Minutes of AGM of GSS – Chapter of St Birinus held on 14th March 2012 at the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Kidlington.
Present: Revd Canon Anthony Ellis; Bros. Trevor Langrish, Bruce Armour, Ben Heffer (chair), Ken Belcher, Dennis Dean and Kim Clowsley; Sr. Angela Dean; Mrs P Cooper and Mrs Barbara Belcher.
1. Opening Prayer – Bro. Ben Heffer opened the meeting with prayer.
2. Apologies for Absence – apologies were received from Srs. Jenny Dowdeswell and Susan Greenaway, Revd Jason St John Nicolle and Revd William Whyte.
3. Minutes of the AGM 2011 – the minutes of the meeting held on 16th March 2011 were read and approved. Proposed: Trevor Langrish. Seconded: Kim Clowsley.
4. Matters Arising – Bro Ben reported that in the event, we did not hold a meeting at Hampton Poyle as planned but instead met again at St Mary’s Kidlington. He advised that in accordance with the wishes of the meeting he had indeed written a note of appreciation to Fr Dennis. Donations to COF and the group councillor’s travel expenses had been sent as prescribed. We did not meet at St Peter’s, Didcot as we had considered we might.
5. Secretary’s Report – Bro Ben Heffer presented the Secretary’s Report. The roll stands at 24 comprising 14 members, eight life members and two associates. The chapter met four times in the year but attendances have been very poor with never more than 15 people at any one meeting. Bro Ben reported that Cllr Clive Tilling had resigned from the GSS and joined the Ordinariate and that the group counsellor position was now vacant. He extended thanks to the clergy particularly those from Kidlington for their support and to Bro Trevor Langrish for his work as Treasurer and to David Murray for playing the organ.
6. Treasurer’s Report – Bro Trevor presented the audited accounts and Treasurer's Report, which were approved and accepted. Proposed: Dennis Dean. Seconded: Ken Belcher. Bro. Trevor reported that Michael Ling had kindly agreed to audit the accounts for us and had suggested some amendments in presentation. At the end of the year, the chapter balance stood at £1,262.84.
7. Election of Chapter Officers – There being no other nominations, Bros Ben Heffer and Trevor Langrish were re-elected as Secretary and Treasurer respectively. Accepted unanimously.
8. Chapter Programme 2012 – No meetings had yet been arranged and Bro Ben asked the meeting whether given the poor attendances it was worth continuing. If the chapter was to close, it would be unlikely to re-open again and it was agreed that we should remain open even if we did not hold meetings. It was suggested we could amalgamate with another chapter, but the nearest ones are still some distance away. Ideally, a viable chapter is expected to meet four times a year. It was agreed that, given most members come from Kidlington, we should restrict our activities to St Mary’s, St John’s and Hampton Poyle. Fr Anthony was amenable to this and Bro Ben undertook to make the arrangements. Tuesday evenings at St John’s are preferable and Wednesday evenings at St Mary’s. Hampton Poyle is largely free in the evenings at any time.
9. Any Other Business – It was agreed to send a donation from chapter funds of £70 to the Candidates for Ordination Funds (COF). The meeting discussed the prospect of making a charitable donation from chapter funds to support a local initiative relating to altar serving and/or liturgy preferably targeted at encouraging young servers. It was agreed to bear this mind should such an opportunity arise. Nominations were invited for the post of Group Counsellor, which should eb addressed to the Secretary General.
10. Closing Prayer – Fr Anthony closed the meeting with a blessing.
