Members Present: President June Johnsen, Jeff Thoma, Carole Greeley, Janelle Jolley, Pastor Todd Bertani, Barbara Nelson

Members Absent: Bette Noll

June called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. Pastor Todd offered a prayer.

Minutes
June moved that we approve the minutes from the August 25, 2011 meeting. The motion was seconded and was passed.

Reports
Janelle submitted a Finance Report (Attachment A.) Disbursements had exceeded revenues for the month of August by $13,133.11, largely due to some expenses related to the Mexico mission trip, but revenues exceeded disbursements by $5,928.78 for January 1, 2011-August 31, 2011. Council members agreed that we should provide a contribution statement to members so they can see if they are current on their pledges. Carole asked if these statements could be sent to most members via e mail, and June said that she would look into this possibility. There was a discussion regarding the importance of keeping information about individual pledges and contributions confidential.

Pastor Todd submitted a report (Attachment B) and a recent article from The Lutheran about church- based community organizing in Portland, Oregon. (Attachment C) He announced that he will be showing a video about stewardship rather than giving a sermon on Sunday, October 2. He said that there will be a focus on evangelism next year.

MaryAnne Jordan is now chair of the Welcome and Witness Ministry Team, and Bette Noll is chair of the Outreach Ministry Team. The Outreach Team needs members. Pastor Todd proposed that the Council invite Sister Judy Donovan to speak to the Council about church-based community organizing. It was agreed to invite her to speak at the next meeting, which will be held in the Digerud Room at 5:45 p.m. on Thursday, October 20. The semiannual reports from the ministry teams will be presented at the Council meeting in November rather than at the October meeting.

New Business
Office Administrator Erin Ruml had informed the Council that the five-year lease that we have on our office copy machine will expire in May 2012, and we should let Inland, our dealer, know 90 days in advance whether we intend to buy or return the machine. Erin recommended that we return our current Savin copier and lease another copier that is more reliable than our current one. The tech who services our copier recommended a Sharp copier. Jeff recommended that we return our current copier and buy a Canon copier. Carole recommended that we have Erin do an assessment to determine our current use and that we consider obtaining a duplicator for the office, since many churches are using them now. Barbara said that she had seen a duplicator being used at the synod assembly and that it was much faster than a copier. June said that she would instruct Erin to conduct an assessment and to advise us on her needs and preferences.

Pastor Todd led the Lord’s Prayer, and the meeting adjourned at 7:05 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Carole Greeley, Secretary