Though the Metro Association is blessed with a few persons who are paid to work for the Association, there are many, many opportunities to serve as a volunteer in this diverse, dedicated organization.

If you are interested in being a volunteer and/or knowing more about opportunities to serve, please use the Contact Us page to reach us.

Following are unofficial descriptions of many of the Association's Boards and Committees. Some were prepared by committee chairs or liaisons, others by former Regional Conference Minister Michael Caine. For official descriptions, please consult the Metro By-Laws.


Board of Directors: This is the decision-making body of the Association between its corporate meetings. Realistically, this is where much of the leadership of the Association happens. When leadership decisions come from elsewhere (our committees, deans, or pastors, for example), they are confirmed by the Board. It has become an effective and participative working Board, often with work that needs to be done between scheduled meetings. It meets at the Riverside Church , monthly, in the evening.


Executive Committee: This Committee, drawn from the Board, prepares the agenda for the Board's meetings. This Committee also reviews matters for Board consideration if there is no other Committee appropriate for such review. The Executive Committee meets monthly via telephone conference call, one week prior to Board meetings.

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Finance Committee: This Committee assists the Treasurer with financial matters relating to the life of the Association, particularly budgeting and investments. It meets as needed.


Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee is responsible for drafting a slate of candidates for election at the Annual Meeting in the Spring. The Board is asking the Nominating Committee to do more, become more intentional in drafting leaders from all our congregations and identifying people with the right gifts for the right service. The Nominating Committee is elected by the Association itself. Nominations for the Nominating Committee come from the floor of a corporate meeting. It is assumed that this Committee needs to meet monthly year-round in order to do its work completely.


Association Meeting Planning Committee: The Meeting Planning Committee works with the Vice Moderator, whose position makes him/her chair of this committee. The Committee is responsible for organizing the bi-annual Association meetings. This committee, appointed, not elected, has become increasingly dynamic, often including members from the local church hosting the meeting. It meets, as needed, (usually in the evening) prior to the Association meetings. Each committee member is given a task to organize for the Association's meetings.

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Building Committee: As part of the agreement with Christhava Tamil Koil (CTK), this is a joint building committee for the 79-11 Caldwell property, responsible for its care and maintenance, bill payment and supervision of the sexton. This committee is made up of three members from the Association and three members from CTK. One of the Association members is to be a Board member; the other Association representatives are people whose appointment is approved by the Board of Directors. It meets as needed, usually in the evenings, at 79-11 Caldwell.


Personnel Committee : This Committee is responsible for personnel issues related to the Executive Administrator and others who receive compensation from the Association. It meets as needed.

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Ordination and Standing Committee: This Committee is entrusted with the responsibility, on behalf of the whole Association, for the standing and authorization of those who are preparing for ordained ministry or who are engaged in authorized, recognized ministries, whether in congregations or in winder ministries of the church.

The Committee is made up of twelve members, both clergy and lay, elected by the Association. It is chaired by a designated member of the Association Board of Directors.

The Committee meets monthly, except during July and August, usually on the fourth Friday in the morning, sometimes in the early afternoon if there is a lengthy agenda.

Committee members need not only interest, but a willingness to make a considerable commitment of time which includes attendance at the monthly meetings, reading in-care, ordination and other papers sent before the meeting, taking responsibility for being the advisor of two or three in-care persons, and willingness to serve occasionally on Committee task groups.

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Congregational Development and Standing Committee: The function of this Committee is to seek to develop new churches, strengthen existing churches and their ministries, and to discover other churches who are looking for a spiritual and larger-church connection. It meets jointly with the Suffolk Association's Committee on Church Development.

The Committee meets monthly. Unless conducting a site visit to one of our churches, the Committee currently holds a dinner meeting on the last Thursday of each month at the Church in the Gardens, Forest Hills , at 7:00 PM . The meeting concludes around 10:00 PM.

In addition to monthly meetings, members may be asked to do some work between meetings, from home, to contact various Association churches. Members of the committee may also be called upon to visit other churches, if available to do so.


Metro Mission Priorities and Stewardship: Historically this Committee has made decisions about the Association's benevolent funding of mission projects in the Metropolitan area. It has also considered ways to help congregations with stewardship education. Changing realities in the Association's financial situation and mission priorities are causing this committee to be in transition, needing to redefine its purposes.


Scholarship Committee: This Committee is responsible for making decisions about scholarships to second-year undergraduate members of our local congregations, as provided by the South Church Scholarship Fund. Meets in the Spring and Summer to decide scholarships for September.

Spiritual Life and Professional Development: This Committee meets approximately every other month, on a week-day afternoon, at rotating locations representing close proximity to the Committee's members.

Its primary current purposes are 1) to plan and get underway clergy cluster groups for Association clergy, for their professional development and mutual support, 2) to plan and provide a "hands-on" spiritual experience at each Association meeting and 3) to provide long-term strategizing regarding how to help our Association appreciate and embrace the importance of Sabbath-keeping and sabbatical times, at both individual and congregational level, and among clergy.

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Church and the Metropolitan Community: The Committee identifies social and justice issues for consideration, makes the Association aware of opportunities for involvement and plans the annual Martin Luther King celebration.

At present the Committee's heaviest involvement is the preparation for the annual Martin Luther King celebration. Additionally, the Committee desires to insure that a workshop is planned for each Association meeting.

The Committee expects to meet five to six times a year at places to be determined.


Ecumenical and Faith Dialogue Committee: This is a recent creation to enable the Association to promote and carry on ecumenical partnerships.

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Team Web: Team Web exists to support the web site of the Suffolk and Metro Associations at http://www.uccmetrosuffolk.org. This support requires persons with one or more of the following skills: Knowledge of the Associations and their work and the ability to gather/write/edit information that will support this work; willingness to contact churches to update basic information about each church; data entry skills; web site technical skills.

Periodically Team Web gathers in face-to-face evening meetings at a place accessible to both the Suffolk and Metro Associations. One such place has been Garden City Community Church. Most of the work of the Team is done through e-mail exchanges.

Depending on the volume of information in the site and the number of persons on Team Web, Team members can expect to spend two to eight hours per month supporting the web site.



Finally, in the interest of involving as many congregations and people in the life and leadership of the Association, and because we need all the gifts we can find, it is suggested that people only serve one committee at a time, rather than wearing two or three hats.


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