Eno Meeting seeks to be inclusive without the expectation that all will serve in the same way. Friends have long valued the contributions of those who hold the meeting in Light and prayer and those who serve in other ways. This document describes the latter category of Friends. However, we believe that regardless of how Friends bring their Light to the meeting, their presence enriches our community.
Friends hope that those who serve the meeting on committees or in other positions will review this list of responsibilities annually. Any recommended changes to this document should be presented to and approved by the meeting.
Clerk/Co-clerks of the Meeting
The clerk is essentially the shepherd of the meeting who conducts meetings for worship with attention to business and serves as the meeting’s primary “point person.”
Responsibilities:
1. Prepare the agenda and conduct monthly meetings for business in the manner of Friends.
2. Notify the Recorder of any meeting decision regarding membership.
3. Serve as the meeting’s primary spokesperson outside the meeting, especially to non-Friends. Review mail received by the meeting and distribute or act upon it as appropriate.
4. Serve as an ex-officio member of all committees. The clerk supports the committees and working groups, representatives to other organizations, and the people who serve in other positions within the meeting.
5. Maintain an overall vision of and for the meeting, anticipating potential risks as well as opportunities to enhance the spiritual life of the meeting.
6. At times of inclement weather or other emergency or special situation, the decision to cancel or reschedule meeting for worship is the responsibility of the clerk.
7. Each term is two years long. A clerk may serve up to two consecutive two-year terms.
Assistant Clerk of the Meeting
The assistant clerk assists the clerk of the meeting in all responsibilities and substitutes for the clerk or recording clerk during the absence of either.
Responsibilities:
1. The assistant clerk assists the clerk with all aspects of caring for the meeting.
2. In the absence of the clerk, conduct monthly meetings for business in the manner of Friends.
3. In the absence of the recording clerk, minute meetings for business, including the actions and decisions. Submit a draft copy of the minutes to the recording clerk.
4. Each term is two years long. An assistant clerk may serve up to two consecutive two-year terms. The meeting usually asks the assistant clerk to serve as clerk of the meeting after the clerk’s term ends.
Recording Clerk
The recording clerk records the actions taken and decisions made during monthly meetings for business.
Responsibilities:
1. Record meeting for business minutes in draft form. Submit draft copies of minutes to the clerk soon after the meeting and to the rest of the meeting about a week before the next meeting for business.
2. Receive suggested corrections to the minutes prior to and during the next meeting for business.
3. At meeting for business, present the minutes for final corrections and approval.
4. Archive the collection of business meeting minutes and each month’s newsletter. (Do we send them to Guilford for official/permanent archiving?)
5. Each term is two years long. The recording clerk may serve multiple consecutive terms.
Financial Clerk
The financial clerk manages the meeting’s funds and provides financial reports to the meeting.
Responsibilities:
1. Receive contributions and other income, and issue acknowledgments to contributors.
2. Pay bills and distribute meeting-approved donations in a timely manner.
3. Maintain records of income, expenditures and designated/special funds.
4. Maintain checking account and, if applicable, savings and investment accounts. Coordinate banking relationships, including establishing bank accounts on behalf of the meeting, updating signature cards and corporate resolutions, etc.
5. Prepare financial reports for the meeting as the meeting requests (e.g., monthly, quarterly, semi-annually), including reports of receipts, expenditures, assets, liabilities and the status of any significant financial items.
6. Confer with the meeting as it considers making any significant or unbudgeted expenditure.
7. In consultation with the Finance Committee, prepare a proposed annual budget and present it for the meeting’s discernment and approval.
8. Each term is two years long. The financial clerk may serve multiple consecutive two-year terms.
Assistant Financial Clerk
The assistant financial clerk shares the financial clerk’s duties and is prepared to function in that capacity at any time. Each term is two years long. The assistant financial clerk may serve multiple consecutive two-year terms and is usually asked by the meeting to serve as financial clerk when that person leaves the position.
Recorder
The recorder maintains accurate membership records in a manner that assures their permanency.
Responsibilities:
1. Maintain a membership record for every member, including:
a. full name and date of birth;
b. how membership was achieved (request for membership, transfer from another meeting and the name of that meeting, birthright);
c. members married under the care of the meeting and children born to or adopted by members;
d. termination of membership (transfer to another meeting, resignation, death);
e. date of death and disposition of body or cremains.
2. Keep a copy of the marriage certificate for any marriage conducted under the care of the meeting.
3. Complete and submit member statistics to the yearly meeting each year.
4. Meet annually with the Care and Fellowship Committee to assure that records are complete and accurate.
5. Each term is two years long. The recorder may serve multiple consecutive terms.
Worship and Ministry Committee
The Worship and Ministry Committee nurtures the spiritual life of the meeting both for individuals and for the community as a whole. The committee provides care for meetings for worship, including meetings for worship with attention to business.
Responsibilities:
1. Support the clerk(s) of the meeting.
2. Give attention to the quality of worship in our meetings for worship and meetings for worship with attention to business, being mindful of the living silence and vocal ministry.
3. Encourage the meeting’s reflection through monthly queries, which are read each month at meeting for worship and worship-shared at midweek fellowship. Hold the discernment for development and adaptation of queries for the meeting.
4. Support individual Friends on their spiritual journeys, especially as they face difficulties, by being available to listen or give guidance as needed.
5. Encourage those who show promising spiritual gifts and those who are young or shy about speaking in meeting or participating more deeply in the life of the meeting.
6. Respond to inquiries and questions about the Religious Society of Friends or Eno Friends Meeting.
7. Organize clearness committees as requested by individuals seeking clearness on spiritual issues, such as membership, marriage under the care of the meeting, disputes between or among members/attenders, and personal concerns.
8. Address concerns arising from those whose vocal ministry or behavior disrupts meetings for worship or business, and behaviors which are disruptive to the life of the meeting, such as harmful personal interactions and harassment.
9. Organize the annual spiritual condition report discussion and creation for Piedmont Friends. Bring the report to meeting for worship with attention to business for approval.
10. Upon the death of a member or attender, offer support to the family/friends and organize the involvement of the meeting if a memorial meeting is requested.
11. Name members of the Nominating Committee.
12. Nurture other committees that do the meeting’s work.
13. Additional responsibilities under the care of the committee:
Tech support for meetings for worship and business
Opening and closing meeting for worship
14. The committee meets monthly, on the second Sunday of each month at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom.
15. Length of service: The clerk and assistant clerk typically serve for two years. The assistant clerk usually becomes the clerk of the committee. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Care and Fellowship Committee
The Care and Fellowship Committee fosters community among the members and attenders of the meeting by helping Friends to better know and care for one another.
Responsibilities:
1. Create a sense of welcome to newcomers as well as regular attenders.
2. Pay special attention to the joys and sorrows shared by meeting attenders and discern if support or response is needed.
3. Coordinate Friends to support others in times of need and in times of celebration, such as organizing meal support and transportation and addressing other needs that Friends can help with. Pay special attention to Friends who are experiencing life changes, such as the birth of a child, a family member’s death, diminishment of capabilities, etc.
4. Maintain contact with all members and attenders in a spirit of affectionate interest.
5. Organize social gatherings that foster and promote deep fellowship and understanding.
6. Welcome babies born within the meeting community.
7. Support the meeting when a death occurs, including working with the Worship and Ministry Committee.
8. Maintain a record of Friends’ emergency contacts and any end-of-life wishes/directives.
9. Additional responsibilities under the care of the committee:
GoogleGroup listserv to communicate with members and attenders
Directory of members and attenders
Walking fellowship
Birthday acknowledgments
Potlucks
10. The committee meets monthly, on the second Sunday of each month at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom.
11. Length of service: The clerk and assistant clerk typically serve for two years. The assistant clerk usually becomes the clerk of the committee. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Education Committee
The Education Committee offers education on spiritual and religious matters and encourages members’ and attenders’ spiritual growth.
Responsibilities:
1. Plan the forums held the first Sunday of each month.
2. Shepherd Midweek Fellowship, held each Thursday evening on Zoom. The coordinator encourages people to host, ensures that the Zoom link is sent out each week by the host or the coordinator, and communicates the schedule to the newsletter editor.
3. Oversee the library. The library coordinator maintains an awareness of new publications of interest to Eno Friends and acquires those that are appropriate, catalogues the collection, and oversees the circulation of the collection.
4. Notify Eno Friends of activities within the wider Quaker world (other local meetings, the yearly meeting, etc.) and encourage participation.
5. Coordinate occasional community education events.
6. The committee meets monthly, on the fourth Sunday of each month at 10:00 a.m.
7. Length of service: The clerk and assistant clerk typically serve for two years. The assistant clerk usually becomes the clerk of the committee. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Young Friends Circle Committee
The Young Friends Circle Committee brings our meeting’s children into full participation in the life of the meeting and into an understanding of the beliefs and practices of Friends.
Responsibilities:
1. Plan and implement the Young Friends Circle program for the children:
a. Provide curriculum and related materials; be familiar with Quaker resources outside our meeting.
b. Arrange for teachers and be supportive of them. Two adults should be available to teach each class.
c. If no children attend regularly, schedule weekly volunteers to be “on call” to lead a YFC lesson/project with any children who may visit. Arrange for lesson/project resources and supplies.
d. Maintain a roster of children’s names, ages, grades and contact information.
2. Remain aware of children’s and young Friends programs of other local meetings and the yearly meeting so our children can take advantage of wider Quaker activities.
3. The committee meets monthly on the second Sunday of the month at 10:00 a.m.
4. Length of service: The clerk and assistant clerk typically serve for two years. The assistant clerk usually becomes the clerk of the committee. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Finance Committee
The Finance Committee oversees all aspects of the meeting’s funds and other assets.
Responsibilities:
1. In consultation with the Financial Clerk, prepare an annual budget and quarterly reports of receipts, expenditures, assets, liabilities and other financial information. Confer with the meeting as it considers making any significant or unbudgeted expenditure.
2. Review the meeting’s insurance policies annually, and, if applicable, the meeting’s property, investments and other assets, for adequacy and appropriateness. Maintain a long-range, overall view of the meeting’s assets, needs and potential risks.
3. Ensure completion of an annual audit of the meeting’s financial records and report the results to the meeting.
4. The clerk and assistant clerk usually serve two-year terms and may serve two consecutive terms. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Communications Committee
The Communications Committee facilitates connection among Eno Friends and with the wider community.
Responsibilities:
1. Maintain Eno Friends Meeting’s public website and inward-facing intranet.
2. Help established attenders sign up to access the intranet.
3. Share meeting activities and news of interest internally through the meeting’s newsletter and externally via social media, local news outlets, and other organizations in the community.
4. Respond to questions submitted through the website about the Religious Society of Friends or Eno Friends Meeting, forwarding them to the appropriate person(s) within the meeting.
5. Add Eno Friends Meeting to appropriate directories, e.g., Friends General Conference’s “Find a Meeting” list.
6. Length of service: The clerk typically serves for two years. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Nominating Committee
The Nominating Committee discerns the gifts and leadings of members and attenders, recommends people to fill committee and position openings, and sees to their replacement at appropriate intervals.
Responsibilities:
1. Annually, ask each committee, working group, representative and people in other positions to review and update their list of responsibilities. As they recommend changes, present those to the entire meeting for approval.
2. Get to know members and new attenders, asking them about their gifts and how they feel led to serve the meeting community.
3. Propose a list of people to fill vacancies within the meeting. Present the list during meeting for business and, after approval, update the list of Committees and Positions.
4. People who fill the following positions must be members of Eno Friends Meeting of Hillsborough: clerk/co-clerk of the meeting, assistant clerk of the meeting, financial clerk and assistant financial clerk.
5. Length of service: The clerk and assistant clerk typically serve for two years. The assistant clerk usually becomes the clerk of the committee. Committee members may serve multiple consecutive one-year terms.
Peace and Social Concerns Committee
Held by the meeting as a committee of the whole, responding to Friends’ initiatives.
Representatives to Piedmont Friends Yearly Meeting & Fellowship
Representatives help facilitate communication and connection between Eno Friends Meeting and Piedmont Friends Yearly Meeting & Fellowship (PFYM&F).
Responsibilities:
1. Attend PFYM&F Representative Body (PFRB) meetings regularly as a representative of Eno Friends Meeting.
2. Report back to Eno Friends from PFRB.
3. Help facilitate the dissemination of information from Piedmont Friends to Eno Friends throughout the year.
4. Representatives generally meet during yearly meeting and three additional times each year.
5. Length of service:
Representatives to Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation
Representatives to the Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation (FCNCL) communicate Eno Friends’ legislative priorities to the organization and advocate for the inclusion of Quaker values in our state’s governmental actions.
Responsibilities:
1. Attend the annual meeting of the General Committee, which governs FCNCL and is comprised of representatives of participating meetings.
2. Publicize to Eno Meeting action alerts, fact sheets, newsletters and other communications related to state governmental actions.
3. Work with Eno Meeting every two years to set priorities for FCNCL activities.
4. If able, serve on one of FCNCL’s committees: Policy, Communications, Strategic Advocacy and Education, or Nominating. Committee meetings are conducted in the manner of Friends.
5. Promote and attend legislative lobby days, advocacy training workshops and other events.
6. Length of service: The meeting appoints up to three representatives. Representatives may serve multiple consecutive two-year terms.
Representatives to Orange Congregations in Mission
Mission:
Responsibilities:
Length of service:
Representatives to Orange County Community Remembrance Coalition
Representatives work with the Orange County Community Remembrance Coalition (OCCRC) to recognize people historically victimized by racial terror in Orange County.
Responsibilities:
1. OCCRC, which coordinates with the Equal Justice Initiative of Montgomery, Alabama, is undertaking a multi-year project to recognize the people victimized by racial terror lynching in Orange County from 1865 to 1950. The Eno Friends Meeting representative attends OCCRC meetings every other month and participates in committee meetings as led.
2. The representative informs the Meeting of special events held by OCCRC and encourages involvement.
3. Eno Friends Meeting also supports OCCRC by allowing use of our Zoom account for coalition meetings. The representative coordinates this use.
4. Length of service: There is no set term for a representative, and any Eno Friend may participate in OCCRC meetings and events.