Luther Memorial Church 2015 Annual Report PB Table of Contents Agenda . 1 2015 Annual Meeting Minutes . 2 Special Meeting Minutes (Sept . 27, 2015) . 6 Special Meeting Minutes (Nov . 22, 2015) . 7 Special Meeting Minutes (Dec . 13, 2015) . 9 Special Meeting Minutes (Jan . 10, 2016) . 11 South-Central Synod of Wisconsin Bishop . 14 Senior Pastor . 16 Congregation Council . 17 Luther Memorial Preschool . 18 Luther Memorial Columbarium . 18 Luther Memorial Foundation . 19 Senior Pastor Call Committee . 20 Master Planning Task Force . 21 2016 Council Nominations . 22 Proposed By-Law Changes . 23 Church Administrator . 24 2015 Year-End Financials . 28 2015 LM Foundation Treasurer’s Report . 42 2015 Benevolence . 44 2015 Parish Register . 45 2016 Operating Budget . 48 Brad Pohlman, Senior Pastor David Berggren, Interim Associate Pastor Eric Jones, Interim Associate Pastor Bruce Bengtson, Director of Music Sarah Brinkman, Office Coordinator Ann McDermott, Training Choir Director Kim O’Leary, Church Administrator Chelsie Propst, Compline Director Luther Memorial Church Nancy Raabe, Associate in Ministry 1021 University Avenue Suelyn Swiggum, Director of Shared Ministry Madison, Wisconsin 53715 Laurie Swimm, Archivist 608.258.3160 Robin Wagner, Communication Coordinator www.luthermem.org Dan Zerger, Custodian Agenda 108th Annual Meeting of the Congregation of Luther Memorial Church Madison, Wisconsin February 7, 2016 11:45 am I. Call to Order: Sue Gaard, President II. Invocation III. Appointment of Tellers IV. Greeting from the Synod: Robin Cherwinka, Synod Vice President V. Approval of Minutes a. 107th Annual Meeting February 8, 2015 b. Special Congregational Meeting, September 27, 2015 c. Special Congregational Meeting, November 22, 2015 d. Special Congregational Meeting, December 13, 2015 e. Special Congregational Meeting, January 10, 2016 VI. Report of the President VII. Report of the Pastors VIII. Acceptance of Reports a. Luther Memorial Columbarium b. Luther Memorial Preschool c. Luther Memorial Foundation d. Master Planning Task Force e. Senior Pastor Call Committee IX. Motion to Close Luther Memorial Preschool X. Motion to Approve By-Law Change XI. Hymn XII. Approval of 2016 Budget XIII. Election of Council Members XIV. Other Business XV. Adjournment with Prayer 1 107th Annual Meeting of the Congregation Luther Memorial Church February 8, 2015 11:45 AM Gathering The congregation council hosted the annual meeting, preparing and serving snacks and beverages as members of the congregation arrived in the Great Room. Copies of the 2014 Annual Report were provided to members, including reports from the Council President, Senior Pastor, and various boards within the church, as well as the proposed 2015 budget. Call to Order Bob Uphoff, president of the church council, gave a brief introduction and called the meeting to order at 12:08 PM. Pastor Pohlman counted 114 members in attendance. Invocation Bob Uphoff gave an opening prayer. Appointment of Tellers Bob Uphoff appointed Jonathan Woolums and Mike Heggeseth as tellers for the meeting should a ballot be required. Sue Bangert agreed to serve as parliamentarian. Approval of Minutes 106th Annual Meeting, February 2, 2014 It was moved and seconded to approve the 2014 Annual Meeting minutes as printed in the Annual Report document. The motion carries. Special Congregational Meeting, September 14, 2014 It was moved and seconded to approve the minutes of September's special congregational meeting as printed in the Annual Report document. The motion carries. 2 Report of the LM Foundation President Caroline Oldershaw, incoming president of the Luther Memorial Foundation, gave a brief update on the foundation's activities. In particular, she acknowledged the hard work of several members of the board which has contributed to strong growth over the past several years. She praised the work of outgoing president Matt Sundell, for which the congregation applauded. Report of the Council President Bob Uphoff reported that 2014 has been a wonderful year in the life of Luther Memorial. The council was downsized this year, which has allowed the council to meet in a smaller room and have more intense discussion. This has also been our first year with a new structure of standing committees of the council and ministry teams. This is bringing better communication and clarity to the great work that our members are doing. The major focus of the council over the past year has been the vocational discernment process for the congregation. We have been doing focused study on several ministries which make direct use LMC facilities. As part of that effort, the council has established two task forces under the heading “Building for Belonging” - one for the master planning process, and one for organizing a capital appeal to implement proposals from the master plan. Bob mentioned the great strengths of the church in its pastors, music program, staff, and dedicated volunteers who spend a large number of hours supporting our ministries. The challenge for the congregation in the coming year is to turn inward and develop strong answers to our vocational questions. Where do we want to go? Who are the neighbors we are serving? Report of the Senior Pastor Pastor Wilson gave a brief report, deferring to his written words in the Annual Report for further detail. He expressed what a joy it is to serve at LMC and how much he appreciates the wonderful staff he is blessed to work with and the strong lay leadership that makes much of our ministry possible. Report of the Columbarium Board President Barb Hughes, president of the Columbarium Board, thanked previous board president Petra Ressler for her leadership. The previous year focused on technical work, producing revisions to the columbarium's articles, rules, and regulations. The board will be communicating those changes in the coming months to members who have purchased places in the columbarium. 2 3 Acceptance of Reports It was moved and seconded that the congregation approve the reports included in the 2014 Annual Report document. The motion carries. Update on Vocational Discernment & Master Planning Process Pastor Pohlman gave an overview of the vocational discernment process, focusing on a summary of the work the council has done in the past year in studying neighbor groups and understanding the existing ministries of LMC in serving those neighbor groups. This is the third phase of the process and the major outcome we are pursuing is a facility and ministry Master Plan aligned with LMC identity. The plan will include renovation considerations for the building. The timeline for the master planning process is in two phases. The first phase is Pattern Writing, to last from now until June 14, when we anticipate an all-church gathering to discuss the identified patterns. The second phase is drafting of a Master Plan to last through November. The hope is to have a plan to present to the congregation for approval before Thanksgiving, with the possibility of asking for authorization for a capital appeal. A question was asked about our immediate neighbors on the block. Pastor Pohlman discussed an idea from Eric Jones (Lutheran Campus Center pastor) of serving the large international student population in Grand Central and X01, including them in holiday celebrations when most domestic students have left campus. We also continue to have community with Porchlight on our block. Hymn and Video Bruce Bengtson led the congregation in singing "Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation". Pastor Pohlman presented a humorous video produced by David Parminter and available on YouTube. The video advertised Bruce Bengtson's Wednesday organ recitals in the style of an action film trailer. Approval of the 2015 Budget Bob Uphoff gave an overview of the proposed budget for 2015. The congregation ended 2014 with a small surplus, thanks in large part to a large number of medium-sized end-of-year gifts. The 2015 budget has a deficit as proposed, but the amount is smaller than the deficits approved by the congregation in recent years. 4 It was moved and seconded to approve the budget as presented. Bob Uphoff opened the floor for discussion. There was a comment of appreciation for the increased benevolence to the synod of 50% included in this budget. The motion carries. Election of Council Members In previous years, it had been the responsibility of outgoing council members to propose new nominees to the council. This is the first year where LMC has a Governance Committee which has taken over the responsibility of recommending nominees to the council. The nominees recommended by the Governance Committee and approved by the council are Yvonne Eide and Cliff Haaland for initial 3-year terms, Jim Nelson and Brenda Ryther for second 3-year terms, Jonathan Woolums for a second term of 2 years, and Abigail Jensen for a 1-year Young Adult term. Yvonne and Abigail were not present at the meeting. The other nominees stood to be recognized. Bob Uphoff called for further nominees. No additional names were put forth. It was moved and seconded that nominations be closed and the presented nominees be accepted as members of the council. The motion carries. Other Business Pastors Wilson and Pohlman called for outgoing council members Andrew Gaard, Bob Uphoff, Kathy Seifert, and Barb Luedke. They presented copies of Luther's small catechism to Andrew, Kathy, and Barb. For Bob and his wife Julia, they presented a restaurant gift certificate. Adjournment with Prayer Pastor Wilson adjourned the meeting at 1:13 PM and led the congregation in a prayer. Respectfully submitted, Jeff Klukas, Council Secretary 4 5 5 Luther Memorial Church Congregational Meeting Minutes September 27th, 2015 # Call to Order Sue Gaard called the meeting to order at 9:22 AM, confirming that a quorum was met. Pastor Pohlman led the congregation in an opening prayer. # Motion from the LM Council on Proposed Columbarium North Wall Expansion A motion from the Council (approved by council in June) that we approve a contract with Eickhof Columbaria to do the north wall expansion of the columbarium for $52,475.