Absent: Steve Morgan; Brian Evers; and Fr. Farano The meeting was called to order at 7:00 P.M. Tom Christman led us in
a wonderful prayer. Frank reiterated the fact that anyone who wants to
lead the opening prayer should call him before the next meeting. September Meeting Notes Some members said they had not received the minutes for September. Marlene
said that she would send out a copy to those who did not receive them.
Sorry for the problem. The notes from the September meeting were not approved
because some members did not receive them. They will be submitted for
approval at the November meeting, along with the notes from the October
meeting. Tom Christman mentioned the “Orphan Grain Chain”. It is a
Lutheran group that does wonderful outreach to disadvantaged children.
Frank reviewed the Action Items from the September meeting, and asked
Dan Slavin to keep the Action Notes for this meeting. Committee Reports School Report – Dennis Mullhany gave the school report: Sister Parishes – no fund raising event has been
planned. The Giving Tree will be available again this year. “Called To BeE Church” Parish Town
Hall Meeting The Town hall meeting was held on Monday October 16. Ninety-three people
from the parish attended. Father Farano was pleased with the turnout,
with the enthusiasm of the group, and with the thoughtful responses that
everyone provided at the meeting. Those of us from the Council who attended
the meeting thought that it was an uplifting experience. Tracy asked how the people on the team were chosen. Frank said that he
and Fr. Farano made the selections. At the next Parish Town Hall meeting, the topic to be discussed is “ministry”.
It will be held on November 16. Financial Report (Mark Morrison) Mark Morrison (co-chair of the Parish Finance Committee) gave a great
overview of the Financial Statements for the yiscal year ending on June
30, 2006. The million dollar budget for the church is up $40,000; Mark
feels that is directly attributable to the Stewardship Campaign for the
past two years. Parishioners were very quick to react positively when
Fr. Farano explained the need for a raise in the weekly collection donation
level. The school budget is about 2.4 million. A few fine fundraisers brought in a great deal of money (for example,
Race for Education, Winters Night Out, etc.). Capital Expenditures included re-doing the bathrooms in the school. The committee is looking at the high cost of telephone service. The Finance Committee is looking for some long-term investment opportunities,
rather than the CDs that we have now. Of all of the parishes in the Diocese, we have the largest goal for the
“Bishop’s Appeal”. We usually exceed our target, and
because of that, we have received rebates from the diocese. One item to be discussed in the future will be the replacement of the
windows in the school. They are old and are not energy efficient. Thank to Mark for the clear and concise report. Parish Web Site There was discussion regarding several suggestions to improve the web
site. Jackie DeSanti and Frank Pugliano will meet with Peter Hines, the
site web master, to find out how new material is posted to the web site,
and to discuss giving others (parish staff, Council members) the ability
to post directly to the site. Some suggestions for additions the Parish Council page on the web site
are: notes from Council Meetings; committee descriptions; the Council
Meeting schedule for the year. Changes to the St. Pius X Parish Council Constitution Frank made proposals to change the following: There was much discussion of the true meaning of “ex-officio”
members and their right to vote. It was finally decided (at Mark Morrison’s
suggestion) that Jackie will speak with Mark McCarthy, an attorney and
former Council member, to ask if he will review the proposed changes to
the constitution, and offer advice concerning them. Action items Dan read the Action Items that he recorded during the meeting. Frank
will send the Action Items list to all members by e-mail. Mission of the Contemporary Parish Frank opened the floor to comments concerning the questions posed in
Part II of the Study Guide. Peter and JB both expressed the opinion that we should all be looking
for a way make our lives more spiritual and to assist us in this growth.
They both felt that we need to build our personal prayer life because
this is the foundation of our faith. Frank will send out a summary of the discussion to all members by e-mail. Closing Remarks Frank thanked Mark Morrison for his very detailed, but easy to understand,
Financial Report. The next meeting will be on November 15 at 7:00 P.M. Please e-mail all
committee reports to rrouse@nycap.rr.com by the week before the meeting,
November 8. Respectfully Submitted,
Notes from Meeting of October 18, 2006
Present: Frank Pugliano, Pres.; Jackie DeSanti, VP; Tom
Christman; Julianne Ruff; Dan Slavin; Mark Morrison; Jean B Zongo; Rudy
Paulsen; Dennis Mullahy; Joe Tamer; Pat Tobin; Sandy Zelka; Stephanie
Brennan (School Board rep); Tracy Coffey;Peter Ranalli; and Marlene Papa
Frank announced that 11 parishioners were chosen as a Guidance Team to
go through all of the information gathered in the Town Hall Meeting, and
to provide direction and advice with respect to how this whole process
is carried out at St. Pius.
Marlene R. Papa
Secretary