[Fuusm-l] Dialogue Sessions

[Darryl Ting]

CORRECTION

The Dialogue Sessions will NOT be official FUUSM congregational meetings.
I thought we had met the requirements for special congregational meetings.
But it has been pointed out that the FUUSM bylaws requirement of a specific
purpose is not satisfied by the statement of “for feedback and dialogue on
the minister’s performance”. Rather, that requirement means a description
of all the particular motions which will be considered … which of course we
don’t know.



So the Dialogue Sessions will not be official FUUSM congregational
meetings.  And any resulting motions passed will not compel the Board to
act on them.



UNOFFICIAL BUT POWERFUL

But, although unofficial, the Dialogue Sessions will still be powerful.
After information sharing and dialogue amongst ourselves, the participants
could still consider and pass motions representing the sense of the group
and also specific recommendations to the Board.  And if we have significant
numbers of participants, these would be very useful guidance to the Board
as they consider how to act on behalf of the congregation.



This may seem like a minor technical detail, and perhaps, in the larger
scheme of things, it is.  But we need to abide by our FUUSM bylaws …
they’re there to keep us out of trouble.  I apologize for any confusion
caused by my misinterpretation of the bylaw requirements.



But our message is the same … attend the Dialogue Sessions, both of them.
Share, dialogue, consider, and decide.  It is the democratic process of our
FUUSM Affirmation in action.



Darryl Ting


On Thu, Jun 1, 2023 at 5:22 PM Darryl Ting <darrting1 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Dear FUUSM Community,
>
>
>
> We have completed our plans for FUUSM Congregational Feedback Meetings.
> For the background leading up to these meetings, please see the
> attachment.  A very important development since then is that the minister
> has reconsidered and is voluntarily excluding herself from these meetings.
>
>
>
>
> We invite you, the entire FUUSM Community (members and friends), excluding
> the minister, to participate in Dialogue Sessions … congregational meetings
> for feedback and dialogue on the minister’s performance.  We welcome and
> encourage all feedback (positive and negative).  We have planned two 1-1/2
> hr. sessions.  Please attend both sessions so you can give/hear the
> feedback and then participate in discussion and help to decide What Next.
> These are official FUUSM congregational meetings.  And if quorum
> requirements are met, motions can be passed to express the will of the
> congregation.  So it is important that you attend.  For more details,
> please read on.
>
>
>
> WHY
>
> We are holding these Dialogue Sessions to provide the FUUSM Community the
> opportunity to share their views on the minister’s performance.  Right now,
> there is significant frustration because those views are fragmented and
> isolated.  Our goal is that through sharing each of us can have a more
> informed view, and then the congregation can have an open, informed
> dialogue on this subject.
>
>
>
> WHO
>
> Members of course, but also our non-member friends are included in this
> invitation.  Friends are an integral part of our FUUSM community, and we
> include them in everything with just a few specific exceptions (certain
> FUUSM offices and voting).  So yes, attend and participate.  If we have the
> need to vote, we will ask our non-member friends to abstain.
>
>
>
> WHERE and WHEN
>
> The two sessions will be held in the FUUSM church sanctuary on  July 26
> and August 23 from 7-8:30pm.  We are limiting the Dialogue Sessions to
> 1-1/2 hrs. so people will still be attentive and not worn out.   We have
> selected the dates so that we will not conflict with other regularly
> scheduled meetings (e.g., Women’s & Men’s Groups).  And we have tried to
> set convenient starting (7pm, after dinner) and ending (8:30pm, still
> enough light out for driving) times.
>
>
>
> WHAT
>
> Our first Dialogue Session will be for prepared statements on the
> minister’s performance.
>
> These statements (3 minute maximum) should include your name, how long you
> have been a member/friend of FUUSM, any areas of significant exposure to
> the minister and be limited to first hand experiences.  Extensions to the 3
> min. maximum need to be approved ahead of the session.  We suggest you
> practice and time yourself so you stay within the time limit.  Following
> each prepared statement, there will be a Q&A period (2 minute maximum) for
> listeners to ask questions of the speaker for clarification.
>
>
>
> In our second Dialogue Session, we will complete the round of prepared
> statements, hear a summary of the minister’s evaluation (from the Board’s
> evaluation process), and have time for discussion and decisions about What
> Next.  If quorum requirements are met, motions can be passed to express the
> will of the congregation.
>
>
>
> We plan to communicate to the FUUSM community any motions passed.  But, we
> won’t be issuing a summary report of these Dialogue Sessions.  We don’t
> want to interpret what others say.  So attend and hear for yourself.
>
>
>
> FOR YOU TO DO
>
> Mark your calendars and attend the Dialogue Sessions!  Participate through
> statements or as a listener (we need both).  Participate in deciding What
> Next … for a better  FUUSM!
>
> Please contact Nancy Luthy (nancy.luthy at gmail.com or 740-525-6532) to
> sign-up for making a statement (and requesting time extensions) so she can
> coordinate the available time.
>
>
>
> Thank you for reading to the end.
>
>  And remember … Attend the Dialogue Sessions!
>
>
>
>
>
> Your Dialogue Sessions Steering Team,
>
> Karen Binkley, Nancy Luthy, Darryl Ting
>
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