Hello parishioners! First, I'd like to thank everyone for staying engaged with these email updates. I'm pleased by the high percentage of clicks these messages get. Most weeks, over 70% of you open (and I assume also read!) them. A note moving forward: these will continue through June, with quite a lot to share next week after the Renew and Revitalize Task Force's meeting on Monday June 10. A lot of work goes on at the meetings, but also between meetings. It remains important to keep these emails going.
That said, we'll adjourn for the month of July, picking up again in August. Meantime, please keep tracking what's happening throughout this month. I'll add some pictures in future weeks to keep it interesting. And do consider joining our efforts. There are many needs, not all of which require attending regular meetings. Remember we keep meetings efficient, and there will always be an online option for those who need it. You can sign up at the button below.
What we're currently working on:
-This week we'll reach out to our friends at St. Matthew's Bedford to talk about the timing of the Bedell Fund grant money. The Bedell fund releases the money directly to the contractors, not the parish, and so this will determine in part the order in which we pursue our projects. Thank you to Jim Hallowell, Bill Haffner and Ocean Mills for helping with this.
-Related to this, our main focus between now and September will be ordering projects. By the fall, we should be able to inform the congregation which projects will be happening, and when (with patience and flexibility very much appreciated!). A lot of work behind the scenes goes into these discussions, which include the town, our friends at St. Matthew's, the Nursery School, the vestry, and the church staff (so we can coordinate as best we can with the events for next year, as well as the timing of campaign financial contributions).
-We continue to research heating options--heat pump, geothermal, or gas boiler. We've been communicating with Blocpower (on the first two options), and our current heating contractor, Hauser Bros. (the last option) Look in next week's email for a much fuller report on those discussions and new developments. The Task Force members working on this have extensive experience, both personal and institutional, with these systems and the issues surrounding them. Thank you to all of them: Mark Trager, Bill Haffner, and Linda Killian.
-We continue to raise money! We're now in the "Keeping the Campaign Alive" phase of the Capital Campaign, which includes reaching out to those who aren't active parishioners but are still very much connected to our parish. If you know of people we should reach out to, please respond to this email or email me directly at rector@stjamesscarsdale.org. And if you're new to St. James but feel ready to learn more and possibly make a financial commitment to our capital projects, please respond to this email or email me directly. We'd love for you to be part of this exciting work!
-We're compiling a Dropbox digital folder with all the documents that will help educate the Task Force and keep us organized and on-task: past energy reports and audits, project bids past and present, architectural plans past and present, photos, any and everything that will ensure no stone goes unturned or detail forgotten (or effort needlessly duplicated). Thank you to Ocean Mills for spearheading this effort.
-This week we'll be reaching out to Sam Geer, the landscape architect who created the beautiful Master Plan for our campus in 2022. Sam will begin to put together more granular plan for our parking lot, which can be used by a local architect, drainage engineer, and contractor for the parking lot and arrival court projects. Look for more detailed info in a future email.
-A couple of our Task Force members will focus their efforts on the regular buildings and grounds needs that come up, needs that aren't on the level of one-time capital projects (the subject of this email). That includes Rob Fath, James Fawcett, and Nathan Gallup, whose names will keep on the Task Force list to serve as liaisons between the two groups.
-Welcome to parishioner Ray Joseph, who has recently joined our Renew and Revitalize Task Force!
The Renew and Revitalize Task Force (thus far): Ray Joseph, Rob Fath, Toni Lewis, Linda Killian, Mark Trager, Bill Haffner, Nathan Gallup, Gina Taglieri, Pat Wynne, Tom Finlan, Ocean Mills, Omaira Crane, James Fawcett, and Monica Sganga (Mo. Storm ex officio).
