Honey Locust Sangha
Omaha Community of Mindful Living
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Honey Locust Sangha Care Taking Council (CTC)
January 15, 2023
The Honey Locust CTC met via Zoom in its first meeting for 2023; it was also a first meeting with a revised council membership since Catherine Stremlau has left  the CTC because of time crunches in her life and we missed her.

Present were: Patrice Watson (facilitator extraordinaire), Mike McMahon, Mark Watson, Mike McGann, Juanita Rice (notes) with Dave Watts and Jim Cox joining us belatedly. Tina Ray was absent. The emphasis was, as usual,  on the practices of loving speech and deep listening, and we did a short meditation on those goals. It was a rich and productive meeting, a good precedent for the coming year.

Agenda Item 1. Update on the 2023 spring retreat from the retreat committee members.  The Honey Locust Spring Retreat will be May 11-14 at the Creighton Retreat Center. We already have commitments from two Dharma teachers, BK (Brian Kimmel) and Terry Vegas Cortez. We do not anticipate a problem with finances for the Retreat, even though there will be two plane tickets to purchase, and the Center fee with meals.  But we will watch carefully.

Agenda Item 2. Update on the February 4 Day of Mindfulness (DOM). The Retreat committee has spent most of their time lately making sure that all arrangements have been made for the DOM and will shortly be sending out a second notice with registration details.  The DOM will be via Zoom and is being called "Amplifying Diverse Voices," based on the Second Mindfulness Training.

(See Five Mindfulness Trainings for Plum Village, 6/22 revision).

Agenda Item 3. Our Treasurer Randy Reinhart reported a balance of $3175, and submitted a more specific spreadsheet, attached to this report. (See more at bottom of minutes.)

Agenda Item 4. Update on inviting teachers to upcoming DOMs and the 2024 spring retreat from the retreat committee members. The retreat committee, with its emphasis on the February 4 activity and next Spring's retreat has not spent much time on the longer range goals of assessing whether there are teachers we  might want to recruit to add to our most frequent Dharma Teachers.  Specific to earlier CTC discussions was the theme of finding perhaps a more diverse list of possibilities.  In an engaging discussion we found some means toward these goals with a different method:  what we really want is to practice "continuing education," self-education and personal practice beyond our own small Nebraska sangha and the mostly once-a-week meetings.

We decided to utilize the weekly invitation/reminders to add notes on upcoming resources, each of us publicizing upcoming online retreats and classes, youtube resources, and other resources.  If someone is envisioning a residential retreat at one of the 3 US Plum Village Monasteries or other opportunities, send that information to Juanita for inclusion in the weekly invitation, and/or post it to Facebook (or email Mike McMahon to post it).  Juanita suggested a reminder that increasing our diversity awareness is not just a matter of recruiting some well-known teacher for their Personal Identity. It is, she suggested, an ongoing seeking for each of us to become more inclusive and aware in our practice and outlook.

Agenda Item 5. Sangha Monday night meetings: comments on the current format.  Everyone agreed that adapting to hybrid format (both in-person and via Zoom) has improved significantly since we first started trying it.  Again, no end of thanks for those who have volunteered to be responsible for setting up the equipment.  And note that we need to ask for new and alternate volunteers in the long run. (And the short run since Dave is planning to be unavailable for set-up by month's end.) Most of us agreed that the beginning of the meeting is somewhat  "busy," a  little cluttered with both noise and movement.  We want to be relaxed, have the time and attention to meet each other, greet newcomers, settle in.  We lit on a few variations in setting up that may help minimize visual and audio clutter that we will try the next night (January 16) : dampering audio feedback from zoom to studio and from studio to zoom until a sound check; minimalizing the visual confusion of setting up in the center of our studio circle, and experimenting with NOT moving the in-studio camera/mike around to all the different people who share in the second part of the session.  Fine tuning may include a switch from unidirectional to omnidirectional settings (on the Hearing Assist microphone). We will direct evaluations back to Dave, Jim, and Mark right after the gathering. We also fielded unhappiness that meditation time gets so hedged about between set-up and discussion/sharing. We will keep learning.

        There is always the option of having separate meetings occasionally-i.e., splitting up Zoom and In-Person to different nights.  Mostly we resist that idea because the unity of the sangha is important to us.  We will see.  (The CTC is always open to feedback: that's our charge-"taking care of the sangha.")

Agenda Item 6. Update on future membership for the  CTC.  Our by-laws (or our guiding practice) for the CTC say there should be 6-9 diverse members with  changes taking place annually as the year changes.  The minimum "qualification" is that members must have committed to the Five Mindfulness Trainings, going through the ceremony at a retreat in the Plum Village tradition, and must have attended Honey Locust sangha "steadily" for a year.  We did send out a notice for volunteering to serve but since no one indicated a willingness we decided to make that announcement again at least for January 16 gathering.  There are currently 8 members, identifying as 3 women and 5 men. (And most of us are ...well, senior citizens.) The term is two years but members of the Order of Interbeing and Aspirants to it are generally recruited to serve on CTC with their "terms" being permanent although some may need to step back for a year or two.  Currently Gina Matkin who is a long-time "OI" did decide a year ago to take some R&R time. Spending some time looking at the Honey Locust website may be useful to newcomers.

(Agenda Item 3.) From our Treasurer Randy Reinhart. As of 1/11/2023 we have a balance of $3,175. A spreadsheet is attached to these notes.

 HONEY LOCUST SANGHA Treasurer Report 07-11-22 thru 01-11-23 (YTD)
INCOMING FUNDS (Sangha):
Dana from Sangha$2,215.82
Bank Interest$0.05
    TOTAL INCOMING  (from Sangha)$2,215.87
OUTGOING FUNDS (Sangha):
Rent (Yoga Path $325/mo) (July to Jan)($1,950.00)
Meet Up Fee (2 payments)($197.88)
    TOTAL OUTGO (for Sangha)($2,147.88)
****************************************************************
PayPal Beginning Bal 01-11-23  $370.19
US BANK Beginning Balance 01-11-23  $3,175.58
Total funds as of 01-11-23  $3,545.77



The Honey Locust Sangha / Omaha Community of Mindful Living is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All funds donated help to fulfill the mission of practicing and raising awareness of the mindfulness practice in the Thich Nhat Hanh / Plum Village tradition.

​You can donate (provide Dana) using the PayPal link at the left (you do not need a PayPal account) or send via Venmo to @HoneyLocust. Please indicate General Dana or specific event (December DoM, for example) in the text via Venmo.