Monthly Vestry update

The Vestry is a group of elected volunteers that serves as the parish’s functional Board of Directors. Vestry members, who serve in three groups for three-year terms, provide leadership and oversight of the mission and ministry of the congregation, and manage the church buildings and property, finances, and personnel. Photos of current Vestry members can be found on Saint Philip’s website by clicking here.

Saint Philip’s Vestry gathers for a hybrid meeting on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. What follows is a summary of the November 17 meeting.

There was considerable discussion regarding COVID-19 protocols and attendance in church and on campus.  The Vestry will meet again after Thanksgiving to assess how to proceed with an eye especially toward Christmas services.

The Vestry nominating committee is interviewing candidates to replace those members who will retire at the 2022 annual meeting upon completion of their three-year terms.  Vestry members also recommended candidates for Preservation & Endowment Board positions.

The Stewardship report following Ingathering Sunday is strong. Year-to-date Campaign 2022 numbers are slightly ahead of 2021 Campaign numbers. However, there are still many people who pledged in 2021 who have not yet sent in a pledge for 2022. The Finance Committee is drafting a 2022 budget to present to the Vestry in December. (Click here for the Treasurer’s report from November 19, 2021.)

Current analysis of the financial position indicates that the church could experience as much as a $100,000.00 income/expense deficit.  However, the bank balance is strong enough to absorb a deficit. The 2019-2020 audit has begun.

Plans for the Annual Meeting are under way.  There will be a parish retreat on February 12, 2022, and the business meeting February 13. Feedback on the video presentations that were prepared last year was so positive that that format will be used again this year. This allows the annual reports to be available to everyone in the parish.

On October 30, the Vestry participated in an all-day Mutual Ministry Review. A Vestry sub-committee will review the retreat notes and recommend appropriate short-term and long-term responses to the thoughts and ideas generated.

—Bonnie Winn, Junior Warden