First

Chris)an Church (Disciples of Christ) of Bellingham, Washington

Bylaws
Preface
These bylaws provide the opera2onal structures for eec2vely and eciently carrying out the
mission of the First Chris2an Church (Disciples of Christ) of Bellingham, Washington [BFCC
(DoC)].
Sec)on I
STRUCTURE
A. Organiza2onal Structure
The organiza2onal structure of BFCC (DoC) should be adapted to the needs of the
congrega2on and the communi2es it serves. The structure will be charted and dened in
the Policies and Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).
B. Church Year
For scal purposes, the church year will run from January 1 through December 31.
C. Governance
The governance of the congrega2on will be by means of a General Board elected by the
congrega2on. A Visioning Ministry will lead implementa2on of the Ministry Plan.
1. Elected Ocers of the Congrega2on
Terms of oce for the elected ocers are designated in the posi2on descrip2ons,
du2es, responsibili2es, and evalua2on processes presented in the Policies and
Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).
a.
Moderator
b.
Vice Moderator
c.
Secretary
Treasurer
d.
Trustees
e.
Human Resources Coordinator
f.
Fund for Living Ministries administrators
g.
Elders
h.
i.
Deacons
j.
Members at Large

2. General Board
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The du2es and responsibili2es of the General Board are presented in the Policies and
Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC). The General Board is made up of persons lling the
following posi2ons:
Moderator
a.
Vice Moderator
b.
Secretary
c.
Treasurer
d.
Trustees Coordinator
e.
f.
Human Resources Coordinator
g.
Fund for Living Ministry Trustees Coordinator
h.
Property Coordinator
i.
Members at Large
3. Visioning Ministry
The Vice Moderator, Chair of the Elders, and Chair of the Deacons will
a.
serve as the leadership team for a Visioning Ministry. They will recruit
special task force members to assist with the implementa2on of the
Ministry Plan.
The number of task force leaders and posi2on descrip2ons will be
b.
determined according to the needs of the congrega2on, communi2es
served, and the Ministry Plan. Du2es, responsibili2es, and evalua2on
processes will be described in the Policies and Procedures Handbook of
BFCC (DoC).

Sec)on II
NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS
A. Nomina2ons
In September of each year, the Vice Moderator will solicit par2cipants for the
nomina2on commi`ee. The policies and procedures of the nomina2on and elec2on
processes are presented in the Policies and Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).
B. Elec2on Schedule
All ocers will be elected at the annual mee2ng as presented in the Policies and
Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).

Sec)on III
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THE PASTOR
The pastor provides spiritual and administra2ve leadership to First Chris2an Church (Disciples of
Christ) of Bellingham.
A. Standing
The pastor of First Chris2an Church (Disciples of Christ) of Bellingham must be a
commissioned or ordained minister with standing in the Chris2an Church (Disciples of
Christ) or the United Church of Christ, and must con2nue to maintain standing in the
Northwest Regional Chris2an Church. This includes, but is not limited to, abiding by the
ministerial code of ethics, and par2cipa2ng in training events sponsored by the region,
such as sexual ethics and boundary training.
If the church is nego2a2ng with a prospec2ve pastor who does not have such standing,
the person must provide evidence that he or she is in the process of gaining standing in
the region and that standing will be granted soon.
B. Selec2on
Upon the resigna2on or dismissal of a pastor, the moderator of the congrega2on shall
contact the regional minister and request assistance in the transi2on process, including a
call for a trained interim pastor.
Policies and procedures for the selec2on and calling of a trained interim pastor, or a
se`led pastor, are presented in the Policies and Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).
C. Terms of Employment and Compensa2on
Policies and procedures for determining the terms of employment and compensa2on of
a trained interim pastor, and a se`led pastor, are presented in the Policies and
Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).
D. Pastoral Rela2ons Commi`ee
The policies and procedures for the selec2on and opera2on of the pastoral rela2ons
commi`ee (PRC) are established in the PRC handbook, which is an appendix of the
Policies and Procedures Handbook of BFCC (DoC).

Sec)on IV
AMENDMENTS
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A. A proposed amendment to these bylaws may be presented at any regular mee2ng of the
General Board of First Chris2an Church (Disciples of Christ) of Bellingham.
B. The proposed amendment shall be an agenda item for review and discussion at the
following regular mee2ng of the General Board. A vote to approve by two-thirds (2/3) of
the regular vo2ng members of the General Board is necessary to take the amendment to
the congrega2on for approval.
C. The proposed amendment to these bylaws shall be read during the announcements at
the next regular Sunday worship service, posted in a prominent loca2on in the church,
and published in the church newsle`er.
D. The proposed amendment to the bylaws shall be voted on at the next regular
congrega2onal mee2ng, or at a special congrega2onal mee2ng. Approval requires an
arma2ve vote by two-thirds (2/3) of the regular vo2ng members in a`endance.
Sec)on V
ENACTMENT
These bylaws supersede all previous edi2ons of bylaws of the First Chris2an Church (Disciples of
Christ) of Bellingham. Eec2ve _____________________, 2014.












Revision Task Force:
Virginia Haldeman
Don Homan
Brenda Riseland

_________________________________________
Don Homan
Moderator of the Congrega2on

CERTIFICATION OF ADOPTION OF REVISED BYLAWS

I, the undersigned, do hereby cer2fy that I am the duly elected secretary of First Chris2an
Church (Disciples of Christ) of Bellingham, and that the foregoing revision of the bylaws of the
church was adopted by the membership of the church at a general congrega2onal mee2ng held
on ___________________________, 2014.

__________________________________________
Megan Shoemaker
Secretary
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