In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to start off my November blog to express my gratitude to everyone that was involved in the revision of the Bylaws and the Endowment plan. I want to thank the stewardship committee and endowment committee for going through the endowment plan line by line to tighten up the language and open avenues for more choice for potential givers. I want to thank the board of trustees for making this a priority for this year. I want to thank everyone who voiced their concerns, attended lunch and learns, and who participated in our democratic process by attending the special congregational meeting or sending their proxies so we could approve both documents. So many people put in so much time and we could not have gotten it done without so many minds and hands on the task.
Reflecting on my first five months as president of the board of trustees, I realized this week that I’ve been waiting for the other shoe to drop. I know previous presidents have had to manage contentious issues and navigate strong personalities, but I’ve been lucky that it’s been pretty smooth sailing. (Don’t worry, I’m knocking on wood right now as I type this). I think a reason is that I have the support of a congregation that is willing to pitch in and do the hard work that our organization needs to succeed.
As we approach the winter holiday season and the end of the year, we have so much to look forward to. There’s the holiday pageant, the holiday party and the hanging of the greens, and the solstice spiral service, and many of us have auction events to look forward to as well. I’m looking forward to sharing good food with good friends, and marveling at the sometimes undervalued joys of winter with my fellow congregants. Whether it be by us sharing a song together or a cup of hot cocoa, I’m looking forward to celebrating with you all in fellowship.
Yours in spirit,
Gillian