Council Corner: April 2025

Things around the council table are fairly quiet these first few months of 2025 and we’re grateful!

We continue to take care of several pieces of general business: updating our bank signatories, taking the NYS sexual harassment education (per our synod guidelines), reviewing our finances, and hearing committee updates.

Council members will be hosting the Lenten Soup Supper on Wednesday, April 2.  Please plan to attend the meal and our very powerful Holden Service that follows.

Paul Mandart has resigned from Council effective immediately.  We give thanks for Paul’s service and are grateful for his input in several important discussions.  We wish him the best in Florida.

During our audit last year we began to discuss the need to get our employee policies in written form. Pastor Chuck, Mike Foster, Betsy Copps, and Lea Ann Quimby took on that task and have developed an Employee Handbook for St. Mark’s.  Using a template from an on-line resource the document was edited to speak specifically to the needs of our church. Council members then offered edits and a final document was approved at our March meeting.

The most important work we’re currently engaged in is spending some time centering ourselves and our work around scripture from Isaiah 43:18,19.  “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” This verse will drive all of the work we do this year around the council table.  During our March meeting Pastor shared some context on this scripture. We then shared some ideas on how this applies to our congregation and what new things God might be calling us to do and be.  Casting a vision, if you will.  Pastor reminded us to dream big for God has no limits!  We’ll continue to take time at our meeting for more of these discussions and we invite you to dream big with us!

Denise Ballou

Council President