UMC of Monroe - Staff Parish Relations Committee Review of 2008
Submitted by: Kathleen Brantley, November 30, 2008

We are truly blessed to have a staff of such caring, competent and devoted individuals.  We were blessed to have ended the year with the same staff members we had when we began, with one major exception.  Our church secretary, Jim Fleegal became ill and passed away in the spring.  Not only was Jim our secretary, he was an active church member who connected with many people in the congregation; he is sorely missed.  We completed all staff reviews and the district evaluation forms on schedule this fall.  We have requested that Kregg remain our pastor in 2009 and are hopeful this request is granted.  He is in his fourth year with us and has an increased level of self-confidence with members.  The congregation has an increased comfort level with Kregg, and look to him for spiritual guidance and growth.

We continue to be challenged in our search for a part-time Youth Leader to work with our middle- and high-school youth; however, we've made more progress recently thanks to a SPR member volunteering to partner with Kregg to actively recruit for the position.   Several specific actions have been identified and are being pursued now.  The position is being funded by a generous gift from a church member; however, we were unable to increase the pay level as we'd hoped due to budget constraints this year.  While having a highly energized middle-high school Sunday school program and a large confirmation class has made the need for a Youth Leader slightly less urgent, we must continue to recruit to fill the job as we expect it could take some quite some time to find the right person. 

Going forward into next year, a major challenge will be to fund, and fill, the secretary position, or continue to have Kregg and others complete the critical secretarial tasks.  SPR members also need to continue to speak with church members regularly to ensure any concerns are voiced and dealt with.  This has allowed us to addresses issues quickly in the past and make improvements.  With God's guiding hand we will continue to be able to treat our staff with the care and respect they deserve and offer all who attend our church an environment in which they will continue along their faith journey.