St. Columba Church Parish Council Meeting
November 18, 2015
Present: Father Michael, Janis Czarnowski, Steven Elliott, Ellen Turner, David Kohn,
Dorli Kohn, Brandon Johnson, Gary Pillion, Mark Elliott, Brian Golembiewski and
Sue Desrosiers
Absent: Kathy Hamilton, Patti Ritchie, Bev Ciurylo, Ashley Dombrowski, Nancy
Morin and Katie Whalen
The meeting was called to order at 6:50 by Janis Czarnowski, Assistant Chairperson.
Opening Prayer: Father Michael
Minutes: The minutes from the September 9, 2015 were approved with one
correction. Janis asked to have the sentence “Parish Council frustrations are that we
don’t feel like we are accomplishing anything” removed from the minutes as she
didn’t feel that this was an accurate portrayal of the feelings of the council.
Social Committee: Dave reported that he met with a representative from Holy
Family concerning the dance and the suggestion was to have the dance in the hall of
Holy Family on Saturday, April 30th. Discussion ensued – concerning location, date
and whether or not it should be a joint dance. The council overwhelmingly agreed
that the dance should be off site and not at either parish. Father Michael suggested
exploring the possibility of having the dance at the Blackledge Country Club in
Hebron. He believed that this location was being considered based on
communication he received. There was also the suggestion to not have a joint dance
and have just a St. Columba dance. David will go back to his group concerning the
date and location as these were the biggest concerns.
Property and Maintenance: Mark reported on some of the items that have been
accomplished by the committee recently:
Parking lot – stripes were painted to increase the number of parking spaces in both
lots. Janis asked that the maintenance group put a note in the bulletin to inform
parishioners of the reason for the straight lines. Mark agreed to put a small notice
in the bulletin asking people to park in straight lines in order to have enough spots
for everyone. Along with the enhanced/new lines, the Fire Lane designations and
handicapped spaces were enhanced. Mark reported that he has noticed more
efficient use of the front lot.
Mark asked Gary to try to research where the property line is for the property next
door (owned by the church) in order to add a few parking spots by putting a stone
surface in.
Walkway to Parish Center – The group couldn’t do this yet. They are trying to work
with what we have to see how it works
Landscaper Jim Blair was given a list of needs and the committee is awaiting a plan
that is being done at no cost. Once the plan is received, the work will be done in
segments to add to the beautification of the grounds.
The Fire Code violation is being addressed.
A new Property and Maintenance form is available from Nancy Morin. All
ideas/proposals must be submitted on this form. Forms should be returned to
Nancy who will pass them on to the Property and Maintenance Committee. The
committee will research and approve/disapprove maintenance requests. The form
will be available on the website.
Lighting – Janis asked if the interior lighting in the church could be tweaked and
asked that the timers be adjusted. Mark reported that timers will be installed for
the chandeliers and the front outdoor lights during Thanksgiving week. The lights
will be on from 5 pm to 9 pm and should light up the stained glass windows.
Janis asked Mark to please send his report to the Parish Council so that it can be sent
out with the agenda and allow the members to read the report prior to the meeting.
Phone tree: The software is in but there is a glitch in putting the software into
practice. It is still being worked on.
Survey Update: David collected the data and passed it onto Parish Council. He
reported that most people were very happy. Janis commented that she thought
there were many positive comments. She wanted to discuss some things to
implement – e.g. there was a request to have an area with votive candles. There was
concern about where this could be placed.
David reported that parishioners requested more social activities immediately
following mass such as coffee hours, more kid friendly events, and a dance. The
group felt that many of these requests were already being worked on.
Other issues mentioned:
- Education Committee – request for more adult ed – perhaps have something
in the evenings and more teaching during mass
- Liturgy Committee – parishioners miss the 11 am mass in the summer and
they would like more announcements from pulpit
- Other – there were a couple of comments about Social Outreach, a request for
more Catholic history in homilies, more evening faith groups, more
confession opportunities, more joint projects with Holy Family and a joint
parish photo directory
Janis asked David to write a small report for the church bulletin.
Overwhelmingly, the surveys showed that people were very satisfied with the
church.
Parish Directory: there is a need for another date for photos as some people were
cancelled due to Father Cronin’s services. Janis is awaiting for individual pictures
from David and Steven.
Ambassador Program: Father Michael reported that the main concern is to
determine the neighborhood districts at this time. Once the districts are compiled,
the group will meet again. The ambassadors will be known to the communities and
will be sanctioned and blessed by the communities. Once the group identifies the
Ambassadors, there will be training about how to approach people. Might have
ambassadors in different age groups. Father Michael hopes that this will create
networking in the community.
Stewardship: Father Michael reported that both parish communities are doing
extremely well based on the reports that he has receive concerning statistics for the
diocese.
Church Bulletin: Father reported that they are still researching an app for smart
phones that would allow parishioners to get the bulletin on their phones. Father
believes that it is expensive, however, they are still researching it to determine if it
would be worthwhile. David mentioned the app Remind 101 which they use at his
school. It is a free app and might work for the church. David will discuss it with
Nancy Morin.
Parish Work Day: The day was very successful. There were about 20 people from
all ministries and they did a great job. Another workday will be planned for the
spring. The plan is to have one in the spring and one in the fall. The committee
decided that it would be best to have the work scheduled just in the morning. That
most people left at lunch time.
Joint Parish Council Meeting: The possible dates for a joint meeting are January
12 or 13, 2016.
Rebuilt Meeting: Janis, Ellen, Sue, Kathy and Denise Egan attended the Rebuilt
meeting. A couple of points from the seminar is to remember that we all think
differently and we need to reach out to people. We should be asking ourselves if we
are making a difference in the community? We need to try to get more people
involved and try to instill responsibility in other people.
Help Desk: The desk is almost done. In the interim, the information desk has been
set up in the basement after each mass. Father recommended putting the sign up at
the lecturn and having the “desk” in the reconciliation room. Ellen will make an
announcement at the masses this week and the desk will be moved to the former
reconciliation room. There was also some discussion about taking down the wall
between the cry room and the reconciliation room. Sue asked if Parish Council
members who attend the 11 o’clock mass would help to staff the desk.
Liturgy Committee: The group is planning a Welcome Mass for next year. June
12th was discussed as a possible date.
Year of Mercy: Father reported that the Year of Mercy begins on December 8th with
the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Father is looking for two people to attend
mass at 10 am at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Sunday December 13. David and Dorli
Kohn will attend the mass to represent St. Columba.
Closing Prayer: Janis
Meeting adjourned at 8:48.