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BOD 1 2014/2015

MINUTES

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

INTERNATIONAL LUTHERAN LAYMEN'S LEAGUE

Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center

Detroit, Michigan_______________________ Thursday, July 24, 2014

In attendance: Chairman Philip Krauss II, Vice-Chairman Phillip Johnson, Treasurer Michael

Brown, Secretary Janice Wendorf, Londa Borer-Skov, Jack Ficken, Richard Gast, Kay Meyer,

Paul Pettit, Leonard Pranschke, Andreas Schwabe, Weldon Schwiebert, Richard Sindlinger,

William Snow; LHM Executive Director Kurt Buchholz, Ex Officio; Pastor Advisor Rev.

Timothy Klinkenberg, Ex Officio; LCMS Liaison Rev. Timothy Scharr, Advisory; LCC Liaison

Mathew Block Advisory; LLL Canada Managing Director Stephen Klinck, Advisory.

Staff of Lutheran Hour Ministries attended portions of the meeting at the request of the

Executive Director.

The Board Development Committee, Budget and Finance Committee, Nominations Committee,

and Fund Development Committee met on Wednesday afternoon, July 23. Board members

attended dinner on Wednesday evening with the LHM Foundation Board, LLL District

Presidents, past Int’l LLL presidents, LHM staff members, Conference speakers, special guests,

and spouses.

01 Philip Krauss II, Chairman, called the meeting to order at 9 AM.

02 Rev. Timothy Klinkenberg, Pastor Advisor, installed the newly elected Board members:

Chairman Krauss, Richard Gast, Leonard Pranschke, Andreas Schwabe, and Janice Wendorf.

03 Opening comments by Chairman Krauss included three themes/things that the Board is

facing: strategic planning/visioning; repositioning within the LCMS community, providing

services to the churches; and a new funding initiative.

M2014/15-01 Motion was made to appoint Janice Wendorf as Board Secretary.

Motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.

M2014/15-02 Motion was made to appoint Paul Pettit as Board Treasurer.

Motion was seconded and carried by show of hands.

04 Appreciation was expressed to Michael Brown for serving as Board Treasurer from 2012 to

2014.

M 2014/15-03 Motion was made to accept the printed agenda.

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M 2014/15-04 Motion was made to accept Minutes from the April 2014 Meeting and June

11, 2014 Meeting with the following corrections: April - After M2013/14-54 should read

“Motion carried by voice vote with one dissenting vote.” June - Add “Ex Officio” after

LHM Executive Director Kurt Buchholz.


Also noted: beginning with the June 2014 minutes to better reflect the Board Policy Manual,

both the LHM Executive Director and Pastoral Advisor should be classified as “Ex Officio” in

all future minutes.

M2014/15-05 Motion was made to approve the 2012 Int’l LLL Convention Proceedings

with the following corrections: First Convention Session, Line 01 - Start time was 9:00 AM;

Line 06 should read - “Don Atchison, Mayor of the city of Saskatoon, welcomed the Int’l

LLL and all attendees on behalf of the city.” Second Convention Session, Line 15 should

read – “President Onnen introduced the newly elected Board members who were in

attendance at the convention. They were installed by Rev. Grimm on Thursday, July 26,

2012.”

Motion seconded and was carried by voice vote.

M2014/15-06 Motion was made to reaffirm the Board’s Code of Ethics & Conflict of

Interest Policies.

Motion seconded and carried by voice vote.

05 Board members individually signed the Code of Ethics and Conflict of Interest documents.

M2014/15-07 Motion was made to reaffirm the Board’s Guiding Documents, Policies 1.1,

1.2, 1.3, and 1.4.


06 William Snow, Chair of the Audit Committee, reported that the audit is going forward. The

committee will meet towards the end of September to go over the report of the auditors.

07 Janice Wendorf, Chair of the Board Development Committee, presented the

recommendations of the committee. Each recommendation was handled individually.

M2014/15-08 Motion was made to accept two additions to the Governance Policy Manual;

Definitions and Abbreviations: Elect/Election: refers to action by the Members of Int’l

LLL. Appoint: refers to the action of the Board or its officers as stipulated in this manual.

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The assumption is that with the acceptance of these definitions the committee can go into the

policies and make the necessary changes and edits to bring them into compliance.

Motion carried by voice vote.

M2014/15-09 Motion was made to accept the rewording of several bullet points in policy

2.5.1. Bullet two: request from the Board the range of salary for the positon of Executive

Director recommended by the Compensation and Evaluation Committee; bullet eight:

request that the Compensation and Evaluation Committee recommends a salary based on

the résumé of the selected candidate; bullet nine: request that the Chairman negotiate a

salary with the selected candidate on behalf of the Board within the established salary

parameters.


M2014/15-10 Motion was made to adopt new policy 2.6.3. The ministerial housing

allowance for all ordained or commissioned ministers of the Gospel called or employed by

Lutheran Hour Ministries shall be 50% of their compensation unless specifically otherwise

established by the Board. This policy will be reviewed and ratified annually at the July

Board of Directors meeting.

Motion carried by voice vote with one dissention.

The Board requested that staff obtain legal opinion on policy 2.6.3.

M2014/15-11 Motion to revise policy 2.7.5.2.1 to read: A written ballot that is mailed to

each voting Member and returned to the Int’l LLL by the balloting deadline.


M2014/15-12 Motion was made to accept new policy 2.14.4. Action may be taken without a

meeting if the action is taken by all members of the Board. The written consent describing

the actions taken, is signed by each director, and included in the minutes filed with the

records reflecting the action taken. Action taken under this is effective when the last

director signs the consent. (This constitutes a joint unanimous consent and has the effect of

a meeting vote.) If approved, the remaining items in 2.14. would be renumbered.


08 Rev. Gregory Seltz, Speaker of The Lutheran Hour, addressed the Board, encouraging

members to be a blessing to churches and people who are trying to get the message out about

Jesus Christ. Pray for LHM, use LHM’s resources, and give them to pastors and friends. Be a

blessing to LHM’s culture.

09 Kurt Buchholz, Executive Director, gave his report.

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Buchholz introduced Jeff Craig-Meyer, Director of Ministry Advancement, who has been

on staff since June 30, 2014. Craig-Meyer shared personal information and his

professional background and preparation for this position.

Buchholz shared that it has been a very busy 9-10 months since he began as Executive

Director. Internal audits and funding audits are taking place.

Working with the leadership team, three key points have been articulated for strategic

planning. LHM will not rest until: 1) every last person hears the Gospel in an

understandable way; today’s world offers so many opportunities; 2) new believers are

connected to Christian communities of believers where they can learn and grow; 3) all

Christians are disciples who reach out in love to those who are not believers, and there is

a grassroots level of believers always sharing their faith.

A rough draft of the guiding policy for LHM is: “Coordinated proclamation to significant

numbers of unchurched people (which includes nonbelievers and dechurched) using mass

communications and effectively equipping the church for word of mouth sharing

(evangelism).” The target audience is 26- to 49-year-old unchurched men and women.

10 The Board went into recess for lunch with the LLL District Presidents. Richard Gast led the

meal prayer.

11 The meeting reconvened at 1:00 PM.

12 Douglas Rutt, Director of International Ministries, introduced the International Ministry

Center Directors who were in attendance at the conference: Ancella Gregory, Jamaica; Dinh

Hai Au, Vietnam; Eugenio Gallestegui, Mexico; Fadi Khairallah, Lebanon; and Richard Fox,

Australia.

13 Khairallah led a devotion for the Board. He has been the ministry center director for 15 years.

He shared information about the influx of refugees from Syria, numbering close to 30% of

the population of Lebanon. The ministry center staff works in refugee camps bringing food,

hygiene products, baby supplies, and medicine. All this is done for the sake of Jesus Christ,

following His example in John 13: 3-5, 12-17. Jesus washed the feet of His disciples as an

example of how to minister to others.

14 Rev. Timothy Scharr, LCMS Liaison, brought greetings from LCMS President Matthew

Harrison, who is grateful for the partnership between the LCMS and LHM. 2014 is a year

with no conventions; synod officials are busy putting into effect resolutions from the

convention of 2013, among them visitation and Lutheran identity. The 2016 Convention of

the LCMS will be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

15 Mathew Block, LCC Liaison, brought greetings from LCC President Bugbee. The

Convention in Vancouver reelected President Bugbee for three more years. Also at the

convention, LLL-Canada became an auxiliary of LCC. The mission emphasis for LCC is in

Nicaragua and Ukraine.

16 Stephen Klinck, LLL-Canada Managing Director, provided an update on that organization.

They are in the process of electing Board of Directors members, which will be completed by

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the end of August. He is looking forward to hosting Nilo Figur, Regional Director for Latin

America, and Richard Fox after the SENT Conference. LLL-Canada is thankful for the

partnership and support LHM provides them.

17 Michael Brown, Chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, reported on the financial status

of LHM, sharing charts and statistics.

18 Alan Zacharias, fundraising consultant, presented findings of the funding initiative audit.

Among items that were shared were the assessment process and protocol, philanthropic

climate, and issues affecting generosity and major gifts today. Some factors that are

emerging include the function of Ministry Advancement in building awareness,

understanding, and goodwill for LHM; communication; engagement; relationships; and

strengths and weaknesses in the organization. Board members have a responsibility for

providing names and responding to the letter they received from Executive Director

Buchholz.

19 Jack Ficken, Chair of the Compensation and Evaluation Committee, reported that the

committee did not meet at this time. The committee will be meeting a day prior to the

October 2014 meeting.

20 Phil Johnson, Chair of the Fund Development Committee, reported that the committee met

on Wednesday. Estate gifts have provided income higher than ever before. This is both good

news (providing needed income) and bad news (donors are deceased, and this is their last

gift). The Board was challenged to bring clarity to why they are serving and develop the

“elevator speech” of why each individual serves on the Board of the LLL. In many ways,

LHM is underexposed as an organization. Correcting that is the responsibility of each Board

member.

21 Kay Meyer, Chair of the Nominations Committee, reported that the committee met on

Wednesday. They developed a list of needs for the Board including, but not limited to:

younger, wealthy, ethnically diverse, retired development executive, and geographically

diverse. They also encouraged that the Board continue to evaluate itself and submit names to

this committee. The committee will maintain a list of qualified people for future Board

positions.

Motion 2014/15-13 Motion was made to appoint the Audit Committee: Chair, William

Snow; Londa Borer-Skov; Michael Brown; and Mark Dunlop (non- BOD

member/Advisory).


Motion 2014/15-14 Motion was made to appoint the Nominations Committee: Chair,

Richard Gast; Paul Pettit; William Snow; Tom Clarke (non-BOD); and Karen Soeken

(non-BOD).


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Motion 2014/15-15 Motion was made to approve the following committee/task force

appointments for 2014/15:

Board Development: Chair, Janice Wendorf; Phil Johnson; Kay Meyer; Leonard

Pranschke; and Richard Sindlinger.

Budget and Finance: Chair, Paul Pettit; Jack Ficken; Richard Gast; Andreas Schwabe;

and Weldon Schwiebert.

Compensation and Evaluation: Chair, Jack Ficken; Michael Brown; Leonard Pranschke;

Weldon Schwiebert; and Janice Wendorf.

Fund Development: Chair, Phillip Johnson; Londa Borer-Skov; Kay Meyer; Andreas

Schwabe; and Richard Sindlinger.

Election Committee: Chair, Janice Wendorf; Leonard Pranschke. (One additional Board

member to be appointed and two LHM staff members).

Foundation Board Representative: Weldon Schwiebert.

Strategic Planning Task Force: Chair, Andreas Schwabe; Michael Brown; and Phillip

Johnson.


22 Executive Director Buchholz gave an update on the plans for the celebration of the 100th

anniversary of the Int’l LLL.

A big celebratory gathering would not be attractive to all generations; it is not a positive

to message to all audiences;

Focus on further and deeper engagement of existing constituencies;

Two years is too long to sustain a celebration;

The LCMS is meeting in convention in Milwaukee in July 2016. 2017 is the actual

anniversary year, but a celebration could possibly launch in 2016;

This ties in strongly with Board decisions on the future of national conventions/events;

and

A staff committee has brainstormed a number of ideas, but final plans will possibly fall in

the area of the new constituent manager.

23 Discussion ensued on the face of national events in the future. LHM is drawing new people

due to the attraction and practical nature of the ROC events, not due to the fact of that they

are Int’l LLL events. Financially, the smaller ROC events are more cost effective than a large

gathering, such as the SENT Conference. Overall there is a growing disinterest in large

national events, coupled with a growing interest in regional events.

Motion 2014/15-16 Motion was made to use one of the upcoming ROC events in 2016 as the

national Int’l LLL Convention.


24 Discussion on 2016 LLL District representative reimbursements was tabled to the October

2014 meeting.

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25 The Board meeting went in to recess.

26 The meeting was called to order for the purpose of electing directors of Envoy Productions,

Inc.; Envoy Entertainment, Inc.; Lutheran Hour Global Inc.; LHM Holdings, Inc.; Lutheran

Television, Inc.; The Lutheran Hour; and BCTN as indicated by the offices listed below, to

serve in accordance with the Bylaws of each Corporation, and at the discretion of the Board

of Directors until their successors are elected and qualified or until their earlier resignation or

removal. Upon motion duly made, seconded, and unanimously carried, the persons as elected

as the directors of each of the foregoing named corporations: Philip Krauss II, Phillip

Johnson, and Kurt Buchholz.

Motion 2014/15-17 Motion was made to approve the following as directors of each of the

corporations: Philip Krauss II, Phillip Johnson, and Kurt Buchholz.

Motion was seconded and carried by unanimous voice vote.

27 Meeting of the corporations was adjourned.

28 Meeting of the Board of Directors resumed.

29 Andreas Schwabe, Chair of the Strategic Planning Task Force, reported on the message

board system that will be in use within two weeks. This will provide a rolling discussion on

the areas of core values and vision statement. A tutorial video will be provided to help Board

members use this technology. Board members are encouraged to visit this regularly, at least

once a week, to read comments and to respond to items that have been posted. The message

board will serve as a repository for ideas and brainstorming among the Board.

30 Richard Gast, Chair of the Lutheran Hour Ministries Float Committee, gave Board members

a full color rendering of the 2015 float. Chairman Krauss and Pastoral Advisor Klinkenberg

will both be riders on the float.

Motion 2014/15-18 Motion was made to go into Executive Session.


Motion 2014/15-19 Motion was made to go out of Executive Session.


Motion 2014/15-20 Motion was made to adjourn.


31 Meeting was adjourned at 5:25 PM.

BOD 8 2014/2015

Respectfully submitted by,

Janice Wendorf, Secretary

Future Board Meetings:

October 17-18, 2014 (arrive October 16); St. Louis, Missouri

January 9, 2015; morning and afternoon session; electronic meeting

April 24-25, 2015 (arrive April 23); St. Louis, Missouri

Tentative: July 17-18, 2015 (arrive July 16); St. Louis, Missouri

Tentative: October 23-24, 2015 (arrive October 22); St. Louis Missouri

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