Presbyterian Promise Annual Meeting

PRESBYTERIAN
PROMISE
Inc.

704 Whitney Avenue
New Haven CT 06511

PresbyPromise.home.att.net

Proclaiming the Promise of God's Justice and Inclusive Love

Highlights
of the

Sixth Annual Meeting

3 - 5 PM
28 January 2007

First Presbyterian Church
Hartford Connecticut

Co-moderator's
Report
2006

Presbyterian Promise: January 2006 – January 2007

Highlights of the year include the following:

Successful implementation of the Reconciling Dialogue Project
Successful Discernment Program and Process
Interactive presence at Presbytery of Southern New England meetings
Outreach presence at two regional Pride events (Providence, Hartford)
Recognition and welcome to Stamford as a sponsoring Church
Covenant Network Conference and Pre-Conference Program on Authoritative Interpretation attended by Ralph Jones.
Education and Service to our Sponsoring Churches
Successful fund-raising, 2006

1.
In 2004, a four-person task force worked to develop a staffing plan that would enable Presbyterian Promise to proceed with its mission. Following the recommendations of a search committee, Presbyterian Promise seized the opportunity to contract with Plowshares International for a one-year pilot program called the Reconciling Dialogue Project (RDP). The RDP's goals were to develop conflict transformation skills and initiate dialogues that would nurture productive dialogue in this presbytery. Directed by Rev. Bob Evans, a member of the Presbytery of Southern New England, and Alice Evans, elder at First Presbyterian Church, Hartford, Plowshares Institute has worked to help transform intractable international conflicts. It was nominated by members of the South African parliament for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. The Reconciling Dialogue Project officially began in September 2005 with a capacity building session for Presbyterian Promise Board members and invited guests, and an October session in New Haven with an LGBT-focused conversation and further capacity building session. In March 2006, RDP held a well-attended Pastor's Retreat at Westminster Presbyterian Church in West Hartford. The retreat was endorsed by the Presbytery of Southern New England's council, and drew an audience that included seminarians, pastors, youth ministers, and even a church administrator. In May Plowshares led a congregational dialogue with members of Providence Presbyterian Church's session. Throughout the RDP, documentation was gathered, and during the summer, 2006 Plowshares and Presbyterian Promise drew upon this documentation to create a full report of the project, the lessons learned from it, and recommendations for the future. Drawing upon the successes and lessons of RDP, Presbyterian Promise and Plowshares have drawn up plans for an ambitious program in phase II (RDP II), including developing a cadre of persons trained at what might be called "reconciling advocacy," further congregational dialogues, and a visit by Jack Rogers, former GA moderator and author of Jesus, The Bible, and Homosexuality.

2.
Discernment Program and Process – a report on our Sept 9th meeting. Under the leadership of Alice Evans and Elizabeth Velez of Plowshare Institute, a broad group of folks met at the Hartford Church:

To celebrate Pres Prom's assets and accomplishments
To discern present needs of LGBT and PSNE communities
To generate realistic, concrete suggestions for how Pres Prom can most faithfully and effectively respond to these needs
To generate energy for and commitment to our mission.

After reflecting on biblical images of discernment, the participants did some group brainstorming of possible activities in these areas of need:

Youth issues (Support, needs, education, facts, hearing their voices)
Clergy and lay leadership (help with understanding the pain of LGBT families and pastoring effectively)
Nurturing comfort with differences/diversity in our congregations & Presbytery
Dealing with General Assembly authoritative Interpretation

3.
As a study and advocacy group of the presbytery, Presbyterian Promise staffs a table with educational resources at every presbytery meeting where interactive tabling is arranged. During 2006 we used new display equipment creatively, developing more sharply focused exhibits, with themes like reconciliation, and youth. We tried to use this venue to promote our activities as well as our general advocacy for LGBT equality. Interactive display space has been minimal at several of the presbytery meetings, and time for browsing very limited. While we will continue to prepare displays, the board may want to discuss the value of this activity.

4.
Presbyterian Promise's presence at regional Pride events is a way to reach out and declare a welcome for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people seeking a church community. In 2006 we were present with informational materials, tent, and friendly presence at the Rhode Island and Hartford Pride Events. For a second year, we placed a large and colorful ad in the Rhode Island Pride Program. We were an energetic presence at the September Hartford Pride event again this year. Our Hartford ad featured an image of Hartford Presbyterian Church, our sponsoring church in the city. Staffing included folks from New Haven, and for a second year Keith Rhoden coordinated local representation from Hartford and West Hartford churches. The "payoff" or benefit of this presence is not always readily evident; we cannot quantify the number of people who are attracted to our sponsoring churches because of our presence. Nonetheless, a gay man's comment at the Hartford event, that he really hadn't thought of the Presbyterians as being very open or welcoming, underlined the need for our open and public presence.

5.
Recognition at the Stamford Church: Board members met with the pastoral team of the Rev. Mary Thies and The Rev. David Van Dyke to affirm the continued support of the Stamford church and to discuss possible ways in which Pres Prom might be involved in Stamford. At a subsequent Sunday worship, during a "Minute for Mission," Pres Prom presented the Stamford church with a plaque in recognition of their continued relationship

6.
Presbyterian Promise Presence at the Covenant Network Pre-Conference session on the recent Authoritative Interpretation. Presbyterian Promise provided Ralph Jones with a modest scholarship toward the costs to attend the Covenant Network's pre-conference session on interpreting the Birmingham General Assembly's adoption of the Peace Authoritative Interpretation relating to ordination standards. Ralph is a co-chair of the presbytery's Committee on Preparation for Ministry, and his presence at this event provided important background and resources for issues relating to inquirers and candidates in the denomination.

7.
Communication, Education and Service to our Sponsoring Churches: Our newsletter, Presbyterian Promise News and our web site continue to be highly respected communication tools in the TAMFS network. The News appears occasionally and is our primary tool for educating, communicating, announcing events, etc. Newsletters are posted on the website, which is created and maintained by our webmaster and print editor Ralph Jones. Presbyterian Promise wants to maintain live and interactive communication with our sponsoring churches. During 2006, we made a point of holding our board meetings and other events at various sponsoring churches as well as other churches in the presbytery. We have arranged special meetings with pastors. For example, several board members and Lisa Larges, TAMFS Regional Coordinator, met with Stamford and Wilton pastors following the discernment gathering in September, and Dick Hasbany visited Providence Presbyterian later in the fall. Finally, we are taking steps to increase the effectiveness of our e-mail communication, which we have not exploited fully in the past. Members will be able to receive more frequent and updated schedules of upcoming events, trainings, and other announcements, in addition to receiving Presbyterian Promise News through the mail.

8.
Presbyterian Promise fund raising is done primarily through special appeals to our membership and through our newsletter. Our emphasis is on our Advent fundraising letter which normally goes out early to mid-December. In 2006, unlike the past two years, we did not have a matching grant offered by board members or other supporters. Nonetheless, total contributions for 2006 equaled $13,819.27 compared to $9,766.77 in 2005. Budget details appear in the Treasurer's Report.

Respectfully submitted,
Meg Nosenzo
Dick Hasbany
Co-Moderators

Election
of the
Board

Our bylaws provide that "at the Annual Meeting the membership shall elect members to serve on the Board. These members are in addition to those appointed to the Board by Sponsoring Members." Further, "There shall be not fewer that nine (9) nor more than twenty-one (21) directorships. ...Each director shall hold office for a term of three years from the time of his or her election and qualification. ...

The Board will have at least one appointed director from each Sponsoring Member."

The Nominating Committee is composed of the following three members: Dan Blackford, Mary-Starke Wilson and Pat Wales. The committee offers the following names to fill positions on the board:

Class of 2009		Keith Rhoden (Hartford: First) Janet Wade-Utay (West Hartford: Westminster) Rev. Anne Fuhrmeister (Waterford: Crossroads)
Continuing in Service
Class of 2008		Dan Blackford (Providence) Meg Nosenzo (Stamford: First) Mary-Starke Wilson (Stamford: First)
Class of 2007		Dick Hasbany Wayne Osborne (Stamford: First) Greg Price (Stamford: First)
Serving from Sponsoring Members		Hartford: Terry Davis
More Light Presbyterians Liaison		Jack Hartwein-Sanchez

Respectfully submitted,
Jane Hindenlang

PRESBYTERIAN
PROMISE

is a ministry called to proclaim God's promise
of justice and love in Jesus Christ
by organizing inclusive and inquiring churches
in the Presbytery of Southern New England
into a community of mutual support
for the empowerment
of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons,
and for outreach, education, and Christian evangelism.