St. Paul New Council Member Guide

Congratulations on your election to council! Your participation and energy are valued and needed. If you are not familiar with being on council or how it is run, the first question you may have is “What do I do?” And next, “How do I do it?”

Hopefully, this Guide will give you the tools and direction to allow you to hit the ground running and be an effective leader for our congregation.

After the election in the late spring / early summer, there should be a meeting of the old council and the new. This has traditionally been a dinner. It is important to attend because it will constitute your first meeting as a council member and be a bridge with the out-going council. It will give you an opportunity to meet familiar and not-so-familiar faces.

The meeting will also outline some practical matters you will need to know as a council member:

• Where to get your key for the building;
• General meeting times and locations, and where the next meeting will be;
• Which Board will be your liaison responsibility. As a part of this responsibility, you will be attending meetings for that Board and participating in that Board;
• You will be provided with copies of the “policies” in effect at St. Paul;
• At this meeting, we will confirm contact information for each council member. E-mail information is critical as it is how much of the mundane paperwork of council gets done (like minutes for meetings).