Board of Deacons (“BoD”) Meeting Minutes

January 21, 2017

1. In Attendance:

1. Attendees: Pastor Caleb Chang (Senior Pastor), Christopher Cheng (Secretary), Paul Huang, Jason Lee, Zongkui Joe Ma, Jimin Xiong, Ji-yong Wang (Treasurer), Haiguo Wu (Head Deacon), Tuanfeng Zhang, Jian Zhang
2. Invitees:

1. BoE members: BoE Chair Yuguang He

3. Absentees: Jessica Chang, Bow-nan Cheng, Shanchuan Zhao

2. Location: Conference room, church office building.

3. Meeting Agenda & Minutes

1. Meeting started at 9:03 am.  Pastor Caleb opened in prayer.
2. Brief sharing and introduction

1. Deacon Haiguo highlighted key BoD procedures and responsibilities for new board members.

3. Senior Pastor Sharing and Update (Pastor Caleb Chang)

1. Praise God for new year events: Chinese Missions Conference (CMC) in Baltimore, NEWS camp, and the Chinese Overseas Christian Mission short-term missions trip to the UK.  Please pray for CMC follow up (called “Next Steps”) for those who committed themselves to missions.
2. The pastoral staff hopes to continue improving joint services.
3. The English Pastor Search Committee recommended inviting Rev. Timothy Conkling to come for an on-site candidate interview.  The Board of Elders has blessed and approved this.  Rev. Conkling will be visiting from February 2-7.  A detailed schedule will be announced soon.  Please pray for confirmation from God and His people.
4. The short and long form 2017 church calendar edited by pastor has been distributed.
5. The 2017 ministry matrix has been completed by the Board of Deacons with significant help from Ying-yuan and Wei-hsin.  In the future, Pastor Caleb recommends that the church council secretary coordinate this to relieve the burden on church office and pastoral staff during the holiday season.
6. While we are proud of our church building, there are a few areas that are dirty or messy.  Pastor Caleb encourages the Stewardship and fellowship groups to lead church-wide clean-ups twice a year to encourage ownership of the church building by church members.
7. Elder Yuguang and Pastor Caleb have been assigned to work on the next steps for church growth proposals.
8. The natural gas-fueled HVAC project (with a total of 9 units) is 95% complete.  Heating is online; only air-conditioning refrigerant lines have yet to be installed.  Almost all of the church’s heating is now fueled by natural gas.

1. It was recommended that Stewardship examine the church’s windows and seals to evaluate further improvements to the church’s energy efficiency.

4. Board of Elders (“BoE”) Sharing (Elder Yuguang He)

1. The Board of Elders spent time brainstorming for 2017 and beyond.
2. The church will seek to streamline discipleship training programs this year.
3. A draft of the church’s mission statement is expected in six months with expected impact on the church’s direction.
4. A new Gordon student fellowship is being established in the North Shore primarily to reach out to North Shore area Chinese students.  The fellowship will be coordinated through the Community Outreach Committee.
5. The Community Outreach Committee will be reviewed at the February BoE meeting.
6. The Church Building Expansion team is evaluating quotes for the exit driveway from the upper parking lot.  Requirements for a potential new multi-purpose building have been collected. The church is also evaluating options for holding multiple services, either on-site or off-site.
7. The Human Resources Committee benefit policy is being updated to delegate some of the decision-making authority from the BoE to the Human Resources Committee.
8. The BoE has approved the salary for Cross-Bridge/Youth/Children’s ministries’ part-time administrator.  The Human Resources Committee is in process of sending the offer letter.
9. The BoE has approved Pastor Jen’s sabbatical plan contingent on Minister Stan’s support.

1. It was noted that there is need for more youth counselors, especially Junior High female counselors.

10. For more information, please refer to the January Board of Elders minutes.

5. Financial Report (Ji-yong Wang)

1. Deacon Ji-yong outlined the roles and responsibilities of the finance committee for new board members.  The finance committee is also looking for a new member, ideally from CrossBridge.  Committee members must be active, serving members of the church for at least five years with the ability to keep information discrete.
2. Deacon Ji-yong also discussed the budgeting process and reimbursement approval process.
3. Summary of key funds:

4. General Fund budget summary - up to December 31, total expense is $716,010 (39.1% of total annual budget), and total offering is $1,110,492 (60.6% of budget).  The targeted percentage is 50% (six months complete in the fiscal year).
5. It was noted that part of the reason for the larger surplus is the lack of a lead CrossBridge pastor for the year thus far and the lack of a youth pastor for part of the year.
6. As of the end of December, $121,392 is allocated to Metro-south from the MS building fund and “50% of Metro-south surplus through the end of calendar year 2016”.  This amount is scheduled to be transferred to Chinese Church of Metro-South Boston in January 2017.

1. It was noted that the 383 Old Post Road property in Sharon has already been transferred to Metro-South.

7. As of 12/15/2016, there are 68 families and 29 individuals who have pledged $194,305 for the Mission Fund (goal is $360,000 and 350 units) which is 54% of the goal.  There are 42 families and 14 individuals who have pledged $39,065 into the Social Concerns Fund (goal is $31,000) which is 126% of the goal.

6. Technology Update (Jason Lee)

1. A computer was added to the church office for general use.  The computer will be re-imaged regularly as a precautionary measure against viruses so no information should be stored on it.
2. A thermostat in the 151 building has had some connectivity problems.  Troubleshooting seems to indicate that it is a problem with the thermostat and not with the WiFi network.

1. There is a non-connected thermostat in the corner of the basement that controls satellite electric heaters.  Deacon Jason and Deacon Jian will discuss whether to update this to a WiFi thermostat.

3. Deacon Jason noted that some church ministries are not aware of the new IT committee policy in which all technology expenses, including those coming out of another ministry’s budget, need to be approved by the IT committee so that the church can effectively coordinate and consolidate purchases and equipment usage.  Deacon Jason encouraged deacon members to communicate this to other church members and also asked for finance committee support.
4. A television was installed in the church basement without any protection.  This expense was approved before the formation of the IT committee.  Because children play in the area, the IT committee would like to explore whether the television should be moved or whether a protective box should be installed around it.  Deacon Jason and Deacon Jian will follow up offline.
5. A proposal has been created for improving video in the chapel. The proposal is awaiting review from the Chinese Ministry audio-visual team.  One consideration is whether the church plans to renovate the chapel in the future to support potential multiple services.
6. Deacon Joe is leading a meeting tomorrow to discuss how to keep the church website content up to date.
7. Brother Jinjie Tang requested security cameras be installed to monitor vans in the 151 garage.  The purpose is so that it is easy to check if vans are properly parked, especially during winter.
8. The IT committee is still working on the right strategy for managing the church’s phone system greeting and facilitating church phone directory changes.
9. There are three classrooms in the 151 building that do not have video capability.  So that those classrooms can be used to their full potential, it was requested that video be installed in those rooms.  Deacon Jason and Deacon Paul will continue discussion offline.

7. Stewardship update (Jian Zhang)

1. Property projects

1. Church entrance signs have been reprinted and installed.
2. Upper level solar parking lights have been installed.
3. The new natural gas HVAC system in the chapel is running.  The new system not only addresses the reliability problem of the old system but is also more energy efficient and requires a smaller physical footprint.  The first floor HVAC system was also updated.
4. New cabinets and countertop have been installed in the nursery room.
5. A wooden enclosure has been built around the gas pipes and instruments on the side of the main building to protect the equipment from ice and snow on advice of contractors.
6. Room 210 has been cleaned up and turned into a music library which can also be used by fellowship groups.

2. Property management

1. In order to prepare for the Township Annual Building Inspection, the following has been accomplished:

1. Fire extinguisher inspection
2. Fire sprinkler test report
3. Fire alarm and smoke detector test report
4. Kitchen hood suppression system test report
5. Cooking exhaust system inspection and cleaning report

2. Stewardship has acquired quotes for:

1. Church entrance parking lot
2. Upper parking exit road
3. Upper parking access road lights

3. Regular pest control service for the church was done to prevent rodent infestation.
4. Parking lot lights timer was updated to account for the end of daylight savings time.

3. Deacon Jian reviewed the 2016 stewardship accomplishments of which there were many.  Of the 22 projects worked on by Stewardship this year, the only project that was not completed was the proposed church entrance parking lot project (between the church office and 151 building), which was cancelled both for feasibility and aesthetic reasons.  The board thanks Deacon Jian and the Stewardship Council for their hard work and faithfulness.

8. Facility Usage Approval Fee (Jian Zhang)

1. Deacon Jian reviewed the current facility usage policy.
2. Church members can find the room reservation form on the church website.
3. Those who use the church facilities are required to sign a liability waiver form which affirms that CBCGB is not responsible for any personal injuries or loss of personal belongings within the CBCGB property due to personal irresponsible activities or negligence.
4. All facility usage must be endorsed by a church council member who is responsible for ensuring that church policies are followed during the usage.
5. It was noted that the policy should be updated to indicate who has the authority to authorize use of church facility for emergency shelter purposes.
6. The board decided not to change the facility usage fees for the upcoming calendar year.

9. Deacon Paul closed in prayer and Deacon Haiguo adjourned the meeting at 12:23 pm.