EASTSIDE INTERFAITH SOCIAL CONCERNS COUNCIL
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
September 20, 2016, 12 noon
East Shore Unitarian Church
Present: Tony Copes, Linda Hillesheim, Dick Jacke, Warren Marquardson, Rev. J. C. Mitchell, Dianne Richards, Steve Roberts, Anne St. Germain, and Jan Starr.
Not Present: Rev. Steve Baber and Nancy Jacobs
Minutes: Minutes of the August 16, 2016, meeting were approved as submitted.
Reports:
Treasurer’s Report: J.C. reported that there had been no significant change in finances since our membership meeting the week before. He also reported problems with our Post Office box. The old Post Office has been closed and boxes moved to a new location. Apparently our box was not moved because their records show that our payments have lapsed. J.C. had not received any notice of payment due, and we are not sure where the notice would have been sent if not to the Post Office box itself. We are concerned that some mail sent to the box may be returned to sender. He will resolve the matter as quickly as possible with the postal authorities.
Congregations for Kids: Nancy was not able to be present but provided a written report. She indicated that the website had been updated to reflect this year’s project. She also said that the conversations have been ongoing with Lifespring about the possibility of them taking over the project. Their board will meet later this month and will decide whether or not to take this on.
Backpack Meals: Jan had nothing new to report from what had been reported at the membership meeting. She urged those interested in their project to get a copy of their recently released annual report. She has been told that Backpack Meals would need its own EIN to open an account. Warren will work with her to resolve the issue.
Eastside Human Services Forum: Rev. Baber was not present and had not provided a written report.
Old Business:
Membership Follow-up: Tony will divide the list for follow-up by board members and hopes to have the assignment list out by the end of the week.
New Attendee Packet: Warren passed out the latest iteration of the packet for new members/attendees.
Outreach to New Faith Communities: Tony reports that this effort has stalled as he has had some trouble reaching some of the communities that he had charged himself with reaching out to. He will continue to make efforts to reach groups which are currently underrepresented in our organization. Betty Spohn has drafted a notice for the Bellevue Reporter to mention our EISCC meetings.
New Business:
Programs and Spotlights: It was suggested that Just Serve be one of the spotlights for November and offered the chance to do the program in February. Warren will follow-up. Lifespring was suggested as a second spotlight for November. Diane will follow-up with them. It was suggested that we allow congregations who have holiday–related service projects this time of year (such as alternative gift fairs or giving trees) space to provide information on the programming that they do in this area.
Permanent Shelter: Steve wanted to remind board members and their congregations that letters to those parties involved in the final approvals for the project would be very welcome by Congregations for the Homeless, who will oversee the shelter. Tony agreed to create and circulate a draft letter that might be sent from EISCC.
Errors and Omissions Insurance: During the meeting, it came to the attention of board members that EISCC had dropped its Errors and Omissions coverage after it had released Congregations for the Homeless and the Sophia Way from under the EISCC umbrella. It was agreed that this should be reconsidered at a future meeting.
Review of September Membership Meeting: All agreed that the meeting, using our newly created format, went far too long. It was suggested that the Lunch and Networking be the first ten or fifteen minutes – in the new format, folks had essentially doubled the time for those activities. Also, the main program was much longer than had been expected. It was agreed that we would provide more explicit times for length of programs and be more assertive in enforcing the time limits.
Attendance Expectations: It was also suggested that we consider developing a set of guidelines for board member attendance expectations for both our regular membership meetings as well as the board meetings.
Church Council Letter on Encampments: The Church Council of Greater Seattle is drafting a letter in response to the recent joint encampment draft plan. When it is ready, we will be invited to sign onto the letter by sending a letter of support.
FAN Candidate Forum: For those interested in how our elected politicians would address the current social service needs of our communities, you are invited to attend a bi-partisan candidate forum for the 41st Legislative District at St. Margaret’s, Sunday, October 16, from 3 to 5 pm.
Elections: Warren has agreed to stand for Treasurer, and Karen Studders has agreed to come onto the board as Secretary. Dick is willing to serve as an at-large member, but can no longer serve as Secretary. J.C. is willing to accept election to an at-large position. If Steve Baber wished to continue on the board, Anne would need to drop off. Tony will check in with Steve Baber to see if he would be willing to drop his current at-large position on the board but continue to serve as the EISCC representative to the Eastside Human Services Forum.
Future Openings/Closings: Dick will provide an opening for our next board meeting. Anne agreed to provide a closing.
Closing: Tony provided the closing prayer.
Next EISCC Meeting: October 11, 2016
12 noon, St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church
The program will feature an Access Opportunity Workshop.
Submitted by Dick Jacke