November 20, 2011 Congregational Conversation

Comments

• Only 1 time since September with fewer than 75 people here for Sunday service.
• We are changing the name from 1-2-3 Plan to something like the "Beyond Sunday Concept". "1-2-3" was intended as lofty, aspirational goal. Feedback was: that's INSANE!
• How do we keep a fire under our butts, without artificial numbers and timelines?
• We'd like to share things like the OWL program (Our Whole Lives - sexuality education) and RE with broader community.
• We have a message for this time: "You don't have to agree, to love one another."
• Committee Meetings are opportunities to live our values.
• Thinking has shifted around increased staff, too. e.g, RE director perhaps being someone with family systems / lifespan expertise. program manager v. music director, e.g., Beyond Sunday minister. intern sooner (with Barbara or Chris supervising). Bottom line - we need to grow our capacity for paid staff; exactly what that looks like is TBD.
• Why do this? Acknowledging that bigger is not always better - but we are actually growing!
• How to do it responsibly? We have a culture here that we love - how do we grow it, and keep the culture we love?
• Increased need for pastoral associates.
• Would love a mature singles group.
• Second service didn't work in the past - people missed seeing their friends.
• Need to understand what we can afford, in order to start talking about more space.
• Maybe we could trade spaces with the Methodists (oops - their sanctuary is smaller).
• Buy v. rent.
• Perhaps a lease-to-own option?
• Physical decentralization might be more demanding than larger central location. Would prefer central location.
• What would be the top $ amount that we could pay for a different space?
• Do we need to have a task force investigating space right now?
• Perhaps if we had 2 services on Sunday, the coffee hour could be in between the 2 services. Other questions : how to handle RE? How to handle parking?
• Q: How large are UU congregations, typically, when they have their own building?
  A: "It depends."
• It's worth looking for the "spiritual but not religious" kind of people. There are perhaps 40,000 such individuals in Fremont.
• People who come to church on Sunday, like church on Sunday. People who aren't here now, might prefer a different option.
• Port Townsend UU congregation now has 2 full services - within 2 years of building new sanctuary. Size gives ability to do more.
• We are now at the hardest size for a congregation: between family and program church. We need to figure out how to bridge this transition.
• Worried about satellites. If our long-term vision is to eventually have a larger centralized church, can we handle 2 huge cultural transitions over that course of time? (First switch to distributed model, and then switch back again to centralized model)
• Huge pent-up need for liberal religious community - if we have the space, people will come.
• How do we generate income in the church, other than passing the plate?
• If you clearly brand your satellites, it will give the sense of unity. e.g. Academy of Art in SF scattered all over, but the key is that they have a strong centralized controlling body to keep it all coordinated, and a unifying symbol.
• Our city is very scattered - not high-density housing - so having some place to go to that you can walk to - multiple spaces - may be a good thing.
• Let's get a spot in the Niles Parade later this month. Be a presence in every parade.
• People here are starving for decent live entertainment! We could raise money by sponsoring comedy shows, music, etc.
• Protestants always have fundraiser meters - a visual to track progress towards down payment for a building.
• Regarding additional staff: we also need more admin time. Maybe minister would want a raise. Jeremy's proposal only shows "new" things, but we need to grow existing staff, too.
• Our mental health ministry needs to help veterans. There are few people helping them. Also - there will be more vets coming home.
• PFLAG in Fremont is declining. Perhaps we could help build that up/ give them a home.
• Teen drop in center.
• Glad to hear Jeremy say, "Let's not focus on buying a building." We've wasted a lot of time investigating that same question over the years. Let's be creative!
• If our second service is not on Sunday - it may appeal to people who don't want to go to "church."
• How can we make space for those people who aren't here yet?
• Another space - like a center for mental health - could give us more options.
• Advantage of looking at these things together: Offering more programs gives additional opportunities for people to connect, perhaps filling the gap that may exist when we have 2 services.
• Would like satellites to serve a different purpose than the central location.
• If we're going to apply for Chalice Lighter grant, we need to make sure we grow our congregation's participation in the Chalice lighter program. We got our street sign via a Chalice Lighter grant.
• Q: How do we make these decisions, and when do we talk about money?
  A. The general idea is:
  - at least 2 more congregational conversations, with notes posted to web.
  - COM and Jeremy revise proposal, and recommend to board.
  - board lays out process for how we go from there, including figuring out what the board votes on, and what the congregation votes on.
  - there is not a strict timeline at this point.
• Likely need another set of conversations focused on themes, e.g., 2 services, or additional programming, or whatever.
• We do need to lay out some dates soon.
• Need lots of transformational conversations.
• We have a lot of great ideas, but do we have the people to make this happen?
• We need a program director / coordinator. We are an independent-minded bunch. There is no one person who oversees things, and we could use more coordination. Our administrator is part of that, but she doesn't handle planning.
• Our structure will need to change, as we move from family-sized congregation to program-size congregation. Minister's role will change, to become more like a CEO. Administrator may be part of the answer, but Sandra's role is not to drive change or programs. Since she is not a member she is not personally invested in the work. She doesn't always get the bigger picture. Right now that role is either the newsletter editor, or Pat. ;-)
• Worried about opening too many cans at the same time. We tend to start many things, and then lose focus. We need to focus on the projects we have agreed upon, and follow through. We mustn't start too many things.
• We don't want everything to become a chore.
• What is a program-sized congregation? It's a function of the size of gathered at worship. < 50 to 220 = Family Size; > 250 = program size. At program size, minister doesn't know everyone. Must have more structure. Often around 250-300. A worthwhile book on this topic is "Raise the Roof" by Alice Mann.
• Robert Latham (our interim district exec) has also written a book on the same topic. Maybe he should come speak to us.
• Hope that we don't fill up our schedules with "busy-ness." Member grew up in a Baptist home where every day, all day, was filled with church activities. It was a relief to move to a church that was less busy.
• Hope we don't lose the nurturing that happens within the congregation. How do we ensure we don't lose what we love. Churches are mostly insular communities, and we don't want to be.
• We need to give up some of our individuality. We need to make some decisions to focus and to prioritize.
• There is a UU-affiliated organization called Jericho Road which is a non-profit that gathers info on community needs, serves as clearing house for non-profit / volunteer activities. Like another organization called Volunteer Road.
• Fundraising idea: a dance with music by Peak Rocks.
• Q: What is an opportunity to live your liberal religious values?
  A: A chance to be with other people, be challenged, and give back to the world.
• We want to keep our symbol visible.
• Fundraising idea: Bed race.
• Why do it? We are about at the carrying capacity for this space. When new people come, a lot of them don't feel like there's space for them. When you have a space where 80 percent of chairs are filled on regular basis - either you figure out how to have more space, or offer alternative services, or begin to dwindle. If we want to welcome more people, we must have more space.
• San Jose was struggling in the early 1980s. Someone left money to church, and they repaired the balcony so it could be used. Big article in paper brought enough visitors to fill the balcony, doubling attendance.
• Are we trying to evangelize? No, we don't look to convert. But we know there are people who already think like us, who would want to be with us.
• Space is not the only challenge with Cole Hall. The accoustics are bad. And aesthetics aren't great. This space wasn't build for worship or music. Also porch is crowded for coffee hour.
• How would minister feel about living on-site? Nicole and Jeremy lived in parsonage in Massachusetts. Very visible - but also great advantages. "Must have blinds".

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