The Council met on Sunday, November 17. The following are highlights from the November Council meeting.

Stewardship 2024: Let Your Light Shine concludes

The Stewardship Committee would like to thank the congregation for warmly receiving and responding to the 2024 stewardship campaign. Your pledge of financial support allows St. Mark’s to continue to shine its light throughout our community.

• Special thanks to those who participated in singing, ringing and engaging in alternative forms of celebrating This Little Light of Mine, and to Matt Greising for putting together the stewardship videos.

• You can still make or modify your 2025 pledge. Details can be found in the Friday email. Pledged support allows our financial team to assemble a 2025 budget based upon the best information possible.

• A core component of stewardship is the sharing of time and talent. Please complete the Time and Talent Worship Survey as part of your 2025 commitment to St. Mark’s.

• Special events and services related to the holiday season require the participation of many members. We encourage you to look for ways to get involved – bell ringing, Hanging of the Greens, setting up for the holiday pot-luck, participating in Christmas Eve services and more.

Fall Budget Forum Wrap-up

Council thanks those members who participated in the Fall Budget Forum on November 2-3. The questions raised during the budget forum were recorded and discussed at the November Council meeting. The 2025 budget will continue to take shape based upon financial information received through the stewardship campaign.

Council responds to member questions

During the month of November, members have raised questions about the future of St. Mark’s, including the use of St. Mark’s Strong funds, the contract-term pastor model, the status of the Call process, the ongoing search for a Director of Children, Youth and Family Services and the future of the Saturday evening service. Council spent much of the November meeting discussing ways to respond to questions and keep members up to date with the latest information. Please look for the following opportunities to learn more about these topics:

• Informational articles and Question-and-Answer format documents published in upcoming Friday email messages
• Chat with Council sessions following worship services on select dates, to be announced in Friday email messages

Council moves to consider Deacon role

At the November meeting, Council voted in favor of investigating the process of identifying a Deacon of Word and Service who may provide leadership for Children, Youth and Family Programs as well as provide additional support to a single pastor. St. Mark’s will continue to search for a lay leader of Children, Youth and Family Programs while the Deacon option is considered. Information will be shared with the congregation as more is known.

Mark Your Calendars

The 2025 Annual Meeting is set for Sunday, January 26 following the 10:00 am worship service.

Council is committed to open communication and ongoing transparency with the congregation. Please feel free to reach out to a Council member with your questions.

If you'd like to contact a Council Member, click here