Committee Reports for FY 2014
June 2014
Table of Contents
UUFLG June 2014
As the final annual report from me, I would
like to thank the leadership team, including the staff and all the other
volunteers, for the joint progress we as a congregation have made during the
last three years. In a relatively short amount of time during the life of
the Fellowship we have been able to build a solid base and accomplish many things which have invigorated the congregation. In
gratitude I want to hold up:
OUR PROGRESS TO-DATE
Administration:
— Re-instituted the Board to be more
manageable and directed toward policy
— Increased the functioning and spending
autonomy of the committees
— New, flexible website which can easily
be updated
— Centralized recruitment, coordination
and appreciation of volunteers
— Opened a Facebook Page
__ Revamped the
Midweek Announcements with more visual appeal
Sunday Programming:
— Consistent participation of Rev. Fa Jun to supplement ministerial presence
— Spiritual Cafes are a big hit
— Newer people verbalizing appreciation
of spiritual content
— Graced by 3 years of a choir adding to
the level of worship
— Audio-visual improvements assisting
more robust singing by looking upwards to screen
— Sharing our worship with the Center for
Spiritual Living and the Youth Group from the San Jose UU Church
Programming:
-- Increased weekday activities offered by and
for members and friends (art classes, soul collage, end of life financial
affairs, job fair, spiritual cinema)
— An All Fellowship Retreat at the Brownings home in the mountains
Lifespan Learning:
— Revitalized LL program with a Director,
followed by a curriculum specialist working closely with our head teacher
— Increased attendance and engagement of
our children
— Creation of a Middle School class for
better age appropriate learning and connections
— Lifespan Learning conversations on how
to grow our children to remain Unitarian Universalists
— Various expressions of the importance
of the Fellowship by the children as they feel safe and supported by the staff
— Organization of the storage of
resources
Membership:
— Regular followup
on visitors with notes
— Ministerial longer conversations with
returning visitors
— Updated new database for tracking
members and friends
— Integration of new members into
leadership of Fellowship activities
Finance:
— Instituted a year end donation letter
— Shortened the timing of the pledge
drive and made it a more uplifting, creative event
— Increased the pledging by an incredible
13% for last years pledge drive
— In spite of decreased number of
pledges, increased overall average of pledges for this year
— Anticipating paying off our mortgage
this coming year
— Maintained a balance budget with a
building and grounds reserve and one month operating reserve
Social Action:
— Besides the usual support to local
community service groups, participated in a UU prison
book program with other congregations
— Contributed to both the Creek Cleanup
initiative and the Interfaith Habitat for Humanity program
— Early planning for a ÒInequality
SummitÓ which UUFLG will host for the South Bay in the fall 2014
Caring Committee:
— Reorganized Caring Committee to
coordinate member needs for additional support and assistance
— New brochure developed
Other Collaboration:
-- Extended ourselves
outside our walls to share information, resources and social events with the
Sunnyvale UU Fellowship
-- Funded a Special Needs Conference for the
District at the Palo Alto Church
-- UUFLG members volunteered last year at the
UUA's District Regional Assembly
—Organized and hosted the 5 South Bay congregations at the historic first ÒShout Out!Ó
and Picnic
FUTURE VISION
Yes, there are always parts of UUFLG we need to
improve and to grow. That is the nature of church life. We have
proved that working together we can do whatever we put our minds to. The
bigger challenge now is that we need to take the next steps to develop a vision
of how we want to make a difference in our lives and in our world.
IMPEDIMENTS TO DEVELOPMENT
Figuring out what this future vision will be is
severely hampered by the lack of a healthy, open communication system.
This is not new to UUFLG and your historical, unhealthy patterns have
recently resurfaced. Whether due to the anxiety of the loss of members or
a few people wanting to impose a new direction for the Fellowship and its
ministry, blame, rumor mongering and secrecy were
imposed on our internal relationships. My ability to remain effective and
working as a team was undermined by these accusations. Unfortunately the
conflict has reached further to members and committees. We have a serious
transgression of our own values of openness and caring. In addition, either undermining committee decisions and not including
committee or Board members in an open, collaborative process is a violation of
the spirit of Unitarian Universalist congregational polity and
governance. We now have several active members who are leaving because
they feel unsafe in this kind of environment.
RECOMMENDED NEXT
STEPS
There is so much potential to serve yourselves
and the greater community if you can get a handle on your communication
challenges. My recommendations are as follows:
¥
Discover what is essential to the existence of
the congregation and make decisions that support that vision.
¥
Make a commitment and hold yourselves
accountable to a new open communication process focused on a future that you
create together.
¥
Bring in a process observer and outside
resources to help you create expectations and guidelines for improved
communications.
¥
And in trying to work toward a common good with
respect and caring, ask individuals and committees first: ÒHow can I help
you?Ó, instead of imposing a personal agenda not well
vetted in the congregation.
Finally, I want to thank you for the three
years that I have been honored to serve you. I leave with many fond
memories and a heart full of the lives, ideas and success we have shared.
In loving faith,
Lisa
Board Annual Report
UUFLG Annual Meeting June 22, 2014
During this past year,
several new ideas were tried, such as engaging a Curriculum Development
Specialist to provide curricula specifically for us. Another new idea was a paid Volunteer
Coordinator to help recruit the many people needed to keep our Fellowship
running.
Our office support was
reorganized from an Admin to an Office Manager, who updates our new database,
among other duties including rentals.
For example, the Serendipity Choir was given a favorable rate on the
renewal of its rental contract with agreement of two performances for us in the
fall and two in the spring. Also, to enable faster updates of existing items
and the entry of new ones on the website calendar, access to website calendar
was reopened.
Not visible but
important, plumbing maintenance was performed to correct impact of our sagging
building pressing on a pipe, and the ingrowth of roots. Subsequently, initiated
a new Facility Working Group to consider other big ticket
maintenance issues.
In a new approach to
gather information, small group meetings (eight or so people) were held on
three different dates to discuss items about our Fellowship that people wanted
to see changed.
Looking forward, the Boy
Scouts approached us to see if we were interested in providing a place to hold
meetings and establish a Charter organization relationship. The new Board will
need to make the decision.
Jim Beebe
Board
President
UUFLG Annual meeting
June 22, 2014
The most
visible aspect of what Sunday Programs does is seen and heard in the sanctuary
on Sunday mornings. We have been blessed to have Rev. Lisa Wiggins as part of
the team. She not only provides two services a month from September through
June she also provides welcome guidance on monthly theme selection and assists
in identifying guest speakers and programs for the 32 Sundays a month she is
not leading the service. She encourages new people to join the Sunday service
team. She has also taken advantage of our flat screen technology in projecting
the Order of Service, hymns and visuals. I offer a shout out to Alan Martin,
not an official member of Sunday programs but someone who has provided the
visual and audio upgrades to the sanctuary that have enhanced the services.
Dave Coldren is an integral part of the team. He provides
excellent musical interpretations and acts as a stage manager making every
program move forward as flawlessly as possible. Irving Yabroff
heads the sound team that is literally heard but not seen every service. Bonnie
George was in charge of chancel decorations for four years. She has recently
handed over the reins to Isobel Carson who is keeping up the strong tradition.
The most
popular and innovative program introduced with LisaÕs guidance is the Spiritual
CafŽ. We are constantly looking for
ways to improve this great program. One of the plans for next year is to only
hold the Spiritual CafŽ when the weather permits having it on the deck.
Guest
speakers are important to the continued success of our Sunday Programs. Rev.
Chris Schriner was a regular guest speaker starting
in 2010. During this past year we took full advantage of the availability of
Rev. Fa Jun who has been an asset. Dave Coldren has provided special Music Sundays. JJ Martin,
Katie Rall and I have each created and presented a
full Sunday Program. Stacy Rademaker and Robb
Stolberg round out the Sunday service team. We are most often seen as Worship
Associates on Sunday mornings yet there is a great deal of behind the scenes
activities necessary to create a good service.
My thanks to Lisa, Dave, JJ, Katie, Stacy and Robb for providing us a
successful year.
Respectfully
submitted,
Bert
Olson, Chair Sunday Programs
Annual Report
May 2014
Blessings weÕve noticed in the
youth program over the last year:
á Staff teachers Laura Leong and
Laura Woods are solid, skilled and reliable
á There has been a steady stream of
youth and adult volunteers in the nursery
á There is a renewed energy that has
been the foundation of a program, rather than just a class, which has brought
in more families with children
á Older youth have more opportunities
to talk and share ideas respectfully
á A few more children and youth are
attending more regularly, with more enjoyment of the lessons and the
programming
á Using the west room and the office
for class space has allowed us to divide the youth into two development-appropriate
groups
á There has been more focus on
Unitarian Universalism and what it means to be a UU
á ÒLong AgoÓ and ÒWorld ExplorersÓ
programs have been engaging and responsive to the needs of the youth and the
teachers
Lessons weÕve learned over the
last year include:
á Laura Woods was great in the
nursery, but sheÕs much better used with the older youth
á Youth enjoy classes more and
attend more regularly when they can be in a development-appropriate groups,
instead of the Òone room school houseÓ
á With the above in mind, many youth
enjoy the opportunity to work with the littlest children occasionally
á Having a small group of adults
dedicated to one class/group is the only way we can consistently divide the
youth into two development-appropriate groups
Some of our major shared hopes for
the coming year are:
á A Director of Religious Education
who can be on site most weeks to support the teachers and the adults who
volunteer regularly
á Regular staff in the nursery,
perhaps older teens who would be easier to hire rather than trained teachers
á Programming for a large group of
children who are currently in kindergarten
á Coming of Age and/or Junior High
OWL programming, which can only happen by partnering with other congregations
or the district structure
á More project-oriented lessons
Respectfully
submitted by Rev Denis Paul, Lifespan Learning Specialist with input from the
Lifespan Learning Committee, Katie Stubstad, chair.
ACTIVITIES SINCE
JUNE, 2013 THROUGH MAY 31,
2014
¥ Investigated and promoted Prison Text Book Drive for which $274 was collected
during Share-the-Plate. Joined
Redwood City UU and Sunnyvale
UU in this very successful project. Eventually $1,700 was raised and 18 used educational text books were purchased for Avenal Prison.
¥ Participated in Rummage Sale to benefit Stand Up For Kids.
¥ Promoted interfaith
project of creek cleanup at site near Sacred Heart.
¥ Initiated search
for Sustainable Agreement .
¥ Encouraged a congregant's idea of inviting day workers to our Fellowship to better understand their needs.
¥ In partnership with Building and Grounds, Sustainable Grounds book was brought to our monthly meeting.
Discussion ensued about replacing
damaged garden markers.
¥ Our annual Fall Food drive involved
the children; they passed out flyers and decorated
boxes for the food collection which went to Second Harvest.
¥ A Job Club was initiated
by Carmella Condino.
¥ Drip irrigation taken care of for newly planted areas due to S.A./B&G team up.
¥ U.U. Legislative Ministry, CA. information passed to S.A. Team, showing
recent actions and planned
events.
¥ Annual Pack-A-Back took place, collecting items, back packs and checks which were delivered to Sacred Heart for needy grade school children.
¥ A Day Workers'
Open House was attended by S.A. members where they were encouraged to hire day workers and to visit the center during lunch to help the workers learn more English.
¥ Advertisements and a sign-up sheet were made available, encouraging volunteers to attend a Coastal Cleanup.
¥ The need to re-educate our congregation and new members about our Sustainability Agreement was discussed during a S.A. meeting.
¥ 
The Sustainable Grounds Project was discussed and the book showing location
in our garden and names of plants was viewed. Some Native plants have been added to the
grounds.
¥ Thanksgiving boxes for Sacred Heart were filled and delivered in a successful food drive.
¥ The food drive for Second Harvest
Food Bank went well and some of our children
participated.
¥ Our congregation donated items to go in survival sacks and hygiene kits
which were distributed by Sacred Heart. We were able to have help from the children on this project.
¥ The S.A. participants discussed
the possibility of the children
having their own S.A. Team. It was suggested that they be shown
a homeless shelter.
¥ An upcoming
Creek Cleanup is to be advertised and a sign-up
sheet made available.
¥ Water conservation information from SCV Water District
has been received
and perused.
¥ There has been a discussion on the Economic
Summit attended by Rev. Lisa and handouts
were passed out on Justice Ministry.
¥ A composting
demonstration is being planned.
¥ A recent Habitat work sign-up sheet had an excellent response.
¥ Robin Connelly attended
the S.A. meeting
to discuss NAMI and the
walk taking place on
its behalf at the end of this month.
The
Caring Committee has had a very good year. We have developed and mailed a
brochure to each member and friend in our church directory explaining what the
Caring Committee does and the name of the coordinator in charge of each area: Transportation, Meals, Visits, Memorial
Services, Birthday and Get-Well cards and Phone calls. We have inserted in the
Order of Service a Caring Network sheet which
explains, again, what we do and it asks the congregation if they know of
someone who needs care, if they would like to be of help and the areas where
they have an interest. We will be inserting these in the OOS from time to time.
All of the efforts made to help our congregation have been
given by committee members and they have done a wonderful job. We had a
small response to our Caring Network sheet and that will increase with time.
The
committee meets every two months and we generally have 8 or 9 members in
attendance. Each coordinator
discusses how they have helped our church community in the past two months and
we learn where we can improve these areas. On our agenda for the future will be
a class for our congregation on cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and, hopefully,
an automated external defibrillator, if we can find a way to purchase one.
UNITARIAN
UNIVERSALIST FELLOWSHIP OF LOS GATOS
MEMBERSHIP AND HOSPITALITY
COMMITTEE
2013-2014 REPORT TO BOARD
Membership Committee requests funds for membership database
fees, member directory publication, books/brochures from UUA, and miscellaneous
membership events. The committee creates, updates and follows procedures
to maintain membership list; provides
follow-up to visitors; and support
New to UU classes. It oversees new member induction ceremonies
and database, as well as member recognition (anniversaries, birthdays); creates, updates and adheres to greeting
process, and procedures for events like Sunday social hour, Newcomer Desserts,
potlucks, ad hoc events; and memorial services (liaison to Caring
Committee).
The following actions by
the UUFLG Membership Committee in the 2013-2014 Year are presented by category,
and within each category, with the most recent action listed first. Copies of documents cited in the report
are available, for the convenience of the Board.
PROCEDURES
- BIRTHDAYS: Fellowship Members and Friends birthdays will be recognized on the first
Sunday of every month, in the Order of Service, and all celebrants will be
celebrated in song on the same day.
- NEW MEMBER AFFILIATION DOCUMENT: New
Member Affiliation document created by Bonnie George and approved by the
Membership Committee was approved by the Board on April 16, 2014.
- VISITOR
CARDS: Information on green visitor cards will be used to
make follow-up telephone calls to visitors; information will be used to place
visitors on ÒNewsletterÓ list, NOT the ÒAnnouncementsÓ list, with an Òeasy outÓ
(unsubscribe) opportunity.
- PANCAKE
BREAKFAST: Report document created.
- VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR: Worked with Rev. Lisa to
create a list of duties for a new Volunteer Coordinator position; submitted to Leadership to facilitate posting and hiring
for the new position.
- NEW MEMBER BIOGRAPHY QUESTIONS: Created and approved.
- MEMBERSHIPSHIP COMMITTEE RESPONSIBILITY SHEET: Updated and approved.
- SPIRITUAL CAFƒ: Instruction document finalized
and approved.
- GREETER PROCEDURES: Updated, finalized and
approved.
- ANNIVERSARY RECOGNITIONS: Presentations/recognitions acknowledged,
on the first Sunday of the month, for every 5 years with UUFLG – i.e. 1,
5, 10, etc. Celebrants will receive flowers.
- MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE HANDBOOK:
Created,
and includes but not limited to 1) coffee, 2) greeters, 3) database, 4)
visitors, 5) follow-up, 6) budget, 7) expenditures, 8) other.
HOSPITALITY AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
- SOCIAL HOUR SNACKS: Vote to bring snacks back during social hour, commencing June 15;
recommended the snacks be minimal and healthy, (this follows a trial of Òno
snacks from mid-April to mid-June).
- DINNERS FOR EIGHT (or SIX): The
option of brunch or dinner - for either eight or six - at a local restaurant or
membersÕ home - was initiated.
- FAREWELL PARTIES: Planned farewell parties
for Rev. Chris Schriner, Rev. Fa
Jun (Christian Real), and Rev. Lisa Wiggins.
- ANNUAL EVENTS: A list of annual events, related to membership, was formalized and approved.
GENERAL MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE
-
PLEDGE DRIVE: Members who are leaving were identified
in the recent pledge drive.
-
APPROVAL OF LIFETIME MEMBER STATUS: Recommendation
that Doris Boyd and Lee Dugan be approved as Lifetime Members of UUFLG;
Committee concurred and requested Board to approve.
-
MEMBERSHIP LETTER
TEMPLATE: Finalized, approved and
sent.
HOUSEKEEPING
- NAME BADGE PROTOTYPE: A new name badge template
created and approved; submitted to Office Administrator; will include Chalice,
member first name in large letters, last name, and membership year in
right-hand corner; ÒfriendsÓ will have no year noted. Both lanyard and clip-style badges are
available.
- BADGES OF FORMER AND/OR MISSING MEMEBERS: Will be kept in a box on top of the table in the
foyer.
- MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE BUDGET:
Following
a review of expenditures, both past and anticipated on an annual basis, a
formal request for $300 dollars in additional funds for the 2013-2014 years for
out-of-pocket expenses including, but are not limited to, lapel pins, plants,
flowers for anniversaries, postage, note cards, and food for Newcomer Desserts.
- FACEBOOK: Totally updated with a 596% increase in readership.
-
FLASH DRIVE: Received from Irving Yabroff;
all Membership Committee transactions committed to Flash.
- MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE PAGE UPDATED ON THE UUFLG WEBSITE: July 2013
SUNDAY SERVICES
- UU MINUTE – Pending: Proposal FellowshipÕs Committees and/or groups present a ÒUU
MinuteÓ once a month, to keep the Fellowship informed about activities,
increase visibility of the opportunities that abound. Jim will notify Sunday Programs of
recommendation.
Respectfully
submitted,
Bonnie
George, Chair
Building
and Grounds Committee
Annual
Report to the Board of Trustees
For
Fiscal Year 2013-2014
Plumbing diagnostics and repairs
dominated the Building and Grounds agenda and budget this year, and
necessitated the use of reserve funds. Due to recurring toilet clogs, and
flooding from the restroom floor drains when sinks were used elsewhere in the building,
a plumber with specialized photo and radio equipment was hired to locate the
building drain line and make repair recommendations. First, the toilet flush
mechanisms were replaced. In April, the water supply to the building was shut
off at the street so that the building water shut-off gate valve and water
pressure regulator could be replaced, since low water pressure was causing poor
toilet operation. Most recently, the urinal flusher mechanism in the menÕs
restroom was replaced. The Òlow pointÓ found in the main drain line during
diagnostics remains a concern, but no backups or flooding have been reported
since the water pressure regulator was replaced.
Less technical building and
grounds repairs and improvements were carried out by volunteers on the monthly
ÒLast SaturdayÓ work parties. Larger projects completed between July 2013 and
June 2014 included completion of a railing along the walkway from the West Room
to the deck, staining the play-area fence, repainting the kitchen, building a
block retaining wall, and repairs to the steps leading to Blossom Hill Road.
Shorter, but equally important work party projects included kitchen
reorganization and labeling, creation of RE classroom space in the lounge area,
adding shelves to the RE closet in the West Room, and adding doorstops to the
most heavily used doors around the building. Thirteen new native plants were
added to the grounds in the fall; however, due to drought conditions no new
plants were added in spring, as new native plants need much more water than
established ones. Pruning of shrubs and trees not covered by the fellowshipÕs
gardening service was done throughout the year; at a recent work party, one
group of volunteers focused on pruning while another group worked on
reorganizing the attic area.
In summary, 2013-2014 was a productive
year for the Building and Grounds Committee, as well (unfortunately) as a
profitable one for several professional plumbers.
FINANCE COMMITTEE ANNUAL REPORT – FY 2014
The UUFLG began the 2014 Fiscal Year on 1
July, 2014 with a Membership approved baseline budget expenditure of $123,997
and anticipated income of $119,736, which would have resulted in a deficit of $4,258
for the year. The year's deficit was planned to be covered
from the Operating Reserve, which stood at $18,199 at the beginning of the
year.
The current projection for the end of fiscal
year 2014 shows an increase in the year-end deficit from the budgeted estimate
of $4,258 to $14,155. The projected amounts for the Operating Reserve and the
Building and Grounds Reserve at the end of the fiscal year are $4,924 and $6,000
respectively. The amount of the
Operating Reserves does not satisfy the reserve objective of the Finance
Committee for the Operating Reserves to be equal to one month's average
expenditure. The objective for the Building and Ground's reserve of $6,000 is
maintained.
As is usual, there have been exceptions to
the approved budget as the year progressed:
á Changes
were made in staffing, re-allocating funds from the Director of Lifespan
Learning to a Lifespan Curriculum Consultant, engaging a Volunteer coordinator
and restructuring the Office ManagerÕs responsibilities.
á Rental
income increased by $6,000.
á Janitorial expenditures increased to accommodate our weekly rental.
á UUA and PCD dues were approximately doubled from $3,066 to $6,278 to pay full fair share.
á Other smaller increases and decreases occurred to both income and expenditures as the year progressed.
UUFGL received two unrestricted bequests
during the fiscal year. A bequest of $5100 was received from the estate of
Beulah Pease. The other was from the estate of Virginia Stahl in the amount of
$10,000. These are held in a
holding fund and will be used to retire the remaining outstanding loan, which
has a current balance of $11, 465. The remainder of the bequests will continue
in a holding fund to be allocated in fiscal year 2015.
The 2014 pledge drive for fiscal year 2015
did not meet its target of $98,900. The resulting pledge total is $80,996. With the loss of our part time
Consulting Minister, Lisa Wiggins, alternate proposed budgets for fiscal year
2015 have been prepared for UUFLG Board concurrence and Member approval. One of
the alternatives budgets for a part time Consulting Minister, the other
alternative is for the case where outside ministers and speakers are engaged
for Sunday services. They will be submitted for approval vote at the June 2014
UUFLG Business Meeting.
In October 2013, the UUFLG Board of Trustees
appointed Ann Campbell to fill out the remainder Jim StahlÕs term as Treasurer
following his relocation.
Finance Committee Members:
Ann Campbell (UUFLG Treasurer and Committee Chair), Merritt Benson, Yvonne Liu,
Eric Pierson and Irving Yabroff.