The OCUUC Board of Trustees held their annual board retreat from 9 AM to 2 PM on September 25, 2019 followed by the August board meeting. It was a full and informative day of discussions and getting to better know each other. Rev. Sian Wiltshire and our ministerial intern, Rica Kaufel joined us for the retreat. The purpose of a Board Retreat is to get acquainted, set norms, and set the Board’s priorities for the church year so that we can work together as a cohesive and active group of governance and strategy servants for our OCUUC community.
One of our retreat agenda items was an update and discussion on the progress of the Property Use Workgroup which is co-chaired by Tom and Nancy Loughrey. This group was formed in April 2019 to better manage the overall use of our substantial property assets.
As a result of the work of the Property Use Workgroup, Board and Minister, the Board has approved hiring Kay Crider, a Stewardship for Us Consultant, to work with our congregation to assess where we are in our current sanctuary campaign and possible next steps. Kay has nineteen years of professional fundraising experience and many years of working with both for profit and nonprofit entities, including many UU congregations.
Kay will be onsite at OCUUC from September 20 to 22, 2019. She will meet with the Board, the Property Use Workgroup, the Minister and staff, the Sanctuary Fundraising team and other persons with knowledge of our goal to provide an uplifting sanctuary space to carry out our congregational mission.
Members of the congregation will receive a brief electronic survey in the week prior to Kay’s visit. The survey will remain open for a week after Kay’s visit. Please note that after the Sunday service on September 22, Kay will make a presentation to the entire congregation of the analysis of the data she has collected. Please mark your calendars to attend this presentation.
Also, during the retreat, Reverend Sian led us in a discussion of the book “The Myth of the 200 Barrier” by Kevin E. Martin which Board members had been asked to read prior to the retreat. The book is a study on congregation church sizes and the traits of the various church sizes. At this point in time, and as it has been for most of its existence, OCUUC is a pastoral sized church. Pastoral sized churches are representative of the vast majority of churches in the United States. The book discusses ways to move from a pastoral sized church to a program sized church if that is what the congregation wishes to do. It is an easy and informative read and I highly recommend that all OCUUC members read this book on congregation development.
In addition to the above retreat agenda items, Meg Wilson, VP of Finance, gave an in-depth presentation of how OCUUC’s fund raising and financial systems are structured and administered.With very best wishes for a great September for all of you.
Debra Quam
President@OCUUC.org