Resilience 2023

Just did the canvass total today and we are about $7,000 short of last year's pledges. There is still time for a few more pledges to arrive this week but it is unlikely that there will be any increase over last year.

Not as resilient as I'd hoped.

So that means we will have to scale back our budget. Some of the great ideas that were put forward in this year's budget are not going to be possible.

We are actually pretty resilient. This year's pledges are within 1.5% of our 10-year pledge average. That's good, but our donations are just not growing. Our expenses are not getting any cheaper so when our donations don't grow is means that we have to cut back on a few things.

There is some good news. We have signed a lease with Open Doors Learning Service for 5 years to lease the front spaces in our building. This is reliable, steady income that will help us maintain our budget. Between Open Doors and our casual renters that will account for about 43% of our $320,000 annual operating budget.

I want to thank everyone for their pledges and their ongoing contributions to our church. We may not be on the fast track to growth, but we are holding our own. We are resilient!

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