Quarterly Report wording...

A clerk in my stake had a suggestion today about the wording on the Member Quarterly Report.

Line 10 says "Total women attending Sunday Relief Society meetings".

Enrichment meetings don't usually happen on Sunday, but are used in counting sisters that attend Relief Society. Since Enrichment meeting attendance is also used to calculate the number for sisters attending RS meetings, it would make sense not to include SUNDAY in the description...

opee wrote:Since Enrichment meeting attendance is also used to calculate the number for sisters attending RS meetings, it would make sense not to include SUNDAY in the description...

You might want to verify that.

From Relief Society FAQ

Attendance and Reporting

27 If Relief Society sisters attend home, family, and personal enrichment meetings or activities, does this count for regular attendance?

The only meeting where attendance is taken is in Sunday Relief Society meetings. Attendance is not taken at other meetings, including home, family, and personal enrichment meetings and activities. Attendance at any other meeting does not count for Sunday Relief Society meeting attendance.

This may have been an issue that has gone back and forth, but this appears to be the current standing, unless you can find something else.

I was not aware of the FAQ for RS. I was using the Handbook of Instructions RS Section, p. 207 for my answer. Maybe the updated version coming in the future will clarify that... I will call MLS Support to clarify for now.

Thanks.

Might want to check the date on that Handbook. I think the current one came out in just the last few years.

Traditionally, all prior versions were to be destroyed in issuing the new one, but the last time I went looking for something at the stake center, I kept finding books dated 1999.

RussellHltn wrote:Might want to check the date on that Handbook. I think the current one came out in just the last few years.

Traditionally, all prior versions were to be destroyed in issuing the new one, but the last time I went looking for something at the stake center, I kept finding books dated 1999.

The Book 2 version I have is 09/98. To my knowledge, our whole stake has this version. Book 1 is 05/06. Is there a more recent version of Book 2? I could not tell by looking at ldscatalog.com.

opee wrote:Is there a more recent version of Book 2?

Good question. I think I'd check with SLC on that the same time you ask about attendance. Since that book you have is close to 10 years old, there could easily have been a change in procedure. I think MLS came out about 5-6 years ago.

opee wrote:The Book 2 version I have is 09/98. To my knowledge, our whole stake has this version. Book 1 is 05/06. Is there a more recent version of Book 2? I could not tell by looking at ldscatalog.com.

As I recall, our stake got the new Book 1 around November 2006. There has been information somewhere along the way that a new Book 2 was coming out about a year following the Book 1 reissue. It is January 2008 and we haven't seen the new Book 2, but I'd say it will be coming along one of these days.

I called MLS Support today and found out the following to answer my questions:

(1) Counting sisters for attending Enrichment (Homemaking) was an old directive from the "old" Book 2. Instructions via a "Weekly MLS Tip" and letter superseded the Book 2 information, telling secretaries to only count Sunday attendance. Therefore, on the Quarterly Report, only Sisters attending SUNDAY Relief Society meetings are counted.

(2) There is a new Handbook of Instructions Book 2 in the works, but no date on release. We should continue using the one we have until told otherwise--or an updated one is sent to us.

Thanks for pointing out the RS FAQ section. Maybe it would be helpful to have a section on the "Clerk and Stake Technology Specialist Website" that itemizes the changes that have been made to the Handbook of Instructions so that those of us coming into a calling after that information was passed out can "access" it.

opee wrote:Maybe it would be helpful to have a section ... that itemizes the changes that have been made to the Handbook of Instructions so that those of us coming into a calling after that information was passed out can "access" it.

That would be an excellent idea. I think that is available to the Stake President and Bishops, but I don't know as it's there for anyone lower down. With calls and releases, it's sure easy to miss those changes.