Dear Church Family,
Let’s begin by revisiting the amazing news of your overwhelming response to the call in February for funds for a new roof for the 2000 Addition! As of March 16, seventy-seven families had pledged and/or given a total of $84,798! The goal was to raise merely $45,000 for this $85,000 project because the church had already set aside $40,000 from capital reserves and endowment earnings. Thank you for answering the call and demonstrating your love for God and the church by your generous and sacrificial giving that resulted in a new roof before Easter!
Regarding giving toward the Unified Budget through March 31, contributions are not far off expectations set
during last fall’s Stewardship Campaign at just over $118,000. However, this is about 6% behind last year’s pace and more on par with the first three months of 2020-2022. Expenses for the first three months came in higher than revenue at $136,000. Thus, our Fund Balance was reduced by $18,000 from $73,500 at the beginning of the year to $55,500 as of March 31. This is a normal level for the Fund Balance, but we will continue to closely monitor revenue and expenses throughout the year. Clearly, an increase in giving toward the Unified Budget would be reassuring! Giving toward the Building Fund held steady through March.
You may be interested to know that giving to memorials makes a difference too. In 2023, a total of $8,213.50 was given to the church in memorials. Families of the deceased are given an opportunity to designate where they want larger amounts applied. As a result, monies become available each year that take the pressure off the Unified Budget in categories such as Christian Education, Music & Worship, Missions, Youth Ministry, and the Building Fund.
Another area of good news involves the church’s long term investments. The church’s Endowment Fund and
Parsonage Fund are invested with the United Methodist Foundation of Michigan in their 60/40 Balanced Fund. This Fund uses value-based investment principles aligned with the Social Principles of the United Methodist Church. The earnings from the Endowment Fund help fund scholarships, capital improvements, and special programs. The earnings from the Parsonage Fund help fund the pastor’s housing allowance. The Finance and Endowment Committees met with representatives from the UM Foundation this month. They were pleased to confirm the excellent performance of the Balanced Fund which returned 16.22% for 2023 and 4.85% for the first quarter of 2024.
It's exciting to see so many wonderful things happening at First Church because of your financial support! The growth in our staff for such a wide variety of needs is amazing: Discipleship-Samantha, Youth-Melissa, Casual Service-Matthew, Nursery-Julie. Once again we saw Brenda take the children’s musical to another level with The Wizard of Oz, membership in choirs continues to grow, small groups abound, a new pictorial directory is on its way, and plans are being made for another awesome Faith Adventures VBS. And, of course, you really blew the roof off that capital campaign! Thank you for your continued prayers, generosity, and support.
On behalf of the Finance Committee,
Steven Peters, Chair
Let’s begin by revisiting the amazing news of your overwhelming response to the call in February for funds for a new roof for the 2000 Addition! As of March 16, seventy-seven families had pledged and/or given a total of $84,798! The goal was to raise merely $45,000 for this $85,000 project because the church had already set aside $40,000 from capital reserves and endowment earnings. Thank you for answering the call and demonstrating your love for God and the church by your generous and sacrificial giving that resulted in a new roof before Easter!
Regarding giving toward the Unified Budget through March 31, contributions are not far off expectations set
during last fall’s Stewardship Campaign at just over $118,000. However, this is about 6% behind last year’s pace and more on par with the first three months of 2020-2022. Expenses for the first three months came in higher than revenue at $136,000. Thus, our Fund Balance was reduced by $18,000 from $73,500 at the beginning of the year to $55,500 as of March 31. This is a normal level for the Fund Balance, but we will continue to closely monitor revenue and expenses throughout the year. Clearly, an increase in giving toward the Unified Budget would be reassuring! Giving toward the Building Fund held steady through March.
You may be interested to know that giving to memorials makes a difference too. In 2023, a total of $8,213.50 was given to the church in memorials. Families of the deceased are given an opportunity to designate where they want larger amounts applied. As a result, monies become available each year that take the pressure off the Unified Budget in categories such as Christian Education, Music & Worship, Missions, Youth Ministry, and the Building Fund.
Another area of good news involves the church’s long term investments. The church’s Endowment Fund and
Parsonage Fund are invested with the United Methodist Foundation of Michigan in their 60/40 Balanced Fund. This Fund uses value-based investment principles aligned with the Social Principles of the United Methodist Church. The earnings from the Endowment Fund help fund scholarships, capital improvements, and special programs. The earnings from the Parsonage Fund help fund the pastor’s housing allowance. The Finance and Endowment Committees met with representatives from the UM Foundation this month. They were pleased to confirm the excellent performance of the Balanced Fund which returned 16.22% for 2023 and 4.85% for the first quarter of 2024.
It's exciting to see so many wonderful things happening at First Church because of your financial support! The growth in our staff for such a wide variety of needs is amazing: Discipleship-Samantha, Youth-Melissa, Casual Service-Matthew, Nursery-Julie. Once again we saw Brenda take the children’s musical to another level with The Wizard of Oz, membership in choirs continues to grow, small groups abound, a new pictorial directory is on its way, and plans are being made for another awesome Faith Adventures VBS. And, of course, you really blew the roof off that capital campaign! Thank you for your continued prayers, generosity, and support.
On behalf of the Finance Committee,
Steven Peters, Chair