SUSTAINABLE SANCTUARIES COALITION
JULY 14, 2008
MINUTES
Attendance:
Gary Showalter – Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist
Mani Mani – Old Mission United Methodist
Barbara Chaplin – Leawood United Methodist
Susan Pavlakis – Unity Church of Overland Park
Terry Wiggins – All Souls Unitarian Universalist
Al Pugsley – Village Presbyterian
Karin McAdams – Penn Valley Friends
Barbara Shepard – Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist
Jim Walton – St. Andrew Christian
Jerry Rees – Village Presbyterian
Carol Meyer – St. Pius
Jackie Palmer – St. Francis Xavier
Chuck Gillam – Village Presbyterian
Curt Straub – Unity Church of Overland Park
Call to order:
Al Pugsley called the meeting to order at 7:00 and led the group in prayer. The minutes, published on the email list, were approved.
The treasurer reported having $398.13 in the account. She paid $51 to have the website restored.
Resource sharing:
· Jerry met Ron Bremby at a GPACE event at which he was given posters and a very gracious letter to SSC. Text of the letter follows this section. He also noted that the Prairie Village Environmental Committee will be hosting its environmental forum on October 9.
· Jim and his green team met with a new team at Country Club Christian Church to help them get started.
· Barbara S. and Margaret Thomas met with Eileen Horn to get ideas from Interfaith Power and Light for their congregation. They are using Pass the Plate Sunday to raise money.
· Karin and others from her regional Quaker gathering’s Earthcare Committee will present a panel on car use or living without cars. Karin is looking for more resources on gas-saving driving tips.
· Al will be showing off his electric truck at energy-saving block parties sponsored by Eileen Horn and IPL.
· Curt attended a recycling workshop where he made suggestions about the many ways in which conventions can practice more responsible use of resources and recycling. He also persuaded his church men’s group to use real dishes instead of disposable.
· Terry received a Green Sanctuary certificate on behalf of her church at the General Session. Her team also sold earthly-friendly personal fans at the gathering.
· Susan reports that the thrift store at 95th and Nall, Blessings Abound, will accept non-usable clothing and recycle it.
· Barbara C. saw to the use of real dishes at a recent church reception.
· Gary and Barbara S. are trying to revitalize their Green Team. He reports that a Missouri coop is working on pelletizing crop waste to be used with coal as an energy source. Information is at Show Me Energy. InkCycle in Lenexa is an unusually green cartridge recycling company.
· Jackie announced a rain barrel workshop offered on August 10 at St. Francis Xavier. They are also selling canvas bags made in Iowa. A book drive at St. Thomas Aquinas will contribute to Books for the Planet.
· Carol’s church is planning four workshops for this fall on practical steps to environmental responsibility. She would like speaker ideas. They are also planning an all-church event.
· Mani just started a green committee at his church. He has a huge rain barrel in his yard that helps the neighbors with their watering needs.
· Chuck shared an environmental booklet put out by the National Council of Churches for congregations. He passed around a flying about a small, inexpensive and powerful water purifier that is being used also in less developed countries.
Letter from GPACE:
June10, 2008
Of the many votes cast during the 2008 Kansas legislative session, several were of special importance to thousands and thousands of Kansans across the state. Those same votes resonated around the nation, earning the respect of a large number of Americans from both major political parties in many walks of life. Those votes secured Kansas an opportunity to compete in earnest in the emerging renewable energy economy, perhaps even to claim a leadership role in that historic transformation. Our children and grandchildren may count those votes, Governor Sebelius’ vetoes, and Secretary Bremby’s ruling as among the most courageous and critical decisions ever made by a group of Kansas public servants.
“42” is the magic number to sustain a gubernatorial veto in the Kansas House of Representatives. On the most critical action (the veto of sub for SB 148), 44 Kansas House members and 7 Senators voted to sustain the veto – a minority, but enough. We are proud to have been a part of the events that launched a more public, accountable, credible, and comprehensive discussion of energy policy for Kansas. We hope you are as well.
On behalf of GPACE and the thousands of our partners around the state and region, thank you for your support of our efforts. The work to address the challenges and opportunities related to carbon and energy policies has just begun, and we look forward to working with you in the days and years ahead.
Scott Allegrucci
Strategic Plan:
· Fall 2008 – resource and education committees will meet
· Winter 08-09 – make media contacts
· Spring 2009 – Start outreach to clergy
· Fall 2009 – large community event
· Note: June 18-22 the North American Interfaith Conference, which Vern Barnett is working on, will take place. We could be involved with the environmental aspect of it.
Awards:
· Faith in Action, Sierra Club award given to one faith community in each state, was awarded to Village Presbyterian Church for Kansas and All Souls UU Church for Missouri. We were pleased that active members of our committee represent these groups.
· No Coal in Kansas award, also from Sierra Club, went to Eileen Horn from the Climate and Energy Project.
Internal structure:
For the time being, the three person leadership teams will serve for three months, as there were people willing to volunteer for such a term. Al will continue as leader (choosing two supporting leaders) through August and September. Carol will serve during October, November and December, and Chuck from January through March. Karin will be the secretary through September.
Jerry Rees agreed to be the contact/communications person for the next year.
Education committee:
The committee will meet on August 7. Carol and Rose-Therese are available to do three-hour workshops that present a deeper, more theological base for environmental action than is usual; they are willing to come to churches to do this.
Table at Community Forum:
The group voted to have a table at the October 9 Community Forum at Village Church.
Website:
The website is online again. A number of related issues were discussed:
· We need a consistent contact person to read receive bills, read emails and respond to non-junk notes.
· The website needs, at the least, regular updating. At most it needs to be redesigned to better reflect our mission.
· There are concerns about the Yahoo group; perhaps we can have a brief tutorial at the end of the next meeting.
· Further discussion of the website was postponed until the next meeting.
New business:
Chuck informed us that the grand opening of Village Church’s 99th and Mission community building (a green building) will be on September 25.
The meeting adjourned at 8:50 p.m. The next meeting will be held in room 127, the usual place, on August 5.
Respectfully submitted,
Karin McAdams