Parish Pastoral Council Minutes - Our Lady of Fatima & Immaculate ...

Parish Pastoral Council MinutesJanuary 17, 2012Present : Leigh Bears, Fr. Bob Biron, Diana Ginter, Ron Koron, Jean La Chance, DickLawton, Greg McGinn, Chris Rivera, Deb Russell, Linda SchmidtAlso Present: Roseann SantosAbsent: Dee Belle IsleFr. Bob opened the meeting with a prayer. The minutes of the 11/15/11 meeting werereviewed and accepted.Finance Committee - Ron Koron reported that for the six months ending December,2011, we had a surplus of $ 1,460. We are down $31,677 from the budget. Special onetime donations and bequests are less than budget and less than last year. Our fundraising income was $17,000 budgeted in December but recorded in January. We hadunforeseen repair costs of $15,000 for a broken drain–line and oil spill. Our budget from7/1/11 - 6/30/12 shows a $10,000 loss. Noticing a good trend with regular collectionsup a bit. We had quite a bit of capital expenses for carpeting, lighting, and for newpillars. Total expenses are $23, 984 higher than budget.Christian Formation - Leigh Bears reported that their five person committee meetsthree times a year. They plan to meet at the end of the week to plan Lenten activities.Immaculate Conception - Spaghetti Dinner being held on Saturday, February 25 from5pm-7pm at IC.Woman’s Society- Diana Ginter reported that they haven’t met yet. There was acomputer glitch with the results of the Christmas Boutique and Bake Sale. A Bake Saleis planned for 2/11 and 2/12, with the proceeds going toward the youth retreat thissummer.Buildings and Grounds - Ron Koron reported that the carpeting is completed and theemergency lighting is done. With cold weather, we are monitoring pipes that areexposed. A bid of $17,000 accepted for pillar work. OLF parking lot needs repairs. DickLawton reported that he has noticed at night there are no lights on in the rear of OLFparking lot. Fr. Bob to follow-up on calling an electrician. There is still no response forhelp for Tom Guterl.

Loaves and Fishes- Jean La Chance shared an article in the Intertown Record on12/28/11 about a donation of $3,000 from the New London Service Organization toLoaves and Fishes. $25,000 has been spent since 7/1/2011, with about $40,000 in thebank. Jim Caddy has reviewed their records. She added that Dorothy Burns willcelebrate her 100 th birthday on January 31 with an open house at her home from 4-6pm.Men’s Club- Dick Lawton reported that there were 88 guests at the Christmas dinner.The members helped out with decorating the Church for Christmas. A lunch meeting isplanned for Monday, 2/27 at Nonni’s. Dick met with the New London Police chief.They will resume posting a policeman with a blinking light to direct traffic after theSaturday evening Mass. He stated that he has invited Bishop Peter Libasci to theCommunion Breakfast on 5/20/2012. Dick will follow-up with a phone call for theBishop’s response.Liturgy Committee –Chris Rivera stated that the committee reviewed how the parishhas adapted to the new Mass and our Advent/Christmas preparations. We discussed away to use the many poinsettias by bringing them to homebound and/or nursinghome. Our many Lenten events were discussed including the Ecumenical AshWednesday service on 2/22, our Tuesday holy hours and Penance Service and a Day ofRecollection. On Saturday, March 10, there will be a day of Recollection from 9 to noonfocusing on hospitality. At next meeting, we will finalize our Lenten theme, Holy Weekand Easter plans.Communication- Linda Schmidt distributed the “Welcome to our faith community “brochures, she designed. They are to be placed in local restaurants, hotel & inns,Chamber of Commerce and New London Hospital. There was a discussion aboutwhether to list liturgical ministers on our parish website.Old BusinessFilling vacant positions:- Larry Philips agreed to be an IC representative on the Parish Pastoral Committee.- Father Bob considering names for the Steering Committee.New BusinessI - Pastoral Council members are invited to attend a morning of reflection onSaturday, February 4 th, - 9am-Noon in the Church Hall. The topic is “Spirituality of the

Leader” by Rev.Dennis Audet. Greg to meet with Fr. Dennis on 1/18 to discuss theformat. Eight members have stated they will attend.II - Discussion of Assessment Worksheet ResultsPriority #1- Promote parish friendship and sharingThe Council agreed to the importance of developing a Welcome Newcomers Program.Some ideas that were discussed include: visiting the person or family within two weeksof registering, personal phone contact, drop in visit by neighboring parishioner,adopting a family and a pot luck gathering. There was also discussion about thepurpose of the program: facilitating the newcomer’s integration into the parishcommunity and also as a way to determine the newcomer’s interests, experience, talentsand strengths. Our next steps as a council include finding someone (one of us perhaps)to take ownership and define what we want to accomplish.Priority #2-Reach out to families with children and beyondOur discussion started with praise for Teresa Jackson who has the responsibility ofChristian Formation from elementary school to high school. Linda reported that inconversation with Teresa Jackson identified a need of parents of school age children forfurther teaching about their faith. Teresa runs a class once a month on Sunday morningfor parents who are interested. Deb stated that meeting the desire to learn more aboutour faith, or to deepen the faith of young couples, families with children and olderparishioners would indicate the need for a Lifetime Christian Formation Program.Further discussion on this will take place at a future meeting. Fr.Bob will discuss theseideas with Teresa.Fr. Bob agreed to posting the Eucharistic and Hospitality ministers schedules on ourwebsite as well as posting them on the bulletin board.Meeting adjourned with a closing prayer by Fr. BobNext meeting – Tuesday, February 21, 2012 and Deb noted that the March meeting willbe held on Wednesday, March 21 so that there is not a conflict with our Tuesday HolyHours during Lent.Respectfully submitted by Christine Rivera