Minutes — September 9,2014

Diocese of Rhode Island

Commission on Finance

Meeting. September 9, 2014

Higgins Room

Present:  Robert Bergstrand; Dennis Burton; The Rt. Rev. Nicholas Knisely; Michael Lofaro; The Rev. Joyce Thorne.

Also present: Joan DeCelles; Canon Elizabeth Fornal; The Rev. Canon Linda Grenz; The Rev. Edwin Hallenbeck; Ronald Turnbull.

Guests:

Holy Trinity, Tiverton: The Rev. John Higginbotham, Rector; Karen Corr, SW.

St. Augustine’s, Kingston: Jane Grenier, Treasurer; The Rev. Linda Grenz.

The meeting was called to order at 10:05 a.m. by Chair Lofaro. Bishop Knisely offered an opening prayer.

The Minutes of the meetings of June 10, 2014 and June 13, 2014 were approved as distributed. The Secretary noted one typo in each which will be corrected with a final copy forwarded to Ms. DeCelles.

Financial Report for August was reviewed by Mr. Turnbull. Most items are at or near budget. Further simplification of the report by omitting columns makes it more readable. Some additional suggestions were offered.

Review of Revolving Loan Fund. It was noted that St. Columba’s has made no payment to date, while the loan was made in May. Churches are not currently billed for payments due. It was suggested a billing process be designed and initiated. Canon Grenz reported on recent meetings with representatives from Washington Trust, during which favorable interest was expressed in making commercial loans available to Episcopal churches on terms similar to the Revolving Loan Fund. This would work well for churches with established financial experience, leaving the RLF available for churches experiencing difficult circumstances. There are one or two churches with current RLF loans that might be encouraged to shift to Washington Trust. Canon Grenz will follow up. Conversations were also held with Thrivent Credit Union exploring how they might be of assistance to Episcopal churches.

Apportionment Report. With a small number of months of arrearage, only two churches are three or more months behind. The most behind is St. George’s, Central Falls, 6 months in arrears. They are also behind in salary reimbursement to the diocese. Reviewing further, in 2013 St. George’s also still owes $3,986.25 in apportionment and $3,500 in salary recovery, a total of $7,486.25. Further discussion indicated payment of either item is unlikely, therefore. It was MOVED, SECONDED and VOTED to write off St. George’s, Central Falls 2013 debt to the Diocese of $7,486.25 as noted above, as a Bad Debt.

Revolving Fund request, Holy Trinity Church,  Tiverton. Fr. Higginbotham gave a summary of the requested funds to convert three furnaces from oil to natural gas for a significant cost saving. Details were reviewed and a number of questions answered. It was noted that no endowment is currently in the DIT, which, if pledged, could reduce the loan rate. The request is for $18,500 with specific quotes available. A related issue noted is a heavy use of endowment funds. There is a clear need for strategic planning toward a sustainable level. The guests left the meeting.

Revolving Fund and Grant request, St. Augustine’s Church, Kingston. Ms. Grenier gave a summary of the project, stating the Church is actually two buildings built at different times with five different levels of working space. There are some external ramps that do not meet ADA standards. The project focus is making levels as accessible as possible meeting ADA requirements. The project will be carried out in two stages, the first immediately, and the second, interior work in winter when students are away from school. A grant of $10,000 is requested from the mission church accessibility and safety fund, and a Revolving Loan Fund loan of $10,000, timing to be negotiated as the project proceeds. DIT funds will be pledged to secure an interest rate reduction. Additional funds needed are being raised within the parish. The guest left the meeting.

Holy Trinity Church. The request was review by the COF with the following action:

It was MOVED, SECONDED and VOTED to approve a RLF loan to Holy Trinity Church of $18,500 for 5 years at 2.25%, with an option to reduce the interest by .75% with a pledge of DIT Funds. It was further stated that Dennis Burton representing the COF meet with parish leadership and the Vestry to discuss the concern about strategic planning and working toward financial stability.

St. Augustine’s Church. The request was reviewed by the COF with the following actions: It was MOVED, SECONDED and VOTED to approve a grant to St. Augustines Church of $10,000 from the mission church accessibility and safety fund, and further VOTED to approve a RLF loan of $10,000 for 5 years at 1.5% with a DIT pledge.

May House projects. Mr. Burton reported all projects are completed. He noted work on the driveway is needed, as well as reseeding disturbed areas. He was asked to proceed with these needed items.

Diocesan House Building Needs. Canon Grenz reviewed several needs, and was asked to proceed with study of how best to carry them out. Key matters are upgrading the HVAC system and providing vertical accessibility. It was noted that a portion of the Diocesan House upper parking lot retaining wall collapsed overnight. Insurance coverage will be sought and study of how best to repair the damage.

The meeting was adjourned at 12 noon.

Respectfully submitted

Edwin F. Hallenbeck, Secretary                      Next meeting: October 14, 2014 at 10:00 am