Unity of Madison Annual Meeting | February 23, 2025
The meeting was called to order by President Joanne Ruzicka. Prayer Chaplain Marylyn Mehl offered an opening prayer.
Vice President Steve Roberts read the minutes from the 2024 Annual Meeting. After the minutes had been read, Joy Morgen made the motion to approve them. Jennifer Parker seconded the motion. The motion passed.
The next item of business was the election of new Board members. Steve read Article VI, Section 12, parts A and D from the bylaws as required, which outlines the qualifications for being a trustee and the procedure for the election.
The candidates were:
Ø Tricia Hillier, running for a 3-year term.
Ø Jill Wilkis, running for a 3-year term.
Ø Joy Morgen, running for a 1-year term.
Ø Bethany Luther, running for a 1-year term.
Joanne then called for nominations from the floor. There were none. This meant that none of the positions were opposed, and the candidates were approved by unanimous consent.
Joanne then conducted the selection of the Nominating Committee for 2025. Jennifer Parker and Steve Roberts volunteered to serve on the team, which will include the minister and a board representative.
Steve then presented a bylaws change that was recommended by the Bylaws Team and approved by the Board. The change eliminated the last sentence of Article VI, Section 5, which read “The attendance of a member of the board at the meeting shall serve as a waiver of this notice requirement for that board member.”
Lloyd Rowley moved to approve the change. Helen Kenyon seconded the motion. The change was approved by a minimum of 3/4 of the attending members, as required.
Steve then gave a report on the progress made by the Tech Team in 2024 and outlined some of the plans for the upcoming year. This included the completion of the lighting for the platform area of the sanctuary and plans to isolate the mixing of the audio for the live stream from the sound board area.
Rev. Debra Carter Williams presented the Minister’s Report. She began by thanking all the volunteers of our community. She also thanked the Board of Trustees, the Unity of Madison employees, the Youth and Family Ministry volunteers and the Home Care Team. Rev. Debra
then reviewed the accomplishments of the past year, which included several book studies, special events, and the completion of the capital campaign.
Joanne Ruzicka then presented the President’s Report. Joanne thanked Rev. Debra for a great first year of service as our minister. She remarked at our good fortune in being gifted a new piano, and she pointed out that our attendance is growing, both on Sunday morning and in the offered book studies and classes. She mentioned the implementation of the church office software system, Breeze, and how helpful it has been in making operations more efficient.
Joanne recalled the success of the summer picnic, the Women’s Retreat, the Talent Show, the Trunk and Treat event at Halloween and Pete’s concert in December. She also expressed gratitude for the new staff members that Rev. Debra hired in 2024, Tina and Kate.
Joanne then outlined some plans for the coming year, which included organizing a Finance Team, the continuation of the Landscape Team, getting the sidewalk built on the north lawn and replacing the outside doors in the sanctuary.
Nancy Sundal then gave the Treasurer’s Report. She reported that total income for the year 2024 was $233,994, and total operating expenses were $181,784. Average monthly income for 2024 was $14,343. This number was actually about $3,000 per month less than what would have been needed to cover our operations, although the difference was met by two generous bequests received totaling almost $62,000.
Income, including the bequests, exceeded our expenses. Nancy explained how the difference (extra income) was invested in a 7-month CD and a reserve fund money market account, giving us an excess of a 20% reserve for ongoing operational expenses. Nancy answered several questions about average monthly income, how to designate funds for special projects, and future plans for upgrading the kitchen. She concluded by stating that we are in excellent shape moving forward into 2025.
The 2025 budget was then voted on. Jeff Nesta moved to approve, John Panuska and Kay Frazier both seconded. The budget was approved.
A vote was also taken to approve funding for the sidewalks on the north lawn, which will exceed the $25,000 discretionary limit of the Board of Trustees. Joy Morgen moved to approve; Nancy Sundal seconded. The motion was approved.
Joanne then led an open-floor discussion, which focused on improvements to the kitchen, the Namaste Cafe and building an outside patio.
Joanne then adjourned the meeting and Rev. Debra gave a closing prayer.