Centenary United Methodist Church

Trustee and Church Council Meeting Minutes

September 9, 2008

Attendance:  Dave Billings, Marlea Sherwood, Paul Townsend, Wayne Ketch, Ron Annis, Deb Wallace, Martha Bigelow, Ruth Sprague, Holly Gleason, David Wolcott, Diane Doty, Joel and Donna Fiske, Don Snyder, and Jeff McDowell.

The Trustees and the Church Council had a joint monthly meeting to meet with Ron Salyer, a consultant from the Frontier Foundation.  Ron assists churches who need to raise funds to finance capital projects. 

Specific capital projects currently considered are as follows: 

            New roofs for the Narthex and the Education Building

            Handicap-accessible bathrooms           

            Replace plastic that protects the stained-glass windows

            New replacement windows

            Room partitions replaced

            Kitchen upgrades

A brief outline of his services are to

            1) Conduct a readiness assessment                   5) Gift opportunities

            2) Organize the campaign                                  6) Public relations/Information

            3) Create a financial plan                                   7) Constituency Solicitation

            4) Develop promotional materials                      8) Follow-up Activities

(Complete proposal is attached.)

Members of the committees asked these questions:

1. What effect will the downturn of the economy have on the campaign?

            Ans. – Some, however, most donations do not come from the income stream of donors, but from invested assets.  How the congregation feels about the campaign effects the amount given more than the economy will.  When a church feels a collective need, they will meet it.

2. How does a church communicate care and concern to the members who cannot participate?

Ans. – Create a base document relating the history of the church and why we do what we do.  The amount of money given is not important, but we should give sacrificially (widow’s mite).  It should not detract or replace the regular tithe to the general fund, either.  People have to have options in their offerings.  For example, buy one square foot of roofing or one window!  In Ron’s past experience, the general giving increased during the capital campaign.

3. Is a capital campaign attractive to new members?

Ans. – Yes, when a congregation improves and updates their surroundings, it says, “We’re Alive” and “God’s House is Important!”

4. How do you guarantee that the amount pledged is kept confidential?

      Ans. – Trust, I (Ron) am the only one who sees the pledges.

5. How do we prepare the congregation for a campaign?

Ans.  Publish minutes of meeting in newsletter, identify building problems (ex. roof leaks) that we need to rectify, ask for congregational input regarding building issues, and briefly talk about campaign in Sunday services.

6. Can a capital campaign also include a request for assets to be invested?

Ans.  Yes, part of the campaign is devoted to Planned Giving in the form of trusts and wills.

7. Should we hire an engineer or an architect to come in and assess our needs? 

Ans.  Probably not for the particular projects listed.  A competent contractor could give reasonably accurate cost estimates.

8. Do you have any capital campaign statistics on how well churches do when hiring consultants versus attempting to do a campaign on their own?

Ans.  Not written down.  However, some congregations are caught unaware and don’t understand why there is a need to raise funds.  Also, there is a tremendous amount of time and energy devoted to a campaign and it can become overwhelming.  When a church has outside professional advice guiding it through each step, the pastor, staff, and laity can continue to do their regular ministries.  Capital campaigns, like stewardship campaigns, are more successful when they use professional advice.

9. Can you explain what the ‘readiness assessment‘ is?

Ans.  It is a confidential interview with a church member in which I explain what the campaign is and hopes to achieve.  The interviewee can ask questions, and express concerns about other building issues not necessarily on the “list”.  We will discuss what, if any, contribution the interviewee can make to the campaign.  They will be given my business card in the event they have a question and want to contact me.  The interviews will be with a percentage of the congregation.  Based on their responses, I will determine if Centenary is ready to embark upon a Capital Campaign.

The cost for the readiness assessment is $3,000.  Both the Trustees and the Church Council will discuss this further at our October meetings and make a decision regarding hiring the consultant.

            Respectfully submitted,                                                                                                                                                        Ruth Sprague, Secretary