Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, NC

This was the question posed by keynote speaker Fred Osborn, the Director of Philanthropic Services for the Episcopal Church Foundation, to some fifty people attending his workshop recently in New York City. Fred, without any hesitation, proceeded to answer his own question by stating "No !"

So began a most interesting hour and a half of interactive discussion making the case for special giving, bequests and planned giving for the work of the Church. Put simply, it is not the organization of the Church that we support. Rather it is the work of the Church that we are called to support. As Fred noted, "the value of the Church is the effort to change the world through the activity of bringing Christ and the love of God to the World." That is what is worth supporting.

At the time of our regular annual giving campaign we are called to support the program of the Church. The question asked as one fills out a pledge card is generally, "What are you giving for?" And the answer should be couched in terms of equipping the parish to carry out the ministry of the Church. When faced with a capital campaign, the question is phrased somewhat differently. Under those circumstances the question is generally directed towards an inquiry into defining the specific needs of the Church and how the capital assets are going to meet or fulfill those needs. When the case is compelling, the average pledge for a capital campaign is between 5 and 10 times the average annual pledge. Special bequests and planned giving (generally through estate planning) presents a rather different set of concerns. The primary issues for planned giving have to do with whether the Church has sound investment policies that will protect the endowments and whether the Church has in place clearly delineated polices for the use of the endowments. These instruments must reflect the values of the Church community in order that the donor will want to be associated with that activity and remembered through it. According to Fred, the value of gifts received pursuant to a well-devised planned giving program range from 100 to 1000 times the donor's annual pledge!

During the morning session representatives from churches all across the country shared their experiences with mission and vision statements. We talked of successes and failures of capital campaigns and the joy and remarkable generosity resulting from various legacy programs. Toward the end of our time together, Fred noted that our meeting was taking place in the Andrew Carnegie conference room. Mr. Carnegie during his lifetime gave away several hundred millions of dollars and left virtually his entire estate to religious and philanthropic organizations. He wrote in 1889 that one's assets, beyond the amount required to supply the needs of one's own family, should be regarded as a sacred trust to be administered for the benefit of the community. We closed in prayer, thankful for the opportunity to change the world by bringing Christ and the love of God to the world.

If you would like to learn more about the Consortium for Endowed Episcopal Parishes, please visit their website at http://www.endowedparishes.org.

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