The first meeting of the new, streamlined Council began with sandwiches being served at 6pm in the familiar confines of St. Augustine’s, Marpole’s Parish Hall.
With the 2012 White Paper on Diocesan reorganization recommendations being passed at the 2013 Synod and the Canonical Changes being passed at the 2014 Synod legally supporting those changes, Diocesan Council is now approximately half its former size, 22 elected and appointed and up to 30 in attendance when the full cohort of Legal Officers and Diocesan Staff are present. Diocesan Staff do not have a vote.
The results of the elections held at Synod regarding Council were as follows:
Archdeaconry of Burrard (Clergy) – The Reverend Lois Boxill
Archdeaconry of Burrard (Lay) – Mark Munn
Archdeaconry of Capilano (Clergy) – The Reverend Janice Lowell
Archdeaconry of Capilano (Lay) – Ian Thomas
Archdeaconry of Fraser (Clergy) – The Reverend David Price
Archdeaconry of Fraser (Lay) – Joan Cope
Archdeaconry of Lougheed (Clergy) – The Reverend Trudi Shaw
Archdeaconry of Lougheed (Lay) – Maureen Simons
Archdeaconry of Vancouver (Clergy) – The Reverend Andrew Halladay
Archdeaconry of Vancouver (Lay) – Cameron Gutjahr
Archdeaconry of Westminster (Clergy) – The Reverend Dale Yardy
Archdeaconry of Westminster (Lay) – Belinda Kishimoto
Treasurer – Bob Hardy
Youth Delegate to Diocesan Council – Kimberly Blair
Youth Delegate to Diocesan Council - Anne Kessler
The Bishop appointed David Swan to be Chair of the Committee on Mission and Ministry Development (and therefore a member of Council and of Synod) and she also appointed Valerie Casselton, the former Chair of the now-retired Communications Committee and parishioner at St Francis-in-the-Wood, Caulfeild to sit as a Member-at-Large. The 8 Archdeacons and Diocesan Dean selected the Venerable Dr. Lynne McNaughton and the Venerable Stephen Rowe from their numbers as the Archdeacon representatives.
WELCOME
Bishop Melissa began the Council meeting by asking that Council remember those RCMP officers slain in Moncton and their families. The Bishop followed with prayer. She prayed for the officers, their families and for the suspect/perpetrator.
BIBLE STUDY – PENTECOST
ACTS 2: 1-21
After the Reverend Andrew Halladay (Clergy representative from the Vancouver Archdeaconry) read the passage, Bishop Melissa asked Council members to consider this question for a minute: Where in your life or in the life of your parish are you experiencing a thunderous wind signaling the coming of something new or burning flame signaling the presence of something being kindled? What has been/is the effect on you or your parish. Then turn to their neighbor and share their thoughts.
A number of Council members spoke about the brief duo discussions that took place after the reading. There was a recurring theme of fire and wind making way for new ministry, new partnerships, and renewed purpose.
Following the Bible Study segment and reporting back, Bishop Melissa asked that all members of Council and Synod Staff present introduce themselves.
MINUTES
May 13th, 2014, approved as distributed.
OVERVIEW OF NEW CANONICAL REGULATIONS
Bishop Melissa asked that Legal Registrar Don Paul speak about the Overview he had prepared.
Regarding The Steering Committee, the Bishop is the Chair and then one of the three legal officers, the Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer (there is currently no Assistant Treasurer), the Chair of Mission and Ministry Development, three elected by Council from Council and the Executive Archdeacon of the Diocese and the Business Administrator who have voice but no vote.
With respect to the resolutions that were before Council, Chancellor, George Cadman informed Council that this is still an interim period. These resolutions and Regulation 18, (the regulation that governs the holding of meetings by Diocesan Council, the Agenda Committee, the Steering Committee, sub-committees, units and task forces) are in the Chancellor’s words “tools of Diocesan Council” in order to create some underpinnings as the new structure is fleshed out and alternative meeting formats developed. The goal being that the new and more streamlined version of diocesan governance function differently than the old model, with fewer Diocesan Council meetings and decisions made more quickly by a smaller group with the authority to make those kinds of decisions.
The three nominees put forward by the Bishop for the Steering
Committee were: the Reverend Trudi Shaw, the Reverend Lois Boxill and the Venerable Stephen Rowe. It was moved and seconded that nominations be closed. The three nominees were approved by Diocesan Council and are now members of the Steering Committee.
Don Paul then went into some detail on how email polling should be conducted in order to achieve enough responses for the votes to be effective. He also briefed Council on the Steering Committee’s power regarding decision making and the type of situations that may arise that would necessitate referring of items to the two Standing Committees, task forces, working groups etc.
The Chancellor reminded Council that Regulation 18 and the resolution to pass it is under control of Diocesan Council. As the new format develops and items are submitted to the Agenda Committee for consideration the alternative meeting formats will evolve.
There were questions and discussions about the potential fragility of email polls.
Don stressed the importance of using “Reply All” when responding to email poll questions.
The MOTION was CARRIED
Bishop Melissa formerly announced that David Swan of St. Mary’s, Kerrisdale has accepted the appointment as Chair of the Mission and Ministry Development Committee.
The Agenda Committee is: Mark Munn, Maureen Simons and the Reverend Janice Lowell.
ACTION-DISCUSSION
Working Group on Ministry with Young People – Children & Youth
The Reverend Ruth Monette, Acting Director for Mission and Ministry Development reported on the Working Group’s recommendations brought to Senior Staff. The suggestion contained in the Precis is to hire a full time Children and Youth Ministry Coordinator for the balance of 2014. After discussion, the Chancellor suggested that the proposal include 2015 as well for the new position which will attract more candidates. He also suggested some avenues where money could be sourced to fund the position for the increased time period.
The MOTION was CARRIED
Report on Synod Discussion on Christian Camping
The Memo as a whole contains a number of themes collected from the Synod 2014 table discussions that took place on May 24th.
According to the Reverend Ruth Monette, we are really not at a place yet where the mind of the diocese has been determined when it comes to camping ministry. However, there was a general tone of agreement and understanding in the materials received that the sleep-away, full service camp is a very expensive way to do this ministry and a Family Camp spread out over a week may be a good programmatic beginning.
The proposal is to do something around Family Camping for 2015.
The Chancellor suggested that this be directed to the Committee on Mission and Ministry Development.
The Business Administrator, Rob Dickson spoke to this motion saying that this is a way to take a small step forward to get something going as a diocese and begin working through toward something more expansive for the summer of 2016.
New Motion suggested by the Chancellor
This Council affirms the conversations from Synod and the desire of the diocese to engage in camping ministry and refers this issue to the Committee for Mission and Ministry Development to have a report to Council by October 31st, 2014.
The MOTION was CARRIED
St Helen, Surrey – Request for Loan
Treasurer Bob Hardy, spoke to the request from St. Helen’s, Surrey to expand the purpose of the loan granted by Council at the May, 2014 meeting to include moving expenses for their new rector arriving from the Maritimes.
The MOTION was CARRIED
St. Anselm – request to draw on restricted CTF funds
Again Treasurer Bob Hardy spoke to this request. He advised Council that this parish is in a process of rejuvenation with new energy and new leadership and they would like to do some improvements to their grounds and overall environment.
The MOTION was CARRIED
St Matthew, Abbotsford – request for capital funding.
Treasurer Bob Hardy highlighted portions of the request from St. Matthew’s Anglican Parish, Abbotsford for new furnaces.
The MOTION was CARRIED
St. Matthew, Abbotsford – grant application for extension of Ministry support. (File unavailable)
Treasurer Bob Hardy had the floor as he summarized the grant application from St. Matthew Anglican Parish, Abbotsford.
The Reverend David Price asked if there had been an evaluation of St. Matthew’s ministry as they have been receiving funding for the past three years. Bishop Melissa informed Council that she has had many meetings about St. Matthew, Abbotsford and they are going through a bumpy patch at the moment. Bishop Melissa has a plan for St Matthew in terms of goal setting and membership growth.
The parish is going to send a large contingent to the Diocesan School of Leadership in July and she is committed to working with the Priest-in-Charge on developing priorities.
Kimberly Blair one of the two Youth Representatives on Council urged Council to support the Parish as they have a long history of support for the British Columbia Yukon Anglican Youth Ministry (BCYAYM) over the years.
The MOTION was CARRIED
Director to Mission of Seafarers – Ray Goode
The letter from Captain Gordon Houston, Chair of the Mission to Seafareres regarding the nomination of Ray Goode as a Director for that organization was presented to Council
The NOMINATION was APPROVED.
At 8:58pm Council moved IN CAMERA
Council moved EX CAMERA at 9:48pm
CORRESPONDENCE – FOR INFORMATION
Letter from the Primate of May 20th, 2014
Letter from Bishop Barry Jenks of May 30, 2014
The Bishop adjourned the meeting at 9:54
The next scheduled meeting of Diocesan Council is 6:30pm, September 9th, 2014, at St. Augustine’s, Marpole.
Images:
- 1. The Diocesan Officers with the Reverend Trudi Shaw far left just as the meeting was called to order.
- 2. Sandra Stevenson, Administrative Assistant on Synod Staff and a person with excellent secretarial skills was the Minutes Secretary for the June 10th meeting.
- 3. Kim Blair one of two Youth Representatives on Council and the Reverend Andrew Halladay. In the previous structure Andrew was the Clerical Secretary, he is still Clerical Secretary of the Synod but he also sits on Council as the Clergy Representative of the Vancouver Archdeaconry.
- 4. During most of the first half of the meeting, Diocesan Legal Registrar Don Paul guided Council through the new resolutions and Regulation 18. The Bishop and the Chancellor beside him.
- 5. The two reps from the Archdeaconry of Burrard, the Reverend Lois Boxill and Mark Munn attend their first DC meeting.
- 6. Treasurer of the Diocese, Bob Hardy on the left and Business Administrator Rob Dickson on the right.
- 7. One of 7 returning Council members, the Reverend David Price now Clergy Representative for the Archdeaconry of Fraser.
- 8. Thomas Dezell with his, mom Jennifer Dezell at his first DC meeting