The regular monthly meeting of the Vestry was held on May 18, and after opening with prayer by Addie Budnick, the Leadership Gathering Agreements were reviewed and confirmed by the Vestry. 

The regular monthly meeting of the Vestry was held on May 18, and after opening with prayer by Addie Budnick, the Leadership Gathering Agreements were reviewed and confirmed by the Vestry.  The Vestry then reviewed the minutes of the April 23 regular meeting and the Minutes of the April 30 Special meeting. Certain amendments were proposed and the minutes of both meetings were approved as amended. Phillip gave a short description of his recent trip to Great Britain. He was especially thankful for the efforts of the organizers to make the trip so successful. He expressed his and Jennifer’s gratitude to be home safely. The Vestry received a report from Nate Cook, chairman of the stewardship committee, on the 2025-2026 stewardship campaign. As a result of the appeal to the Parish for members to consider increasing their 2026 pledge, the shortfall between income and expenses for the year has been significantly reduced. The stewardship committee is hopeful that the remaining gap will be eliminated when all pledge increases have been received. Nate gave an update on the plans for a year-round stewardship program. He will continue to serve as chairman for 2026 and is looking for new members to add to the committee. The Vestry expressed its gratitude to Nate for all the work by him and his committee members. The Treasurer reviewed the April financial reports. It appears that the budget shortfall is gradually narrowing, and the actual expenses of the parish are on track as projected in the budget, with no significant increases in the actual expenses. The Treasurer and the Church Financial Administrator are keeping close watch over the budgeted and actual income and expenses. The Rector and the Junior Warden presented the plan to set up an Operations Commission, the purpose of which is to assist the Rector in the management of the day-to-day matters of the Parish. We have been using an interim operations group since February to test the concept, which the Rector says has helped relieve some of the burden from his shoulders. The Vestry approved the motion to set up a permanent Operations Commission, with the initial members being the Rector, the Senior and Junior Wardens and Vestry members, Katherine Cammack and Frank Gibson. The Vestry received an update on the Tricentennial Capital Campaign. The current plan is for the formal campaign to be opened in the fall. The leaders of the campaign are Reid and Linda Murchison, Brian and Lyell McMerty, and Frank and Berta Hamilton. The campaign has started making calls prior to the formal kickoff. Progress to date includes gifts and pledges received of over $3,000,000. The following is a summary of the Capital Campaign with more details to come soon: Focus is on the three primary buildings on the North side of our campus to manage water intrusion, repair systems plus provide better accessibility between these three buildings Double the size of our Foundation Fund at least 10% of the Campaign towards outreach efforts beyond our campus Fund at least 5% of the campaign towards work on our campus outreach needs Repair the exterior of the Bacon House, the Tower Clock, and the Great Hall Kitchen Replace the existing organ with a new, upgraded organ The Vestry discussed the work being done to prepare the Parish Hall basement for use by the Saint’s Shop. The Vestry recognized and expressed appreciation for the energy and vision of the organizers of the Saint’s Shop. Work is underway to upgrade and improve the security elements of the Parish’s campus, including new locks and security cameras, with special attention to the parts of the buildings used by the Day School. The Vestry discussed the information presented by the Capital Campaign leadership for the repairs and upgrades to the Great Hall kitchen. The goal of this work is to have the work completed by early fall to coincide with the opening of the home campus for the fall season. The Vestry made some suggestions and expects to receive, very soon for review and approval, a complete proposal and contract from Monteith Construction Co. for the necessary work. The Vestry continues to be thankful for the dedicated and thorough work being done by the Capital Campaign Leadership. The meeting was closed with a prayer by Gray Hodsdon. Submitted by: Steve Coggins, Junior Warden The post Vestry Corner ~ June 26 appeared first on St. James Episcopal Church.