In Part I, we identified that the level of financial support provided by our congregation at $78,393 per year will not cover the variable cost of our annual employee compensation of $138,185. It prompts us to examine the merits of maintaining a full-time minister.
In Part II, we recognized that we have a wonderful facility which was purpose-built for our large congregation. We already have the precedent for sharing it with the Salvation Army. We identified the many areas where we have excess capacity within our facility that can be leased to make up our budget’s expected shortfall. We must look at multiple options, from leasing our parking spots, our auxiliary rooms, and basement, to sharing the sanctuary.
Our final Part III, however, is the most important part of our plan since it involves making our church relevant to our community once again. We must reach out to the community at large and offer an inclusive and engaging environment where organizations can find support for their activities and their events. Where we see a need to help the community, we must reach out and offer our facility. This will benefit our community and help defray the cost to maintain our church.
PART 3
Event revenue
Imagine if we rented the sanctuary out for “cultural events”, concerts, and film festivals in the evenings and on Saturdays, say twenty times a year. Revenue could be $1,500 per event. This would net us up to $30,000 per year.
To facilitate a vibrant events programme, the church could establish a “Culture Fund” which will be used to support various cultural events such as choral and orchestra concerts. The fund would be seeded with targeted donation monies with an initial target capitalization of $50,000. This financial support/seed capital would make running events at our church comfortable for event organizers.
Marketing the building as an Architectural Gem
The church sanctuary is architecturally beautiful and for many couples it would be desirable for their wedding ceremony. It can be rented on Saturdays at market rates that are up to $2,500 for the day. With proper marketing, and promotion by an event planner, it could be rented out at least 10 times per year for a rental revenue of $25,000.
The pews in the sanctuary are in good shape and could be removed and auctioned off. Their estimated sale could realize up to $10,000. The pews could be replaced by removable quality seating that can be re-arranged according to the facility use and accessibility requirements.
Member Support
By sponsoring events and activities we provide both the opportunity for our community to participate and connect with others to help organize worthwhile events. Furthering the interests of our community and the community at large can revitalize a sense of purpose in our members and broaden our membership. Inspiring a newfound sense of purpose and growth in our community is essential if we are to reach out to the membership for the financial support which is within their means. Consideration should be given to recognizing that support is dependent on “stage of life” categories such as:
a. Family membership – in town
b. Family membership – out of town
c. Working singles – in town
d. Working singles – out of town
e. Youth – single
f. Seniors over 65
Growing the membership
To make our church more inclusive we should consider re-instating English language services. Church activities need to acknowledge the changing demographic that includes many non-Estonian speaking family members.
The church becomes relevant to families if it provides programming for children which is enlightening, fun, and appealing. Our new Sunday school program should be based on the current educational principles of childhood education.
Legacy Donations
With the active support of our members and friends we can once again enable the church to be the centre of our community and an anchor for our culture and values. The church can become a legacy to their involvement with the church and our community. Moreover, it is possible to recognize individual major financial donations through multiple programmes such as naming rights. For our church it would be appropriate to consider a program called “Leave a Legacy” which would allow a member to bequeath to the church a part of their estate for permanent recognition on our memorial tree.
Government Support
Government funding is available to repair/renovate our church facility with matching donations from the membership. These grants need only to be applied for to replace the church cross, the bell tower, and to repair the roof. It may be helpful to know that these programmes were successfully used at the Estonian House to get funds to repair the roof, upgrade the kitchen, etc. Even more funding may be available if the church is recognized as a Heritage Site.
Long-Term Initiatives
The columbarium currently has 311 spots. The Mount Peasant cemetery markets burial sites for cremated remains at $11,000 per niche. We have a comparable location, in town, with our columbarium. Instead of closing the columbarium, we could seek approval to expand it by an additional 100 spots, with an estimated price of $5,000 per niche (which is half price) for a total of $500,000. As required by law, the net proceeds after costs, are kept separate in a trust fund which finances the upkeep and maintenance of the columbarium.
Community Activities and Volunteering
Actively partner with other community organizations for events and worthwhile fund raisers and benefits.
ACTION PLAN: How you can help save the church and grow our community
1. Support the revitalization of our church.
2. Speak out and object to the proposed sale of our church.
3. Participate in activities that take place at the church.
4. Volunteer to help out in planned activities.
Support us as we try to work with the church council to develop a realistic multi-year budget that incorporates the projected cost savings and the income from our proposed initiatives.
Part 1 and Part 2 are available in detail on our website www.friends-of-st-peters.com and below.
Part 1: https://www.eesti.ca/st-peters...
Part 2: https://www.eesti.ca/st-peters...
