Financial Update from The UCE Treasurer
We’ve now completed the first six months of our fiscal year and can give the congregation an update about how we are doing financially against our operations budget. And the answer is, thanks to the congregation’s support, just fine. 78% of our $744,000 annual operations budget comes from members’ pledges, and our members did an excellent job of catching up on pledge payments by the end of December. We have a couple of income items that are a little over budget (rentals, Serendipity) and a couple that are under budget (loose plate, lunch and coffee money), so on a total income basis, we are only $2,000 behind for the first six months. But, if you are so inclined, please remember to bring some spare cash to Sunday Services to support both loose plate and your bagel/coffee habit!
On the expense side, we are close to on track as well. Nearly ¾ of our expenses are to pay for staff, and that is generally expense we can plan for. Why does such a high proportion go to salaries? Our staff lead us and support our programs—Sunday Services, including music and Sunday School; our social justice programs; pastoral care; and membership programming; not to mention administrative tasks and taking care of the building. By having staff, our members can focus on doing good in the world. We do need to watch every penny as unexpected expenses have come up. And when a member of staff leaves, such as the recent departure of our capable part-time RE Assistant, we evaluate the position. In this case, we will replace part but not all of her hours to help offset other modest shortfalls. Our projection is that, it will be close and we need to be careful, but we should be able to finish the year at the projected level of break-even.
We have two other “buckets” of money not included in the operations budgeting. One is Endowment, which supports direct expenses for programs, educational opportunities, special projects and building enhancements or repairs through annual disbursements made from the UCE Endowment Fund. And the other is the Capital Campaign, which will give us the opportunity to make expensive, much needed repairs to our beautiful and well utilized building. But the operations budget is the beating heart of the church, and your support is much appreciated. Questions? Please contact me at Susan.L.Comstock@gmail.com.
By Susan Comstock