January 23, 2014 VGEC Board Meeting Overview

VGEC Board at the 2013 Conference in Nashville

The VGEC Board of Directors met in a virtual on-line meeting on January 23, 2014. Some high points of the meeting are covered here in advance of board approval of the official minutes.

Our Chaplain, The Rev. Matthew T. L. Corkern, will be leading a pilgrimage to Canterbury and Lincoln England. Currently 23 pilgrims are planning to make the eleven day trip leaving at the end of June this year. They'll focus on the historical and personal aspects of Canterbury across the English nation and concentrate on the behind-the-scenes cultural workings of cathedrals, country-homes, and a few Anglican institutions. Fr. Matthew also announced that a new chapter is desired in the Diocese of Newark. VGEG member Theo Thomas is working with vergers in the Diocese and the Diocesan office to help coordinate these activities.

Pat Allen, chair of the Annual Conference Committee, reported that Co-Chairs Terry Hughes and Ritchard Taylor are excelling on planning for the 2014 Annual Conference. As covered in the Verger's Voice last week, the VGEC Banner is standing at the Parish of St. Luke's in Burlington, Ontario. The Board also approved the grant of up to 15 scholarships for the Annual Conference from the Mark Emory Graham Fund paying $150 of the $200 registration fee for conference registration. The 2015 conference in St. Louis is in initial planning under the leadership of Shug Goodlow from Christ Church Cathedral. Sites for the 2016 and 2017 conferences are under discussion. Anyone interested in hosting a VGEC Annual Conference should check out vergers.org/conference and contact the committee at [email protected]. Hosting a conference is also a great way to start a VGEC Chapter in your Diocese!

Rich Lammlin, chair of Chapter Development and Richard Parker, Board Liaison for the committee, are monitoring and assisting with the development of three new chapters currently in the planning/organization stage: Maryland – point of contact (POC) is Ellie Lopez,  North Carolina – POC Dana Gaspar and  California – POC Sandra Salzer. If you are interested in a chapter in your Diocese, see vergers.org/chapters or contact [email protected]. They are also working together with the leadership of our existing chapters, many of whom serve on the Chapter Development Committee. By the way, if you haven't tried it lately, our live online Membership map on the VGEC Join Us tab has membership ID designated on each member. Go to the map and find yourself!

Margaret McLarty, chair of the General Convention Committee, is waiting for notification of availability to get the VGEC bid in for a prime booth location at the the convention site in Salt Lake City in 2015. Vergers operating the booth meet delegates from the far reaches of the church who are interested in the verger ministry. We're planning to have an active presence again at this convention. We are also excited to learn about the selection of Austin, Texas as the 2018 site!

Barry Norris, reporting for the Guild Shop Committee, commented that the use of Amazon as distribution agent for the Guild Shop is working quite well. Sales are coming in pretty much as usual and the Processional Gear Department and the Clothing Department continue to be very popular destinations as we continue to consider additional items for the shop. If you are interested in helping with the shop, please contact [email protected].

Cheryl Cantrall, Membership Committee chair, said that the membership database system  is expanding rapidly primarily due to Ritchard Taylor's effort in adding Canadian churches: 30 dioceses and 1471 parishes entered so far. She added that our new fee structure for international members is well accepted - International members now pay the same dues as regular VGEC membership.

We have a lot going on and top people serving on the Board of Directors and on the several VGEC operational committees. Give them a hand, literally! If you want to get off the couch and get on to one of these action teams, call or email the committee chair and volunteer your skill and experience.