Over the past few years, our pledge income has held almost steady. This is a testament to all of your commitment to this church community that we all value and love. We have not, however, been able to put aside money into our special funds (e.g. maintenance, computer/equipment, instruments, etc.), and cash reserves have dwindled steadily as we have proceeded with small to medium sized projects (power-assist doors, rain garden, new tables for the Commons, and others).
The decline in cash reserves has not alarmed the Board for a number of reasons:
- In 2 years we retire our mortgage, freeing up $25,000 per year in our budget;
- We anticipate that with a new settled minister there will be a continued upswing in energy and excitement;
- With interest rates low, we know we can handle crises;
- The use of automatic bank withdrawals for pledge payments by most of our congregation means that we have a steady income to cover basic expenses such as salaries, heat, and electricity.
BUT, there are a number of short and long-term projects that we need to start to address to make sure our congregation is welcoming, safe, comfortable, accessible, efficient, and green as we celebrate our sesquicentennial anniversary and start to look forward to the next 150 years. Our JumpStarter Campaign is designed to raise $150,000 for a number of these projects and to start adding money to our longer term building and maintenance funds. Please find out about our needs!
Jumpstarter Fund Committee Members
Jerry Katzman, Board Vice-President, Chair; George Huston, Property; Rob Harveland, Treasurer; Dave Siljenberg, Finance; Paulette Demers, Communication; and Gail Bishop