2022 Extra Mile Commitment

Dear Church Family,

I want to thank Bobby Wilmath for his leadership and for creating a personal video to share current-state financials with the congregation.  The purpose of this letter is to provide a few more details about where we are financially year-to-date. 

As Bobby mentioned, we have started this year in a deeper hole than normal.  This is a function of both reduced/slower giving and higher expenses as we restore the church to pre-pandemic operations.  It is the responsibility of the finance committee to regularly report the state of our financials and provide counsel to both staff and members on actions we can take to make improvements. 

Rev. Lee and the finance committee are working together to minimize expenses.  However, as we are called to serve the community and members of the congregation, reducing spend and scaling back programs can only be a small part of the answer.  Our top priority is to increase giving, while growing membership of the church.  To that end, we are asking that everyone make an intentional effort to give $500 to $1,500 this calendar year, above and beyond their tithe or standard giving to help close our budget gap.

I will provide proactive updates as the calendar and fiscal year progress. You can find up-to-date financial information at chambleeumc.org/leadership.   Additionally,  Rev. Lee, church leadership, and I continue to work on actions such as:

• Exploring additional federal assistance programs like the PPP funding we received previously
• Approaching those with previous gifts, not yet put to use, about funding existing initiatives within the church such as Modern Worship and Trustees projects
• Securing a lease to rent the parsonage and provide incremental rental income
• Finding ways to run the church more efficiently, without impacting programs

Challenging times are usually temporary and I remain confident that we are on a positive path towards membership growth and community engagement.  But, right now, we truly need your help.  The fourth quarter of both the calendar and fiscal year begins October 1.  For that reason, we ask that you please complete the form below by September 30 to indicate your 2022 Extra Mile commitment.

Thank you and God bless,

Chip Zint