February 2022 Board Meeting Highlights

The Board has started preparations for developing the 2022-23 budget. Congregational President Colette Gelwicks led the Board through a visioning exercise imaging the likely future of UUCC in about a year, three levers that might change that future, and what the future would look like if we maximized all three levers.

Likely future— Probably still multiplatform services and programming, but hopefully moving to more and larger in-person gatherings with a (slightly) smaller congregation. While there could be a loss of funding and less diversity, there would be a desire for greater sense of community and connectedness. OBIC may need to seek additional congregations to share the space.

Levers that could change that future—

• Covid
• Funding / Stewardship
• Membership / Volunteerism / Congregational Engagement
• Staffing
• Community Impact / Sense of Community

Future with adjusted levers— Exceed pledge drive goals, replenish reserves, staff paid at UUA recommended levels. Much greater congregational engagement, meeting in-person with more volunteers resulting in less burn-out for volunteers and staff. UUCC plays greater role in Owen Brown community, Howard County, and the state. UUCC grows in size to program level where we are truly living our values as people of faith.

Additional information on the budget will be discussed throughout this spring’s Board meetings, culminating with the presentation of the budget for a congregational vote at the Annual Meeting on Sunday, June 5, 2022.

The Board received updates from its three committees:

1. Covenant of Right Relations Committee— Co-Chairs Charles Scott & Robin Hessey provided an update on the committee’s review of other congregations’ agreements and how they structured their committees. The committee wants to send out a series of Good Governance blog posts in preparation form a congregation discussion possibly using the conversation circle model. They are currently seeking sources for role playing and additional people they should reach out to for feedback.
2. Group Relations Workshop Committee— Jennie Fitzpatrick provided background information and context for the workshop. The workshop will be a professionally facilitated session designed to not be adversarial, but a space for healing and sharing; the workshop will acknowledge, but not rehash previous points of contention. This requires a highly-skilled, professional facilitator with the expertise to ensure everyone feels heard and also hears each other. The facilitator will manage the conversations and will have extensive experience with these types of sessions. The goal is to appeal to the entire congregation, both long-term and new members, to map our path forward together. The committee believes the workshop process will aid in the pledge drive, but time is of the essence and we need to secure funding through directed donations as soon as possible. The Board approved the release of the RFP, which went out to vendors on Wednesday, February 9. More information on the workshop and directed donations are available here.
3. Mission / Vision / Covenant Review Committee— The committee is actively seeking new members. This is your chance to help plan UUCC’s future as we review our mission, vision, and covenant statements for potential updates. We need your involvement to complete this vital process. Please email the committee to learn more and get involved: mvc_committee@uucolumbia.net.

Stewardship Committee Update— John Boyle is the Annual Pledge Drive lead for this year and the theme will be Pledge Meaningfully. Pledge drive kicks off on Sunday, February 27!

Open Questions Board Discussions with the Congregation

Please join the Board for post service conversation circles to discuss and gather your input on important Open Questions for UUCC. These discussions will be held both virtually and in-person!

• Sunday, February 20, 2022 (11-11:30am)— How shall we become a congregation inspired to work within our community for environmental justice?
• Sundays, March 6, & 20, 2022 (11-11:30am)— How will we create a culture of stewardship at UUCC?
• Sundays, April 3 &17, 2022 (11-11:30am)— How can we as a congregation move forward toward creating beloved community and what difference do we want to see? How will our words be brought to life within our congregation?

Our next Board meeting is scheduled for March 8, 2022 (6:30-8:30pm). Please join us virtually! You may always email us as well at board@uucolumbia.net.