “Top Ten Questions Catholics Are Asked.”  The group shared the questions that each of them has been asked by those not of our faith. GIFT Sister Joan reported on the GIFT program and said that there has been increased attendance and certainly is being well received.  Ann shared that there has been no negative feedback regarding the program.  The meal time is great, the junior high children like GIFT, and a plus is that it takes place once a month.  John Kosek shared that more people are touched through the GIFT program as opposed to PSR.  It has an easy spirit, & is comfortable and fun, and people are not afraid to speak out.  There is nothing but positive comments.  It reaches all ages.  GIFT is a 6-year cycle – continual learning.      St. Mary Magdalene is one of only four parishes that has gone completely GIFT instead of PSR. Father Ted shared that the University of Michigan conducted a study proving that having family meals together is instrumental in faith formation. Another positive from the last GIFT session was that cleanup went much better than in previous sessions.   SCHOOL INITIATIVES A letter was sent home this week and also was inserted in the bulletin stating that the school would remain open for the 2005-2006 school year.  Ann shared that she feels great hope for the school and that the Pastoral Council has a say in how the school will go forward. Father Ted mentioned that the Parish will be applying for a bingo license in the hopes of reinstituting bingo as a fund raiser.  The bingo would most probably not start until Festival.  The Parent Association will be looking into volunteers to work bingo and would suggest 20 hours of volunteering per family.  This would enable tuition to remain stable.  St. Mary Magdalene School will also (as a fund raiser) be working concession stands at sporting events; namely, the Captains and the Cavaliers. Mary Kay stated that over the last 2 weeks alone, $28,000 (face value of certificates) of Angel Aid was sold by the Parent Association.  John Kosek asked about regionalization regarding the area schools and which parish would be the host parish if this did come to be.  Father Ted said that we are not there yet.  It was mentioned, however, that St. Mary Magdalene is more sound structurally and could house more students than St. Justin Martyr, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, and Immaculate Conception.  A discussion followed about the other parishes.  St. Justin is the most reluctant about going to a regional school since their principal likes a smaller school.   NIGHT OF SHARING Sister Joan reported that the Parish sold 127 tickets for the Great Lakes Mall Night of Sharing.  Sales were down from last year since there were more vendors selling the tickets.  A total profit of $1227.00 was made $889 for St. Mary Magdalene Parish and $381 went to the Simon Youth Foundation.  Sister said that two parishioners had won raffle items given away during the event.   FINANCE COUNCIL There were no minutes available to be shared with the group.  WELCOMING PACKAGES John Kosek talked about the Welcoming Packages that he had gathered from various parishes:  St. Noel, St. Felicitas, St. Pascal, and St. Francis in Kansas City .  All of the handouts contained general information along with a Parish directory.  He mentioned that Mt. Carmel has a website as opposed to a packet or brochure.  Our Parish also has a website which is paid for by the Diocese. A discussion followed the review of the packets and it was determined that St. Mary Magdalene needs to have a Welcome Package designed and produced which would reach those Catholic families who will be purchasing homes in the new development across from Shoregate.  A decision was made that the brochure would be similar in format to the weekly bulletin – sweet and simple.  Sister Joan said that within the brochure there would need to be a registration form and a list of all of the Parish ministries.  Father Ted volunteered to take the lead in having the brochure designed and produced but said that he would need help on it.  Samantha Valez volunteered to work with Father.   CENSUS FORM Various styles of census forms were looked at by the group.  The form should be condensed and easy to fill out.  A discussion of the content followed.  Sister Joan said that Sacrament and Marriage information would definitely need to be on the form, along with a person’s current or past occupation, cell phone number, and email address.  Ideally the form should be short and sweet and on one screen of a computer. MINISTRY LETTER Sister Joan composed a letter which will be sent to leaders of the various ministries asking that Pastoral Council be given a copy of the minutes of their last meeting.  Sister is aware that not every ministry has minutes, but those which meet and have notes should share them with Council.  There is a blue box in the ramp area which it not being utilized properly.  It is there for the ministries to ask questions and share what each of them is doing.  It was suggested that Pastoral Council minutes could be posted on the website.  Ann Abraham will be responsible for putting the minutes on the site and Sister Joan will make sure that there are posted at the Parish.  In closing, Ann Abraham led the group in the Our Father.  The next Pastoral Council meeting will be held on January 24.

 

PASTORAL COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES October 25, 2004 Council Members Present:  Ann Abraham, Marcy Andrews, Darlene Bednarz, Fran Bubley, Jim Ezzo, Sister Joan Franklin, John Kosek, Beth Kramer, Mary Kay Markel, Donna Rudersdorf, Deacon Carl Toomey, Chris Trock, Samantha Valez Council Members Excused:  Father Ted Lucas, Tim Spahlinger, Mark Speth, Father Ron Wearsch The meeting began with a Gospel reading by Ann Abraham.  After the reading, Ann posed two questions:  (1) How do you look to the Lord? and (2) How have you shared in the Lord’s grace with others?  A faith-sharing discussion then followed. STEWARDSHIP Each Council member received a Stewardship flyer which was explained by Ann.  The Pastoral Council needs to be the organization that leads the initiative, but it is still unclear on how to move forward.  The responses from parishioners have been better, but still need to improve.  In regard to Time and Talent, only about 15 responses have come in to date. It was determined that there truly is a need to attract more people and that other Committees/Councils of the parish aid in the Stewardship Initiative.  The Parish Council will request the other Committees/Council share the minutes of their meetings so that there will be more cohesiveness going forward.  Sister Joan agreed to draft a letter which will be sent to the different ministries about the necessity of doing this. There was quite a bit of discussion centered around a Parish census.  One of the main topics was to determine the age at which adult children living with their parents become their own entity.  There was discussion about how this information, once the age has been determined, is solicited.  Carl suggested that a call/in-person visit be made.  A discussion followed on how to conduct a census.  It was suggested that the census be started at Mass.   John suggested that a room be designated after Mass.   The target time to conduct the census would be Springtime to allow for proper completion of the form. A database will need to be created to separate those adult children, but the “how” of doing this in a database still needs to be determined. There was also concern about envelope usage and how to reach those people who do not use their envelopes. GIFT Sister Joan spoke of the GIFT program and how well received it was from various parishioners.  The concept of families “Growing in Faith Together” was extremely positive.  The next GIFT program will take place on Sunday, November 7, Tuesday, November 9, and Wednesday, November 10.  Carl Toomey added that the participants in his adult group were interested in learning about the Liturgical Year and the children who attended seemed to learn more about their faith than they did just sitting in classrooms. There was only one major problem with the program taking place in the gym and that is the setting up and taking down of the tables.  There needs to be a volunteer group who would be willing to do the teardown of the tables each evening since it is necessary for the gym to be clear for the students’ classes the next day.  It was suggested that perhaps volunteer older students would be willing to do this as opposed to having paid maintenance people.  The Pastoral Council needs to address this issue with the Pastoral Team. EVENING OF GIVING/SHOPPING Sister Joan talked about the evening of shopping at Great Lakes Mall on November 21.  Tickets for this event will be sold after Masses this coming weekend.  Last year, the Parish raised $2,000 from this fund raiser. MONTE CARLO The Monte Carlo fund raiser which was recently held earned approximately $9,000.  The event, which lasted 17 hours, was a huge success even though the attendance was not as large as it could have been. DIOCESAN PARISH COUNCIL Ann Abraham and John Kosek attended the Diocesan Parish Council meeting as representatives of St. Mary Magdalene Parish.  They both shared their thoughts on an extremely moving video which focused on finding good in anything.  This video is available for Pastoral leadership. They were grouped with individuals from other parishes to discuss and share their ideas regarding the activities and workings of each parish.  Ann said it was really nice to have a relationship with the Pastoral Team  here since one of the parishes is led by an iron-fisted Pastor. FINANCE COUNCIL UPDATE Darlene Bednarz talked about a sub-committee of the Finance Council – the Fund Raising Committee.  This committee will be available for all to contact with suggestions for fund-raising activities since it was decided that all ideas for fund raisers need to be channeled to one place.  This committee will meet prior to the Finance Council meetings. The Finance Council has made great strides.  The Diocesan financial statement is done, signed, and on its way. To help other committees determine available dates to hold their particular fund raisers, a calendar is posted on the Participating Board which lists both booked and open dates. SEPTEMBER 27 MINUTES The minutes of the September meeting were reviewed and approved. WELCOME BACK INITIATIVE There was a discussion of how to bring people back into the parish.  John suggested that there be a table set up this weekend after the masses to allow people to inquire about how they can return to their faith. It was suggested that there be a Welcoming Committee commissioned.  John talked about the possibility of creating a professional brochure or pamphlet which would entail all our parish has to offer.  He volunteered to solicit welcome packets from other parishes to get an idea of how they have approached this subject. AGENDA FOR DECEMBER 13 MEETING An examination of the brochures collected by John from other parishes Revisit the Heads of Ministry discussion Sister Joan will bring census forms Sister Joan will get the minutes from the heads of the other committees/councils The meeting closed with the Our Father and Hail Mary.

 

Pastoral Council Minutes   Our meeting was held on Monday, September 26, 2004. Present were:  Ann Abraham, Marcy Andrews, Fran Bubley, Sister Joan Franklin, John Kosek, Father Ted Lucas, Mary Kay Markel, Donna Rudersdorf, Tim Spahlinger, Deacon Carl Toomey, Chris Trock, Samantha Valez, Father Ron Wearsch. Terrie Baldwin was our guest. Excused: Darlene Bednarz, Beth Kramer, Jim Ezzo, and Mark Speth The Gospel was shared by Ann Abraham and faith sharing followed. Each person shared a “GIFT” that they received during the past week. THE GIFT PROGRAM:  Terrie Baldwin shared with the council the outline of the GIFT program that will be presented next Sunday after the 9:30 Mass, 6:00 Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.  Great appreciation was expressed to Terrie for her hard work in setting this new program in motion. SCHOOL YEAR:  Donna Rudersdorf and Mary Kay Markel shared the excitement of the new school year.  They both feel that everything got off to a good start and that the children are enthusiastically learning and enjoying school.  Both expressed thanks to all the committees working so hard for the school and encouraged the selling of the Angel Gift Cards.  Both also recognized and appreciated the visibility at school and the efforts of the Pastoral team. MINUTES : The minutes from the May meeting were approved. STEWARDSHIP: Father Ron gave a short summary of the financial picture and encouraged all to attend the Town Hall Meeting to be held on Wednesday, September 29th at 7:00 p.m. in Church.  Father Ron said there would be a 50/50 raffle and opportunities to sign up for committees and a surprise that he said people would have to, “Come and see”.  Father asked the council for input on the past two Sundays homilies on Stewardship and for their recommendation for the following Sunday. He shared some sample surveys for Gifts, Talents, and “Ask a Friend”.  It was suggested that the Rate Scale of Giving be emphasized before Time and Talent programs, so as not to lose the momentum of the “Giving”.  Father Ron thanked the Council for their input. DIOCESAN PASTORAL COUNCIL MEETING: Ann explained an invitation to attend the Diocesan Pastoral Council Meeting downtown on Saturday, October 16th.   Ann said she would like someone to go with her.  John Kosek agreed to attend.  We were encouraged  to use the St. Mary Magdalene Web Site and to put positive things on there about our Parish and School. EVENING OF GIVING/SHOPPING: - Sister Joan explained the Great Lakes Mall initiative to help in fund raising for non-profit organizations by hosting an evening of Giving.  Admission is by ticket only and tickets cost $10.00.  The church keeps $7.00 and gives $3.00 to the Simon Youth Foundation.  We raised almost $2000.00 last year and would like to do that again or even better.  Donna shared what good buys she got last year and many said that the evening was lots of fun.  The date is Sunday, November 21st. The time is 7:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m.  All were encouraged to buy a ticket and/or sell some tickets. WELCOME BACK: John Kosek reported on the Welcome Home initiative, sponsored by the Lake/Geauga District.  Each parish is asked to form a committee to invite and welcome back, Catholics who may have been away from the church for one reason or another.  This effort involves a lot of advertising and evangelization.  The weekend is scheduled for October 30th and 31st.  The following weekend, there will be a district wide Welcome Home at St. Noel on Saturday, November 6th. John has agreed to chair this effort for St. Mary Magdalene and the Spiritual Life/ Evangelization Commission will be asked to help.   AGENDA FOR OCTOBER:             Ann asked for agenda items for the next meeting.             Stewardship update             Growth and Learning encouraged   PASTORAL COUNCIL SECRETARY: Ann invited the council to think of someone to take notes at the council meetings. All were asked to call her with suggested names. The meeting closed with a prayer led by Ann.  Each one gave thanks for something in our Parish.