by Lee Beam, Treasurer
Our Operating Budget income comes primarily from the pledges and contributions from our members, communicants and visitors. Pledges are a tradition in the Episcopal Church, where you sign a form stating your intention to give a certain amount next year. Pledges are helpful to the finance committee in our budgeting process, much like knowing what your salary will be so that you can decide how much you can pay for a house or whether you can replace your car this year.
For 2023, our total budgeted expenditures were $838,000, and these were the primary sources of our income:
Pledges, plate offering and other non-pledge contributions: 70%
Facility use fees, interest and other miscellaneous: 1.5%
Diocesan support for our Curate position: 2.5%
Endowment income and special designated gifts: 26%
However, we had to plan to use an additional $25,000 from our savings to cover these anticipated 2023 expenses.
What does our Operating Budget cover?
First, it funds the expenses of our physical plant – these three beautiful (read old and historic) buildings with for their utilities, supplies, upkeep, housekeeping, groundskeeping, insurance and repairs.
It funds our programs (highlights included here).
Pastoral care efforts through our prayer chain; Memory Care program for those with memory issues and their caregivers; and a Grief program for those who need it.
Christian Formation programs for youth and adults, worship supplies, Bible Study, Women of Faith, journaling classes and book studies.
The Music program which has more than 30 children and youth who regularly sing in church, our adult music program, a summer Music camp for our youth and youth from throughout the community. Expenses include music, licensing fees, and choir vestments.
Fellowship including picnics, brunches, Tuesdays at Trinity, nursery care for Sundays and Tuesdays, and receptions after special services and music events.
Mission and Outreach including grants given annually from our Outreach budget to local organizations and global organizations doing good work in the world, our Honduras missions and support of education in Haiti, our annual Diocesan support, and our well=known and vital Noon lunch program, provided with support of numerous churches and other community organizations, but housed at Trinity and supported through our provision of space, utilities, equipment upkeep, and housekeeping. Outreach also includes our participation in the NAACP luncheon, the Martin Luther King service, and other offerings/programs to meet and engage members of our local community.
Parish operation includes the behind-the-scenes expenses such as accounting and banking fees, postage, copier expenses, telephone and internet, office supplies, computers and software, and other miscellaneous expenses.
Finally, our operating budget supports the Staff who are the drivers of many of these activities. Our staff is vital to helping us achieve our goals, but none of this could happen without the work of many dedicated volunteers who are help with services, answer phones in the office, prepare the altar, sing in the choir, assist with receptions and dinners, or serve as Christian Education volunteers.
In 2023, attendance at our services is up. There are more children in Sunday school, more adults attending formation classes, more people attending our Tuesdays at Trinity and other fellowship opportunities. The energy is apparent, and we are grateful for it.
We want to continue to grow Trinity, to reach more people, to expand the work that we do for God in our local community as well as our outreach work to the greater world. We want to welcome more people and engage them in our activities and the work that we do.
How much should I give, or how much should I increase my pledge to Trinity?
I can’t answer that question for you. I do believe that each of us should give, as AJ says, from our gratitude for what God has given us. We hope that you will increase your pledge to Trinity as your budget allows and as you feel is appropriate, so that we can continue to extend our reach and our offerings to our members and the community.
If you have any questions about Trinity’s finances that I can answer, feel free to stop me at any time and I’ll be happy to speak with you, or reach out to a Vestry or clergy member. We are also interested in recruiting new members to serve on our finance committee, particularly if you have a background in accounting or finance.
