Present: Rich Gabrielson (2); Deb Marrer (2) Brian Erle (1); and Maui Palmiter (1)

The meeting opened at 1:05. Rich brought in a copy of Midday Prayer (from the prayer book) and we all took part in reading it aloud. We felt it would be a good way to open each Vestry meeting.

The minutes from the December meeting were approved.

Finance Report:

The December Finance report and 2026 Budget was submitted by Cathy Smales. We received a 14th pledge card, bringing our pledges to $63,680 for 2026. We have approximately $2,000 profit as of December 31, 2025.

Ted Wolf expressed an interest and sat in on the finance committee meeting this month. He was inquiring on ways he could help.

Rich made a motion for the Vestry to officially vote on the raises we put into place for all church employees. All were in favor and the motion passed.

Property Report:

Deb let us know that Arctic Bear had to come two more times for issues with the rectory furnace. These issues have been ongoing, and she has worked very hard communicating with both the boys and Arctic Bear to resolve this “mystery” problem. The first time the service managers changed the thermostat, and then came back to replace the gas pressure valves. (which are currently being monitored for errors remotely from their shop) The next step would be to send a representative from the actual furnace manufacturer. The furnace is under full warranty.

Rich is going to submit the current bills from the rectory to Jonathan for reimbursement.

Deb replaced the light bulb in the downstairs men’s bathroom (leading to a “side discussion” about ladders and safety) She noticed an ongoing problem that there is very little heat in the men’s bathroom. A short-term fix would be to leave the door open, so heat would be allowed in the room. The bigger issue may be the radiator.

Jubal asked if one of the bedrooms in the rectory could be re-painted. The current color is lavender, and we felt that the request would be okay as long as the Vestry approved the paint color. St Andrews would pay for the new paint. Jubal also let us know he would notify the Vestry by email when and if any visitors would be spending the night at the rectory. This would keep us all in the loop

Follow-up: Deb was going to speak with Johnathan/boys about a few things dealing with the rectory, The boys still need to sign the mutual agreement we had written up. She was also going to let the boys know to go a little lighter on salt on the ramp – unless it appeared very icy or the weather forecast looked bad. Finally, the couch on the front porch still needs to be moved into the house or garage. We would like this done by 1/31.

Old Business:

Bishop Dobbs Visitation:

Bishop Dobbs will be visiting 1/31-2/1. On Saturday evening at 6:00 p.m. the Vestry is invited to have dinner at the Gabrielson’s. Then on Sunday 2/1 we will have an informal breakfast at 9:00 a.m. at St. Andrews before service. Bishop Dobbs will also be confirming Jared and Sarah Webb that morning.

New Business:

Joan Mueller Memorial Service:

Joan’s memorial service will be at 2:00 p.m. on 1/24/26 with Jonathan leading the service with a luncheon to follow downstairs. Kirsten has asked for the church to be open at 12:30. Pat Storms will be coordinating food, and Maui has offered to help with anything needed. We decided to use disposable plates which will be provided by the Gabrielsons. 40-50 people are estimated.

Ash Wednesday and Lent: 

We discussed having a single Ash Wednesday service at St Andrews on 2/18/26 @ noon. We felt that one service would be more well attended. We also talked about the Lenten Bible study series/topic. The Vestry was going to share ideas through the week on a 6-week study (and give Rev. Bob some time to prepare for the study)

Annual Parish Meeting on 2/15:

Rich will reach out to everyone who needs to submit a summary or report of their ministries at St. Andrews for the meeting. Reports should be turned in by 1/31 so that they can be put together in the annual report. We also thought it would be good for Jonathan to share a short summary of the Cranmer Fellowship for the report. (So parishioners could understand it a little better)

Rich Vacation and February Vestry Mtg:

Rich will be on vacation from 2/16-2/25 so we decided to meet for our monthly Vestry meeting on Monday 2/9 at 1:00 p.m.

Vestry Retreat?:

Vestry discussed whether or not to schedule a Vestry retreat in February. No formal decision was made. Rich suggested a book he had read called Family Systems Theory which could be helpful dealing with relationships.

Additional Help for Property Committee:

Rich was concerned that Deb may need additional help for the Property Committee (as she is the only one on the committee) We all agreed that she goes above and beyond what one person should be doing, and that she should be reaching out for help when she needs it. She did say that Rich, Brian and John S. are always willing to help her if needed. We also agreed that anything dealing with the ladder should be a two-person job.

Prayer List:

Brian will speak to Cathy about checking with people who have put names on the weekly prayer list, as it has gotten quite long and there are over 20 names. Hopefully there are some names that can be taken off the list.

Capital Improvement Plan for 2026:

Rich brought up the idea that instead of focusing on large and expensive projects that will require fundraising (church roof and furnace), perhaps we could focus on some small to medium projects that could be done right away. The window in the front of the church in the basement really needs replacing, as well as all of the windows in Craig’s music room. (Which are old, leaky and let in a lot of cold air) Deb and Brian will look into getting estimates from Howard’s, Window World or another window company.

Meeting adjourned with prayer at 2:50 p.m. with prayer.

Draft minutes submitted by Maui Palmiter, Vestry Clerk