August 2025 Board Meeting
Splinters from the UU Lansing Board Meeting August 27, 2025
Solar Panels Are a Go! The Board approved moving forward with solar panel installation. This commitment to the eco-consciousness/sustainability values of the church represents exciting progress toward a greener future!
Strategic Planning in Motion The Board is prioritizing clearer and more transparent long-term planning. A recent board retreat was the first of several steps to clarify priorities and steward church resources effectively—think capital projects like bathrooms, parking lot, and more. In some cases, rapid action is needed to capture funding opportunities (think RDC and solar panels). But as Ed Busch pointed out to the board, in general, we need a process to set priorities with broad input from multiple teams (e.g. grounds, stewardship, etc.) and congregants. Also critical to planning will be the healthy reviewing process that comes with assembly of an annual report, a practice that has been missed in the three years since the 2021-2022 version.
Endowment Needs Fresh Eyes Bob Lovell attended the meeting, raising important points about the history and use of our endowment fund, advocating for a committee process to ensure the interest monies are allocated purposefully and transparently, not just to cover expenses. He has assembled a revised endowment brochure to help inform congregants of this asset and inspire purposeful giving.
Financial Picture: Getting Clearer Bringing bookkeeping systems in-house will benefit from church administrator Katherine's expertise, while improving timeliness, accuracy, and costs. A review of our updated budget includes fair-share rent from the RDC and despite added costs due to the building's heavier usage, realistic projections show us still on track to nearly break even this year.
Let's Keep the Conversation Going The Board is working to improve communication—especially in responding to letters and feedback from the congregation. Though they have been informative and also socially enjoyable, the small group discussions' formal data collection window has now ended, as Sept. 14 will be the Second Sunday information session after church; THANK YOU to all in the groups who have so far gathered. BUT, the board continues to seek dialogue wherever possible; we really DO want to know what YOU think, and how you want to be engaged!