FROM THE STEWARDSHIP TEAM
Giving Sundays – Coming Up In March
Please keep a look out for this upcoming important mailing from church.
In the first week of March, members and friends of FRS will receive this year’s annual campaign packet containing letters from campaign leaders Steve and Eileen Costello, and from Reverend Rebecca, plus a campaign brochure and a pledge card. These important items tell the story of our church’s recent accomplishments and our journey together. Your pledge card is important as it is the way you can easily and confidentially communicate your planned level of financial commitment for the coming year.
Stewardship is about caring for our community, about reliably engaging and doing what needs to be done. One of the things that we do each year is make a financial pledge. You don’t have to be a member to pledge; we have many non-member pledges each year. This year we are aiming for 100% participation of members and friends in the annual campaign and we are trying to increase our pledge total by 10%. Some of us may not be able to increase what we give. Some of us certainly have the ability to make an increased commitment. A pledge is not a binding contract. However, it is an indication of the level of annual financial support you feel is appropriate for you and yours. Our pledges allow the Parish Board to plan our program offerings for the coming fiscal year. Whatever you give, it is important, it is valued and it really matters.
Please read the campaign packet materials and come to one of our Giving Sundays having considered what our church means to you and the people who are important to you.
Giving Sundays
Our Giving Sunday services will be on March 8th, 15th and 22nd and will include an interlude for congregational generosity. During each of these services, members and friends will be invited forward together to place their envelopes containing their pledge cards in a large bowl on the chalice table. The envelopes will be collected in gratitude for your stewardship and support of your spiritual community.
Giving Sunday really is about an outward and joyful manifestation of the generosity of many. Together we are strengthening our community and providing stability going forward. It feels good to join with other members and friends in an act of giving which strengthens our church’s ability to serve each of us and our community.
As you consider your pledge remember that our church is growing. Measured by our active mailing list, which includes members and friends, over 600 people now participate in our church. This is a substantial increase over the past two years and reflects that increasingly, many are finding our church to be a compelling spiritual home. This growth deserves our financial support. Programs, activities and spiritual learning that are important to you will help inform and motivate your generosity.
We will have three Giving Sundays – March 8th, March 15th and March 22nd. Please join me and Annie in making a pledge commensurate with your means and your appreciation of your church community.
Lark Madden for the Stewardship Team
Karen Young, Steve and Eileen Costello, Sarah Spaulding, Anne Katsas, Kim Kenly, Art Henshaw, Verne Ellis, Andrea Healey, Jay Iannini, Susan Ricker, John Mercer, Reverend Rebecca Bryan, Kristen Fehlhaber, Nicole Salemi