June 2018
IN GOOD HEALTH
The church's financial health is good. Not bad at all, and definitely better than at the start of the year.
Here are a couple of points of interest:
Giving is about 94% of budgeted (expected) giving. Great job, church! Compared to last year's giving, we are 6.5% ahead, which is right on target. One of our church goals for this year is a 7% increase in giving compared to last year. This increased giving allowed us to hire Jonathan Fung as our Youth Pastor in 2017, and to continue to be blessed by his work in the youth department in 2018.
Church expenses are slightly over budget (less than 1%) for this time of year, but some of that is due to budgeted projects, like the remodel of the Fellowship Hall restrooms, being completely paid for in one month (March).
We should all appreciate the open hearts of the congregation and the willingness of our members to support the church and its message and works.
NEW FINANCE CHAIRMAN
Steve Erling has faithfully been serving as the Finance Chairman for over 10 years. We want to thank him for the time he has spent organizing the meetings, signing checks, and overseeing the finances at Santa Clara First Baptist Church. His business background has been invaluable in leading the church through good and bad times.
He is stepping down this year, and Jim Garvey has agreed to step in as Finance Chairman. Steve and Jim are working closely together to make the transition go smoothly. We all welcome Jim to the committee.
ROOF PROJECT
Something to look forward to, or dread, depending on your mindset: Our church has two roofs that are more than 30 years old. They’re both 20-year (material) / 5-year (workmanship) roofs, and they need to be replaced.
Jerry Cintas has been moving buckets around to collect the many drips we see when it rains, and he's done some $7,000 patch jobs. But, as you know, moving the deck chairs around on the Titanic only postponed the inevitable. Even with all the good the previous capital funding campaign did to enable both interior and exterior remodeling of our church, if we don’t replace the roofs soon that work may all prove to be for naught. The property department is now getting multiple quotes, and so far they range between $176,000 and $333,000. No decisions have been made yet, but stay tuned for more information in future articles. Offerings designated, on the Giving envelopes, for "Campus Improvements" will be used for the roofing project.
Thank you for supporting this house of God.