On October 18, the board met with JBUC staff and ministry and program leads to share our current thinking on two pieces of work we've been developing since the spring: a governance model for the board, and a renewed way of organizing and supporting our more than 40 ministries and programs. This page lays out that thinking in full, with links to the documents themselves, so that everyone has a chance to read it before we bring it to the whole congregation on November 8.
James Bay United is full of vitality. We have more than 40 active ministries and programs — worship, pastoral care, music, climate action, refugee sponsorship, the Thrift Shop, Community Lunch, and so much more. That's extraordinary vitality for a congregation our size. Each one of them is a way this church lives out God's love — building bridges to people inside these walls and well beyond them. Whatever we're proposing below, the goal is to protect and strengthen what's already working — not to replace it.
JBUC Current Organizational Structure.pdf
Right now, structurally, every one of those 40-plus ministries and programs reports directly to the board. The United Church of Canada Manual is specific about what that means. Section B.7.4.12 says the governing body — our board — has “general responsibility for leadership in the care and oversight of the spiritual life and the interests of the congregation.” We take that responsibility seriously.
But think about what that actually requires. Our board meets once a month. For us to fulfill that responsibility the way the current structure asks us to, we would need to know, in real time, what's going on in 40-plus different groups — where there's energy, where there's a problem, where someone needs help. That isn't possible. Not because we don't care, but because no monthly meeting can hold that much. When everything reports directly to the board, in practice almost nothing really does — things fall through, or they don't get heard until they're already a crisis.
This is the problem we're trying to solve — not by asking the board to work harder, but by rethinking how information and support move through this community.
JBUC Proposed Organizational Structure.pdf
The proposal has three parts.
First, we group related ministries and programs into clusters. The proposed structure has four clusters — Church in Worship, Church in Administration, Church in Community and Service, and Church in the World — plus a fifth cluster that continues to report directly to the board. Worship and Administration relate to the board through the Minister, since those are areas the Minister already leads and coordinates day to day. Church in Community and Service — which includes Arts Ministry — and Church in the World each connect to the board through a Ministry Steward. The fifth cluster — Property, Trustees, Ministry and Personnel, Financial Management, and Volunteer Coordination — continues reporting directly to the board, since those functions are already closely tied to board oversight.
Second, each cluster that connects through a Steward gets a Ministry Steward — a new role we describe in detail below. This is not a layer of management; it's a relationship.
Third — and this is the part that actually solves our problem — we get a clear communication structure. Regular, predictable reporting reaches the board through the Stewards, instead of 40 individual lines all trying to reach the same table. And when something urgent comes up — a safety concern, a conflict, something that can't wait — there's a clear, fast way to flag it and get help, instead of hoping it surfaces at the right board meeting.
JBUC Ministry Steward Role Description.pdf
A Ministry Steward holds a cluster of related ministries and programs with relational care. It isn't a management role — a Steward doesn't run programs, supervise volunteers, or make decisions on the board's behalf.
What Ministry Stewards do: they check in with each lead in their cluster — monthly by default, though the frequency can flex. They ask three questions, really: what's energizing you, what's getting in the way, and is there anything the board needs to know. They take notes — not to monitor anyone, but so nothing gets lost. When a ministry hits a snag, the Steward helps the lead think it through, and only brings it to the Board Chair when it genuinely needs the board's help. They carry decisions back, close the loop, and submit a short written update each quarter.
What Ministry Stewards do not do: they don't make commitments on the board's behalf, approve spending, supervise or evaluate ministry leads, or manage day-to-day decisions.
On confidentiality: what a ministry lead shares with their Steward stays confidential, shared only with who needs to know, and only what's needed to move something forward. The exception is anything urgent — safety, personnel, finances, property damage, abuse, or a significant conflict — which gets reported to the Chair right away, not held for the next quarterly update.
The time commitment for a Steward is roughly four to six hours a month.
The last piece of this work is about the board itself — not just how ministries connect to us, but how we intend to do our own work differently.
The part that matters most to ministries: much of what gets done in this church happens — and should happen — without the board's direction. Ministries don't need a seat at the board table for their voice to be heard. The board relates to ministries through their Ministry Steward, who carries concerns to the board and carries the board's response back. Trust is built through regular sharing, not surveillance.
When ministries do report to the board — whether a quarterly update or a concern that comes up along the way — we're not asking for a detailed account of everything. Three questions carry most of the work: what's bringing energy, what's getting in the way, and is there anything you want the board to know. We want enough information to support ministries well, without that reporting becoming its own burden on anyone's time.
JBUC Current Organizational Structure.pdf shows how our ministries and programs connect to the board today.
JBUC Proposed Organizational Structure.pdf shows what we're proposing instead.
JBUC Ministry Steward Role Description.pdf describes the new role in full — what it does, and what it doesn't.
JBUC Governance Model.pdf sets out how the board intends to do its own work.
This is a draft, shaped by feedback from our May congregational input, our board retreat, and the October 18 conversation with staff and leads. On November 8, we'll bring it to the whole congregation for an open discussion — not a decision meeting — alongside the 2027 budget process. On November 29, we'll ask the congregation to ratify the governance model and the new organizational structure.
Share Your Thoughts
We want to hear from you before November 8. Use our online feedback form, or come find a board member directly.
Scott Jantzen
Board Chair