LOVE DEMANDS CARE OF PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
From our Mission Statement:
EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY AND CARE IN OUR STEWARDSHIP
We will boldly and creatively embody the life and ministry of Jesus with extravagant generosity and care in the stewardship of the gifts we have been given. We will offer and organize our time, talent, and treasure in loving service and outreach with useful facilities and supported staff and programs, striving always to be agents of God’s inclusive love. With care and diligence we will seek the well-being of our community, of all of our volunteers and staff, and of God’s earth in all that we undertake alone and together.
At Union Church, we believe that we are not owners of God’s earth, but stewards of it. Thinking that we own things can lead to isolationism, arrogance, and a sense of “us versus them” that leads to tribalism and eventually to wars. In a sense, this church was founded on this question of “property,” since it was begun by people who fiercely fought the idea that a person can be bought, sold, or owned by another person.
Beyond caring for the earth as a whole, most humans are also stewards of some small portion of it, which we usually call “our property.” For Union Church, this includes the buildings, the grounds on which they stand, and all the material and equipment within it. The Properties Board oversees and manages all the work of caring responsibly for this place, but never for the sake of the place alone. They bear in mind always that they are working for people who matter to God, creating a place of safe sanctuary, whether they are changing a light bulb, renovating the community room, or shoring up the entire foundation.
Working in concert with the Finance Board, their responsibilities include:
- Managing the properties of the church, including land, buildings, and equipment
- Managing the acceptance or disposition of property as authorized by the congregation.
- Members are: Jeff Hutton (chair), Sally Hindman, Howard Carlberg, Kelly Mehler
