Our Staff
PASTOR SETH LEYPOLDT
CHUCK KESTLE - Worship Leader
VICKI KESTLE - Treasurer
KARIANN THAUT - Admin. Assistant
FRED CRASE - Music Director
ED DOBB - Custodian
Committees
ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL
CHAIRPERSON: Jackie Timmer
MEMBERS: Brad Belke, Vicki Kestle, Kariann Thaut, Jean Frank, Janet Helfrich, Dave Duffy, Peggy Ryan, Debbie Higbie, Terri Belke, Jyl Duffy, Debbie Todd, Lauren Kippen, Bruce Schuelke, Kathy Davis, and Jill Graff.
WHAT THEY DO: The Administrative Council ensures that all items of the Charge Conference are fulfilled throughout the year. In fact, the purpose of the Council is to act as the Executive Body for the Charge Conference. Since Charge Conference only meets once a year, the Administrative Council meets as needed throughout the year fulfilling all items listed in the Visions and Goals of our Charge Conference document. As with any policy-making body there are items that come up that may not have been foreseen during Charge Conference. The Administrative Council acts upon those items to ensure timely use of our church building, our resources, and to make sure that the church is following the principals of The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: A typical meeting of the Administrative Council usually lasts an hour with reports given by heads of each ministry team. Since this body acts as the Executive Body for the church there have been occasions where meetings have lasted longer than an hour. Usually we come to an agreement or we table the discussion until more research is to be had.
The Administrative Council typically meets on the last Wednesday of the month at 7 pm in the overflow room. This date was chosen to ensure that our decisions would be reflected in the following month’s newsletter.
STAFF / PASTOR-PARISH RELATIONS
CHAIRPERSON: Lauren Kippen
MEMBERS: Brad Belke, Jim Axelson, Pat Gibson, Barbara O’Brien, Bonnie Canty, Nita Kingsbury, Becky Rolich, and Jyl Duffy. There is one vacancy.
WHAT THEY DO: The Staff / Pastor-Parish Relations Committee or S/P-PRC for short operates as BOTH a personnel committee and a committee that works with the pastor. As a personnel committee the S/P-PRC meets with all paid staff members of the church. When there is a vacancy this group also makes the hire and sets the salaries (with approval of charge conference) for these hired personnel.
Switching gears, the S/P-PRC is the official body that works with our Bishop to ensure we have pastoral leadership. When there is a change in pastors it is this committee that meets with the District Superintendent to talk about the change and who shall be the next pastor. This is also the only committee that is allowed to share joys and concerns with the District Superintendent. The pastor is not hired by the church. The pastor is appointed by the Bishop to our congregation and it is through the District Superintendent that our wishes are made known.
Since we own a parsonage as the home resided by the pastor, this committee works with our Trustees. A 6-member team (three from each committee) meets with the pastor once a year to ensure that the parsonage meets the minimum standards set forth by the Mountain Sky Annual Conference. Jim Axelson, Pat Gibson, and Barb O’Brien represent the S/P-PRC on this subcommittee.
One other aspect of this team is to discern the call into ministry of any individual. The pastor makes the initial visit and then once this individual feels they are ready for the next step, it is the S/P-PRC that meets and approves of the candidate for continuation.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: The Staff/Pastor-Parish Relations Committee does not have a set time to meet. It is usually as needed by the Conference or when concerns are valid. Due to the nature of the work all discussions are confidential.
Board of Trustees
CHAIRPERSON: Bruce Shuelke
MEMBERS: Check Kestle, Ronda Cherry, Bob Worley, Amy McNichols, Debbie Fisher, Karen “Sarge” Sargeant, and Ryan Belke. There is one vacancy.
WHAT THEY DO: The make-up of this team is the most detailed of all of the committees in the church. According to The Book of Discipline there can only be a maximum of nine members where 1/3 (3 people) of the membership is made up of lay women and 2/3 (6 people) have to be members of the church. It is the only committee that requires a quorum (a majority) to meet. The Trustees can still gather but no official decisions can be made unless a majority of the members of the Trustees are present.
The Committee on Trustees has such requirements because it is the incorporated body of the church and thus works with the Secretary of State to ensure that the congregation is current on all legal matters such as its incorporation and with its insurance. Think of the Trustees as the Board of Directors.
It is a misnomer that the Trustees only handle the property of the church. The Trustees are in charge of all assets of the congregation. These assets include the church’s endowment, its finances, and the buildings and grounds that the congregation owns. A member of the Trustee’s sits on the Endowment Committee and also on the Committee on Finance for this very reason.
The Committee on Trustees works closely with the Staff/Pastor-Parish Relations Committee to ensure that the Parsonage meets all minimum standards set by the Mountain Sky Annual Conference. Three members (Bruce Schuelke, Deb Fisher, and Amy McNichols) make up one-half of this sub-committee.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: Business meetings of the Trustees usually focus on property issues since it is the most visible asset. Meetings are typically held on the second Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm and meet in the Conference Room.
Committee on Finance and Memorials
CHAIRPERSON: Dave Duffy
MEMBERS: Kariann Thaut, Vicki Kestle (Treasurer), Bruce Schuelke (representing the Trustees), Brad Belke, Gerry Allen, Barry Kippen, Bill Rhoads, and Phylis Rice.
WHAT THEY DO: The goal of this ministry is to ensure that all of our bills are paid at the end of the year. Our discussion focuses on stewardship and specifically the acknowledgment that what we have all comes from God (Psalm 50.10). We believe it is a blessing that we receive a paycheck and a retirement account and have food in our bellies, a warm place to sleep. When we understand that all of this comes from God we feel we have done the work of the Lord who loves us. Our stewardship moments are an acknowledgment of just this.
The committee also looks at the expenses of the church to ensure that we are using your gifts responsibly. Financial reports that include income and expenses or in church speak – gifts and obligations – are commonplace at our gatherings.
It is always our goal that our tithes and our gifts meet the obligation of the budget. However, the committee acknowledges that there are shortfalls. Since it is the obligation to raise the needed funds for the church, members of this committee do focus on fund-raisers.
The work of acknowledging memorial gifts falls under this ministry team. We have a dedicated volunteer who works on acknowledging all gifts to the church.
It is also our policy that all gifts to the Memorials of the church that are undesignated – meaning that no decision has been made to these funds – are forwarded to our Endowment. This only takes place after a six-month grieving process.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: Meetings for this ministry team usually take place once-a-month on the last Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm and held in our overflow room
Barnabas Committee
CHAIRPERSON: Jean Frank
MEMBERS: Peggy Ryan, Carol Brown, LaVerne Henrich, Cherilyn Lambert, Anita Richard, Carol Rhoads, and John Rich.
WHAT THEY DO: The focus of this group is on the members and friends of Aldersgate; specifically, those who are shut-ins or are residing in our care facilities. The work of this group is to visit these individuals and share the love of God and the care of Aldersgate people. Cards and well-wishes are written at each meeting and plans are always made to find ways to meet those who are now unable to travel outside of their home. In their own words, “we wish to bring them a feeling of belonging and an unfailing faith. It is important that we bring them a little sunshine, a break in any lonesomeness, an avenue to express any occurrences that bring them happiness or unhappiness that they need to express. Our visits are a chance for them to talk, to reminisce, or express whatever they are pondering.”
Barnabas are the card-writers of our community. This lost art continues as members of Aldersgate receive cards for birthdays, anniversaries, and special events.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: Meetings for the ministry of Barnabas are on the first Monday’s of the month at 11 am.
Member / Nurture Team
CO-CHAIRS: Peggy Ryan and Debbie Higbie
MEMBERS: Terri Belke, Kathleen Finch, LaVerne Henrich, Lauren Kippen, Barbara O’Brien, Marilyn Parrett, Georgia Quilici, Donna Shovlin, Marylyn Shovlin, and Fran Warner.
WHAT THEY DO: The focus of this group is on the members of Aldersgate. We are always looking for ways to enhance the communal “feel” of the congregation. Member / Nurture organizes our coffee hour; members distribute bulletins and communion to those in our nursing facilities, and they organize special meals to bring our community together. When we have cake (i.e. to celebrate our graduates) after church it is often at the direction of Member/Nurture. We work closely with other ministry teams to make sure that everyone feels Welcomed Home to Aldersgate.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: The group only meets as necessary or when getting ready for an event.
Missions Committee
CHAIRPERSON: Debbie Todd
MEMBERS: Jyl Duffy, Roberta Dobb, Sharon Miller, Shirley Rognstad, Pat Gibson, Nancy Sullivan, Mary Jo Turner, Chris Hassler, Andi Kankelborg, and Elaine Schnell.
WHAT THEY DO: The focus of this group is on those who reside outside the walls of our church. Our aim is to be the hands of Jesus in our work and through our mission dollars. In these efforts we realize that we cannot do it all, however, we can concentrate our mission work on a monthly basis. Each month we have selected various missions that are either local or global and we support them wholeheartedly. Some of these missions are supported through the dollars, cents, and checks placed in the “pink” basket that represents the mission of the month. Some of our missions are supported by a special plea for coats or teddy bears or paper products or school supplies. We are a giving church and our mission is to be the hands and feet of Jesus never ends.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: The group only meets as necessary or when getting ready for a mission project.
Christian Education Committee
CHAIRPERSON: Janet Helfrich
MEMBERS: Jill Graff, Brad Belke, Marcia Lubick, Lara Robins, and Sheryl Tremis.
WHAT THEY DO: The focus of this group is found in our name – Christian Education. We take seriously this role and do our best to provide ministry to the children and youth of our congregation. Our work is continually evolving. Each year we look at the congregation and decide what would be best for our population. Due to our numbers, Kid’s Night meets on the first Sunday of each month from 4 pm to 5 pm followed by dinner. Due to our numbers, Youth Group meets from 3 pm to 5 pm on the first three Sundays of the month. The only meal provided is shared with the Kid’s Group on the first Sunday of the month. We also work to make sure that we provide for Vacation Bible School in the summer and a Christmas program in the winter. Some of you caught our production of the Living Nativity.
In addition, they provide for Christian Education needs of our special adults and support, as best we can, the adult Sunday school class that meets at 9 am on Sunday mornings.
WHAT A MEETING LOOKS LIKE: The group only meets as necessary or when getting ready for a mission project.