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Meeting Minutes: July 12, 2023

Open meeting was held at:

Wells Hall,
Christ’s Episcopal Church,
310 N K St, Tacoma, WA 98403

July 12, 2023
6:30 – 8:00 PM

An agenda was provided. Three board members and 52 others were present.

The meeting was called to order at 6:30 pm.

Opening Prayer 

Where we are Today and Next Steps

  • The Board began by thanking the staff at Christ Episcopal Church for their hospitality and the use of Wells Hall.
  • The Archbishop finally responded to the appeal against the destruction of Holy Rosary, which had been sitting in limbo since 2019.
  • It is the Archbishop’s decision to relegate the church to “profane but not sordid use”. This essentially means that the Archdiocese would deconsecrate the church building in preparation for its destruction and the selling of the land.
  • We were given only ten days to appeal. We did so, and the appeal was immediately rejected by the Archdiocese. We have retained a canon lawyer and are appealing to Rome.
  • Federal law exempts civil interference with a church deciding the use of its own buildings and lands.
  • If the Archdiocese wants to get maximum return on the value of the land, they would have to tear down the church before selling, because it’s on the Tacoma historic register. And while that doesn’t prevent a religious authority from seeking to modify or destroy its own church, it does prevent these things if a secular organization or company were to purchase it.
  • The Catholic Church also operates under our own canon law. Under canon law, a church cannot be deconsecrated and destroyed where the resources exist to maintain it.
  • If we can demonstrate that the resources to repair and maintain the church exist, the Archdiocese must allow it to remain a church.
  • We are retaining the services of a canon lawyer in Rome to handle this appeal.
Annual Financial Report 30 June 2023
Total Income: $321,108.11
Total Expenses:  – $42,695.51
Net Income: $278,412.60
Total Pledges: $1,371,398.00
Total Net Assets: $1,649,810.60

Q & A

  • A lively question and answer session followed. The Board provided clarifications on our working strategy, and a number of good ideas were advanced on fundraising and preservation and development.
  • CALL TO ACTION: get the word out! Call or write your representative, city officials, press, or anyone else you think should know. Call or write the Archdiocese and ask your questions.

Fundraising Efforts and Events

  • Discussion on upcoming fundraising ideas included a summer ice cream social, a reprise of our popular spaghetti feed, and a wine and cheese reception. More ideas are needed.
  • A new email list specifically for volunteers will be created in the coming days.

Like and Follow “Save Tacoma’s Landmark Church” on Facebook.

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Contact us anytime at: SaveTacomasLandmarkChurch@gmail.com, or by mail at: STLC 2602 S 38th Street, Suite A126, Tacoma, WA 98409

Our IRS Nonprofit #82-2375235

Next meeting is to be determined at a later date.

And don’t forget to pray for Holy Rosary!