Download a pdf of the 2024 March Parish Council Meeting Minutes
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Approved Minutes
Holy Trinity Parish Pastoral Council Minutes – March 18, 2024, 7:30 PM
Present: Randy Nardinger, Mary Jo O’Reilly, Mary Haggerty, Ken Haggerty, Steve Welscher, Henry Keller, Chris O’Reilly, Fr. McCabe
I. Meeting called to order by Steve Welscher at 7:30PM. Opening Prayer by Father.
II. Minutes of last meeting (November 2023), were read. Motion to approve by Chris. Seconded by Randy. (Place in Sunday bulletin.)
III. Welcome of new Parish Council Member Taylor Dowden. He also represents Holy Trinity Parish at Archbishop’s Pastoral Council.
IV. Holy Trinity Parish—Pastor updates
A. Parish Pastoral Council Constitution and By Laws still need to be reviewed by the Archdiocese.
B. ―Synod‖is a Greek word that means walking together on the same path; syn = same odo = path. Our three goals are:
i. Grow a vibrant Youth/Family Ministry program.
ii. Continue to build community life between our three churches.
iii. Reclaim Sundays for faith and family.
C. We have 8 Synod Parish Evangelizations Cell (PECS) smallgroups meeting weekly. Executive Team Committee members Eric Ryan - Chair, Micayla Ryan - Secretary and Jeremy Keller – Prayer Coordinator, are happy with the response, but hope that we can continue after the Easter Season.
D. Holy Trinity projects:
a. Community room carpet: The company that was recommended never replied back to Sara McNamara after months of trying to connect with them. Fr. McCabe is exploring two other companies to clean the carpet.
b. New microphone for singers in balcony to replace the wireless mic. Some parishioners have donated money to replace faulty system, and other parishioners have come forward to offer their financial assistance. Fr. McCabe needs to wait until after Easter to move on this project.
c. A/C unit needs to be serviced. Fr. McCabe needs to wait until after Easter.
E. St. Columbkill projects:
a. Light shining in the basement from outside suggests a hole in the foundation and Bruce McNamara has looked into it. When spring comes he will look into more closely and may find it needs only caulking.
F. St. Mary projects:
a. St. Mary has completed piping work at cemetery. Contracts for 3 small flat roofs to become inclined roofs, but John Huneke is in communication and will have insurance and license information from contractor.
b. Fr. McCabe’s apartment rectory has new flooring and a new shower. He thanks all the volunteers who helped him move out and move back in, and those volunteers who helped with the projects.
V. Liturgy update – Fr. McCabe
A. Extraordinary Eucharistic Ministry was reviewed and five new EE Ministers were trained.
B. Three new lectors were trained with the help of Karen Albers.
C. Three new altar servers were trained with Diane Ryan’s help.
VI. Faith Formation Update – See attachment
VII. Catholic Young Adult group meets generally on the 3rd Sunday of the month for a potluck, presentation or activity, and ends devotions: Dec. 17 - Christmas caroling reached about 30
people with stops at Goodhue Apartments where catechumens Fred Graack, a paraplegic, and Wilma and Laural Seither reside; Goodhue Senior Living; and many homes along the way. Jan. 21 – Prolife presentation and 1 hour of prayer and adoration, with some other parishioners joining us for prayer. Feb. was dedicated to helping with Mardi Gras which was a success and netted about $2,900.00.
VIII. Youth and Family Ministry committee members organized Mardi Gras, which although competed with the Super Bowl, still was successful. 10% of proceeds will go to First Choice prolife clinic.
IX. Financial update – Randy Nardinger, liaison to Parish Finance Council, will give update.
X. Other old business: Fr. McCabe was able to work with Brandon Schafer with regard to thermostat settings at Holy Trinity Church. The internet at St. Columbkill was paid for by Fr. McCabe and is being used by his Parish Evangelization Cell small group.
XI. New business: Finance Council has given Fr. McCabe green light to hire a new custodial/maintenance person to replace Brett Hayward, and to cut HT lawn since volunteer doing that has resigned. The other churches have contracts for lawn care.
XII. St. Columbkill organized the Holy Trinity Parish Picnic in conjunction with Fr. McCabe’s installation by Archbishop Hebda. It was a wonderful event and the bishop and Fr. McCabe’s parents and friends were impressed. St. Mary Church, Bellechester, is scheduled to host the Parish Picnic. I suggest that we host it on Wednesday, August 14, PM after or before Vigil Mass of the Assumption of Mary, or Thursday, August 15 after or before the Solemn Mass of the Assumption of Mary. Ellen Huneke is looking at helping to organize it, whether it is on those days or not.
XIII. Next meeting date: Monday, May 20, 2024 at 7:30 PM at Holy Trinity Church. Additional tentative meeting dates for 2024 on the 3rd Monday of the month are: July 15, September 16 and November 18.
XIV. Closing Prayer
XV. Motion to adjourn by Chris. Seconded by Taylor.
Respectfully submitted by Henry Keller, transcribed by Maria Schultz
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Download a pdf of the 2021 October Parish Council Meeting Minutes
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HOLY TRINITY PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES –10/4/21
Present were Bob Eppen, Karen Albers, Mary Jo O’Reilly, Chris O’Reilly, Jean Schulte, Randy Nardinger, Henry Keller, Steve Welscher, Sara McNamara, and Fr. McCabe.
I. Meeting was called to order by Bob Eppen. Opening prayer by Fr. McCabe.
II. Minutes were read. Motion to approve by Karen Albers and seconded by Mary Jo O’Reilly. Motion carried.
III. Holy Trinity Parish
o Parish Pastoral Council Constitution and By Laws was tabled until November Meeting.
o Archdiocesan Synod – Ideas are being generated. Teaching event is being developed that can also be used for confirmation retreat.
IV. Church Updates
o Holy Trinity
 Sounds system will be worked on Oct 7th.
 Lawn mower needs to be replaced.
o St. Mary’s
 Railings in front of church need powder coating.
 Turn around area discussion put on hold until residence for Father is decided.
 Roof is on hold.
o St. Columbkill
 Bats are still an issue. Gary is checking into issue. Plunkett’s quoted $8000.
 Mold is an issue yet. Gary Anfinson quoted $500 to seal dormers. He does not do clean up.
 Updating quotes for church addition.
V. Liturgy Team Updates
o Digital piano has been ordered for $4000 for Holy Trinity. Piano is on back order.
o Recruiting for new liturgical roles. New people are being trained.
VI. Faith Formation
o Sept. 22nd open house went very well.
o Students registered: 1-6: 48 students, high school 7-10: 25 students, high school 11-12: 4 students.
o Number of Catechists: 15. Approximate number of substitutes: 5.
VII. Catholic Young Adult Group
o Organization and Pizza Party Tues. Oct. 19, St. Mary 7:30-9:30.
o Brett Hayward is helping with clean up at all three churches.
VIII. Finance Update by Bob Eppen
o Audit will happen soon. Clifton Larson Allen Firm has been selected to perform audit.
o Financials from August 2020 and 2021 were discussed.
o Discussion about online giving was discussed and will be checked into.
o Father will discuss where to invest money with Archdiocesan advisors.
IX. Catholic Services Appeal
o Appeal giving is on track but there is a way to go. Goal is $9,856 and $8,295 has donated so far.
X. Archdiocesan Parish Financial Report must be submitted by end of October.
o Lindsey Buck is organizing a prayer walk Sept 3rd – 10th along north side of Holy Trinity.
o 9/11 adoration from 8:30-10AM and Mass at 10-11AM.
XI. Next Meeting is November 15th, 2021.
XII. Closing Prayer by Father McCabe. Motion to adjourn meeting by Randy Nardinger and seconded by Chris O’Reilly. Motion carried.
Submitted by Steve Welscher
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Download a pdf of the 2021 August Parish Council Meeting Minutes
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Submitted by Steve Welscher
HOLY TRINITY PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES –8/26/21
Present were Ken and Mary Haggerty, Bob Eppen, Karen Albers, Mary Jo O’Reilly, Randy Nardinger, Steve Welscher, Sara McNamara, and Fr. McCabe.
I. Meeting was called to order by Bob Eppen. Opening prayer by Fr. McCabe.
II. Minutes meeting were read. Motion to approve by Karen Albers and seconded by Mary Jo O’Reilly. Motion carried.
III. Holy Trinity Parish
o Archdiocesan Synod is in the third year with 10 ambassadors from Holy Trinity. More positions to be filled with meeting scheduled. More meetings to be scheduled and will be in the bulletin.
o Copier has been purchased. New bulletin has been developed and is being used. Ads will be sold for $250 per block per year. Good investment!
o Nuvera is upgrading TV’s to be smart TV’s. Hardware and setup cost is $1400.
IV. Church Updates
o Holy Trinity
 AC is running too much and needs to be checked. Father McCabe to schedule.
 Need to get lights by curb. Fr. McCabe is going to get Brett Hayward to paint stripes.
o St. Mary’s
 Railings in front of church need powder coating.
 Pest control for bees above bride’s room. Monitoring status but improving.
 Roof is on hold.
 Tiling is complete and hole in back has been filled.
o St. Columbkill
 Bats are an issue again.Gary is checking into issue.
 Mold is an issue yet.
 Statues are back.
V. Liturgy Team Updates
o Digital piano has been ordered for $4000 for Holy Trinity. 1 week delivery with $2,700 to be paid yet.
o Recruiting for new liturgical roles.
VI. Faith Formation
o Sept. 22nd open house.
o Registration will be coming out in next couple weeks.
o Teacher are meeting to learn from each other on best practices.
VII. Catholic Young Adult Group
o Brett Hayward from Cannon Falls is a group member and has volunteered to help with cleaning tasks.
o Brian Gibson spoke at August 15th meeting and was well received.
VIII. Finance Update by Bob Eppen
o Audit with leadership change is $5K from three different firms. Firm to be selected yet.
o Financials from July 2020 and 2021 were provided. July 2021 is even better than 2020.
IX. Catholic Services Appeal
o Giving is on track but there is a way to go. Fr. McCabe to make announcement to parishioners.
X. Other
o Lindsey Buck is organizing a prayer walk Sept 3rd – 10th along north side of Holy Trinity.
o 9/11 adoration from 8:30-10AM and mass at 10-11AM.
XI. Next Meeting is September 20th, 2021 and November 15th, 2021.
XII. Closing Prayer by Father McCabe. Motion to adjourn meeting. Motion carried.
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Download a pdf of the 2021 July Parish Council Meeting Minutes
HOLY TRINITY PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES –7/12/21
Present were Ken and Mary Haggerty, Bob Eppen, Karen Albers, Chris O’Reilly, Henry Keller, Jean Schulte, Randy Nardinger, Steve Welscher, Sara McNamara, and Fr. McCabe.
I. Meeting was called to order by Bob Eppen. Opening prayer by Fr. McCabe.
II. Minutes meeting were read. Motion to approve by Henry Keller and seconded by Jean Schulte. Motion carried.
III. Holy Trinity Parish
o Archdiocesan Synod - Bishop wants good participation with 10 ambassadors from Holy Trinity.
o Trustee roles will be reviewed.
IV. Parochial Administrator Updates
o Proposed new masses changes will be tried for 3 months.
o Bulletin will be changing but not sure how yet. Ad letter versus LPI.
V. Church Updates
o Holy Trinity
 Light is needed at west entrance of church so people can see curbing when leaving in the dark. Light could possibly be turned on with motion detector. Paint curb with stripes.
o St. Mary’s
 Railings in front of church need powder coating.
 Abortion Memorial Garden needs to be completed yet.
 Dirt for cemetery leveling has been delivered. Roof is on hold.
o St. Columbkill
 Bats are an issue again. Hole opened where old cistern was in parking lot. Filled again.
 Four statues are being restored. Two have been painted and two getting prepped.
 Building project is still on hold. Septic Tank is full and needs pumping. Vasa does it for free.
VI. Liturgy Team Updates
o Family model will be used to build family teamwork.
o Looking into digital pianos. Cost is $3,400, $4,700, and $6,600 for the three models.
o Recruiting for readers and singers. Looking to develop a new program.
VII. Faith Formation
o Spring Audit was done to make sure training and Virtus training was up to date. Two safe lessons per year are required for students with greater than 90% participation
o Summary of First Meeting where Christ is Primary Teacher and Parents are Primary Educator.
VIII. Catholic Young Adult Group
o Would like to restart program with bigger scope and regroup.
o Would like to involve more young men and women with spin off from Bible Study.
o Brian Gibson will be speaker at August 15th meeting.
IX. Finance Update by Bob Eppen
o Survived Covid because of generous giving from parishioners. New budget has been set.
o Financial review is required with change of leadership.
X. Catholic Services Appeal
o Giving is on track.
XI. Other
o Sisters of Notre Dame requested donation of $300. St. Mary’s is 1 of 300 parishes served. Served at St. Mary’s from 1881-1969.
XII. Next Meeting is August 26th, 2021.
XIII. Closing Prayer by Father McCabe. Motion to adjourn meeting. Motion carried.
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Submitted by Steve Welscher