January 30, 2022

Annual Parish Meeting Rector Report – George Yandell In my annual reports over the past eleven years, I have said these words, and I’ll say them again: This is your parish. I serve God with you, guided by the Spirit of Jesus. I want to tell what I perceive God has done, is doing, and what God may be leading us to do together.   If there’s a slogan that sums up the past year, it’s “bridge over troubled water.” That’s how I have experienced the life and ministries we’ve extended during the covid era. If the parish is a bridge for us in living into our baptisms in the company of Jesus, you have done remarkably well. The results of our pledge campaign have surprised me and made me most grateful.    Where is the bridge carrying us? That’s what the newly reconstituted vestry will continue to discern after they start their work in the meeting after this all-parish meeting.    We are now into our 36th year as a parish- the founding parents are almost gone. New members are finding Holy Family and becoming part of the ministering body. We added 6 new members in 2021 during Covid. There were no Marriages, 2 Baptisms and 3 Burials in 2021. 6 members/families moved away, and 7 died since last year’s annual meeting. We’ll remember them in the annual meeting.    Our average Sunday attendance in 2019 was 169. In 2020, our average attendance before we began worshipping outside and online was 146. It was tailing off by early February.   Last year average attendance for our Sunday services was 86.  For Adult Education online @ 12. Online Evening Prayer, Morning Prayer and Evensong engaged both parishioners and non-members.  I am so grateful to those who’ve stepped up and are leading those services.    Plus over 100 people who participate in some way in the parish but are not members. Even during Covid, people are finding Holy Family who might not have been aware of us before.     Online participation for Sunday and Holy Day services Facebook: 4403 views YouTube:    645  Website: More than 2023Views. Unique viewers:175   Those who watched all the way thru:377   We probably have around 266 active adult members, but there’s no way to be absolutely sure since we’re not able to have many activities in person.    Just to note- it’s not difficult to join the parish. Talk to me if you’re interested in joining.   In the diocesan council virtual meeting in November, the financial report showed that in 2020, Holy Family had the 27th largest budget in the diocese of ATL, out of 115 worshipping communities.   You will hear in the annual meeting about the finances in 2021 and the budget the finance ministry approved for 2022 and forwarded to the vestry- the vestry accepted it unanimously on January 25. Because of increased pledges and a good end to last year with good income and less than anticipated expenses, Holy Family is in good condition financially. You are the reason- your pledges have exceeded past years’ tallies, and you’ve set the table for enhanced ministries in this new year. 113 pledges totaling $445,000. These totals are remarkable when we cannot gather for most activities except via zoom.   Four years ago, a group of us started strategizing with the diocese to accomplish the final goal in the parish Long Range Plan: “Eliminate the mortgage before refinancing is due in 2023.” Members of the 2019 vestry unanimously endorsed this major step. We reasoned that without mortgage payments we can free the parish for new initiatives in outreach, in ministry, and build a strong platform for Holy Family to thrive into the future.   Gifts from over 60 members brought in more than anyone anticipated. Just over $468,000. The balance on the mortgage was just slightly less than $601,000. That left $135,000 needed from the Diocese. The diocese lent us that money, we paid off our commercial mortgage and the diocese loan was initiated at a much more favorable rate- @ 2%. This is saving the parish over $15,000 in mortgage interest and principal payments each year. It’s a major reason our budget for 2022 is conservative and balanced. This without any solicitations or without a campaign. I’ve never before had this experience in any of the other parishes I’ve served. Today the remainder of the diocesan loan is $54,692. It was $130,000 at the beginning of 2021. The numbers are published each week in the service sheet.   I am grateful for all of you, even when we’re not together as much as in pre-covid time. You keep me focused on what’s most important, and you challenge me and one another to love like Jesus. You can read about the work the vestry and parish leaders have been engaged in over the past year in the annual meeting booklet.   We have added new members to our ministries. They’ve brought strength and purpose. You can read about each ministry’s report in the annual meeting booklet. Worship: The Worship Ministry is chaired by Ric Sanchez, chief verger. With input from the clergy, vergers, altar guild chair, organist/choirmaster, usher chair, greeters, flower guild and others, we evaluate how services are working, and plan future worship.    After the third Sunday in Lent two years ago, we started taping the services. A crew of us with no experience used cell phones to tape and process the services through Good Friday. Then we had to move out of the nave and have solo worship recording. Michael DeCamp, Steve Franzen, Allan DeNiro and I (sequentially) sweated through the taping sessions, then spent hours trying to upload the services onto Vimeo. Sometimes the uploading took hours and hours. It was harrowing. We dropped our smart phones on occasion. Didn’t help the production quality.   Bit by bit we learned and gained more experience and recruited more volunteers to produce the services. We were able to move back into the nave in early summer under strict diocesan guidelines for recording and streaming. The team leaders contracted with 3Stage Design to record and process the services until the production volunteers could take on more of the taping.    Using restricted funds for building furnishings, the production booth was constructed by Terry Nicholson and Jacques LeBlanc. Holy Family purchased the equipment for us to produce on our own. The volunteer producers were trained and assumed leadership and kept us online. We have missed only two Sundays in the past 18 months because of equipment failure.   There are now 5 producers, 10 camera operators and 6 sound board operators. They can use 2 more sound people. Please consider joining the production team as we will need additional folks who can use laptops to stream live education classes. If you sign up, you get a reserved seat in the production booth.   Because of our online presence, folks who didn’t know about Holy Family are seeking us out. Some are contributing online. It is evangelism.   Thank you everyone engaged in our services for keeping our liturgy dignified, meaningful, and challenging. You can read Ric’s report in the booklet.   Vestry Initiatives –   Long Range Plan: The new vestry needs to revisit the Plan and make some adjustments. The LRP guides our work and keeps us on task. The Parish Development group was created to move us to having a more visible presence in our area and more intentional planning for gathering newcomers.   Working with this year’s vestry has been grace-filled. I am most grateful for all they’ve done. See more in Sr. Warden Phil Anderson’s report of the vestry. I find it hard as Phil, Patricia Stimmel and John Rowan and rotate off. All of the vestry have done exceptional work over the past year. The calls you made on parishioners, the follow-up calls during the pledge campaign, kept folks plugged in and contributing, against all odds. Phil’s leadership has kept us on track, has generated plans for developing the parish, and has kept me accountable for the whole year. I’m pleased I get to continue to serve with those remaining on vestry. We actually have fun together, even when we’re focused on sometimes difficult tasks.    Enhancing Stewardship of Money:   In 2021 the vestry refined the Every Member Canvass. The response in turning in pledge cards in fall 2021 was stronger than last year. The Canvass co-chairs Jeannine Krenson and Allan DeNiro gave excellent leadership in planning and carrying out the stewardship of money campaign. It was thorough and participatory. Along with vestry and finance ministry leaders they met with all the ministries to solicit their plans and needs for 2022. Those meetings gave us more data sooner than any year before in preparing a budget that met nearly every goal the ministry chairs submitted. The canvass just ended was exceptional during the Covid restrictions. Your pledging has equipped the vestry to meet almost all the requests from parish ministries for funding. You can hear more about the pledge results from Treasurer George Miksch and Finance Ministry Chair Jim Braley in the annual meeting.   Finance Ministry: Read the report of the Finance Ministry to learn the details of our use of your pledge dollars. I am most grateful for your work and especially for the leadership of Jim Braley as chair, and our treasurer George Miksch.   Clergy Colleagues: Holy Family is graced with three clergy who volunteer in service to our parish. Their ministries for us are grace-filled, generous and essential to our spiritual and emotional health. To have colleagues like these is an asset beyond measure. Not only do they preach, serve at the altar, lead EFM classes, and serve in the Worship Ministry, do pastoral calls and push outreach efforts, but we also have fun together. I am daily grateful for Katharine, Byron, and Ted.   Conclusions: How are we doing in accomplishing the mission of the parish: “Creating Christian Community: Engaging people in vibrant ministry”? Your input gives direction and support as parish leaders plan for stronger ministries. Your volunteering puts the plans into action. During Covid, your participation is a gift of community we all need more of. You can read about all the ministries’ accomplishments in the annual meeting report.   Most important question: Are you engaged in vibrant ministry? If not, volunteer. Engage yourself in the work of a ministry or committee. Seek a higher plane of engagement with the Spirit of Christ. Speak with the leader of the ministry. Your ministries through Holy Family help fulfill your baptismal promises. You find colleagues and friends you haven’t known before. Being engaged multiplies your joy as you work with others in company with the Resurrected Lord of Heaven and Earth.   This is a remarkable community of love, support and nurture, not only for one another, but for the wider community. I am honored to serve as your rector.   G. Yandell