Finance Council

Every Catholic parish in the world is required to have a Finance Council. This is an advisory group of parishioners with expertise in matters related to the financial and material well-being of the parish.  The Council is charged to ensure the resources entrusted to and maintained by the parish are handled properly in light of the Church’s values, the mission of the community of faith, and sound business practices. Members are appointed by the pastor and reflect the various needs he has for solid oversight and advice on all matters related to the financial and materials resources of the community. 

Finance Council Members
Delynn Alexander
Jose Cahuayme
Julio de la Rosa
Susan DeBender
Steve Dilger
Paul Fedorkowicz
Sarah Hoffman
Steven Joseph
Bill Laxton
Tom Mense
David Nerz
Pete Russo
Tim Throndson
Steve Vebber (chair)

The Finance Council has also created a number of oversight committees specifically focused on major areas of the Parish.  They include:

· School Oversight Committee (representing both K-8 and our Pre-School)

· Maintenance Oversight Committee (all facilities on the campus)

· Columbarium Oversight Committee

· Endowment Oversight Committee

· Justice & Peace Oversight Committee

For more information or questions about our St Francis Finance Council, please contact: Rob.Neppel@stfrancisraleigh.org, Director of Finance and Planning

Franciscan School Advisory Council

The School Advisory Council (SAC) is established to assist and advise the Principal of  The Franciscan School and the Pastor of  St. Francis of Assisi parish.  The Council is representative of the entire parish community of St. Francis of Assisi.  The function of the School Advisory Council is to advise in implementing policies and regulations as stated in the Catholic Schools Administrative Handbook issued by the Diocesan Superintendent of Schools.  The SAC assists in the development of school policies and long-range plans,  assists in the development of an ongoing assessment of the school’s performance within the context of the total educational mission of the parish, and assists the Principal and Director of Finance in the development of the school budget in collaboration with the Parish Finance Council and the Pastoral Council. The School Advisory Council is not to enter into the administrative functions of the school.

School Advisory Council Members 2021-2022
Sarah Hoffman (Chair)
Melissa Yeazel
Fr. Jim Sabak
Michelle Giannini
Marianne McCarty
Kathryn Friedman
The Parish and School non-voting members are:
Mike Watson
Msgr. Michael Clay
Colette Dziadul
Rob Neppel
Kathy Sales
Ann Giannini (Faculty Rep)
Susie Erlinger (HSA Rep)

For more information or questions about our School Advisory Council, please contact: Michael.Watson@stfrancisraleigh.org, Principal of The Franciscan School.

Pastoral Council

In accordance with the provisions of Canon Law and the policies of the Diocese of Raleigh, the Pastoral Council is a representative group of parishioners who, through consensus, serve as a consultative body to the Pastor.  The Council is a strategic visioning group that fosters the implementation of the Parish Mission statement through short term and long term strategic planning.  Each member of the council has the sense of being a servant of the entire parish without being considered necessarily deputies of a specific constituency. The Pastoral Council is appointed by the pastor to expand and enhance the decision-making process of strategic pastoral planning. 

The responsibilities of the Council are to:

• Address strategic questions posed by the Pastor. The Council will research the questions, ponder the questions, discern and recommend appropriate action.
• Identify, seek out, and work collaboratively with the appropriate stakeholders while researching these questions.
• Involve the Pastor throughout the process so that the recommendation will take into consideration his wisdom and judgment.
• Dialogue with parishioners regularly and represent parishioner views on strategic issues to the Pastoral Council.

Pastoral Council Members

Msgr. Michael Clay (Presider)
Jacob House (Chair, jacob.w.house@gmail.com)
Cathy Smith (Recorder)
Benjamin Pappas (Youth Representative)
Delynn Alexander (TFS Representative)
Mae Villanueva (St. Francis Preschool Representative)
Anna Fowler
Tricia Henry
Robert McKinney
Shailesh Maingi
Mary Makhlouf
Gladys Whitehouse
Mike Wrzesien

Ex officio members

Fr. John-Alexander González (Parochial Vicar)
Kathy Sales (Pastoral Staff Representative)
Steve Vebber (Finance Council Representative)
For more information or questions about our St Francis Pastoral Council, please contact: Kathy.Sales@stfrancisraleigh.org, Director of Pastoral Ministries

Stewardship Advisory Council

In collaboration with the Director of Stewardship, these teams promote stewardship as a way of life at St Francis and develop an understanding of stewardship. This team welcomes new parishioners and invites all parishioners to actively engage in ministry by discerning their gifts of time, talent, and treasure; foster a culture of volunteerism within our ministries and serves as a stewardship resource to other ministries and plans major events for fundraising including The Bishop’s Annual Appeal, Offertory Pledge Appeals, The Franciscan Challenge and capital campaigns.

For more information or questions about our Stewardship teams, please contact: Deb.Royals-Mizerk@stfrancisraleigh.org, Director of Stewardship

Stewardship Advisory Council members are:

Julio De La Rosa
Nancy Dilger
Tricia Henry
Mary Morch
Deb Royals Mizerk
Tim Throndson

Justice and Peace Advisory Council (JPAC)

In collaboration with the Director of Justice and Peace, the Justice & Peace Advisory Council (JPAC) provides high-level strategic planning and prioritization of our Office of Justice and Peace.

Council Members

Ellen Ferrone (chair)
Leon Cooke 
Bill Laxton 
Cathy Smith  
Tina Subasic
Becky Cawley (staff) 

Justice and Peace Tithe Stewardship Committee

In collaboration with the Director of Justice and Peace, this teams assess the needs of local, national and international communities. The advisory group creates and oversee programs and initiatives to meet these needs while the tithing committee determines the distribution of the parish tithing to similarly attend to these needs.

Committee Members

Bill Laxton (chair)
Nancy Hagan
Matthew Kane
Suzanne Szymendera
Cyndi Schnupper
Jennifer Catalfano
Sherry Mordecai
Andrew Rinderer

For more information or questions about our Justice and Peace advisory teams, please contact: Trevor.Thompson@stfrancisraleigh.org, Director of Justice and Peace