Diocese of Huron St. Mark’s Anglican Church Brantford, Ontario Annual Report For the year 2018 Vestry Meeting: Sunday, February 3, 2019 We are the Christian Family of St. Mark’s..... God’s hands are extended through us To serve the community and beyond. Table of Contents Rules of Vestry. 1 Pastoral Letter from Bishop Linda Nicholls . 2 Annual Vestry Meeting Agenda for 2019 . 3 Minutes from the Annual Vestry Meeting - Sunday, February 4, 2018 . 4 Rector’s Report to the Annual Vestry Meeting. 7 Deacon’s Diary. 13 St. Mark’s Parish Council and Church Leaders for 2018 . 14 Statistical Report . 16 Warden’s Report . 17 Sacraments for 2018 . 18 Parish Administrator’s Report . 18 Welcoming Others. 19 Ladies’ Guild, Fundraising Committee, Holly Jolly Faire, Sunday Morning Coffee Host, Soup and Sandwich Lunches, Parish Website Celebrating God. 22 Worship Committee, Chancel Guild, Servers’ Guild, Music, Greeters, Audio-Visual Team Caring for Each Other . 26 Health Council, Prayer Chain Growing Spiritually . 27 Child and Family Resource Ministry, Nursery, Rock Solid Youth, Ladies’ Afternoon Study Group Engaging the Community . 34 Reconciling Circle, The Apostles, Christmas Baskets, Loonie Jar, Operation Christmas Child, Guests from Amazonia, Refugee Sponsorship, Other Ongoing Outreach Projects Cherishing Our Resources. 40 Christian Generosity, Discretionary Fund, Envelope Secretaries’ Report, Endowment Fund, Grounds Committee, Green Team, Improving our Accessibility Financial Reports and Audited Financial Statements Financial Report for The St. Mark’s Worship Choir. 45 Financial Report for The St. Mark’s Endowment Income Statement 45 Financial Report for The St. Mark’s Endowment Balance Sheet 46 Financial Report for The St. Mark’s Memorial Fund. 46 Financial Report for The St. Mark’s Servers’ Guild . 47 St. Mark’s Balance Sheet . 48 St. Mark’s Income Statement . 49 Rules of Vestry Members of Vestry In every congregation within the Diocese there shall be a Vestry composed of all the baptized members of such congregation who have reached 16 years of age and who for the last three months preceding the date of the relevant Vestry meeting have been identifiably involved with such congregation with regular worship, fellowship and financial support to that congregation, subject to the certification procedure hereinafter set forth. No person shall be considered to be a member of the Vestry of more than one congregation in the Diocese of Huron at one time, except that a person may be a member of a Vestry of a congregation and also of a Summer Church as hereinafter defined. Each person who wishes to be considered a member of the Vestry of the congregation shall sign a statement of compliance with the provisions of this paragraph at such Vestry meeting. Certification of Members of Vestry The Rector (or, in the event that there is no Rector, the Bishop’s designate) and the Churchwardens of a congregation shall act as a Certification Committee for the congregation. If required, the Certification Committee shall determine at the time, on the basis of its best pastoral judgement, the eligibility of those persons in attendance to be members of the Vestry. Annual Vestry Meeting A meeting of the Vestry of each congregation shall be held annually during the month of January or as soon thereafter as practicable. Notice of the date, time and purpose of such annual Vestry meeting shall be given at each service held by the congregation during two successive Sundays. For greater clarity, a Vestry meeting may be held following the main service on the second successive Sunday on which notice of the meeting has been given. Chairperson and Secretary of Vestry Meetings At each meeting of the Vestry, the Rector or his/her designate shall act as chairperson of the meeting. In the event that neither the Rector nor his/her designate is present at the meeting, the chairperson shall be elected by the persons present at the meeting. The members of the Vestry present at the Vestry meeting shall elect from amongst their number a secretary, who shall be known as the Vestry Clerk, who shall keep the record of the proceedings of the meeting. Nominating Committee To facilitate elections, the Board of Management shall appoint a nominating committee to present a slate of candidates for election at the annual Vestry meeting. Further nominations with the consent of the nominee may be made at the Vestry meeting. Page 1 Pastoral Letter The Right Reverend Linda Nicholls, Bishop of Huron To be included with Annual Vestry Reports - and read to congregation Dear friends in Christ, I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. (Ephesians 1:15-16) When you gather for your Annual Vestry meeting you gather as the Body of Christ, baptized followers of Jesus, to consider the life of your parish and how it reflects the light of Christ in your community. You will renew your Mission & Ministry Plan for 2019 - reflecting on how you will continue to fulfill each of the Five Marks of Mission - especially the first two, proclaiming God’s Good News and making disciples. These Five Marks of Mission are guideposts for a healthy parish. Read them aloud together - post them in your parish - publish them in your bulletin - remind every parish group or meeting of them! Every activity - worship, social, learning or outreach - ought to reflect these Marks. We need to be intentional in our commitment to them. The decisions you will be making about your budget, finances, leadership and property are critical to undergirding the Marks of Mission. They are more than ‘housekeeping’ - they reflect our values and set the foundation for all we do. Our theme at Synod 2018 was Building Disciples - Abiding in the Word. We are all disciples of Jesus by virtue of our baptism. Discipleship is a lifelong school of learning and transformation, nurtured by scripture, worship, prayer, learning and life in community. At Synod we heard four lay members of our diocese share stories of their faith. I encourage you to take time at your Vestry meeting to share with one another what being a disciple means to you. How has God touched your life in the past year? Share an experience or learning that has made a difference in your life! You will be changed by the opportunity to tell your story - and encouraged by hearing the stories of others. God is at work around us and in our friends and neighbours! We need to tell the stories!! We also need to know the biblical story of God’s love and redemption. In my January Huron Church News article I invited all to join me in reading the bible over the next year. You may choose to read the whole of the Bible - or focus on the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament) or the New Testament with the Psalms. The reading schedule is posted on our website: www.diohuron.org! Read as a parish - read with a friend - listen for God’s word to you - start a study group - ask any and all questions that emerge - and abide in the Word. Thank you for your part in our shared life as a diocese. We have seen a strong commitment through apportionment to meeting our diocesan needs. Through good stewardship most parishes have been able to meet their full apportionment commitment. A few, due to pastoral or other situations, have a formal covenant with me to meet annual benchmarks towards full apportionment. We are accountable to each other across the diocese and I am deeply grateful for the commitment all parishes are making to our shared life. Over the past year we have had several changes in diocesan staff due to retirements. We used the opportunity to reconfigure some positions to keep our diocesan budget as lean as possible while providing parishes with the same level of support in key areas. The staff at Church House are Page 2 committed to our parishes and I am grateful for their skills and dedication. If you need assistance they are here to serve. As I travel across the diocese visiting parishes and deaneries I am delighted by the commitment of so many faithful Anglicans. Thank you for the dedication that continues to offer leadership and support in our parishes! Thank you to those who serve as Wardens, treasurers and Parish Council members in leadership and care for daily life. Thank you to the clergy who lead worship; offer pastoral care; teach the Gospel; and guide each congregation. My prayers are with you as you discern what God is calling you to do and be in 2019. Peace be to the whole community, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 6:23-24) Yours in Christ, The Rt. Rev. Linda Nicholls Bishop of Huron Annual Vestry Meeting February 3, 2019 Agenda Chair: The Venerable Dr. Timothy Dobbin 1. Welcome, Call to Order and Opening Prayer 2. Election of Vestry Clerk 3. Acceptance of Agenda 4. Reading of Bishop Linda’s Pastoral Letter 5. Adoption of Minutes from the Vestry Meeting of February 4, 2018 • Business arising from the minutes 6. Presentation of the Annual Report from 2018 • Questions or Comments • Motion for Acceptance of Reports • Thank you to the Parish Council 2018 7. Rector’s Remarks 8. Appointments and Elections for Parish Council for 2019 9. Financial Reports • Financial Statements for 2018 Page 3 • Operating Budget for 2019 10. New Business C Motion to support funding application to HDF for contract position 11.