Highlights of the sub-Executive meetings of January 31, 2006
and the meeting of the Toronto Conference Executive
February 8, 2006

1.  annual meeting dates:  The sub-Executive approved the dates for the 2007 and 2008 annual meetings to be held at the Sheraton Parkway North Hotel, the site of the 2006 annual meeting.  By committing to three years at the same site, annual meeting venue costs will be flat lined for the entire period.  The 83rd annual meeting (2007) will take place June 1, 2 and 3.  The 84th annual meeting (2008) will be May 30, 31 and June 1.

2.  property:  At the request of Toronto South Presbytery, the sub-Executive extended to June, 2007 the timeline for the Presbytery’s mission strategy process.  The process is being funded from assets of the former WoodGreen United Church.  The sub-Executive also authorized the Trustees of the former WoodGreen property to enter into lease agreements that would end by June, 2008.

3.  other sub-Executive matters:  The sub-Executive continues to monitor compliance with the reviews of ministers.  It also appointed people to a number of committees upon the recommendation of the nominations committee.

4.  consultation follow-up:  The Conference’s Executive devoted its entire February meeting to follow-up from consultations with the Presbyteries in the last year.  The Executive is in discernment for God’s leading.  At the February meeting, the Executive spent much time in worship and Bible study, focusing on John 21:1-13, the post-resurrection passage where Jesus provides breakfast for the disciples after they had been fishing unsuccessfully all night.  Executive members discussed the passage in the light of the consultations.

The Executive then began to identify some major long-term issues to be addressed within the Conference, as well as some short-term issues (full set of minutes available).  While in table groups, members named the following:

• We need to be clear about why we are doing what we’re doing, i.e. what is our purpose?

• A review of Presbytery boundaries needs to be done, including looking at staffing for the Presbyteries in such areas as administration, program resources and support for Ministry Personnel.

• Presbyteries are burdened by reviews of Ministry Personnel and Pastoral Charges as mandated by Sections 333 and 363 of the United Church’s Manual.

• The resources we have could be redeployed within the Conference and with other Conferences.

• Governance issues need to be studied, including topics such as the role of the Executive, the role of the executive secretary, the role and term of the Conference president, the role and term of Presbytery chairs and/or Presbytery representatives to the Conference Executive; and the number of Conference committees.

The Executive took two formal actions on February 8.  The first was to ask President Fran Ota, President-elect Brian Perkins-McIntosh, Executive Secretary David Allen, and Laura Turnbull, chair of the agenda planning committee, to draft motions for the March Executive meeting.  These motions will give guidance on how to move forward.

The second Executive action was to authorize the executive secretary to extend the contracts of Conference staff.  A number of staff have been working on contract while the Conference decides how to proceed from the consultations.  The contracts will now go to the end of June, 2007 for Susan Howard who is working in the areas of youth and camping (full-time after June 30, 2006), Wenh-In Ng who is working in the social justice and ethnic ministry portfolio (half-time), Jemelda Johnston who is the Conference’s aboriginal relations vision keeper (one day per week), and office staff person Grace Nagata (12.5 hours per week).

To receive excerpts from the minutes as noted above, please contact Larysa Kazyeva at lkazyeva@torontoconference.ca