Minutes

Terry began the meeting at 5:00pm.

Fr. Raj opened the meeting with a prayer.

Present: Eileen Grant, Terry Brennan, Anne Welborn, Dan Putschoegl, Brad DeSaye and Bill Jacobs by phone

Absent:  Bob Dressler

Staff: Fr. Raj, Donna Maneely, Jim Wren, Shelly Cooper

1. Minutes Approval:

• Dan motioned to approve the May 25th meeting minutes; Eileen seconded it; approved

2. Financial Statements:

• Anne motioned to approve the May Financials; Dan seconded the motion; motion approved

3. Bank Statement Approval:

• Dan reviewed the May bank reconciliation; no discrepancies noted

4. Pastor’s Report:

• The Sacred Heart of Jesus and Corpus Christi feasts took place in June.
• The school offered summer school for 3 weeks in June.
• Youth Ministry is offering activities over the summer.
• Fr. Raj discussed concerns about safety due to the Roe V. Wade reversal. We were prepared. The police have had a presence here and we have many security cameras in place.
• Fr. Gaspar is on vacation for a month. We will have 4 visiting priests helping out with saying Masses: Fr. Darrin, Fr. Rubiston, Fr. Jose Sanchez and Fr. Beauplan.
• We will start paying Fr. Gaspar half salary per the Claretians since Fr. Gaspar also works part time for the Claretian Missionaries.
• The Staff and Council retreat will take place on Friday, July 29^th from 8:30am to 3:30pm.
• The Council social will be on Wednesday August 31^st. It will be different this year. The meeting will begin at 3pm to discuss the Synod results and plan for implementation. The social will follow.
• There is a 9am Mass on the 4^th of July.

5. Parish Manager Report:

• We have exceeded our CDA goal, again this year, according to the Diocese’s calculations.
• June collection totals so far:  Plate-$83k, Online Giving -$42k
• Passing the collection baskets seems to be having a beneficial impact on the collection. The loose cash totals in June have been double what they were in May.
• The Diocese picked Sacred Heart Parish and School to fill out a financial internal control questionnaire. The questionnaire has been submitted. Jim is unsure as to why we were picked. We have good processes in place and a  good Finance Council so there should not be any issues.
• Solar Panels issue: Sun Valley Solar inspected the parking lot solar panels and stated there may be a fire hazard. They recommended applying for the warranty program through Bosch. We are waiting to hear back from them.  Sun Valley refused to inspect the school roof panels since a different vendor removed them when the roof was replaced due to Sun Valley’s exorbitant quote. We contacted Lollar Electric to do the inspection but it has not been scheduled yet.
• Anthony Weber who works in the Sheriff’s Department is our new Security Team Leader. Jim, Fr. Raj, John Gust and Shelly Cooper have met with him. The police are continuing their patrols around the church during Mass times and schedule officers to be close by due to a potential threat since the Roe V. Wade reversal.

6. Old Business:

• Jim discussed the changes to the parish and school budgets since the last meeting including:
  • Increase in Golf Tournament income/expense
  • Increase in tuition income and decrease in reserve CEA income
  • Increase in Administrative salary and decrease in Cook salary due to her mid-year retirement
  • Adjustment to EANS grant revenue and expense
• Anne moved to accept the 2022/2023 fiscal year budget; Eileen seconded the motion; motion approved and the 2023 budget was adopted

7. New Business: none

Fr. Raj ended the meeting with a prayer at 6:21pm.

Respectfully submitted by Donna Maneely

Terry began the meeting at 5:00pm.

Fr. Raj opened the meeting with a prayer.

Present: Bill Jacobs, Eileen Grant, Terry Brennan, Dan Putschoegl, Brad DeSaye

Absent:  Anne Welborn, Bob Dressler

Staff: Fr. Raj, Donna Maneely, Jim Wren

1. Minutes Approval:

• Eileen motioned to approve the May 4th meeting minutes; Brad seconded it; approved

2. Financial Statements:

• Bill asked some questions regarding Fr. Gaspar’s role: Is he half time or full time and are the Claretians reimbursing us for his Claretian responsibilities. He is full time now since Fr. Ralph is filling in at St. Catherine’s and there are no reimbursements as he is full time. Bill also asked about the Rectory food budget. We originally budgeted $12k for the next fiscal year but decreased it to $11k. Will that be a problem as it is over $13k for this fiscal year? Fr. Vicente has left so we should be spending less.   Gaspar and Fr. Raj have been buying their own groceries and Lisa also buys groceries for all of the priests.
• Dan motioned to approve the April Financials; Bill seconded the motion; motion approved

3. Bank Statement Approval:

• Eileen reviewed the April bank reconciliation; no discrepancies noted

4. Pastor’s Report:

• Fr. Raj will speak with Fr. Gaspar about his expenses when he travels for the Claretians.
• The Feasts of the Ascension and Pentecost are coming up. Bishop Nevares is not able to come for the Sacred Heart of Jesus Mass on June 24^th at 5:30pm like originally planned.
• We will begin to pass the collection baskets starting on Pentecost Sunday. We will ask volunteers to help if there are not enough ushers. Jim added that we will keep the collection boxes available as well and we will empty them on Monday mornings.
• The Light of the World retreat was held a couple of weeks ago. 18-20 people participated. He commended the core team.
• A new ministry for women will be starting in August. Alma Helms will be forming this ministry.
• 8^th grade graduation Mass took place on May 24th. The last day of school is May 26^th.
• Much of the staff will be gone in June and July; Youth Ministry will be continuing throughout the summer. The school will be holding summer school.
• The Staff and Council retreat is on July 29^th from 9-3. The theme is Catholic Spirituality.
• Gaspar will be on vacation in July. We will have some visiting priests to help out: Fr. Darrin, Fr. Rubiston, Fr. Sanchez and Fr. Boplan.
• Hispanic Ministry held a Mexican Festival. It was well attended.

5. Parish Manager Report:

• The CDA is in its final stage; we are at 91% of our goal. Over $10 million was raised Diocese-wide which is extremely successful.
• Catholic Community Foundation update: the million-dollar match for endowments is in effect for 6 more months. CCF is offering an account with a 1.25% interest rate. Jim would like to schedule another CCF Estate Planning Seminar. From the last seminar, two parishioners set up estate planning naming Sacred Heart in their plans.
• Jim gave out raise letters to the staff with the caveat that the budget was not yet approved.
• May Collection totals so far: plate-$72k, online giving-$45k.

6. Old Business:

• 2023 Budget:
  • We received the Priest Salary schedule which includes a 4% increase. The current draft includes a 3% increase which only amounts to a $715 difference. At this point, Fr. Ralph will be at St. Catherine’s until the beginning of the year so we do not need to change the budget.
  • We used the surplus on the 4^th draft Parish budget to fund the Directory. It should cover the printing costs.
  • Voting on the 2023 FY budget will take place at the next meeting. We do not expect any major changes.
• Reserves:
  • Bill asked how much we should allocate to the Reserve Funds this coming year. $194k is a decrease of $46k from this year. He suggested $18k per month ($216k per year). Fr. Raj is fine with what the Finance Council recommends.
  • Climate Control and Philips submitted bids for the chiller maintenance contract. Phillips will not commit to a multi-year contract. The bid is $11,263 per year. Climate Control will allow for a two-year contract. Their bid was more extensive and $11,380 per year. Jim recommends Climate Control. They have serviced the Parish in the past and have a good reputation. Brad asked if the contract price included parts.  Jim was told that parts were included. The contract would begin July 1. Bill moved to accept the Climate Control contract; Dan seconded it; motion approved.

7. New Business: An executive session was called by Fr. Raj

• The Executive session began at 5:37 pm after Fr. Raj closed the regular meeting with a prayer.

Respectfully submitted by Donna Maneely

Terry began the meeting at 5:00pm.

Fr. Raj opened the meeting with a prayer.

Present: Bill Jacobs, Eileen Grant, Terry Brennan, Bob Dressler, Brad DeSaye

Absent:  Anne Welborn, Dan Putschoegl

Staff: Fr. Raj, Donna Maneely, Shelly Cooper

1. Minutes Approval:

• Brad motioned to approve the March meeting minutes; Eileen seconded it; approved

2. Financial Statements:

• Bob asked about the Preschool grant money; it was explained that the grant money needs to be spent before June 30^th. We were unaware of this until recently.
• Bill motioned to approve the March Financials; Bob seconded the motion; motion approved

3. Bank Statement Approval:

• Bob reviewed the March bank reconciliation; no discrepancies noted

4. Pastor’s Report:

• Fr. Raj is pleased that more parishioners are participating in the Easter Triduum than when he first came to Sacred Heart.
• Spring Clergy Day and the Chrism Mass were held at the Diocese in April. They provided good speakers at Spring Clergy Day who were motivating and challenging.
• The May Crowning took place during the School Mass this morning, May 4th; it was simple and beautiful.
• Fr. David Kelash celebrated the Mass for First Communion and Confirmation; 35 children received their sacraments.
• The youth retreat took place last weekend. Over 30 teens participated at Prescott Pines Camp.
• Upcoming Events: Light of the World Retreat – May 14-15, 8^th grade graduation Mass-May 24, Sacred Heart of Jesus Mass-June 24, Staff and Council Retreat-July 29.
• There will be a Mother’s Day blessing at all the Masses the weekend of May 7-8.
• The Claretian Assembly is May 30-June 3^rd in Chicago. The priests will be gone and Fr. Gary will say the morning Masses.
• Fr. Raj spoke about the parish directory. The directory will explain who we are, how long we have been here and include welcoming information. It will not be picture album. Roger Dubin will be leading the committee. They will begin meeting next week.
• Fr. Raj has received 15-20 letters from upset parishioners that attended the 3pm Stations of the Cross on Good Friday led by the Care for the Earth ministry. Many parishioners were disappointed and left. Fr. Raj has replied back to them all explaining that this is not the direction we are taking. He will be speaking with the Care for the Earth ministry and making some changes.
• Fr. Raj also discussed bringing the collection baskets back during Mass. The biggest concern is if there are enough Ushers at each Mass to assist with passing the baskets. A suggestion was made to recruit parishioners at those Masses to help and to have the Youth help at the 5pm Mass on Sunday.

5. Parish Manager Report:

• There was not a Parish Manager Report as Jim was on vacation.
• Donna reported April Collection totals: Plate-$53,827, Easter-over $29k and online giving-$47,136.

6. Old Business:

• 2023 Budget:
  • School: Shelly commented that the CEA numbers are very close to this year’s numbers. Donna explained that we will need to add the school custodian health insurance expense back into the budget as the school custodian resigned and health insurance should be made available to the new custodian that is hired.
  • Reserves: a new church roof was removed from the Reserve Budget as Arrow Roof inspected the roof and only recommended some repairs; the roof can last 5 more years.
• Bill Jacobs asked for another iteration of the Reserve study from Tom Thompson. Inflation factors were increased.

7. New Business: Brad called for an Executive Session; Eileen seconded it

• The Executive session began at 5:32pm after Fr. Raj closed the regular meeting with a prayer. It ended at 5:57pm.

Respectfully submitted by Donna Maneely

Terry began the meeting at 5:01pm.

Sr. Anne opened with the Laudato Si Prayer.

Sr. Anne and the Care for the Earth Ministry led a presentation of Care for the Earth.

Present: Bill Jacobs, Eileen Grant, Terry Brennan, Dan Putschoegl, Bob Dressler, Brad DeSaye, Anne Welborn

Staff: Fr. Raj and Jim Wren (arrived at 5:30pm),  Donna Maneely, Shelly Cooper, John Gust

There was also an observer present who did not identify himself.

1. Minutes Approval:

• Eileen motioned to approve the February meeting minutes; Dan seconded it; approved

2. Financial Statements:

• Anne motioned to approve the February Financials; Bill seconded the motion; motion approved

3. Bank Statement Approval:

• Anne reviewed the February bank reconciliation; no discrepancies noted

4. Pastor’s Report:

• Raj thanked the Council and Staff for all they do.
• 250 parishioners participated in the Synod. The committee is working on the report to the Diocese now.
• April Events coming up: Holy Hours for the Lord, Holy Week, Confirmation and Eucharist

5. Parish Manager Report:

• The original collection for Ukraine and Poland was $15k and now it is up to $24k.
• March collections as of 3/29: $75k plate and $45k online giving
• The Charity and Development Appeal has announced a one million-dollar Match. It starts 4/1 and goes through 5/15. Sacred Heart has given over $100k so far.
• Fr. John’s Lenten Mission was a success. Universal positive feedback was given about the mission. Many parishioners went to Confession; some who hadn’t gone in over 20 years.
• Health insurance costs are increasing 9% for 2023 budget year. The Diocese is self-funded and the increase is due to increased claims most likely due to Covid. There haven’t been any significant increases in the past 3 years. This will impact the budget: $7k parish, $5.7k school and $770 preschool. Dental insurance cost remains the same.
• We do not have the 2023 priest salaries yet; we have included a 3% increase in the budget for now.
• Jim sent several questions to the Diocese about the new Sage Intracct accounting system that the Diocese would like to implement.  The Diocese sent the questions to Sage. Jim still has not heard back from them. Jim is concerned about checks being auto signed instead of being signed by the Pastor directly. Brad commented that they use Sage at his business and that it has a great audit trail.

6. Old Business:

• The biggest change to the Second draft 2023 budget is the salary increase. Jim felt it is important to give a merit based increase this year due to inflation and the very low increases in several previous years. Both the Diocese and Catholic Schools Office recommended a 4% increase.
• Some suggestions to help with the deficit (we do not want to balance the budget by increasing Collection Income): reduce Depreciation expense as there will not be any huge depreciable items next fiscal year and we are under budget this year, reduce Conference expense since Jim will not be attending the ICSC conference. The changes will be made and brought to the council next month. Jim also commented that RCIA received a large restricted donation that will be used for next year’s RE Conference.
• Eileen is concerned that Tree of Life income and Interest Income are over stated. Anne asked why Sports income and expense were decreased so much. Wreath sales were taken out of the Sports account and put into fundraising.
• Jim asked the Diocese about investing in I-Bonds based on Finance Council recommendations. Diocese CFO, Joe Anderson is reviewing.
• John Gust spoke about the church roof. It is in the Reserve Study for this coming fiscal year to replace it. John  stated that the roof is in exceptional shape. There are no obvious failures. He is having Arrow Roofing come to walk the roof to get their opinion. There was a leak by the Music area during the Advent Concert since the flashing had peeled up, but that was repaired.
• Repairing the bathroom at the 237 Summit rental house has been added to the Reserve Budget for 2023.
• We still do not have a maintenance contract for the Chiller. The first quote was too high. We have received another quote. It’s been sent to the Diocese for review but haven’t heard anything back; it’s been 6 weeks.  A multiple year agreement can be put in the Reserve budget.
• Bill Jacobs spoke about the reserve fund analysis. See the attached analysis done by Bill. We are in very good shape. We will ask Tom Thompson to do further revisions.

7. New Business: none

Fr. Raj ended the meeting with a prayer at 6:21pm.

Respectfully submitted by Donna Maneely

Terry began the meeting at 4:30pm Via Zoom.

Fr. Raj opened with the Synod prayer.

Present: Bill Jacobs, Eileen Grant, Terry Brennan, Dan Putschoegl, Bob Dressler, Brad DeSaye

Absent:  Anne Welborn

Staff: Jim Wren,  Donna Maneely

1. Minutes Approval:

• Bill motioned to approve the January meeting minutes; Bob seconded it; approved

2. Financial Statements:

• Bill asked if we are sending Fr. Vicente’s salary to the Claretians or are we getting a stipend from them. We are not paying Fr. Vicente’s salary nor do we receive a stipend from the Claretians. Currently Fr. Ralph’s salary is being paid by St. Catherine’s and we are responsible for Fr. Raj and Fr. Gaspar.
• Bill asked about the IFA and BOK totals on the balance sheet. He does not feel that they are comparable as originally agreed upon. We may need to revisit the structure and balances in the accounts.
• There was a discussion about placing some funds into CDs in the near future but they do not generate much interest. Eileen suggested buying an I-bond, the interest rate is 7.12% for Series I-bonds but you can only invest $10k. Jim will follow up with the Diocese about I-bonds.
• Eileen motioned to approve the January Financials; Dan seconded the motion; motion approved

3. Bank Statement Approval:

• Bill reviewed the January bank reconciliation; no discrepancies noted

4. Pastor’s Report:

• February is the kick off month for the Charity and Development Appeal. It has been talked about at Mass for the last two Sundays.
• The Synod Committee was formed last month. Meetings have been scheduled and more will take place in the coming days. The finance council will be having their synod session following this meeting. The intent is to survey the spiritual life of the parish. The listening sessions will be documented which will show us what we can do to help our parishioners with their spiritual life.
• The Preschool spaghetti dinner was successful; over 200 people attended. Parishioners were pleased with the participation of the kids.
• Lent begins this coming week on March 2^nd and the English Lenten Mission will take place on March 6^th and 7th.

5. Parish Manager Report:

• Fr. John Narhgang, who is leading the Diocesan Synod process is presenting our English Lenten mission on March 6^th and 7^th. The theme on March 6th and morning of March 7^th is ‘Jesus Is Merciful’ and on the evening of March 7^th, ‘Jesus Conquers All Evil’. Fr. John will be handing out two sacramentals and will be hearing confessions after the mission talks. He will also be handing out miraculous medals after the 7am Monday Mass.
• Jim has almost completed staff performance reviews. He will begin meeting with staff later in March.
• Tom Trask can not lead the Safety Committee any longer due to his health. Harry Boden has agreed to lead the committee. Many new people are joining.
• We received our semi-annual Together Let Us Go Forth deposit from the Diocese. It was $27k which is almost double the amount of the first deposits. The church roof is half funded due to this and other parishioner donations.
• February collections as of February 23^rd -Plate: $45k, Online Giving-$34k.
• The Diocese is having a webinar next week to demonstrate a new financial software called Sage Intraact. Jim asked the council to let him know by Friday if they would like to attend the webinar.
• Jim asked the council for feedback concerning a tuition increase at the school. The Diocese is recommending a tuition increase. Shelly is sending registration packets home next week. She does not want to increase tuition. Dan mentioned that with inflation the school is in a tough place. Terry mentioned that there hasn’t been much promotion of the school tax credit-CEA.

6. Old Business:

• Passing the basket at Mass was discussed. Unfortunately, we do not have enough Ushers at each Mass to do this.

7. New Business:

• 2023 first draft budgets
  • The Diocese has not released any information about recommended salary increases yet; the Catholic Schools Office has recommended a 4% salary increase for teachers and school staff. Jim feels that the Diocese will recommend the same for parishes. Hopefully, we will have more information by the next meeting. The parish has a $5k surplus in the first draft before salary increases.
  • Two items that are not in the budget: Parish directory-which could be costly. Roger Dubin has said he would take the photos but we need to form a committee to figure out costs, logistics and printing. Also, we do not have an amount for a service contract for the chiller. Phillips wants to charge $25k so we are getting a second quote. Some of the cost can be absorbed since the Maintenance budget is never fully used.
  • Eileen asked if increasing our interest income in the budget is a good idea due to all the current volatility. Jim agreed it may be a risk and we may have overstated it.
  • Bill discussed salary increases: the staff has not had a substantial raise in many years. The staff is losing purchasing power due to inflation. He is in favor of a 5% salary increase. He suggested rather than increasing the Claretian Mission donations by $2.5k to make it a second collection. Fr. Raj is not in favor of this since the Diocese already requires many second collections. He suggested that over the summer we could have a Claretian mission speaker.
• Reserve Study: Tom Thompson completed his site tour and finished his report. We are 97% funded. We do not have to increase our contribution to reserves. The parish is in an excellent position. The report will be discussed at the March meeting. Bill suggested that we could put the chiller service contract expense into reserves as long as it is a 2-year contract.

Fr. Raj led a closing prayer at 5:24 pm.

Respectfully submitted by Donna Maneely