St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Capital Gifts Campaign BrochureDescription of the Capital Gifts Campaign
Use your credit card or online check The Capital Fund Committee is taking a break from Phase II, the ìEvery Member Canvass,î until after the holidays. The Committee decided a break was appropriate, given the upcoming busy season, planning for Mark and Sharonís departure on January 1, and the transition to Kevin Thew-Forester as Interim Ministry Developer/Rector on January 1. The pledging thus far of $155,000 by thirty-six individuals heartens the Committee.
Chris Niles is coordinating the donor recognition project, consisting of ten banners each depicting one of the ten levels of angels, seraphim down to cherub. Plaques with donor names or ìanonymousî (should one choose not to have gift level made public) will be suspended from the appropriate banner. The banners will be displayed in the atrium, so as to move with a chiming effect. Anyone who would like to paint a banner should contact Chris Niles at 346-5709.
Since Easter 2006, a sub-committee, chaired by Senior Warden, Pat Micklow, of the Sesquicentennial Committee has been conducting a ìSilentî Campaign to solicit pledges for a Capital Funds Drive. As of this writing in late June, almost $100,000 in pledges has been raised from members of the Vestry and the Sesquicentennial Committee. This has been Phase I of the fund-drive.
Phase II, to solicit other members of the congregation, persons with past connections to St. Paulís, and foundations interested in supporting programs such as those included in St. Paulís outreach and congregational development, will be launched in early July and concluded by the anniversary celebration on August 20. The campaign will feature personal solicitation using materials prepared by the fund drive committee. The goal is to raise $300,000 over a three-year period ending in Easter 2009.
Background By 2001, it became evident that the church roof at St. Paulís needed to be repaired or replaced, since it was over one hundred years old and was leaking. It was obvious it had to be fixed. The question was: ìHow to fund the $100,000 required?î A ìBlue Ribbon Committeeî was formed to explore answers to this question.
The Committee considered that the congregation had recently completed two fund-raising drives totaling one and a half million dollars and spanning fifteen years, to replace the Guild Hall and restore the stained glass windows. These were in addition to the annual pledge drives. The Committee concluded that the congregation needed a break in capital fundraising and that the roof repair be funded by a loan from Wells Fargo Bank, with our trust endowments of approximately three-quarters of a million dollars as collateral. The Committee observed that the Sesquicentennial Celebration of the incorporation of St. Paulís Church in 2006 would energize a campaign to raise monies to repair the roof. So a loan was arranged, with interest-only payments of about $800 per month.The Vestry has decided the time has come to retire this loan and end the drain on our cash flow. It has recognized that the celebration of the sesquicentennial not only provides the energy to do this, but also provides the opportunity to implement the motto of the celebration: ì Remember, Rejoice, and Renew.î
The Vestry believes that we are not just about bricks and mortar, but also what we do with each other as a congregation and the outside world.
So the Vestry has established the following goal and purposes for a capital fundraising campaign to celebrate our Sesquicentennial Anniversary:
To raise $300,000 to pay off the roof loan and to fund in-house and out-reach programs into perpetuity. If expenditures are restricted to no more than 5% of the endowmentís assets each year, excess earnings (dividends, interest, and capital gains) are reinvested to compensate for inflation and recessions in future years and to grow the endowment.
PurposesThe endowments show we are putting our money where our mouth is.
One facet of our campaign will be to create an Outreach Endowment Fund of $100,000 to provide seed money to build partnerships in ministry across our region and across the globe. St. Paulís is already putting one percent of its general fund into outreach. This endowment will greatly increase our capacity to help others. Examples of these programs are Habitat for Humanity, Medical Care Access Coalition, Marquette Coalition of Emergency Services, Our Little Roses Orphanage in Honduras, Laurieís Fund to assist the poor in Haiti, Camp New Day U.P., and the Third World Craft Markets.
A second facet of our campaign will be to establish a $100,000 Ministry Endowment. Proceeds from this fund will be set aside to offer continuing education and training for those who are directly involved in and providing leadership to all areas of our ministry. This fund is particularly timely because in 2007 we will commission a Ministry Support Team. This group of almost 40 parishioners has been preparing for over two years to fulfill vital congregational roles: presiding at liturgy and preaching, increasing our profile in the community, and leading the stewardship of our assets. The vitality of our effort will be enhanced by our ability to offer stimulating continuing education to those who support our ministry.
Why Angels? The fundraising committee observed that since an angel is ìa person manifesting goodness, purity, and selflessness,î or, informally ìa financial backer of an enterprise,î it would be fitting to recognize levels of giving such that any level of giving qualifies one as an ìangel of St. Paulís.î The following levels of angeldom recognize a total pledge over a three-year period: Seraphim over $30,000The fundraising committee is still brainstorming ways of recognizing an angel, e.g., staied glass angels decorating a tree. Any ideas are welcome.
The fundraising committee would like to recognize Carol Pence of Pence Consulting for her invaluable help in planning and implementing the Capital Fund Drive.