Church of St. James the Less

The Weekly Member News is back! We have a great year ahead--a year that will end with a new parking lot. By Christmas next year, we won't be blocking each other in and shouting out car makes and models during coffee hour in the hopes that the person whose cars are in front of and behind us might be in earshot. I shared a few months ago how they were talking about this here 100 years ago, issuing reminders to leave keys in the car and/or walk to church on busy days. But it doesn't have to be this way--and won't be much longer! Scroll down to read Ocean's note with lots of important updates on that process and the current plans.

Also this year, we'll be continuing the celebration of our 175th anniversary with more lectures, concerts, forums and parties. Understanding our past is crucial to knowing who God is calling us to be now and in the future. I hope that this year of looking back will help in our continued work of discerning what's ahead for St. James the Less.

Additionally, I have an important staffing update. Our Director of Operations and Finance, Carol Burns, will be retiring this month. Though we'll miss her very much, this is a happy transition for Carol. Carol has been with us since 2017, and her work here has been tremendous. Working with our treasurers and Finance Committee, she has steadily cleaned up our books, implemented (with the vestry) more responsible practices and oversight vis-a-vis our endowment and human resources. She's also taken on all of the operations piece of running St. James, once a separate staff position entirely. Without Carol's work, we would never have been equipped to carry out our successful capital campaign. We'll celebrate her later this month, so stay tuned for that.

Soon we'll be welcoming a new person in Carol's role: Shareda Singh. Shareda comes to us with a background in marketing, sales, customer engagement, and account management. She'll be working closely with me, Carol, the wardens, and the treasurer to learn the ins and outs of church work. She brings to this position incredible warmth, grit, intelligence and organizational skills. She has experience with technology and communications, which have been at the center of our growth strategy these past few years. I'm thrilled she recently accepted the offer and will start on Monday, January 27.

How's that for a start to the new year--and just seven days in! As ever, lots happening at St. James, and it's truly a privilege to preside over another exciting year ahead.

It may be hard to believe, but the first anniversary of the Capital Campaign kick-off is approaching. This time last year rumors were swirling about how the discernment went, how much we could raise, what work we were contemplating, etc. And then there was the shock and awe of how much we had already raised in the early days of the campaign culminating with the present commitment of $2.4MM, excluding grants.

Now it may seem like we have gone quiet on the Campaign, but that is because we have been working hard on getting the plan for the parking lot renovation and permit application submitted to the Town of Scarsdale. See our submission here (also below). While we are thrilled with the current proposal, it is still subject to approval by the Town of Scarsdale and could ultimately be modified. The goal is to get approvals in February/ March, bid packages released to contractors in March/ April, and begin construction in June/ July. We hope to impact church and nursery school operations minimally during this period. To this end, the contractor bids will have a staging model to allow for the continued use of the parking lot during the construction phase.

How can we afford this already, you ask? Everyone has answered the call for support. A huge thank you to all who have committed to this historic project. Anyone feeling left out, there is still time to join in the fun. To date, we have collected over $750,000 and have a grant commitment of $225,000 for the first phase of the parking lot. We are on pace to have enough to cover this early project. So exciting! I know we will all miss the potholes. This, of course, is all contingent on cash flows continuing at their current pace. On that subject, if you did not specify the frequency of your contribution, please reach out to the finance manager at finance@stjamesscarsdale.org to update that information.

Please be sure to attend the Annual Meeting on February 2nd for a broader discussion of the work done so far, to get an update on the Scarsdale Planning Board meeting, and other riveting topics such as boilers and HVAC systems.

Yours fondly, Ocean Mills-Finlan

Staffing News For a New Year

Renew & Revitalizing our Campus: Important Updates

Annual Meeting: Save the Date

Request for Birthday Cards

Support is Always Here for You

We Did It: Thank You!

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