Parish Staff

Pastoral Council

Members serve in an advisory role to the parish priest. They plan for the future of the parish, review parish policies, promote faith formation and parish activities, coordinate parish groups, and accept and consider comments and suggestions from parishioners.

Charlotte Snekvik - Chair 509-595-3048
Alejandrina Amado
Rob Cassleman
Lorraine Farrand
Aurora Horstkamp
Jim Lincoln
Kevin Owens
Eric Patera - Vice Chair
Mary Schweitzer
Charlotte Worthy

Minutes: Sacred Heart Pastoral Council Zoom Meeting -
September 13, 2020

Members present: Alex Amado, Rob Cassleman, Fr. Steve Dublinski, Lorraine Farrand, Aurora Horstkamp, Jim Lincoln, Kevin Owens, Eric Patera, Mary Schweitzer, Char Snekvik (chair) and Charlotte Worthy. Also present: Mary Sutherland, Parish Secretary.
The meeting opened with the Our Father.
Faith Formation Commission: Members had read the Faith Formation Board report, which was attached to the September 13 bulletin, and is posted on our website. The board is trying to be very flexible with faith instruction for families – some want online lessons, some prefer workbooks, and both will be offered.
            At the Prepares Zoom meeting on Saturday Sept. 12, they discussed how to reach families with children under five. Children that age like to receive mail, they may mail out the Gospel coloring pages, stickers, etc.
Liturgy & Worship Commission:
            Mass Attendance: The average attendance the last three weeks was: 4:30 pm: 35, 8:30 am: 45, and 10 or 11 am: 35. The parking lot Mass on August 16 was very well-attended with over 90 cars.
            Mass plans for the future:  Fr. Steve reported that the parish purchased two more of the large white tent canopies. They can be used for Oktoberfest post-pandemic. According to the governor’s instructions for outdoor services, two sides of a tent can be closed if you have good air ventilation. Propane heaters for the tents is possible.
            We are in dialogue with Gladish. They now charge $2 per person for the large gym. Its capacity is 700 plus. The gym might be safe for the small groups of 30 to 50 that attend the weekend outdoor Masses. We need to know what time a local church is meeting in the Gladish View Room and how much room they take up in the parking lot. We were looking into using Beasley Coliseum on Christmas Eve, but it appears to be closed. We could see if Schweitzer would make an exception for the event center for Christmas.
            The speakers we were using for outdoor Mass were from St. Thomas More. We are currently renting speakers from Atom Heart Music, 20 weeks for $200. It is a great deal. Better speakers are on order.
            Parking lot Masses – August 16 was very well attended. We could have them every week if the movie theater agreed. Fr. Steve will look to see if radio broadcasters are available now, they were sold out in the spring. Then people could keep their windows shut in cold weather.
            Safety: Council member and Safety Committee member Dr. Aurora Horstkamp noted that the positivity rate for COVID-19 tests is 16 to 20% at WSU right now, and the curve will inevitably go up. We are in a surge compared to March and April. At the hospital, 22% of tests are positive. The council discussed the safety of outdoor and parking lot Masses at this time. Fr. Steve doesn’t want anyone getting sick from coming to Mass. The virus has already spread to some older people. Active numbers are high.
            This week Fr. Steve has an interview with a reporter from a tv station on campus. If Fr. Steve says we’re shutting down it would send a very strong message. The council voted to shut down all in-person Masses, prayer groups, rosary, adoration, etc., until conditions improve.
            We need to give a good example by shutting down. We will still have everything online, including the Sunday homily and the readings to use at home. Just four people are needed to livestream and videotape daily Mass. Fr. Steve will get the message to St. Thomas More on campus that this is what we’re doing, and recommend that they follow suit.
Community Outreach Commission Report: It is attached and posted online with the council minutes. It includes reports from lots of different groups.
Finance & Administration Commission:
            ACA rebate: The parish finally received a $12,000 rebate from the diocese. Fr. Steve presented several options for it. The council decided to use the money to start a fund called Spanish Ministry. The money will pay to bring a priest to Pullman twice a month (or more) who will say Mass in Spanish, when it is safe to do so again.
 Fr. Paul at WSU can’t say Mass in Spanish, and people really miss that. There are more than 60 people who may attend, and the more regularly Spanish Mass is offered, the higher the attendance will be. Alex Amado, council member and spokesperson for the Spanish community, really appreciates the decision. People are hoping for confession in Spanish, also. Spanish Mass will also be outdoors when we are able to do that again.
            Finance report: At the end of June, the end of the fiscal year, the parish had $363,000 in operating income. Operating expenses were $352,000, so we were $11,000 to the good for 2019-20. There has been a shift to online giving. The current bank account total is $909,000. $623,000 is in the building fund. $202,000 is in general assets. Financially we’re in a good position. We’re going to spend good chunks of money on maintenance.
            Payroll protection loan: We spent it all on payroll. It’s still not clear how to get that forgiven. We’re working with the bank, and waiting for congress.
            Maintenance: Mike the bricklayer is probably coming this week. We have the bricks and mortar, but the smoke may delay things. Work on fixing the church steeple rood is also supposed to start this week, we’ll see.
Fr. Steve learned that we really need a contractor to seal the parking lot; it is not a DYI job. The last time, quite a few years ago, it cost $10,000. It will probably be $12-13,000 this time. The patching we did will save money. CTI in Palouse does that kind of work, and they also happen to be the bricklayers. Fr. Steve will contact them. The lot will also be restriped. Eric Patera is scraping the church windowsills. We need to paint the wood before winter.
Building committee: – The architects finished the rough draft of the facilities report in late June. It projected a much larger cost for building offsite than for remodeling onsite. However, they were comparing apples to oranges. Their offsite estimates were for an area at least twice as big as what we have now. For the Sunnyside property, they assumed we had to pay for all the infrastructure, when we would actually pay half. The report did give us a good idea of cost per square foot. The building committee asked the architects to revise the study. They will change the size of the offsite construction, use the correct costs, and also add an option for building a new energy efficient facility onsite with green building methods. Something pandemic friendly. Something that works for the future.
            The architects hoped to have the revised report ready by early September. But, since there was a delay period on all their projects, and then they started again, they are swamped. They haven’t touched our project in two months. But going slow is good at this time of financial uncertainty. It would be great to be on the other side of this time before having to make a decision.
            The owner of the Sunnyside property is being very patient. We are trying to keep it as an option, but if something else comes up we understand.
            When the final report is ready, it will all go before the parish. We need that essential knowledge before making the plan and deciding on one location. Then we call all give input on the plan, and get donors.
Update on St. Francis Guild: They have about $11,000, including over $2,000 in funds that can only be used to help with Avista bills. Since they are part of the parish’s 501c3, the parish is going to start including their money in the parish accounts, although it will still be in a separate bank account. They have one new member, and another possible member. There have not been as many requests for help as expected, but they have been helping some people with rent, food, gas, and furniture.
Pastoral Council retreat Saturday Sept. 26, 9 am – 12 pm: It will be on Zoom. Probably not for three hours. We will go over last year’s goals and see how we’ve done. We’ll look at where we want to go for the future. We’ll have election of officers and discuss the state of the parish report, which will be recorded and posted on YouTube.
            Pope Francis put out a document on the parish. Fr. Steve will give a summary of that. It can help us focus our goals. Fr Steve will send out a link to the document to council members.
Parish Auction: We have an “online auction” scheduled for October 24. It will be next to impossible to gather items, photograph, etc., if we are closed down. The council decided to have a fundraiser instead of an auction. We can send out envelopes. Al Farrand and Fr. Steve will work on a letter together.
Closing Prayer: The Glory Be.
Next Regular Meeting: Sunday, October 11.

September 13, 2020 council Zoom minutes
Community Outreach Commission report 9/13/20
June 14, 2020 council Zoom minutes
Community Outreach Commission report 6/20
May 17, 2020 council Zoom minutes
Finance and Administration Report to council 5/17/20
April 25, 2020 council Zoom minutes
Community Outreach Commisstion report to council 4/25/20
March 8, 2020 council minutes
February 9, 2020 council minutes
January 12, 2020 council minutes
December 8, 2019 council minutes
Community Outreach Commisstion report to council 12/8/19
November 3, 2019 council minutes
Faith Formation Board Report to Pastoral Council 11/3/19
October 13, 2019 council minutes
September 8, 2019 council minutes
June 2, 2019 council minutes
May 5, 2019 council minutes
April 7, 2019 council minutes
March 10, 2019 council minutes
Community Outreach Commission Report to Council 3/10/19
February 10, 2019 council minutes
January 13, 2019 council minutes
Faith Formation Board Report to Pastoral Council 1/13/19
December 9, 2018 council minutes
November 11, 2018 council minutes
October 14, 2018 council minutes
September 9, 2018 council minutes
June 3, 2018 council minutes
May 6, 2018 council minutes
April 15, 2018 council minutes
March 18, 2018 council minutes
February 25, 2018 council minutes
February 2018 council minutes - February 11
January 2018 council minutes
December 2017 council minutes
November 2017 council minutes
October 2017 council minutes
September 2017 council minutes
May 2017 council minutes

Faith Formation Board

Parish Faith Formation serves preschool through adults. Board members provide oversight and support to the Faith Formation staff for curriculum, hiring, adult education topics, and the parish library. Individuals will be chosen to form a diverse group representing all parish members.

Penny Zimmerman - President, 509-330-0736 
Tammy Barry 
Linda Heidenreich 
Jane Hommel 
Dan Jinguji 
Wendy McCann 
Jon Parrish 
Dave Schneider

Faith Formation Board Meeting
September 1, 2020 via Zoom
 

Attended by: Tammy Barry, Linda Heidenreich, Jane Hommel, Dan Jinguji, Linea Johnson, Wendy McCann, Theresa Paul, Dave Schneider, Penny Zimmerman, Anna Park
- Call to prayer: Linda Heidenreich & Opening prayer: Dave Schneider
- Sharing of personal reactions & experiences.

1. I. Review of the minutes from 8-4-20 - minutes were approved

• Prefer distance learning using the internet - 5 families, 1 returning catechist
• Prefer distance learning using physical materials (books/ handouts), but not internet - 6 families
• Prefer a hybrid approach using  internet, physical materials and possibly occasional face to face sessions - 14 families
• Prefer traditional face to face instruction - 5 families

2.  
3.  Tammy suggested the face to face option was too risky and too low a number to move forward with especially since the increased cases. Theresa said parents might change from the face to face since they won’t be able to group by grade level. It would probably be a mixed age group and it might not even be on Sundays between masses. Theresa wants to offer something to make the families feel included. Linda suggested a hybrid model and moving to face to face once out of the red zone. If public schools aren’t bringing kids in face to face, we shouldn’t either. FF Programs won’t start until October.

3. III. Children’s Mass & Back to Sunday School event - Father is happy to have a children’s focus homily for a mass on Sept 20. It is also Catechetical Sunday, so he will do a blessing for the catechists and the parents. We have new families that do not know the parish families. This is an opportunity to have small socially distanced groups do something fun while building parish community. There would be various stations and this would show the children and families they are important to us. If cases continue to spike, we will delay. We want to reach out to the families with small children and make sure that they feel welcome. 

4. Dan asked about sacramental preparation for this year. Theresa spoke with Father about this and we continue with prep since the model we use is already socially distanced. Theresa will Zoom with the parents and give them the materials. Parents work with their own children. We won’t have a date for confirmation as the bishop does that, but we will be able to offer first communion.

4. IV. Youth Group Report – they went through the summer meeting almost every Sunday via Zoom - meetings included videos and games with prizes. It was fun for all. Linea will meet with parents soon to see what they would like YG to look like for the fall.  Linea is hoping for some small group outdoor face to face meetings for deeper and more meaningful conversation. She will gauge parent and youth comfort level with that. Linea added the seventh grade students to the Flocknote emails and she has had a few join the Zoom meetings. She is hoping to get them more incorporated soon as it is difficult to join a group via Zoom. Wendy verified that the new youth group members might be hesitant to join by getting on Zoom. Linda suggested having a seventh grade welcome/fall kickoff. Tammy suggested breakout rooms on Zoom with a task or discussion that they bring back to the larger group. It would be helpful to have adult chaperons helping with the breakout groups, but they would have to be Virtus trained. Linea will request parent suggestions. Feedback from the group is that Google Meets is not as user friendly as Zoom. Tammy also suggested using polls and that it is a fun activity. 

Closing Prayer: Dave Schneider

Next meeting: Tuesday, 10/6/20 at 7pm via Zoom
Jon Parrish - opening prayer
Linda Heidenreich - closing prayer

September 1, 2020 faith formation board minutes
August 4, 2020 faith formation board minutes
June 2, 2020 faith formation board minutes
May 5, 2020 faith formation board minutes
March 3, 2020 faith formation board minutes
February 4, 2020 faith formation board minutes
January 7, 2020 faith formation board minutes
December 3, 2019 faith formation board minutes
November 5, 2019 faith formation board minutes
October 1, 2019 faith formation board minutes
September 3, 2019 faith formation board minutes
June 4, 2019 faith formation board minutes
May 7, 2019 faith formation board minutes
April 2, 2019 faith formation board minutes
March 5, 2019 faith formation board minutes
January 8, 2019 faith formation board minutes
December 4, 2018 faith formation board minutes
November 6, 2018 faith formation board minutes
October 2, 2018 faith formation board minutes
September 4, 2018 faith formation board minutes
June 2018 faith formation board minutes
May 2018 faith formation board minutes
April 2018 faith formation board minutes
March 2018 faith formation board minutes
February 2018 faith formation board minutes
January 2018 faith formation board minutes
December 2017 faith formation board minutes
November 2017 faith formation board minutes
October 2017 faith formation board minutes
September 2017 faith formation board minutes
June 2017 faith formation board minutes

Members research charities and decide which ones will receive money from the parish. In 1990 Sacred Heart's Pastoral Council decided the parish would spend a percent of its income on charity, gradually working up to 10%. It established the Caritas committee to disburse the funds. The percentage has varied over the years. 

Michelle Chapman, chair
Ken Casavant
Jessica Ortiz
Tim Paulitz
Robin Saam

Finance Council

This council is appointed by the pastor, and is responsible for ensuring the financial stability of the parish.

Erik Coats - President, 509-334-7772
Dennis Guettinger
Bernie McEldowney
Miho Nam
Rev. Jeff Core, diocesan representative