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Courage in Leadership
As both a businessman and more recently as a volunteer in the community, I have worked with and sat on many boards and I can assure you, some are most definitely better than others! In the past I have worked with Boards that have abdicated their responsibility and failed to take action when needed – the “firemen syndrome” as it is sometimes known and one where in an emergency or time sensitive situation the board is expected to act decisively even if outside normal procedures. Others have overstepped their authority and acted in a manner inconsistent with the principal of democracy and without regard to the values of the organization. Still others have been a pleasure to work with or as a part of.
This past Monday night the TJMC-UU Board met to review its work over the past six months and define the work still to be completed over the remaining half of the year. Much has been accomplished, and much remains to be done, as you can read for yourself in the minutes posted on our website and on the bulletin board. Of equal importance to the work getting done is the way that work is being organized and managed. At TJMC-UU the Board is elected and given its authority to act by the congregation. It has the responsibility to conduct business in accordance with our bylaws and through the council structure, various committees and special task forces. In theory this is a simple system and quite democratic. In practice it can be more difficult. One question we try to answer whenever an issue comes up has to do with congregational input. When appropriate, are we encouraging Broad participation in the process and gathering feedback prior to final recommendations and decisions being made? Is the Board supporting the open and democratic process demanded by our principles? I do believe we are. This is most certainly true of our Music Task Force and that of the Facilities Planning Task Force. However, on occasion it may not be appropriate or even possible to follow this simple and, frankly, safe approach.
That same night we needed to address an issue that could not wait for full participation by the congregation. It had to do with deciding whether or not to take advantage of a sizeable, but time constrained grant and install a bank of solar panels that would generate 25% or more of our energy needs for the main building. The issue was complex and not without financial challenge, but due to the timeline associated with the grant, required the Board to act swiftly and decisively. The Board could have chosen the easy option and passed on the opportunity. Instead, they debated openly and with great thoughtfulness, and demonstrated leadership and courage in making their decision without the benefit of consultation with the full congregation. As one of my boyhood (and adult) hero’s Sir Winston Churchill once said, “Democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried and on occasions leaders need to lead.”
Not all will agree with the decision made, and some may question the process, but all should be as proud as I am to be associated with a Board that had the courage to act in a way they believed to be true to our mission, and in the long term interests of our community. In the past too many decisions have taken too long, and some have not come at all. If you don’t believe me just ask those who served on previous facilities teams! As we move forward this year and beyond it will be important to find the right balance in our leadership styles (and we are all leaders here) to achieve the vision and goals we hope lie ahead.
In faith
Ian Sole
Board President
Looking Back On Our Future!
The headline may read a little strange but, in part at least, that is exactly what I have been doing. The Facilities Planning Task Force, of which I am a member, has been hard at work completing its findings in preparation for sharing them with the entire congregation during January and February. This is the next step in the process where we will be seeking feedback from each of you on what you think is needed to improve our physical community and how best to fund those improvements. Our report will not contain any final recommendations. That is for the congregation to decide, but neither will it be presented in a vacuum, divorced from the mission or purpose of the church.
As you will hear from our presentation, we firmly believe that our facilities are but one part of the whole that must fit together to support the mission of the church, its ministry, its programming needs and the needs of our staff and governing body. It is therefore, part of a comprehensive long range plan and this is where the headline for this article comes into play. In addition to reviewing prior facilities plans, I came across a comprehensive long range plan started back in 2000 and presented in 2003 covering all aspects of the church. Reading the report, I was amazed at the accuracy of its projections for how we would look in 2011-12 in terms of membership size, staffing, programming and funding needs and of course, the facilities needed to support these findings. It was, in fact, a look back into our future. While some things have changed, it was comforting to read how much has remained the same. While this time around we have broken it up into smaller pieces, we are still effectively in the process of updating our Long Range Plan (LRP). If you look at our Goals for 2011-12 you will see that we have been working on many of the components that together make for a new LRP.
In addition to the facilities team, another group has been tasked with reviewing our organization and staffing needs. Others have been reviewing our governance structure and still more have been working on aspects of our programming and ministry needs. This work will be shared with you during the course of the New Year, beginning with a brief update at the next Congregational Meeting on Sunday, January 29.
A relatively new, but equally important feature of this LRP process has been the work of our Green Sanctuary Task Force. On Sunday, January 29, they will move to have their report and application for Green Sanctuary designation approved by the congregation. All these various initiatives are about our future, some of which I believe I have seen (or at least read about) and it is exciting. I ask that you join in the making of that future.
In Faith,
Ian Sole
President, Board of Trustees
For what we are truly thankful!
As I sit at my desk gazing at the beautiful crepe myrtle outside my window, the leaves are falling, the clocks are about to be rolled back, the holidays are ahead — including my favorite, Thanksgiving — and my thoughts turn to reflections of the past year.
Personally, I have much to be thankful for, not the least being the safe and healthy arrival of my first grandchild, Georgia, born to my daughter Emma on Tuesday, November 15, and weighing in at 7 lbs 13 oz. She is beautiful.
I am also thankful for the opportunity to have served on the Board during the start of what I see as an incredible renewal of energy and excitement at TJMC-UU.
Our focus on spiritual growth, social justice, and the building of a strong community is, for me, a return to the true purpose and value of TJMC-UU. For this we can thank not just our wonderful new minister, Rev. Erik Wikstrom, but ourselves. Together we are bringing a renewed positive attitude to church on Sundays and throughout the week. It has been truly palpable to experience.
Furthermore, on reviewing our Board goals for the year I see significant progress being made in many areas. Some of these areas include people and groups actively involved in worship, music, staffing and organization, governance, facilities planning, Green Sanctuary, IMPACT, and numerous other initiatives aimed at helping to build connections and improve communication between us. Although space restricts acknowledgement of all those involved, it bodes well for our future.
I am equally heartened by the growing number of new younger members, especially those with small children. I strongly encourage you to find opportunities to serve your new-found community. I can assure you the rewards are immense.
Finally, it is incredible to reflect on the major social and political changes that have occurred nationally and internationally in the past year. Some good, some not so good, some still developing, as we have seen recently on the streets of cities and towns across America and around the world.
As someone who has always believed in the power of the people, and in the goal of social justice, I am cautiously optimistic by what I see happening. I trust that through peaceful activism and hard work we can help put America back on the road to a more just and fair society. That would be work well worth doing and if successful, something for which we could truly all be thankful.
Happy holidays to you and your family.
In Faith,
Ian Sole
President, Board of Trustees
On Saturday, September 10, I joined with over 100 adults and children at ourCultivating Connections all-church conference, jointly sponsored by the Board of Trustees and Leadership Development. It was an incredible inter-generational experience involving games, activities, singing, brainstorming and worship that demonstrated the importance of connections in building strong and vibrant communities. Participants shared their stories and offered ideas for how we could create further opportunities for members to serve and through doing so build their own connections. It was truly a wonderful experience and reinforced my own sense of just what an extraordinary community is TJMC-UU.
Then on Monday, September 19, I attended our monthly Board meeting where we discussed a number of opportunities for members to serve their community in various roles across the wide range of church activities. One of these, I am delighted to report, we have already filled. Following the resignation of Karen Schaffer, who has moved to North Carolina with her family, Amy Wissekerke was unanimously approved as our new Board Secretary. On behalf of the Board I thank both Karen and Amy for their service to TJMC-UU.
Another opportunity is now open for those wishing to help run next years’ fund raising drive. Our goal is to appoint the co-chairs in October and complete the campaign by March 2012 so as to avoid any overlap with the budgeting process that starts in earnest during April. Given the excitement generated by the appointment of Rev. Erik Wikstrom and our experiences with him at some amazing services, I am certain that this years’ campaign will be a lot of fun. Please contact myself, Pam Philips, or Karen Ransom of our Stewardship Committee to learn more about how you can participate.
As Rev. Erik Wikstrom explained to us on Saturday, September 10, we are not looking for individuals to fill a need, but instead creating opportunities for those who wish to serve and follow as a means of building their own connections and along with that, our community. It is our intention to make these opportunities more visible to our members and supporters through postings on the bulletin boards, as well as on our website and through a variety of communication methods.
Please look for these opportunities, and contact any member of the Board to talk about how you wish to serve. We want to hear from you and provide that opportunity.
In Faith
Ian Sole
President Board of Trustees
We All Have A Responsibility
I have just returned from a phenomenal four week visit to friends and family in Europe which included the joyful occasion of my daughter’s wedding to her partner of eight years at a beautiful ceremony held in Somerset, England. It was a chance to renew many long, and some not so long, friendships with relatives of mine, my daughter’s now husband, and friends of my daughter. Two years earlier her twin sister married and many of the same friends attended.
While weddings are exciting, they can also be stressful, especially when one has an official role to play in the proceedings. Tradition at English weddings is for the father-of-the-bride to give an after-dinner speech and apparently the one I had given two years earlier had been very well received. Expectations were running high for a repeat performance putting even more pressure on me and creating a state of extreme nervousness.
After a decent start I froze, completely forgetting the name of my new son-in-laws’ stepfather whom I have known for years! Now flustered, I stumbled through the balance of the speech and did my best to recover. But despite the applause at the end felt I had not delivered up to expectations. To my enormous relief, Bob, the guy whose name I had forgotten, immediately leaned over and congratulated me on the speech and went on to explain how he had done the same thing recently at a meeting, forgetting the names of three of his own Board members! And there were other little hic-cups along the way, but none of it mattered. The wedding was a terrific success. Everyone had a marvelous time, and most important of all the bride and groom looked radiant, happy and madly in love.
In a way it reminded me of the situation we are entering at TJMC-UU. Everyone is so excited at the arrival of Rev. Erik Wikstrom. Expectations are running high. We have been waiting for this moment for three years and now all our problems will be solved and he will lead us to a higher place! I exaggerate of course, but expectations are high and each of us do have our own set of priorities that we hope Rev. Wikstrom will help us achieve.
But just as with my wedding analogy, there will be hic-cups along the way and not everything we wish for can, nor in some cases should, be addressed immediately. Now more than ever, we have a responsibility to step up and support the minister, and against such high expectations be willing to suspend judgment on every decision and action taken over the coming months. And perhaps most important of all, it is time to ask ourselves what action we can take individually to demonstrate that support and help build a stronger sense of connectivity and community within our church. To this end, I am excited that the Board, together with our Leadership Development Team and Rev. Wikstrom, are jointly sponsoring our upcoming allchurch meeting on Saturday, September 10, titled “Cultivating Connections,” a theme we hope to build on throughout the year.
It should be a wonderful day of idea sharing, planning for the coming year, and for providing opportunities for all to find better ways to connect with our church. I hope you will join us.
Stay cool, stay safe and enjoy the rest of the summer as we look forward to what I am certain will be an exciting year ahead.
In faith,
Ian Sole
Board President
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