Please take time to view the Church Conference video and the documents below for a summary of business and discussion. Voting closed at 5:00pm on Monday, May 25.
Throughout this time of distance, we have repeated the phrase: “The building is closed, but the church is open.” This includes the business of our church. The work of the church is the responsibility of each and every one of us, and we want to ensure maximum clarity and participation as we continue to move forward in important work and decisions.On Sunday, May 24 at 1:00pm we will be holding a virtual Church Conference, which will be broadcast on our website.
Without the opportunity to gather in our usual format, we have developed a plan to provide multiple outlets for feedback, voting and communication, aiming at a process that approximates the discussion and congregational input we normally achieve in an in-person meeting.
Pre-Conference: Prior to the meeting, all members should receive a 5 page summary of church business for this period. Leading up to the May 24 Conference, we are providing three primary means of discussion and input.
- Email feedback and/or questions may be sent to churchconference@fbcgso.org, where all comments will be received by an administrative staff member and sent to leaders.
- Written feedback may also be provided in the form of a letter sent to the church c/o Church Conference, where it will be processed as the emails above.
- Members are also invited to join one of two congregational discussions via Zoom, where leaders of various committees will answer questions and receive feedback. Meetings will be held Sunday, May 17 at 1:00pm and Wednesday, May 20 at 4:00pm. Both meetings will be held at this link: us02web.zoom.us/j/807439487
All feedback received in this pre-conference phase will be summarized in a report prepared by Church Clerk, Nancy Culclasure.
Conference: Following worship on May 24, we will gather for our virtual Church Conference, available to view on our website. The Conference will be pre-recorded, with reports from various committees and leaders, including the summary report of feedback received prior to the meeting.
Post-Conference: Immediately following the Church Conference, a follow-up Q&A will be hosted via Zoom for any lingering questions or feedback prior to voting. This will be accessible at us02web.zoom.us/j/807439487
Voting: After the Conference, church members will be invited to vote via online survey or paper ballot. Paper ballots will be sent to all members, but a voting link will also be provided after the meeting.
Summary: At the close of the voting period, a summary will be sent to all church members, detailing the reports of the meeting and the results of all voting matters.
We hope you’ll join us on May 24 at 1:00pm. We believe we are at our best when we function communally. While that has particular challenges at this time, we expect to give to our congregational business as much thoughtfulness and care as we have given to virtual worship and other areas of our church’s ministry. We also expect to have the same gratitude for our church’s faithfulness, creativity and generous love for one another.
Please contact Deacon Chair, Brad Wall or Pastor, Alan Sherouse, with any questions.
