Attendance: John Burnham, Holly Grosvenor, Lissa Fernandez, Eleanor Elmer, David Pedrick, Christine Ariel, Dave Banister, Jake Smith, Marsha Francis, Barbara Russell-Willett, Linda Beall, Rev. Amy Freedman, Rachel Balaban, Coles Mallory

Approval of Minutes - Hearing no objection, the minutes were approved.

President's Report - John updated the Board on the status of the church's civil suit against Peter Schoenbucher. The settlement negotiations have stalled and at this point in time a settlement seems unlikely.

John presented the following motion to the Board. "Whereas, the Governing Board members have collectively spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars in an effort to regain the church's funds and records formerly under the supervision of past treasurer Peter Schoenbucher, to reconstruct the church's records, and to develop new safeguards for the handling of church fund, and

Whereas, approximately $399,700 has been returned and the church has created adequate new financial records despite missing a quantity of original records from the period Mr. Schoenbucher was treasurer,

Be it resolved that the President and other officers are authorized to settle or otherwise dispose of the church's civil suit against Mr. Schoenbucher under settlement terms in line with current board resolutions; and then to communicate directly with Mr. Schoenbucher and suggest that he report his actions to the Board of Accountancy. The President will appoint other church members to advise and assist the officers in whatever actions are taken to conclude its relations with Mr. Schoenbucher including the possibility of filing a report with the Board of Accountancy. The president will periodically update the Governing Board."

Holly moved that the motion be accepted. Rachel seconded the motion. During the ensuing discussion David Pedrick presented an amendment to the motion. The motion's final two sentences were amended to read,

"The President will appoint other church members to advise and assist him in whatever actions are taken to conclude its relations with Mr. Schoenbucher, which shall include filing a report with the Board of Accountancy if Mr. Schoenbucher does not do so in a sufficient and timely way." Chris seconded the motion.

After a discussion, the motion to approve the amendment was defeated. Six people voted to accept the motion. Seven people voted against the motion. A vote was then taken on the original version of the motion. The original version of the motion passed. Chris Ariel voted against the original motion. David Pedrick and Marsha Francis abstained from voting.

John reported that the Sanctuary sound system has been upgraded and that $420 is needed to cover the balance of this unbudgeted expense. The board voted against allocating this amount out of budget reserves preferring to seek donations or fundraising to cover the expense.

Vice President's Report - Holly spoke with Attorney Turner Scott about the fire protection updates that are required in the Parish Hall. He will approach the Fire Marshal in January to clarify the current situation and assist our tenant in satisfying the safety requirements of the Board of Education. A walk through of the building was conducted by former Fire Marshal, Mike Lieber. He sent the church a letter outlining various usage scenarios and the fire separation/protection devices that would be required.

Holly also reported that the first canvass meeting will be held on January 10 to discuss the structure of the canvass.

Property Committee Report - Barbara Russell-Willet reported on the maintenance and repairs that occurred in the three church buildings since our last meeting. Protective lexan glazing in a hardwood frame is to be installed to protect the sower window. Barbara feels that this is an ideal time to have the window cleaned because the scaffolding will be in place.

Minister's Report - Amy reported that the Worship Committee would benefit with the addition of more members. She also discussed fundraising ideas for 2006. The services auction is tentatively scheduled to be held on May 13^th. There will be no book sale this year so it is hoped that a different event, perhaps a craft fair, will occur to take its place.

Treasurer's Report - Dave Banister reported that our net equity as of December 12, 2005 was $26,372.62. One concern is the vacant Parish Hall apartment. This situation has the potential of surpassing our budgeted rental vacancy allowance. Dave presented a Corporate Resolutions for Corporate Account which relates to our Smith Barney account. Coles moved that, "we accept the corporate resolution and that John Burnham's name be added to the resolution." David Pedrick seconded the motion and the motion passed.

Management Report - Coles presented the Board with a draft of proposed revisions to policies and procedures for fund management for which he sought conceptual approval. Coles noted that additional considerations will be incorporated into the report. David Pedrick moved, "to extend conceptual approval to the Management Committee report of proposed revisions." Eleanor seconded the motion. The motion passed.

The process of auditing the Church's finances will begin in January. Terry Gavan will conduct the audit. The rationale for the timing is to bolster church member confidence as the canvass approaches. Coles also moved that, "$16 per month be budgeted out of reserves for Quickbook on-line service." This service will simplify the logistics of bookkeeping. Marsha seconded the motion and it passed. John suggested that we consider adding a line item for software in next year's budget.

Fellowship Committee - No action items were discussed at this time.

Membership Committee - The Membership Committee is prepared to discuss our financial situation with new members.

Religious Education Committee - The religious education classes are being reconfigured to bolster the number of class members and maximize the utilization of adult volunteers. Beginning in January, there will be one class for grades 2-4 and one class for grades 5-8. There are currently twelve students enrolled in the OWL program.

Program Committee - No report.

Other Business - No additional business was discussed.

The meeting adjourned at 9:12 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Lissa Fernandez

Clerk