State of the Parish Report presented by Finance Council October 2, 2016
We are glad to share good news with you.
We start with heartfelt thanks to you, the members of our parish, for sharing your time and treasure to support this vibrant community. Your gifts have made a difference. We submitted a balanced budget for the second year in a row, and the Finance Committee is cautiously optimistic about our financial future. You will find a detailed financial report at the link at the bottom of this page.
Your gifts make it possible for Saints Peter and Paul to pursue its mission of sharing our faith. This year our parish baptized 17 new members, and confirmed 7 young people and 4 adults. We celebrated 13 first communions and 21 weddings, and we serve 72 children through the East Side Child and Youth Ministry.
We have much to celebrate. But to secure the future of the parish, recent giving trends must continue. In the next week, you will receive a letter from our pastors asking you to make your annual renewal of support for our parish. We ask that you prayerfully consider an amount you can commit to giving over the year ahead. Please complete your renewal slip, and return it at Mass during Commitment Weekend, October 22nd and 23rd. Let us pray for each other as we reflect on the blessings in our lives and the best ways to share them.
In the coming months we will also move forward with a plan for the Cramer Building, next door to our church. The long-term fiscal solvency of the parish depends on us taking steps to deal with that aging building.
The plan forward is based on ideas that you, the parishioners, have generously shared over the last decade through multiple surveys and listening sessions. Your ideas have guided our process.
In the next two months we will put out a request for proposals, and invite developers to offer their vision for using the Cramer property. We are particularly open to proposals that would preserve the historic character of the building.
Selling and revitalizing the structure will free up resources for Saints Peter and Paul, allowing us to expand our ministries and make much-needed improvements to the church building.
We plan to make the church accessible to people with mobility issues, create new and enhanced gathering space with an updated kitchen, build new bathrooms, and provide new space for our nursery service.
We look forward to sharing further information with you in the months ahead, including details on how we will accommodate SPRED, East Side Child and Youth Ministry, Catholic East lunches and fish fries, and other activities currently held in the Cramer Building.
In closing, we request, again, that we pray for one another. Let us ask God for guidance in the run up to Commitment Weekend, as we consider what we can give our parish in time and treasure.
And may God grant us wisdom as we continue the work of managing our parish resources well so we can focus on our central mission: sharing the message of God’s love.
Thank you.
View State of the Parish Financial Details
