These are the official minutes of the 2010 District Annual Meeting, held March 27, 2010. Written reports can be found in the Annual Report for 2009-10. If you have questions about any of the items mentioned, please contact a board member. Please note that items voted on are led by ** If you are interested in seeing other information about the Annual Meeting, please visit the District Assembly Page. In attendance: 133 delegates representing 35 congregations. This constitutes a quorum. You can download this as a pdf file.
Please note that italic and *** items are votes.
Call to Order: Phil Reed called the meeting to order at 11:18.
Parliamentarian: John McCarter was appointed parliamentarian
Appointment of Tellers: Karen Zoller, Brad Taylor, & Diane Barnes were appointed tellers.
Certification: Debra Boyd certified that we had met quorum with 126 and more registering as the meeting started. Final credentials were 107 lay delegates, 17 ministers, 2 DREs, 7 board members for a total of 133 delegates representing 35 congregations.
**Review of 2009 Annual Meeting Minutes: Wayne Arnason, West Shore moved. Second was recognized. Amelia Carr from First UU Meadville moved that the first Proud Moment on page 4 of 2009 minutes be corrected to reflect the correct church name. Second was recognized. Passed as amended.**
President's Report: Written report on pages 23 & 24. Highlighted the move of funds from UUA fund into a Pax World Fund. Pax World has had a higher return during this year. Also, the board worked on bylaws which will be presented later. CERG will be discussed more later, but it is really how we are going to be able to execute on our mission. No questions.
District Staff Reports: Rev. Joan VanBecelaere presented for the staff. She introduced Tom Bodie, Evan Young, & Beth Casebolt. Mark Bernstein, a part-time shared growth consultant is also available. The reports are in the annual packet pages 23 through 31. No questions.
CERG Proposal: This is an outgrowth of the NRG work that we have already been doing with MNY, JPD, & St. Lawrence. We would have more access to specialized services when we work together.
**Charlie Applebaum moved that “a vote of affirmation of continuation of participation in the regional cooperative known as CERG”, a second was recognized. The vote passed, not by acclimation.**
CERG Discussion: David Petras with the North Unitarian Universalist raised the question “How are we going to keep the district notified about what CERG is doing?” Phil responded with information about the new websites & electronic mailings about CERG. Joan shared that work was done with the ministers, LREDA, OMD Up-Close & district mailing lists. Bob Erdman, UU Church of Kent “Wanted to understand the impact of CERG on staff & governance.” Phil responded that there are no governance implications at this point. We are simply buying into a cooperative. Wayne Arnason, West Shore raised the point that UUA is undergoing substantial restructuring that may impact districts. Another delegate sought clarification about how money would be collected & services dispersed to the four districts. Phil responded that contributions for CERG are based on membership of each district, but that services would be distributed based on a per district basis. The board will be taking action at the May 1 meeting.
Bylaw Amendments:
**Debra Boyd presented the Board's motion with recommendation: “Move that this body approve proposed bylaw Amendments 1 & 2 as presented.” The motion did not require a second & passed. **
**Debra Boyd presented the Board's motion with recommendation: “Move that this body approve proposed bylaw Amendments 4, 5, & 6 as presented.” The motion did not require a second. David Petras, North UU wanted to know if reducing the size of the board was good, why didn't the board move to do it in a single year. Debra & Phil shared the board's rationale about doing this change with thoughtful intentional steps that also respected the trustees and officers currently serving. The motion passed with two nays.**
**Debra Boyd presented the Board's motion with recommendation: “Move that this body approve proposed bylaw Amendment 3 as presented.” The motion did not require a second. David Petras, North UU expressed concern that the board could overrule the body's choice for Vice President. Lauren McGee of Kent spoke in favor of providing the board flexibility in handling vacancies citing how her congregation had been helped by having latitude when they had a vacancy. Andrew Line of Greater Canton expressed concern that we would allow someone who did not wish to serve as President to serve in the VP role. Ron Prosek of East Shore – Kirtland expressed concern that there is no limitation in the language on who the board can select. Linda Coulter, Cleveland Society voiced support because the duties of VP have nothing to do with taking on the presidency. The question was called. The motion passed with roughly a ¾ majority.**
**Debra Boyd presented the Board's motion with recommendation: “Move that this body approve proposed bylaw Amendments 7 & 8 as presented.” The motion did not require a second. Ellen Fry of Cleveland Society requested that the body consider including young adults active in the young adult ministry without a congregation. Phil agreed to add it to the agenda for the next board meeting. The motion passed by acclimation.**
**Debra Boyd presented the Board's motion with recommendation: “Move that this body approve proposed bylaw Amendments 9 & 10 as presented.” The motion did not require a second. The motion passed with a handful of nays.**
Budget: Phil & Joan presented the budget. This year we have 2.41 FTEs, with CERG we will have 3.14 FTEs.
**Debra Boyd read the motion from Finance Committee. “Motion to approve a $0.50 dues increase to $21.50 per member.” The motion did not require a second. David Petras moved to increase dues by $2 to $23. Debra did not accept this as a friendly amendment. No second was heard. Motion as presented passes with two nays.**
**Motion to approve the budget for 2010-2011 as presented. Approved.**
Chalice Lighters Update: Berea has new building & received Chalice Lighter grant for a new sign & outreach. $4388.88. There are now over 500 members & friends of OMD who support Chalice Lighters with at least a $10 donation for no more than 4 calls per year to support congregations with their work & outreach.
APF Chair Report: Gerry thanked the body for allowing her to serve in this capacity. Given the restructuring at UUA, this program may be re-envisioned, but will remain in existence for at least one more year. The board will be appointing a new APF chair from at least three qualified candidates at its next meeting.
Compensation Consultant: Debra Boyd shared that she wants to be of service, but reminded the body that they had to invite her into their congregations.
UUA Trustee from OMD: Fifth Principle Task force addressing Democracy at GA has been a driving force for this year's work. The board is looking at this as an Anti-oppressive concern. Also, the unwieldy number of delegates & delegates that may not be well versed in the business of the Association are of real concern. Currently there is a proposal to move business meeting to every other year, reduce delegate pool & fully fund delegates. The board is working on reducing the UUA board size as well. The UUA board is seeking to ensure full representation.
**Election of District Trustees & Officers: Donald Zeilman, chair of the nominating committee, proposed the slate of candidates for officers & full-term trustees. Sharon Eckert, Southwest Congregation was nominated by the Rev. Christine Neilson from Southwest Congregation for the remaining vacant seat. Second was heard & Sharon accepted the nomination. Vote on slate: passed. Vote for Sharon Eckert: passed.**
**Election of Nominating Committee: Donald Zeilman proposed the slate of candidates for Nominating Committee. The slate passed.**
Phil acknowledged & thanked outgoing trustees, officers & nominating committee members.
The newly elected officers, trustees & nominating committee members were installed.
12:37 PM meeting adjourned,
Respectfully submitted,
Debra Gray Boyd, District Board Secretary
