Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, June 7, 2023 

Guest: Natalie Owen-Pike

Prepare for Meeting and Prayer: At 5:30 Nancy welcomed everyone to the meeting, introduced Natalie Owen-Pike and asked Shannon to offer a prayer. Shannon offered a prayer for leadership, growth and thanks.

 Opening Discussion: At 5:35 Nancy explained to Natalie that the format of the meeting tonight would follow a conversational format to discuss possible ways we might grow our church and our ‘community of compassion’. Natalie noted that she was excited to be with the church’s board and enjoyed discussions of justice, community and faith. She asked the board members to ‘please, introduce themselves’ and describe what they liked about the church and how they came to be involved with RHCC. Following the introductions of members, Natalie noted that all board members had deeply rooted affections for the church, attributes that make for a strong community.

Natalie noted that her background was teaching and working with young people and adults. She studied with William Barber and believes that church is a powerful place for visitors and members to address modern issues and problems. Lately she has been working more with online ministries, fundraising and stewardship.

Main Discussion: (6:10) Nancy noted that the church community is proud of its many local projects. She outlined the social and environmental projects we backed, noting that the church could not focus on every issue. Nancy asked Natalie if she could perhaps address the question of attracting people to the space for worship. Bruce noted that we were interested in developing attendance both online and in the church. Natalie believed that the church was moving in the correct direction by setting up a hybrid church. She has recently accepted the position as the Director of Ministry to the Online Campus of the 5th Avenue Presbyterian Church in NYC. She spoke at length on the need to personalize and more directly address online worshipers. Asking questions to prompt a response, running banners, and including QR codes were explored as possible methods to offer the viewer a more personal and informative online experience. Leslie noted that we had recently held Hybrid-Zoom coffee hours following church which had been successful. Natalie noted that any and all church traditions, adaptable to new technology, were powerful ways to involve people who might feel separated from the church experience. Nancy then thanked Natalie for her help identifying the possible ways we could proceed with our church growth and excused her for the last part of our meeting.

Christian Education/ and Family Ministries: At 6:40 Nancy brought up the question of children and young families' roles for church growth. She noted that we were actively looking for a Children's Education Coordinator. Nancy and the group all agreed that children and families were important and needed to know they were valued and appreciated. The board felt: 

  • It was important to identify young parents in our community and perhaps discuss problems and issues that interested them. 

  • It could be useful to designate and highlight specific days in the church calendar to focus on children.

  • The church and new coordinator should examine whether the church could partner with neighboring church groups for children's interfaith projects. 

  • It might be useful to create activities that are intergenerational in nature. 

Leslie and Pat voiced that our children’s church experience needed more study and consideration. All members thanked Shannon and Nancy for moving forward with the search for a Children’s Education Coordinator for the fall.

Adjourn: (7:00) Nancy again thanked Natalie Owens-Pike for coming to Round Hill and sharing her insights with us as we move into the 2023-2024 year.