CMM 2014-08-10

Minutes of Meeting for Worship for Business

Concord (NH) Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends

Eighth Month 10, 2014

Attending:  6

8.1  The meeting opened with a period of worship.

8.2  AFSC fundraising for Meeting to sponsor Sept 27^th Annual Fundraising Dinner:  We only have raised $175 as of today.  We will extend the date to accept donations, hoping to reach our goal of at least $350 (both sponsorship of $250 and ad of about $100) by the end of the August. 

8.3  Property Committee Report:  The committee recently met and has these items to report

• Finalizing the landscaping of the west end of the building: They are asking people interested in this to meet as an ad hoc committee reporting to Property Committee.  Jon Hall and Greg Heath.  This committee will plan and find costs for a meditation garden and other landscaping.
• They are addressing the cracks in the sheet rock that have developed.
• Worship room floor maintenance:  This task needs to be done by 3-4 people and one more person is needed.
• They asked Meeting to schedule a bi-monthly one half hour work event directly after Meeting for Worship led by a work leader from within the committee.  This would be the 3^rd First Day of the odd-numbered months.  Afterwards, there would be snack provided, rather than a potluck.  This will be a change in the tone of the end of Meeting as socializing would be postponed until after the ½-hour work period.  Concern was expressed that visitors would need to have someone freed to continue interacting with them into the work time and that we be mindful of visitors and attenders spiritual needs.  Therefore, we begin the work period after a 15-minute socializing time.  We agreed to adopt this with flexibility to see how the September event works and how other members and attenders respond to this. 
• They discussed the need for high speed Internet in the building.  They will take up the issue and propose something in the future when resources become available. 
• Heating System:  Looking for more people to be trained as boiler cleaners.  Someone will be checking the Meetinghouse every Saturday during the heating season.  The hot water heater will now be turned off while the building is not in use.  The air exchanger will now also not be on fulltime but on a timed switch. 

8.4  The NH Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty needs a place to store about 20 signs.  We approved their storage in our attic. 

8.5  NEYM Outreach Pilot Project:  Beth Collea, NEYM Education and Outreach Coordinator is looking for 2 or 3 meetings to participate in a project to improve their Meeting’s outreach into the community.   The meeting would need at least 3 people to guide and discern the process.  Sara Smith and Ruth Heath have already volunteered to work on this.  We approved our participation in this and asked Sara and Ruth and the third person to fill out and submit the application and share it with us.

8.6  Contact List Maintenance Policy:  The Ministry and Counsel Committee discussed the Contact List maintenance policy.  The committee decided the most important part of this is outreach to people who have been absent.  They did not feel that a set policy can be established but that M&C will contact all new attenders, will periodically contact those who have been absent, and decide on a case by case basis whether to continue listing them on the list.   

8.7  Photograph Policy:  Correction to Minute 2014.6.10 [1] on photographs used on the Internet or in public displays:  “No one will be named in any picture posted or displayed.”

8.8  The meeting closed with a period of grateful worship.

Submitted by,

Acting Recording Clerk,  Ruth Heath

Presiding Co-Clerk,  Mark Barker