Read our latest announcement.
http://eepurl.com/hwo9o5
*Editor’s Note: the very last section of this email is the Finance team’s Report, a link to view the proposed 2021-22 Budget, and information about Budget Q & A sessions. If you are not seeing this section (in green) at the bottom, you are not viewing the entire message. You may be required to click or tap on ‘view in browser’ or ‘view entire message’ or something similar, depending on your device.
Unitarian Universalist Society of Mill Creek
** Annual Meeting Notice
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Sunday, June 6, 2021
12 noon
The purpose of the annual business meeting shall be to hear reports of officers and staff, to elect new trustees, including the President and nominating committee members, to adopt an annual budget, and address any business that comes before the congregation.
Each member shall be entitled to one vote who: (a) has attained the age of 18 years or has completed the Coming of Age program on or before the date of the meeting at which the vote is to be cast; and (b) whose request to be admitted or readmitted to membership was recorded in the records of the congregation at least 35 days before the date of the meeting at which the vote is to be cast; and (c) has made a financial contribution of record during the twelve-month period preceding the meeting at which the vote is to be cast.
How to attend the meeting:
You may use the link below to join the meeting on Sunday, June 6th. Or, you may wait to access the link which will be included in our regular Sunday morning email on June 6th. In either case, it is the same link.
Click here to join the Annual Meeting (link to Zoom conference) (https://zoom.us/j/97806427419)
** By-Laws Requirement
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Please make plans to attend the Annual Meeting. Our By-Laws (https://www.uusmc.org/wp-content/uploads/UUSMC-By-Laws-revised-06-02-2019.pdf) require one-fifth of the eligible members to attend the meeting to achieve quorum. Based on our current membership role, this means that we need a minimum of thirty (30) eligible voting members to join the online conference for the meeting to be official.
We, of course, encourage ALL members and friends to attend!
** Voting at the Annual Meeting
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Voting at the Annual Meeting will also be done virtually. We are using Election Buddy again this year as our voting platform. At the conclusion of the Annual Meeting presentations, eligible participants in the meeting will receive a ballot via email (from ElectionBuddy / UUSMC). This ballot will provide the opportunity to securely register your vote for:
* Approval of the FY2021-22 Budget
* Election of three Trustees for the 2020-2022 term
* Election of a Nominations Committee for the coming 2021 term
Please note that our By-Laws give voting privileges to Members who have made a contribution of record in the 12-month period prior to the meeting. In addition, our By-Laws do not allow for proxy voting, so only those eligible members who attend the Annual Meeting on June 6th (via the online conference) will receive ballots.
Click Here to Read the Mill Creek By-Laws (https://www.uusmc.org/wp-content/uploads/UUSMC-By-Laws-revised-06-02-2019.pdf)
** Election Slate
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The Nominating Committee nominates the following members to the Board of Trustees
For Trustee, a two-year term beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2023:
Kristina Ellura
Kristina is an installation and video artist. Her art is driven by spiritual themes and features universal symbols that all people can relate to, invoking basic precepts, and even deeper teachings from many different spiritual traditions. UUs have long been a place to fill up the spiritual well her work comes from. She began attending services and events at UUs throughout the area in 2004 and began attending Mill Creek in 2017 and she is looking forward to giving back. She has served on several boards before including the Newark Arts Alliance from 2006-2010. She received her BFA from the University of Delaware in 2008 and an MFA at Moore College of Art and Design in 2015.
For Trustee, a two-year term beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2023:
Shashi Ray
Shashi was raised a Hindu, with a lot of Catholicism thrown in, thanks to the Catholic schools she attended. As an Army brat, she has travelled extensively in India, imbibing different customs and religions…which left her thoroughly confused! She and Ram joined Mill Creek, looking for a liberal interesting community, which to their delight, they were happy to find. As an architect, she headed her firm and designed many interesting projects. After a career spanning 24 years, she relocated to the US, when she married Ram. A member of Zonta Int. and YWCA (Chennai), she now volunteers for different charity organizations. Empowering women and girls is her passion and every year, she spends 2-3 months in India, working in the village schools and communities, designing projects and teaching. Traveling and knitting caps for the homeless and the cancer kids takes up most of her time now.
For Trustee, a two-year term beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2023:
Patricia Thompson
A native New Yorker and Jersey girl, Pat joined Mill Creek in 2017 after returning to the Newark area with her husband, Dorian Pyle, in 2016. Raised as a Roman Catholic in a liberal household, Pat left behind her religious beliefs long ago, but not her belief in a society based on fairness, compassion, and respect. As someone who has experienced 7 major moves in the U.S. and 4 smaller ones, Pat was happy to settle down in Newark and find a community of like-minded people at Mill Creek. Currently a student at the Academy of Realist Art in Boston, Pat graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in journalism and has had careers in marketing and communications with large companies and nonprofits, consulting, web design, and as a patent paralegal for a number of Silicon Valley law firms. She has held leadership positions in performing arts and legal nonprofit organizations.
The Nominating Committee nominates the following members to serve on the next Nominating Committee for a one-year term commencing July 1, 2021:
Brian Coleman
Anna Hull
Lemaine Peo
** End of Year Finance Report
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The Board of Directors and the Finance Committee believe we will end the fiscal year on June 30, 2021 with a small surplus, provided our outstanding pledge commitments for this half of 20-21 year are met. This is due to the consistent and generous support of our membership through this difficult year.
The loss of rental income and the inability to hold our service auction has been offset by reduced expenses in Sunday Services, as well as the Music and RE Programs. While uncertainties remain in planning the 21-22 budget, the Board and the Finance Committee feel that we are in a stable financial position, with sufficient reserves to meet the challenges ahead. We are expecting to learn that the PPP loan we received last spring has been successfully forgiven.
Click Here to Review the Proposed FY2021-22 Budget (https://www.uusmc.org/wp-content/uploads/Mill-Creek-Proposed-Budget_2021-2022-Sheet1.pdf)
** Budget Question & Answer Sessions
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We have planned two Q & A sessions regarding the proposed 2021-22 budget:
*Sunday, May 23rd – 12 noon (during coffee hour)
Thursday, May 27th – 7:00 pm
*If you are planning to attend the regular Sunday online worship service, you will not need to access the link again.
Use the links below to attend either session.
Q & A Session: Sunday, May 23rd (https://zoom.us/j/93584046068)
Q & A Session: Thursday, May 27th (https://zoom.us/j/97416487822)
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