Now seems to be a good time to provide the congregation with a report of our current financial status. Relax – the news is good!
For the first six months of 2020, we have an operating surplus of $2,372. This means that our income from giving, rents and all other sources has been $2,372 more than our operating expenses for the church. Given the CoVID-19 situation since March, this is a remarkable achievement and is due to 3 factors –
- The congregation has kept up it’s giving. A huge thank you to all those who have been mailing in your pledges, giving online from our website, and even paying pledges in advance. While personal financial decisions during this time have been difficult, it is a testament to your faith in FCC that the church is financially stable today.
- Some of our expenses have been less since the church facility has been closed. Items like electric and water usage have been down, resulting in lower bills. However, other expenses like insurance, equipment leases, etc. have stayed fixed. And we’ve had the usual emergency maintenance repairs, like a broken water line. So while some bills are less, this impact has not been vast.
- Since the church changed from residential to commercial zoning, SO WHO, the social service agency that offices on our campus, has been able to generate grant funding to support their rent. In May, they were able to fully pay for their space usage for the past 12 months. Since this was not budgeted, this payment was a big contributor to our income.
Several other events should be noted. The refurbishing of the pastor’s office (painting, new floor, new heat and A/C unit) has been completed at a cost of $3,206. This amount came from your maintenance and church improvement pledges. A big thank you to Dave Wofford who volunteered so much of his time to make this project happen.
The HIV/AIDS food pantry received several generous donations from the congregation that allowed it to stay in operation. Again, thank you to those folks for their gifts. Recently, NMCAP has received a grant for the pantry that will allow it to operate through April of 2021. With this grant, and the congregation’s gifts (the balance of which will be reserved for when the grant ends), their operation is now guaranteed through all of 2021. For the last few months, FCC members have also been donating food items to help keep the pantry stocked. Thank you.
As always, if you have questions or would like any details, please feel free to ask.
Bruce Weber, Treasurer
treasurer@fcclc.org
