COUNCIL MEETING

OCTOBER 19,2010 

CALL TO ORDER - The meeting was called to order by the President, Phyllis Hurtado at 7:00 P.M.

PRESENT: Phyllis Hurtado, Rita Cohen, Father Martin, Jim Beller, JohnBenson,  Kathleen Kilkenny, George LaDamus,  Marlon Figueroa, Don Musich, Erin Tolli

EXCUSED: Father Tai, Marianne Rowe

ALSO PRESENT: Deacon Gorman, Angie Mittleberger, Sue Berg, Jerry Trojan, Louis Ericson, Ralph Cortez

OPENING PRAYER - Father Martin gave the opening prayer

APPROVAL OF MINUTES - A correction to item # 6 (concerning the actual profit amount on the Fund Report on Dedication ceremonies) was made to the minutes of the September 14, 2010 minutes. The motion to approve was made by Don Musich and seconded by John Benson.

A. UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Parish Sunday Bulletin. Kathleen Kilkenny reported that the Bulletin Committee meeting scheduled for October 14,2010 was unattended. A new announcement for a future meeting will go in the Bulletin.

2. Parish Picnic - Jim Beller reported that the Picnic held on Sunday, October 17th was attended by approximately 150 people. Hamburger and hot dog buns were donated by Old Home Bakery and condiments were also purchased there. Of the 124 burgers purchased, 121 were served. Of the 84 hot dogs purchased 74 were served. A fish pond, a horse ball game, face painting and a piñata were available for the children. Stuffed animals donated by the thrift store were available for prizes. Don Rowe furnished the music. A good time was had by all. Helpers were: Lew and Maria Holdener, Roger and Peg Soukup, Gary and Julie Stolz, Don and Marianne Rowe, Marlene Mc Nabb and Erin Tolli.

3. Parish Cookbook - Rita Cohen reported that all the recipes are in and that they are working on a format that can be put on a CD. An announcement is in the bulletin requesting Parishioners with businesses to donate $50 for an advertising space in the cookbook. Advanced sales of the cookbook will be $10.

4. Golf Tournament - Phyllis Hurtado reported that 72 golfers participated. After expenses, a total of$5,770.61 was earned. $865.60 was donated to Big Brothers and Sisters and a check for $4,905.01 will be presented to Father Martin for the St. George Catholic Church.

5. Business Forum - Angie Mittleberger reported that the forum is to be held before the Masses on Saturday and Sunday on November 12 & 13,2010. All parish businesses are invited to offer their services and products. A fee of $25 which will go towards clean-up is requested. An announcement is in the bulletin.

6. Time Capsule - Deacon Gorman reported that the capsule is ready. A date to bury it in the designated place outside the church needs to be set up.

B. NEW BUSINESS

1. Change of Mass Schedule - George LaDamus reported the growing concern of safety in the parking lots due to the timing between Sunday Masses. Father Martin said that he has revised the Sunday Mass schedule to the following: 9:00—11:00—1:00. This will allow more time for parishioners to get in and out. This time change will be effective on Sunday, November 28, 2010.

2. Nominations for the 2011 Parish Council were listed. The nominees are: Sue Berg, Claudia Canales, Ponte Meredith, Don Rowe, lerry Trojan, Pat Healy, Earl Bond and Bert Trabinino. Each nominee is to present a biography-résumé and a picture to be posted in the vestibule of the church. Voting will take place at the Masses on November 13th and 14th. A ballot will be given to each parishioner upon attending Mass and returned at the end of Mass.

3. Use of Kuzy Hall- Father Martin reported that there is simply no money to do any updating of Kuzy Hall--specifically the flooring and kitchen. Before offering use of the Hall to outside our church community, accommodations should be made for our own community activities such as CCD and possible parish activities such as "coffee & doughnuts" after Mass, funerals and etc.

4. Soup Kitchen-Lou Ericson talked about renewing our participation in the Soup Kitchen. The Salvation Army will take care of all the expenses, food and insurance needed to run the Soup Kitchen. Ralph Cortez ran the Kitchen for the past 5 years and reported about the participation. Father said that he would do what he does about all decisions -listen-reflect-pray-decide.

5. Parish Council Retreat - Father Martin believes that this retreat is a must for our Council. He has asked Monsignor Mike Winter to be the spiritual mentor and the date will be decided on his availability. Hopefully, it will be during the Advent or Lenten season.

6. Parish Stewardship - Father reported that the Bishop has decreed that our Diocese will participate in Parish Stewardship. A handout will be available explaining the program. This will be implemented in 2011. Three talks have been scheduled in Kuzy Hall at 1:00 P.M. on January 22, March 12, and May 14. All leaders of the Parish will be required to attend. This includes Parish Council Members, Staff, CCD teachers, Thrift Store volunteers and any other interested parishioners.

More information will be available later.

7. Reports from Father Martin's Retreats and Training - Father Martin was very appreciative of the time he spent on retreat and pastoral training. He wishes to give back his knowledge and spiritual direction to our parish from the things he learned.

8. Report from Hurricane, St. Paul Mission - Don Musich representative of St. Paul Mission reported there is a Holy Hour conducted by Deacon Tellez on every Monday. There will be a Funeral Mass, the first one, on October 30 at 10:00 A.M. Following the Mass, set-up will begin for the scheduled Halloween Party to be held in the evening. Father Martin indicated that Mass will be said on the First and fourth Sunday of the month in November at St. Paul's. Don was very appreciative of the donations of church equipment such as a Monstrance, Baptismal Font and Incense Burner given to St. Paul's by the St. George Parish. There will be a novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe ending on December 10. The parish debt of $600,000 has been reduced to $348,000.

9. Diocesan Parish Council- Angie Mittleberger reported on her retreat on October 2nd which was held at the Bishop's residence in Salt Lake City. Video Conferencing is in the works to alleviate trips made to Salt Lake City. The next meeting will be October 23rd, 2010.

10. Other- Mention was made of the Thrift Store Fashion Show to be held on Saturday, November 6. Tickets for the Show and Luncheon will be $12.

11. Father Martin will be implementing an ESL program and will be recruiting teachers to participate. This should help to build community.

The next Parish Council Meeting will be held on November 9, 2010.

CLOSING PRAYER - Deacon Gorman said the closing prayer.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 P.M.

COUNCIL MEETING REPORT

COUNCIL MEETING REPORT

MAY 13, 2010

Bylaws – Phyllis Hurtado

A copy of the Administrative Procedures from the Salt Lake diocese relative to meetings and councils was distributed, as well as a memo from Michael Lee stating there will be no change in the Bylaws pending the change in pastors. 

Parish Sunday Bulletin – Kathleen Kilkenny

Announcements were made regarding revising the Sunday bulletin. Ten parishioners have volunteered to participate as a committee to make the Bulletin more interesting. The first committee meeting will be held on Monday, May 17^th.

Parish Picnic – Jim Beller

The parish picnic will be held from 12-4 p.m. on Sunday, October 17^th.

Parish Council Retreat – Phyllis Hurtado

The first part of the retreat was spiritual. A lunch was provided by St. Paul’s mission. After lunch, questions submitted by council members were discussed. 

Cinco de Mayo – Rita Cohen

The celebration was very successful. There are still some bills to be paid but it is estimated that the event will clear $11,000. The king and queen contest brought in $4957.

George Ladamus reported that he received a phone call asking if he would contact the newspaper and see if they would reduce the costs of the ads that had been ran for a fund raiser event. If contacted in advance George will place ads that are free. If there were a large ad that costs money, he would need prior approval before the ad is placed in the paper.

Holy Communion & Confirmation – Rita Cohen

On May 30^th 25 English speaking children will receive Holy Communion at the 9:00 a.m. Mass

June 7^th 40 will be confirmed at the 7:00 p.m. bilingual Mass

July 31^st – 80 Hispanic children will receive Holy Communion at the 11:00 a.m. Mass

Cake and punch will be served outside Kuzy Hall after the service.

Golf Tournament – Phyllis Hurtado

A meeting was held with the golf pro at Coral Canyon. They will be donating free rounds of golf and are planning fun things at some of the holes. They have received there first sponsor. George Ladamus was asked to help with the advertising.

Parish Outreach – Marianne Rowe

After only one announcement in the bulletin two parishioners responded to the request to help

someone in need of light housekeeping. At this time the parishioner that initially requested the help

has found someone to assist her. Thanks to those caring parishioners for their offers of help.

Pentecost Sunday – Rita Cohen

They have contacted someone to assist with the sound system and he felt there was a need for 16 mixers. Freddy Flores will be contacted to assist with the sound system. There are sign-up sheets in the back of Kuzy Hall for food and people to carry the flags.

Parish Cookbook – Rita Cohen    

Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in Mesquite has published a cookbook that they are selling for $5.00 with publishing costs underwritten by local sponsors. Rita suggested that the St. George parish gather recipes and put together a cookbook as a church fundraiser. Boxes will be placed in the church for recipe collection. The goal is to have the recipe book available for sale by Thanksgiving.

Suggestion Box – Phyllis Hurtado

There were 3 suggestions in the suggestion box: 1 signed and 2 unsigned. These have been discussed

with Father Vidal and he has contacted the parishioner that signed the suggestion. The remaining two were dealing with the dress code and will be answered in the bulletin.

Council Meetings – Phyllis Hurtado

Because some parishes in the diocese only meet September through May, Phyllis announced that the council will not meet during June, July, or August. The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 14^th.

Announcements: 

Father Vidal will be leaving on August 29, 2010

The church should be ready by the 1^st or 2^nd week in June. They are waiting for everything to be complete before calling for inspections. Erin Tolli voiced some concern about the sound system being insufficient for their needs.

 Submitted by:    Marianne Rowe

REPORT: ST. GEORGE CATHOLIC CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING - APRIL 13, 2010

MOMENT OF SILENCE

Prior to calling the meeting to order, those present held a moment of silence to remember relatives of council members who recently passed away since January:  Kathleen Kilkenny in the loss of her mother, Rita Cohen in the loss of her brother, and Marlon Figueroa in the loss of his father.

OPENING PRAYER - Father Vidal gave the opening prayer.

Palm Sunday Bake Sale

The proceeds from the bake sale that was held over the Palm Sunday weekend amounted to $578. Booths were set up outside both exits from the church. Three youth that are to be confirmed did a fantastic job helping with a most successful event.

Business Fair – Angie Mittleberger

The second annual business fair will be held on Saturday and Sunday during the 2^nd weekend of November. There will be a $20 charge for participants. They hope to have various parish activities set up an informational booth such as the Knights of Columbus and Thrift Store. The parish council will have a booth to encourage women in the parish to consider re-establishing a Catholic Women’s Group. There will be no charge for the church booths.

1.                   Ecumenical Way of the Cross – Kathleen Kilkenny

Planning for the Ecumenical Way of the Cross began on March 17^th with a luncheon at the Rectory for 21 ministers representing several churches in the area. George Ladamus was in charge of getting information published in the Spectrum and the police to keep the streets clear. Every minister that signed up did participate. It is estimated that on Good Friday there were 500 participants. Lorraine Boyce took pictures that were published in the recent Intermountain Catholic newspaper. Kathleen noted there is a need to improve the sound system.

Diocesan Pastoral Council Representative for SW Deanery – Phyllis Hurtado

Phyllis explained that she wants to make the Diocesan Pastoral Council Representative for SW Deanery a permanent ex-officio position on the parish council. This is an important position, as the person is the liaison between our church and the Bishop. At this time, it is Angie Mittleberger. A discussion ensued and it was pointed out that, according to the Bylaws, all appointments to the council take office in January. When asked why there was a need for immediate action, Phyllis said it was to stop gossip as to why Angie Mittleberger attends the Council meetings. Phyllis asked for a vote on making the appointment at this time rather than in January.

                              Seven in favor; four opposed

It was noted that the Bylaws do not spell out who are ex-officio members and this should be something that is included in the amendments. There was further discussion about defining what constitutes an Executive Session. A proposed amendment will be considered when the Bylaws are presented for adoption. Subsequently, Jim Beller noted that the action taken was improper. According to ARTICLE VII – AMENDMENTS proposals for an amendment must be submitted in writing at any regular meeting and acted upon at the next regularly scheduled meeting. Phyllis will submit a written proposal.

Parish Sunday Bulletin – Phyllis Hurtado

Several suggestions were submitted for the general meeting requesting that the Sunday bulletin be more informative. She asked that a council member chair a committee with parishioners’ assistance to work on a new bulletin. Several examples from other parish communities were presented. Marianne Rowe read a letter from Lee Warren thanking her and Phyllis for the insert in the Sunday bulletin to keep the community informed about what is happening at the parish council meetings. ACTION:  Kathleen Kilkenny will chair the committee to redesign the bulletin...

Food for the Needy – Phyllis Hurtado

There is a need to assist those who are coming into the church office looking for help with food. Many of these arrive with small children. Most requested items include dry cereals, pastas, and soup. Any food offering is appreciated and parishioners can also buy Scrip. Food should be brought to the office where Sandra will put it in bags for the needy.

Parish Picnic – Jim Beller

Snow Park has been reserved for the parish picnic that will be held from 12-4 on October 17, 2010. There is a usage charge of $20 per 100 people and $40 for 200 for a 2-hour time frame, so there will be a need to determine the approximate number of parishioners that will be attending. There are 10 tables with 10 per table. There is a need to bring in serving tables. Plans include volleyball, a piñata, 2-3 horse ball games (similar to horseshoes). Don Rowe will provide the music. Hot dogs, hamburgers, condiments, water, and punch will be provided by the parish. The remainder of the meal will be a potluck with parishioners providing the salad and desserts. There will be a sign-up sheet in the back of the church. ACTION:  Jim will report back regarding any additional charges for a 5-hour event.

Parish Council Retreat – Don Musich

Last year there was no council retreat and the year before it was strictly spiritual. This year St. Paul’s will host the council retreat on Saturday, April 17^th. From 9:30 – 10:00 will be a welcome from Tony Foran, Administrator, and coffee and donuts will be served. There will be an opportunity to tour the facility and lunch will be served at noon. During the retreat, the council will have an opportunity to review the results of the General Meeting on March 24^th to determine if questions were sufficiently answered and will also explore the role of the council. The items on the agenda were approved by Father Vidal and the outline was previously sent by email to all the members. The address for St. Paul’s:  171 S. Main, Hurricane

Cinco de Mayo – Marlon Figueroa

Activities will start at 8:00 a.m. at the north parking lot. Teresa Loy is in charge of the food booths where 12 different kinds of food will be available. Marlon and Rita Cohen will work on the games with the help of the Boy Scouts. Sherry Gower is in charge of the money bank. Phyllis and Art Hurtado will be working the ticket booths. There will be a king and queen contest, T-shirt booth, bake sale and cake walk. There is a $400 charge to rent the stage, but Ponci Reed has offered to pay one-half of the cost. Because Kuzy Hall is not available, there will be no dance in the evening. A DJ will be playing music throughout the day. ACTION:  There is a need to obtain a city permit for the music.

Gone with the Wind Movie – Rita Cohen

Tickets for the movie and reception are $25 each and $15 for just the movie. Student tickets are $5.

Three hundred tickets have been sold with 500 being the goal. There will be two members of the original cast present, who will be available to pose for pictures and give autographs. The reception starts at 5:00 p.m. with lots of good food. Movie will start at 6 p.m.

Pentecost Sunday – Rita Cohen

Pentecost Sunday is on May 23^rd. Tents will be set up in the parking lot for food. Signs will be posted and there will be sign-up sheets for people to carry the flags representing all the countries of parishioner’s ancestry. People will also be encouraged to decorate baskets containing food or other items that will be auctioned off. There will only be one Mass on that Sunday.

Holy Communion & Confirmation – Maria Hollingsworth

Jill Lutrell and Luz Manzo have been preparing the children for Holy Communion and Confirmation.

May 28^th at 5:00 p.m. 25 children will receive the sacrament of reconciliation.

May 30^th at the 9:00 a.m. Mass 25 children will receive their First Communion

June 7^th   at 7:00 p.m. 25 English children and 44 Hispanic children will be confirmed.

July 31^st at 11:00 a.m. Mass 85 Hispanic children will receive their First Communion.

This is contingent upon the fact that the children must complete learning their prayers in order to receive the sacrament.

Parish Directory & Pictures – Erin Tolli

Several people are taking candid pictures; however, Erin was not aware that she was in charge of the parish directory. This will be researched with a report at the next meeting. Two companies will take the pictures at no charge unless the parishioner wishes to purchase additional copies. Information on the company that is taking the pictures in Mesquite will be obtained.

Constitution/Bylaws – Marianne Rowe

The proposed Bylaws were previously sent to all members of the Council. Since then, other council members have submitted their recommended revisions. Copies of the additional revisions were distributed to the council. At the next meeting, the revisions will be discussed one by one before adoption.           ACTION:  Tabled until May meeting: 

Golf Tournament – Phyllis Hurtado

The tournament will be held on September 19^th. 15% of the proceeds will be given to the Big Brothers and Big Sisters. Bishop Wester will be at the tournament. Several people want to golf with the Bishop. Golfers interested will have an opportunity to put their name in a pool and a drawing will be held to determine the Bishop’s team members. Last year a majority of the golfers waited until the last minute to sign up for the tournament. This presents a problem for the golf course. This year there will be two dates. Those signing up by the first date will pay $100 and those signing up later will pay $110.

St. Paul’s Mission – Don Musich

A SCAP service is held on the 1^st and 2^nd Sunday of the month, Mass with Father Renee on the 3^rd, and a bi-lingual SCAP on the 4^th Sunday. There have not been many Spanish speaking people attending this service. A parishioner is organizing an Italian sandwich night with a potluck. Approximately 100-110 people have been attending the social events. One Sunday there were 96 people attending Mass. They would like to be able to have two services. The Advisory Committee will meet on Wednesday evening, April 14^th. Tony Foran was appointed by the diocese as the mission administrator with total control of the finances. Because the diocese has purchased 4-5 properties, Don has proposed a Bylaw amendment to include future mission churches. Because they now have a one year history, it will be easier to determine their financial picture. The Thrift Store is doing well with average sales of $100-$200 a day. They are open from 10-4 Wednesday through Saturday. The Thrift Store recently gave St. Paul’s $5000. Because of a diocesan policy that only 3 weeks of capital can be kept in their account, the money is used to pay down the debt to the diocese.

DixieToday.com – Phyllis Hurtado

DixieToday.com is a totally free web site and the Spectrum “Where It’s At” are totally free for advertising church activities.

Parish Outreach – Marianne Rowe

The RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program) has been contacted by a parishioner requesting some help. Margaret Curan was contacted and said that the lady is receiving the Eucharist and a member of the parish has visited with her. On further discussions with RSVP, said the need is for help with light housekeeping.

ACTION: 

(1) Maria Hollingsworth volunteered to help the person that is currently in need. 

(2)  An announcement will be placed in the bulletin seeking other volunteers.

 Problems-Concerns- Father Vidal

 None reported

Problems-Concerns- Father Renee

Father Renee is out of town on retreat...

OTHER REPORTS:

Parishioners - Sue Berg was present to observe as she is thinking about running for the council. Phyllis will provide Sue with a copy of the Constitution. Ray & Rose Odette and Don Rowe were present as observers.

FUNERAL PAMPHLETS – Angie Mittleberger

A copy of pamphlets for non-Catholics who attend a Catholic funeral or are visitors to our church was presented. These will be available through the office and will also be available for the St. Paul’s mission.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Father Fabio has arranged through the Bishop to conduct classes at various parishes throughout the diocese. The program will follow the structure of the RCIA program. The first class will be next Tuesday, April 20^th at 7:00 p.m. in the church. Parishioners aware of members who are no longer going to Mass or have left the Church should encourage them to come and participate in this program.

BAPTISMS

500 Catholics were baptized in the state of Utah during the Easter Vigil. One was by immersion. When the renovation is complete, there will be a Baptismal font and an immersion font.

Submitted by:

Marianne Rowe, Secretary

COUNCIL MEETING – FEBRUARY 9, 2010

Scrip - Announcements were made at the weekend Masses explaining and encouraging parishioners to purchase scrip. As a result the weekend scrip sales amounted to $2005. Parishioners have asked if they can use credit cards. It was noted that the highest percentage of scrip requested is for Wal-Mart who only rebates 2%. Not only is there a cost of 1.5 percent to use a credit card, but there is an additional shipping charge for the cards.           TABLED until further information is obtained.

Council Activities – 2010 –All council members will either chair or co-chair a church activity during 2010. The golf outing arrangements have already been made to have the tournament at Coral Canyon. With the exception of a slight increase in the cost of food, everything will be the same as in 2009.

Blessing, Introduction of Council and Picture – After the announcements at the 11:00 a.m. Mass on February 14^th council members will be asked to come forward for a blessing and will be introduced to the parishioners. Pictures of the council will be taken.

Funeral Pamphlet – The funeral pamphlet for non-Catholics explaining why Catholics sit, stand, and kneel during services is now ready for printing. Information in the pamphlet explains what is happening at both the funeral and regular Masses.

Business Fair –Plans are being made to have another business fair in November. There will be a nominal set up fee of $20. This will be an opportunity for parishioners to showcase their business to the parish community. Representatives from the various parish activities will be asked to set up a booth to answer questions and encourage parishioners to become involved. There will also be a booth to determine if there are any women in the parish interested in starting up a women’s group. The Thrift Store will be contacted to make sure there is no conflict with the Thrift Shop fashion show.

Palm Sunday Bake Sale –A fundraiser bake sale will be held after all Masses on Palm Sunday weekend. The Hispanic parishioners will be asked to participate. Council members and parishioners will be contacted to help and donate baked goods.

Funeral Mass –Deacon Willie explained that when a death occurs, an announcement is made from the altar and he posts a notice by the entrance to Kuzy Hall. It was determined that a concerted effort is made and parishioners do receive adequate notice of a death. Father Vidal thanked Deacon Willie for the great job he does with the funeral ministry.

St. Paul’s Mission – Bob Klein passed away on Sunday. As of now, there is no information on the funeral arrangements. They are trying to get an Ash Wednesday service and are on working on this with Deacon Gorman. Tomorrow evening, February 10^th, at 5:00 p.m. there will be a blessing for the new Liturgy Committee and Eucharistic Ministers. At 6:00 p.m. there is an advisory committee meeting and all are invited to attend. A St. Pat’s potluck is being planned.

Church Tour –On Sunday, February 21^st Cy Curran will conduct a church tour from 2-4 p.m. He will also be available to conduct a tour after the 11:00 a.m. Mass on the 21^st and on request will conduct a private tour.

Father Vidal Comments/Concerns – No comment or concern.

Father Renee Comments/Concerns – No comment or concern.

Missionaries of the Gospel of Light – John Haydukovich explained the ministry of the Missionaries of the Gospel of Light. This is basically a pro-life organization, which is working on holding a 40-day Lenten prayer for life. The plan is to spend one hour a day by the Planned Parenthood building on Bluff and 6^th south. This group does not engage anyone; they are only there to pray for the unborn. Additional information can be obtained by going to the web site priestsforlife.org and click on the page for the missionaries of the gospel of light. John can be reached at JohnHaydukovich@yahoo.com

Liaison Meeting in Salt Lake –78% of the Catholics in Utah are Hispanics. The Bishop has put a hold on all new building projects. He wants pastors to be more visible by pod casting and using Facebook for their sermons.

The Executive Session concluded at 7:40 p.m. Parishioners were then invited into the meeting for the capital campaign and financial report.

Financial Parish Accounting/Capital Campaign Report

John Hoff and Kurt Blymer were present to respond to a letter from a parishioner with many questions regarding parish finances, capital campaign, Kuzy Hall renovation and the dedication program.

Total pledges to date - $545,974. Pledges received - $177,631. Amount paid to date to Walsh & Associates fundraisers - $154,454

The ordinary income report in the Sunday bulletin includes all the money from the parish envelopes and loose change, the amount of the expenditures and the profit or loss. As of now there is a profit because of the snowbirds that are back in the area. When the expense is greater than income, money is drawn from other sources such as scrip and Cinco de Mayo. The income for the month from the Thrift Store is listed. The building fund and pledges are deposited into the same account. The savings did earn interest, but when the construction started, the savings shrank to zero. The church is now using a construction loan from the D & L diocesan program. The loan amount will be increasing as every month payments are made to the builders.

The concern is that the country is in a severe depression and there should be good stewardship of the parish monies. There needs to be transparency so that parishioners can feel comfortable with how the money is being spent. Kurt Blymer explained that the Finance Committee is only an advisory group to the pastor and it is the pastor who makes the final decision on how money is spent. In May of 2008 there was a directive that an accounting system was to be implemented. A budget was proposed with the information available to the Finance Committee. Throughout the year the diocese sees the expenditures live on line. The budget is sent to the diocese for approval and a monthly report is directed to the parish council. In August an annual report is included in the Sunday bulletin. A semi-annual report is now being prepared and will be published within the next few weeks. The Finance Committee does reconcile the books. If there is anything that appears to be out of line, it is discussed with the pastor.

It was pointed out that many people are on fixed incomes and the need for a 2 ½ million dollar renovation was questioned as well as where the money was coming from to pay for the new statues and the 10 day dedication celebration. The group was informed that there is no cost to the parish for the statues or the 10-day dedication as this is being paid for by the Catholic Foundation of Utah. There was also a parishioner that passed away and left a large amount of money to the parish.

When construction of any building is started, there is a need to bring everything up to current code such as the electrical wiring, sprinkler system, and earthquake standards. Prior to starting the renovation, surveys were gathered and meetings were held to present the plans and answer questions. There were only about 40 people after each Mass that attended these presentations. The fundraisers were hired as the Bishop felt they were very successful in Salt Lake and that they would be a benefit in raising the funds. They have a contracted price regardless of the amount of money that is raised.

One parishioner was concerned about the availability of the priests when there is someone that is seriously ill in the hospital, who wishes to go to confession or receive the last rites. It was felt that this should not be a problem as Father Renee has an emergency cell phone, which has been published in the bulletin. Phyllis Hurtado also stated that at any time someone could not reach a priest or any of the deacons, that they could call her and she would make every effort to contact a priest.

CONCLUSION: 

1. The parishioner will receive a written response to his letter.

2. Because of the numerous questions that were raised, a general meeting will be scheduled for all parishioners so that any and all questions can be answered. An announcement regarding the date and time will be published in the Bulletin  for at least three (3) weeks in a row, an announcement will be made from the altar and a sign will be posted in the church. Parishioners will be asked to submit their questions in writing so that there will be time to research the answers. Questions are to be placed in the Suggestion Box.  

 Submitted by:

Marianne Rowe, Secretary

ST. GEORGE CATHOLIC CHURCH