Durham Monthly Meeting of Friends, January 15, 2017
Durham Monthly Meeting of Friends convened in worship on Sunday, January 15, 2017 at 12:30 with 16 people present. Clerk Sarah Sprogell opened with a query on Truth and the Inward Teacher (page 67) from the Revised New England Yearly Meeting Faith and Practice.
- Ron Turcotte reported for Ministry and Counsel.
a) The pastoral care team will be reconvening to discuss current needs and how best to meet them.
b) Ministry and Counsel has formed a sub-committee to work on guidelines for assessing how the six months of being without a pastor is going.
c) Ministry and Counsel heartily approves the transfer of Martha Hinshaw Sheldon’s membership to Durham Friends from Wilmington Friends Meeting, Ohio. Martha has made the transfer request, and we are awaiting the formal reply from Wilmington Friends to complete the process.
d) Katherine Langelier will be taking over the work of the website. She and Wendy Schlotterbeck recommend changing our website host from Bluehost to Quaker Cloud which offers a number of features that could be very helpful, including good technical support, security, a user-friendly format, and a method of posting addition content and minutes, making the website much more usable. The cost of Quaker Cloud is $240 rather than $177 for Bluehost.
2. The meeting approved exploring the use of Quaker Cloud as the host for our website and gives authority to Wendy Schlotterbeck and Katherine Langelier to make this change if they consider it to be the best move. Many thanks to Katherine for stepping forward on picking up the website.
3. Jo-an Jacobus distributed the attached final report from nominating committee for Durham Meeting Committees and Officers 2017. This report was approved with appreciation for all who will be working on committees.
4. Tess Hartford reported for Christian Education.
a) The Christmas Posada was festive, heartwarming and worshipful. $225 was collected at the Christmas program for the Lewiston Catholic Charities Refugee Resettlement Program.
b) Wendy Schlotterbeck and Katherine Langelier will develop a job description and resources for a Sunday childcare person.
c) It is the intention that there will be a childcare person available in the nursery every Sunday of each month and that a children’s message will be possible each Sunday. It is also the intention that there will be Sunday School for children and youth the first and third Sunday of each month during the school years: Godly Play for the younger children and Passages for the older children/youth. Christian Education will be asking individuals to prepare a children’s message for a month at a time so there will always be a message if children are present. On Sundays when children are present, but no message has been prepared, then we will sing an appropriate song for children can participate in such as the George Fox song. If there are no children present, there will not necessarily be a children’s message.
5. Wendy Schlotterbeck reported that, as Youth Minister, her energies are moving more toward the support of families and family activities. She is working to transition much of the responsibility of the website to Katherine Langelier. Wendy is also helping with banners for the Meeting. She reminds us that it is important that we not use the children’s room as storage for non-children’s items.
6. Sukie Rice brought the December 31, 2016 Fiscal Year financial report.
a) We came extremely close to both income and expenditures in our amended budget and it was agreed that amending the budget part-way through the year is very helpful.
Total Operating Income for 2016 was $58,634 and Expenses were $58,042, giving us a net gain of $592. The end-of-the-year check book balance for the operating account was $18,454.
The Capital Account spent $5725 on the new floor. At the end of the year the Capital Account has $9496 which comes from donations and the transfer of the Pennell and Dwelley Funds.
b) It was reported that we have received $2000 from Rachel Carey-Harper of Barnstable Preparative Meeting. She has made a gift of $2000 to each monthly meeting and $1000 to each preparative meeting within NEYM. In her letter, Rachel said that she feels sure that “most of us are working very hard to come to terms with the new political reality in our country… it is important to step up to the challenge of doing something spiritually grounded, positive and effective.” Her way of doing this is to “share resources primarily to groups that protect, and provide something for those ignored or oppressed or threatened; places committed to service.” She gives this gift with trust that each meeting will discern its use as we see fit. She clearly states that there are no requirements for how to spend these funds. We are deeply touched and grateful for Rachel’s generosity. Sarah Sprogell has sent a letter of acknowledgment and gratitude to Rachel. Co-clerks Sarah Sprogell and Martha Hinshaw Sheldon will meet with committee clerks, treasurer and youth minister to create a process for discerning how we might use this money.
7. Leslie Manning reported for Trustees, which will meet on the first Sunday of each month. Leslie has been appointed as clerk of Trustees.
a) The six-month lease has been signed with Ed Norris, our tenant at the parsonage.
b) A grant request for $14,000 has been submitted to Obadiah Brown’s Benevolent Fund to assist with the replacement of the meetinghouse metal roof.
c) Trustees will be talking with Margaret Wentworth, Mildred Alexander and Charlotte Ann Curtis to record the history and practices of the countless aspects of Trustees’ work.
d) Trustees brought a request for rental of the meetinghouse for a facilitated self-help group.
8. The meeting approved moving forward with the rental of the meeting house to the aforementioned group.
9. Sukie Rice brought the report from Peace and Social Concerns. They are organizing a carpooling effort for people wishing to go to the January 21 Women’s Rally in Augusta. A Durham Friends Meeting banner is being painted for this and future demonstrations. Peace and Social Concerns is also wishing to do outreach to new people who have been attending meeting for worship. They will be inviting newcomers to small dinner gatherings to help people get to know each other better and continue to welcome people to the Durham Meeting community.
10. The meeting expressed appreciation for Craig Freshley creating the Make-Shift Coffee House in an effort to reach across the political spectrum for listening and conversation.
11. Tess Hartford and David Dexter were approved as our representatives to the board of directors for the Lisbon Area Christian Outreach.
12. There were expressions of gratitude to Katherine Langelier for her Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s meals and hospitality.
13. The minutes of Monthly Meeting were approved during the meeting.
The meeting adjourned in the Spirit at 2:30.
Sukie Rice, Recording Clerk
