Saint Mary's LRP--Background and Intro

St. Mary's Long Range Plan
2006-2008

Background and Introduction:

In 2005 four major activities occurred leading to the development of this three year long range plan for St. Mary'’s Episcopal Church and its congregation:

• In January Stephen V. Smith became Rector of St. Mary's after the congregation had been without a permanent rector for over two years.
• The Vestry in concert with the new rector developed and adopted an updated mission statement.
• The Vestry and the Rector agreed to develop and implement a three-year plan for our St. Mary'’s.
• A comprehensive survey was conducted among all members of the congregation in concert with an “every member” visitation program.
  

The Mission Statement:

St. Mary'’s is a community of faith striving to live intentionally as the Body of Christ in the world. We express our faith through worship, spiritual formation, care for others and responsible stewardship of all of our resources.

• We base our worship on the richness and diversity of Anglican liturgy and music.
• We provide opportunities and resources to guide the spiritual development of our multigenerational congregation.
• We reach out to help fulfill the material needs of those in our local community and beyond.
• We invite everyone to participate in the life of our community through sharing their time, talents and tangible resources.
  

The Parish Survey

In June 2005 St. Mary'’s polled 400 families in a Questionnaire designed to determine their levels of activity, areas of interest and feelings about the church, and to update our data base. From our 200 responses we determined that 60% of our parish is retired, 70% attend at least weekly, and people with a history of active involvement outnumber those seeking to serve. There was considerable interest in Dinner Groups, Current Events Forums, and Adult Bible Study. When asked about St. Mary's’, most indicated that caring people, spiritual home, sense of belonging, appreciation of clergy, liturgy, sermons and music were most important to them. 95% had met Steve with enthusiasm. The survey was the foundation for a visitation program which reached families; both will help in planning going forward and the refinement of our record keeping.


The Long Range Plan

Why a Long Range Plan?

• Carry out our mission as a congregation
• Uncover problems and opportunities within Parish.
• Set priorities for the work of the clergy, vestry and the congregation as a whole
• Insure that spiritual, fiscal, and community goals are established and met
• Guideline for management over three- year period. 2006-09
  

Parameters Used To create the plan:

With the Mission Statement in place and after reviewing the results of the Parish survey several interactive sessions were held to review and assess the current and future needs of the parish. The Vestry and Rector Smith agreed to develop plan organized around eight focal areas of development. A team leader(s) was identified for each area to manage the effort from plan to implementation.

Parish growth and participation (Marian Ferguson)

Spiritual Growth ( Phyllis Bradley and Kris Lewis)

Stewardship (Sharon Donegan)

Communications (Patrick Ramage)

Christian education (Liz Rabideau and Kris Lewis)

Outreach (Lisa Barr)

Buildings/Grounds and Property Management ( Matt Palmer)

Music (Bruce Johnson)


The Vestry recognizes the responsibility of continuing to evolve the rich spiritual life and traditions of St. MaryÂ’s. It also wishes to protect and improve the magnificent physical plant and gardens that are part of our heritage.

The long range plan assumes that in the next three years St. MaryÂ’s parish will not seek to expand in a manner that would require significant additions to the physical plant or professional staff.

The plan will insure the short and long term economic stability of the Parish.

We will establish specific and quantitative goals within each area of the plan and a process to be managed by the Vestry to insure that goals are met on a timely basis and with relevance to overall objectives.

We will make every effort to communicate this plan to our entire congregation in the hope that we will have both their support and active participation.


Long Range Plan Goals

Overall

• Insure that our mission is fulfilled by making our parish a focal point in the lives of our congregation.
• Create and implement the means for the Parish to be self supporting for ongoing expenses and insure that capital income is devoted to capital expenses and other special projects.
• Insure that an organizational structure and process is in place to carry out and manage the goals of the strategic plan.
• Insure that the elements of the strategic plan are adequately communicated, integrated, evaluated and evolved as needed.
  

Parish Growth and Participation

• Retain and engage current membership to achieve 70% involvement in parish life-attend, pledge, church school or volunteer.
• Maintain an active membership list of 400 families by 2008.
• Cultivate new leadership and succession plans for all key parish activities.
  

Spiritual Formation

• Broaden St. Mary'’s offerings of opportunities for spiritual formation in terms of variety, time and location so that programs meet needs of all parishioners.
• More effectively communicate availability of offerings and other resources in area,
  

Stewardship

• Increase number and level of pledges over the next three years to fund operating budget and discontinue use of capital funds and interest income for operating expenses.
• Increase St. MaryÂ’s endowment principal and increase sources of income.
• Develop a more formalized planned giving program.
  

Communications

• Develop and implement an integrated communications plan for St. MaryÂ’s that reflects needs of all key constituencies and employs most effective and relevant channels of distribution.
• Identify and implement means to have ongoing and effective dialogue among parish clergy, vestry and members.
• Consistently reinforce mission in all communications.
  

Christian Formation: Children and Youth

• Strengthen existing Church School program to nourish our children in faith as they grow.
• Develop a comprehensive Youth program to meet educational and spiritual needs of this age segment.
• Work with Spiritual formation to provide opportunities for development across life span.
  

Outreach

• Define the mission and scope of the Outreach activities at St. Mary'’s
• Integrate and coordinate all outreach and charitable giving within the Parish.
• Increase participation in outreach activities.
  

Buildings, Grounds and Property Management

• Identify, prioritize, and estimate costs for property and grounds projects requiring capital funding in the next three years.
• Insure the continued maintenance of St. MaryÂ’s Garden .
• Create an energy efficient physical plant and develop on-site renewable energy sources to demonstrate environmental stewardship and realize cost savings.
• Develop set of policies and guidelines for use of Parish physical assets.
  

Music

• Increase the size of the adult choir to 20 full time members and 12 additional voices for special services.
• Add paid section leaders to the bass and soprano sections.
• Add a part time assistant director.

Parish Growth and Development LRP

Long Range Plan For Parish Growth and Development
Chair: Marian Ferguson
508-362-8225


LONG RANGE PLAN - PARISH GROWTH draft 4/24/06

I. WHERE WE ARE

A. Membership
St. Mary’s currently has about 600 resident members representing 350 separate families. In addition our rolls include 30 non-resident families and about 300 inactive members. We are considering an active resident family to be one who attends church, and/or pledges or gives, and/or has at least one family member who is active in the life of the parish and who makes the Cape their primary home.

From January 2004 – December 2005 (20 months) 38 active new families joined the parish. These are families who came to St. Mary’s in the last year of our interim and Steve’s first year; they represent about 11% of our total number of parish families. There was little or no outreach to increase membership in that period.

Our current membership has 62 families with members over 80 year of age. This represents 17% of our total resident membership. Some of these folks are not currently active due to age.

Our current families reside from Sagamore to Brewster with the following
geographic distribution.
24% Barnstable
17% Yarmouth Port
20% Hyannis/Hyannisport/Centerville
20% to the west of these areas
19% to the east of these areas

The tenure of the family membership of our current congregation is as follows
11% <> twenty years

Another measure of parish growth and development is attendance at services.
2000 - 22,138
2001 - 22,788
2002 - 20,391
2003 - 18,379
2004 - 13,130
2005 - 14,369 (Note- we dropped from four to three weekend services)


B. Congregation involvement/participation

216 families pledged to give to St. Mary’s in 2005. The pattern in years past is also significant. Our decline during interim years reached it bottom in 2004, inched up with a new rector; we hope to see continued increase in the number of pledges in our current drive for 2006.

1997 - 305 pledges
1998 - 285 pledges
1999 - 278 pledges
2000 - 279 pledges
2001 - 264 pledges
2002 - 267 pledges
2003 - 242 pledges
2004 - 205 pledges
2005 - 222 pledges (63% of resident families); an additional 38 families give without pledging, bringing our financial involvement to 74%

Another measure of congregational growth and development is participation in the life of the church. The following is based on family units, not individuals (hence a family of 4 will be counted the same as a single person household.)

204/350 or 58% of resident families attend church

119/350 or 43% of families serve in a church service related activity*

138/350 or 39% of families have at least one member who volunteers in a weekday activity.*

* There is significant overlap in these two groups. The numbers and percentages could change as we check with more group leaders and refine the lists.

73 students are enrolled in Church school representing 42 or 12% of parish families

215/380 or 55% of resident and non resident members participated in our Parish-wide Questionnaire in Summer 2005


From January 2004-September 2005, we identified 43 families as newcomers. From this group we have identified 33 new active families, of which 1/3 are involved with church school. This represents a retention rate of over 75% of those newcomers who walk in the door. Of these 28 new families:

23 are active volunteers
9 are involved with church school
23 have pledged
7 have made gifts
2 are clergy


C. Summary of where we are:

Having completed a parish wide-survey and visitation program in the spring-summer of 2005, we now have a fairly reliable sense of how many families are active within the church. There are still some issues to be resolved in record keeping, especially with regard to:

-counting active members (i.e. baptized children of inactive members who have not attended since they were baptized?)
-how do “good prospects” morph into active members?

Based on the Questionnaire returns, it’s clear that many people who had been active are no longer physically able to be. The challenge to the parish now is to develop a comparable corps of active members and leaders to build upon the efforts of those who’ve preceded us.


II. OBJECTIVES: WHERE WE WANT TO BE

GOALS
A. Retain and engage current membership – seek at least 70% to be involved parish life attend, pledge, church school, or volunteer.
B. Maintain an active membership list of about 400 families by 2008/2009. This means adding a net of 12-15 new families each year
C. Cultivate new leadership

A. Retain and Engage Current Membership

Our goals must be to focus on and organize the program and involvement desired by our current members. We have come through a long period without addressing needs in this area. The stable infrastructure will be essential to future growth in numbers and program. While some may argue that we need a larger pool of people from which to draw additional volunteers or pledges, it is not clear that we have done all we can to enlist the aid and involvement of current members. At this point, it seems wiser to spend at least a year (2006) to allocate resources in this direction while being mindful of newcomers, rather than mount a campaign to increase membership by an arbitrary percent. Note the diversity of skills the questionnaire revealed waiting to be tapped in the parish. These lists should be systematically mined for new base of volunteers, and we should develop a system of recording and tapping into skills of people new to the parish. As well we need to develop the data base capacity to keep track of these skills and interests and create a central “clearing house” for volunteers and volunteer opportunities

B. Grow to 350 Active Families by 2008-2009

Attract, welcome and incorporate new families (aim for 20 families, per year) into the life of St. Mary’s in order to sustain sufficient levels of congregation size to support both the Christian mission and practical needs of our parish (figuring attrition 20-25 individuals through death and moving each year.) In the absence of a membership drive, there is much to do to cultivate membership within those who walk in our doors; based on performance in the past 18 months, it seems reasonable to expect we may offset natural attrition in this manner. In early 2007 we should review of numbers to consider the need for a membership drive

C. Cultivate New Leadership

A third goal in parish development is the need to cultivate new leadership. Many have commented on the number of small number people who continue to carry the leadership load at St. Mary’s. We need to lighten the load on our heroes and to allow additional lights to shine. This represents a cultural shift at St. Mary’s; it won’t happen overnight. It should be discussed and modeled from the clergy, vestry, ECW on down. Aim might be to (1) identify all such leadership roles in first 6 months, (2) prepare job descriptions of each within twelve months, and (3) within the next 18 months identify second in command who will accept future leadership.


III. STRATEGIES AND TACTICS

A. Identify and recruit team to develop and execute plan over next 3-5 years; determine meeting expectations
1. Leslyn Thorne – Newcomer Events
2. Linda Hutton, Connie Phillips - Shepherds
3. Jim Cranitch – parish volunteers, data base management
4. Janis Umschlag, Evangelism committee
5. To be determined, Fellowship Committee
6. Ann Canedy, ECW
7. Link with Communications Task Force

B. Communicate to the parish the current state of membership, and goals for growth to seek their involvement in organizing increased participation,attracting new parishioners, and identifying new leadership.
1. Present overview of needs/goals to congregation via newsletter
2. Focus on responsibility of everyone to attract newcomers- “bring
a friend to church”
3. Conduct open meeting to explain status and recruit help (4/30)
4. Publish and circulate parish membership directory (done 12/05);
publish semi annual supplements of newcomers and updates
5. Publish packet for newcomers (green brochure done 10/05))

C. Identify and promote “affinity” activities within parish community to engage new and old members
1. Implement programs around movers to area, people engaged in outreach programs in general community
2. Dinners for 7 – consider making the part of a revived Fellowship Committee, responsible for church wide hospitality
3. Programs suggested by Questionnaire and visitation research (Adult bible study, current event forums, elder care, etc.)
4. Emphasize a “rebirth” leveraging new ministerial resources, re-energized commitment around Strategic Plan needs for volunteerism
5. Include targeted messages to appeal to individual needs: spiritual, educational, outreach to elderly/shut ins

D. Insure that visitors to services, church programs etc. are actively met and given information about our parish and its benefits.
1. Renew commitment to tours of facility (Russ Fales), use of pew cards, updated nametag board
2. Newcomers tri-fold to be installed at front door
3. Clergy visits with newcomers packet
4. Shepherd follow-up; program maintenance
5. Newcomer coffees/events; develop parish wide responsibility to greet newcomers every Sunday
6. Vestry greeter rotation (in place 11/05)
7. Include newcomers on dinners for 7 lists as space is available
8. Develop system to record newcomers’ interests re volunteering

E. Work with current leaders to identify second-in-command
1. Codify and publish job descriptions
2. Identify potential leaders parish-wide
3. Make volunteer lists available to leaders; update quarterly



IV. RESOURCES NEEDED

A. Clergy time for newcomer visits, program development (and leadership)
B. Data base maintenance; record keeping, identifying and thanking
volunteers
C. Shepherd program maintenance
D. Communications support: Cross Currents, Annual reports; Sunday
Bulletin; Newcomer’s packet, Directory of members
E. Volunteer time (shepherds, office, etc. etc.)
F. Parish-wide support of endeavor – “buy-in”.


V. OPEN ISSUES

A. Record keeping- Definition of “member”: How/when do you move from Good Prospect to Active Member? Related issues of member categories.

B. Optimum congregation size: 350 active resident families?

C. How to identify and enlist potential leaders? Build a climate of ownership and wider base of those taking responsibility for the parish body and programs. How to evaluate progress and feedback?

St. Mary’s Church Strategic Plan
Parish Growth and Development - Goal Tracking

A. Retain and Engage Current Membership

-Identify and Recruit Team Qrtr 1 ‘06
-Present goals/roles to in CC Qrtr 3 ’06 (Sept)
-Parish LRP meeting Qrtr 2 ’06 (Apr)
-Parish membership directory Done
-Dinners for 7 Done; update lists
- Revive Fellowship Com Qrtr 3 ’06 (August)
- Emphasize “rebirth” and Qrtr 3 ’06 (Oct)
- Introduce programs suggested by Qrtr 3 ’06 Oct)
Letters to those who expressed interest
-Target programs for individual needs Qrtr 4 ‘06


B. Grow parish to 400 active families 2009-2010

- Vestry greeters collect pew cards Done
- Update name tags Quarterly
- Newcomers’ tri-fold at front door Done
-Newcomers’ packet, clergy visits Done
-Publish newcomers names in CC Monthly
-Shepherd assignment, follow-up Monthly
-Shepherd team meeting April; Oct.
-Newcomer coffee/event; facility tours Quarterly
-Review membership list, data Quarterly
-Reconsider need for membership drive Qrtr 1 ’07, 08


C. Grow new leadership

-Generate list of current positions and teams Qrtr 2 ’06 -Maintain list of potential leaders/ workers Ongoing
-Generate job descriptions/function notebooks Qrtr 3 ’06
-All of the above to have “second in command” Qrtr 1 ’07

Communications LRP

LONG RANGE PLAN FOR

PARISH COMMUNICATIONS


CHAIR: PATRICK RAMAGE
508-362-2052


LONG RANGE PLAN-COMMUNICATIONS DRAFT 3/09/06


WHERE WE ARE

St. Mary’s currently uses a number of vehicles to communicate with parishioners:
• Crosscurrents –a monthly bulletin to all active members
• Sunday Bulletin-used to communicate announcements
• Web site- has key information and church calendar
• Periodic announcements-sent to whole parish for special events, stewardship etc.
• Annual Report
• Members Directory
• Newcomers Packet
We also have channels of communication to the community at large.
• Public relations announcement
• Service advertising


While we believe we have many current vehicles for communication we believe there is an opportunity to have a more consistent and integrated process for communication. We also need to understand whether we are meeting the communication needs of the parish.
We also believe we could leverage external messaging opportunities to promote ST. Mary’s and its activities.


(Any other comments or info we received from the survey??)

Comments about change in leadership

GOALS
• . Develop and implement an integrated communications plan for St. Mary’s that reflects needs of all key constituencies and employs most effective and relevant channels of distribution.
• Consistently reinforce mission in all communications.
• Continue to promote St. Mary’s and its activities to the community at large.


STRATEGIES AND TACTICS
A. Integrated Communications plan (Channels)
• Complete audit of all communications vehicles being used for internal and external audiences.
• Contact all key constituencies to assess needs for communications in and out of parish (Clergy, Vestry, Committee Heads etc)
• Develop annualized plan to detail all planned communications.
• Improve current communications tools and add others as needed to insure that effective and two-way dialogue is facilitated. Develop point of view regarding current and additional vehicles for communication.
• Develop and implement a plan to more effectively make use of our web site and e-mail as communications tools.
• Recruit communications team to support goals.


B. Consistently reinforce mission in all communications (Content)

• Insure that there is an articulated and consistent messaging throughout communications process which reinforces overall mission and our goal to engage more members in St. Mary’s.


C. Promote St. Mary’s to Community at large (Public Relations)
• Develop comprehensive PR plan
• Assess and address communication requirements for all other areas of focus in long range plan.

Building and Grounds LRP

LONG RANGE PLAN

BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS


CHAIRMAN: MATT PALMER
508-362-3839


LONG RANGE PLAN: Buildings Grounds and Gardens Draft 3/10/06


Current Status:

The congregation of St. Mary’s has the blessing of a beautiful church, extensive facilities and renowned and beautiful surrounding gardens. The physical plant is valued at several million dollars and portions of this facility are over 100 years old with a new addition built in the 1960’s. We also have the burden of maintaining a facility with significant demands for upkeep and improvement:

• Our church is located in a low wet area with a stream running through the property. Drainage and periodic flooding are continual problems-particularly in the library area of the building.
• Our beautiful and extensive gardens require significant maintenance and our current volunteer base is ageing.
• Historically, we have not allocated adequate resources for ongoing maintenance of our facilities.
• We need to demonstrate environmental stewardship of our physical plant

For a number of years, little capital maintenance or improvements were performed at the church, primarily due to lack of funding. In the past ten years some of the backlog of deferred maintenance has been completed. While funding has come from the capital growth of the endowment or bequests to the church, there is no annual budget set for these needs and it has been done on an ad hoc basis. Ideally we would create an annual capital allocation for buildings and grounds so that a more structured planning process could be implemented.

In the last few years we have completed the following projects:
• Significant renovation of the rectory including a new roof.
• Replacement of roof on church
• Re-shingling of the main church and classroom wing.
• Replacement of all doors and windows in classroom wing.
• Renovation of bathrooms in basement area.


Goals

• Identify, prioritize, and estimate costs for property and grounds projects requiring capital funding in the next three years.
• Insure the continued maintenance of St. Mary’s Garden
• Create an energy efficient physical plant and develop on-site renewable energy sources to demonstrate environmental stewardship and realize cost savings.
• Insure process, personnel and funding for on-going maintenance needs.
• Engage other members of Parish to participate and utilize their talents to assist in the upkeep and improvement of buildings and grounds. This should include a succession plan for key areas such as garden maintenance.


Strategies

• Develop a prioritized list of required upgrades and maintenance for physical plant including rough cost estimates.
• Develop and implement a process to deal with drainage issues.
• Develop a plan to increase resources for grounds maintenance including the recruitment of new volunteers and use of other church organizations such as the Youth Group.
• Initiate energy audits to identify opportunities for cost savings and better environmental stewardship and implement recommendations.
• Work with Stewardship and Long-Range Planning to continue exploring opportunities for bequests and other gifts in support of major capital projects.

Tactics

(To be completed as long term planning committee for this area is established.)

OPPORTUNITIES AND RISKS

• There is a great opportunity to better leverage the talents and time of our parishioners in the maintenance and improvement of our physical plant and gardens. The recent parish survey will help us identify those who may be willing and able to assist us.
• There is a continued concern that we our able to have our available funding keep pace with the maintenance needs of our ageing plant. Our ability to be proactive in the area of capital maintenance rather than reactive will be less costly in the long run.

MILESTONES

• Work with the Finance committee to identify and retain resource for ongoing capital maintenance of physical plant (4th Qtr 06.)
• Complete prioritized list of required capital improvements with cost estimates. (4th Qtr 06)
• Complete energy audits (3rd Qtr 06)
• Actively recruit parish members for both ongoing committee participation as well as support for specific maintenance and development projects. (2nd Qtr)
• Create and implement drainage system maintenance plan (3rd Qtr 06)
• Develop and implement a plan for ongoing grounds maintenance (4th Qtr 06)
• Identify new volunteers to assist in ongoing gardens maintenance (1st Qtr 07)

Spiritual Formation LRP

LONG RANGE PLAN
SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT


CHAIRS: REV.DR. KRIS LEWIS 508-362-3977
PHYLLIS BRADLEY 508-385-7081

Spiritual Formation
Long Range Plan


I. Where We Are Now
The Spiritual Formation Committee was convened in Fall 2005 to expand on work previously done by the Evangelism Committee. Formation encompasses all that we do to shape our lives as Christ followers—our personal practices of prayer, our corporate worship, our study of scripture, faith and traditions. While most if not all of the activities that take place at St. Mary’s fall under the broad heading of “formation”, the Spiritual Formation Committee has as its purview oversight of a variety of programs that provide opportunities for spiritual growth and development, such as:
• Adult forums and other educational opportunities
• Catechesis and Confirmation Preparation, Inquirers’ classes
• Retreats and quiet days
• Special seasonal offerings (e.g., Lenten programs)

II. Goals
In addition to St. Mary’s Mission Statement which emphasizes spiritual formation as one way we strive to live intentionally, we have as a guiding principle that in all things, our actions are guided by prayer and by our commitment to deepening our relationship with God.
In that light, our goals are :

1. To broaden St. Mary’s offerings of opportunities for spiritual formation in terms of variety, time (frequency, days and times offered), and location so that programs are accessible to all parishioners.

2. To explore new opportunities for spiritual development for parishioners across the lifespan.

3. To more effectively communicate the availability of our offerings and other resources in the area.

III. Strategies and Tactics
1. Assess needs and interests of parishioners using data gathered in 2005 survey, and if necessary, additional questionnaires or surveys. (on-going; Spiritual Formation Committee, clergy).

2. Work with other groups in the Parish to coordinate seasonal offerings.(On-going; Spiritual Formation Committee, Children and Youth Coordinators, clergy, staff).

3. Explore new program opportunities (e.g., Via Media, DOCC, EFM, small groups, sermon discussion group). (On-going; Via Media Regional Training to be hosted at St. Mary’s March 17, 2006; will consider program for Fall 2006; Clergy, Spiritual Formation Committee).

4. With other groups plan Annual Parish Retreat beginning Fall 2007. (Spiritual Formation Committee, Christian Formation for children and youth directors, clergy, staff).

5. Inform the parish community on a regular basis about offerings at St. Mary’s and in the local community, the Deanery, and the Diocese. (on-going; Spiritual Formation Committee, Communication Committee, staff).

IV. Issues:
St. Mary’s mission statement emphasizes spiritual formation as one of four major components of our living as the Body of Christ in the world. Because formation encompasses so much of what we do at St. Mary’s, there is a great need to consider it holistically. In particular there needs to be coordination of the Spiritual Formation Committee with the directors of Christian Formation: Children and Youth, and with clergy and staff. This might be best facilitated by having in place an organizational structure that brings together these various constituencies on a regular basis. Such a structure should include the co-coordinators of programs for children and youth, members of the Spiritual Formation Committee, and clergy. It might meet quarterly (or on an as-need basis) to coordinate programming and planning.

Outreach LRP

ST. MARY’S LONG RANGE PLAN

OUTREACH

CHAIR: LISA BARR

508-362-3839


The Outreach Committee

V. Outreach

A. Where we are
1. Committee structure
a) The Outreach Committee consists of six active members who participate regularly in meetings and activities. Traditionally, the committee has met on a monthly basis, although meetings have been somewhat sporadic and informal. We are considering meeting in alternate months, with meeting dates linked to upcoming Days of Hospitality. In addition to committee members, there are approximately 35 parishioners who participate regularly in events and activities sponsored by, or funded through, the Outreach Committee’s annual budget.
b) For several years, the chair position has been vacant, although Lisa Barr recently agreed to assume the role.
2. Budget and funding
a) Each year, the Vestry designates a specified percentage of the church’s investment income toward the St. Mary’s Charities Fund. That fund, however, is not synonymous with the budget of the Outreach Committee, as not all expenses typically included within the Committee’s budget are really within the control of the Committee. Examples include the Deanery, Rector’s Discretionary Fund, and dues for the Cape Cod Council of Churches. In the proposed budget for 2006, however, the Committee has requested that the Committee budget include only those expenses within its control.
b) For many years, the Committee was level-funded. In recent years, however, financial constraints have reduced the contribution of the church’s investment income toward St. Mary’s Charities Fund. The Outreach Committee was directed to “spend down” its carryover balance to meet its expenses.
3. Activities
a) The single most important activity of the Outreach Committee is the Days of Hospitality program. The Committee also sponsors the NOAH Shelter sandwich program, the recently-reinstated Overnights of Hospitality program, and (occasionally, on an as-needed basis) Safe Harbor. Additionally, the Outreach Committee funds Miracle Kitchen, although its participants have essentially spun off into a separate group which has little communication with the Committee. The Committee also supports the grocery certificate program. Outreach formerly sponsored the return of bottles and cans, which was designed as a church school outreach activity and funded the Heifer Project, although no one from the church school community was able to take on the project after a long- term volunteer resigned from that position.
b) The Committee has also sponsored a variety of other programs, including Angel Tree, Cape Aids Ministry, Adopted Family, Housing with Love Walk, Housing Assistance Corporation’s Annual Cape Walk, Dress a Live Doll, Baby Center.
c) In addition to activities sponsored directly by the Outreach Committee, there are other significant outreach activities, most notably by the ECW, which budgets approximately $3500 annually for charity and parish community needs. Additionally, the Youth Group has been organizing its own outreach activities.
d) Finally, St. Mary’s provides community outreach by offering the use of its facilities to the Fatherhood Program at the Barnstable District Court, for AA meetings and the like.

B. Objectives: Where we want to be
1. Define the mission of the Outreach Committee
a) Focus on discerning a call: outreach efforts should be truly an expression of faith
b) Develop a policy for allocation of resources (emergency relief and planned programs; local and direct services, advocacy and international relief)
2. Coordinate activities and charitable giving with other committees and groups within the parish (e.g., ECW, Miracle Kitchen, Youth Group)
3. Increase parish participation in outreach activities

C. Strategies and tactics
1. To define mission:
a) Meet with clergy for spiritual guidance and to establish a Steering Committee
b) Conduct a needs assessment and select needs we want
to address
c) Determine how to direct solicitation requests from nonprofit agencies
d) Determine how requests for personal assistance from the local community and from within the parish should be directed and addressed—e.g., define role of emergency relief funds and how they differ from Rector’s Discretionary Fund
2. To coordinate activities and charitable giving within the parish:
a) Delineate missions and activities of each committee
b) Partner with ECW to coordinate charitable giving (possibilities include having an Outreach Committee member attend ECW board meeting, having an ECW liaison to the Outreach Committee, exchanging reports and minutes between the two groups)
c) Partner with Youth Group for outreach activities and charitable projects
d) Improve communication with Miracle Kitchen volunteers; solicit a volunteer to sit on the 3. To increase parish participation in outreach activities:
a) Increase clergy involvement and support. As clergy involvement becomes more visible, parish participation will undoubtedly increase.
b) Create an Outreach Opportunities notebook with description of existing programs and contact information. Include service and advocacy opportunities.
b) Use parish resources—e.g., questionnaire—to identify available time, talent and skills
c) Publicize activities and meetings; cultivate new committee members

D. Resources needed
1. Clergy time for discerning mission of Outreach Committee, developing policies
2. Communications support: Cross Currents, weekly Bulletin, annual reports
3. Volunteer time: maintaining existing activities, directing solicitations for funds, responding to requests for services in local community, maintaining and updating bulletin board

E. Open issues
1. Delineate role of ECW vis-à-vis Outreach Committee
2. Bring Miracle Kitchen program within the purview of the Outreach Committee
3. Designate a vestry liaison to the Outreach Committee



Milestones

1st Quarter 2006
• Through the leadership of Ann Canedy, ECW President, and the ECW board, we have already accomplished a significant goal contemplated in our strategic plan: On January 9, 2006, the Board of the ECW voted to contribute $6,000 to fund the Outreach Committee. Although we should continue to delineate our respective roles in this new partnership, we have begun exchanging information—e.g., sharing minutes, budgets and the like.
• Identify a vestry liaison to the Outreach Committee
• Launch a coordinated effort to boost participation in grocery certificate program

2d Quarter 2006
• Establish a Steering Committee to define mission and develop policies. The Committee should include: Outreach Committee chair, ECW designee and a member of the clergy, and should also include a designee from the Miracle Kitchen volunteers and the vestry liaison to the Outreach Committee.
• Create an Outreach Spotlight feature for the monthly editions of Cross Currents.
• Create an Outreach Opportunities notebook with clear descriptions of existing programs and contact information. Include unmet needs in the community and opportunities for advocacy.

3d Quarter 2006
• Complete mission and policy development.
• Conduct a needs assessment of the local community.
• Meet with ECW Board to assess continued support and develop a budget designed to further mission and policies.

4th Quarter 2006
• Evaluate existing Outreach programs vis-à-vis mission, policy statement and needs assessment.
• Determine what additional services are needed and how we can fulfill these unmet needs.
• Plan budget accordingly.

Christian Formation: Children and Youth LRP

ST. MARY’S LONG RANGE PLAN


CHRISTIAN FORMATION
CHILDREN AND YOUTH

CHAIRS: LIZ RABIDEAU 508-362-0344
REV. KRIS LEWIS 508-362-3977

St. Mary Church
Christian Formation: Children and Youth
Long Range Plan Development

Where We Are:
The Church School Program and Youth Group are led by Connie Sullivan and Barbara Hersey. These programs were formerly under the auspices of the (now defunct) Christian Education Committee, but may be thought of as one component of spiritual formation, as referred to in St. Mary’s Mission Statement. Seen in that way, Christian Formation for children and youth includes not only church school and youth groups, but also Junior Choir (under the direction of Janet Armstrong) and Acolytes (under the direction of Kris Lewis).

Current offerings include:

Nursery
Church School
Pre-K thru 3rd grade: Godly Play
Grades 4 & 5: Share the Joy
Youth Groups
Middle School group
High School group
Confirmation preparation (not planned for this year)
Acolyte Program
Junior Choir Program
Vacation Bible School
Special programs (e.g., Christmas Pageant, Halloween party, participation in Blessing of the Animals)


Attendance:
There are 33 families with 60 children registered for Church School. Seven babies and toddlers are cared for in the Nursery. Our goal for attendance is 70% which averages to every child missing church school nearly once a month.

Church School:

Church School meets on Sunday mornings at 9:45 am. Children and teachers join the congregation at the passing of the Peace (approximately 10:30).

Teachers in Godly Play classrooms must be trained in the Godly Play curriculum. For Godly Play there are 8 regular teachers and 2 substitutes. (Training session for Godly Play teachers took place Nov 19th; 5 attended.)For Share The Joy there are 4 regular teachers and 2 substitutes. We are currently evaluating this program.

Teachers currently work on a rotating schedule, and teach once or twice a month, at their request, in order to share the teaching load. While reducing the drain on individuals, this rotating schedule limits the forming of deeper relationships between children and teachers. Because at this time the teachers are drawn almost entirely from the parents of church school children, and because most have taught for several years, the burnout rate is high. We hope to address this problem by recruiting additional teachers who are not parents. Ideally teachers would commit to being in the classroom every week to provide consistency for the children, and the pool of prospective teachers would be large enough that teachers could work one-year-on, one-year-off (for example).

The Nursery/Toddler group does not have a regular teacher at present time. One of the Church School Co-coordinators takes a lead role presently, assisted by parents and youth, but the Nursery should have a part-time paid attendant to ensure safe and consistent care for infants and toddlers. For the toddlers, a very simple form of Godly Play which includes basic classroom behavior instruction helps them to be ready to enter into the Church School classes in later years.

Youth Group: The Middle School Youth meet on alternate Sundays after church. This group is currently a combination church school class and youth group and uses the 7 Things Christians Do & Believe curriculum). The Middle School Youth have 2 teachers and 1 substitute. Another substitute is needed. The High School Youth Group meets on opposite Sundays at 5:30 pm. At the present time, no church school class or other educational offerings are available for the High School youth. This group currently has 2 adult leaders, assisted by one clergy person (Kris Lewis), and 1 substitute. The addition of a male leader/teacher for this age group as well as for the Middle School youth would be highly desirable. All teachers/leaders are currently female. Plans are currently being formulated to evaluate the program for both Middle School and High School youth.

Acolyte Program: Twenty-one youth from 2nd grade through High School currently comprise the Acolyte corps. Acolytes serve at the 10 am service and at special services (e.g., Christmas Eve, Choral Evensong) as requested. During Fall 2005, acolytes have undergone retraining with a new definition of responsibilities to compensate for the loss of the verger. At the present time, Kris Lewis is overseeing the scheduling and training of acolytes

Junior Choir
Lead by Janet and Jim Armstrong

9 children are registered – 2 have not participated this fall
Regular attendance ranges from 5-7
Rehearsals are 5:00 Wednesday evenings. The Junior Choir participates in each 10 am service. On the first Sunday of each month, the Junior Choir processes in with the Senior Choir, remains for the entire service, and performs anthems and other special offerings.

[Janet has been away, not sure if she would have any other input here].

Vacation Bible School
VBS takes place in summer, usually in August and is led by Lead by Connie Sullivan, Barbara Hersey, and Carrie MacDonald. In 2005 28 children and adults participated, and three children joined the Church School as a direct result of their participation.

Planning for summer 2006 will begin in February.

Takes place in August. 2005 attendance included 28 children and adults. Three new children are attending the regular Sunday school as a direct result of participation in VBS this summer.

Budget:

NOTE: Summary not available 12/-/05 – Will update when figures available

Summary of where we are:

Over the last few years, the programs for children and youth have undergone a period of transition mirroring the church’s transition. A restructuring of the Youth Director’s responsibilities as well as a major change in curriculum in the form of Godly Play in the last year has set a strong foundation for growth in the church school. Participation and attendance are within the goals set by the program directors.

The main challenge that the programs for children and youth face is the recruiting, educating, supporting and valuing the teachers and leaders of the youth programs. To be truly successful, St. Mary’s children and youth need the support of the entire congregation. This includes recruiting teachers and youth leaders from a broader pool rather than relying almost entirely on the parents. We need to work towards building a pool of teachers who can provide the stability and consistency our children need and deserve. It also includes the hiring of a paid attendant to staff the nursery to ensure safe and consistent care for the infants of both parishioners and visitors.

A second challenge is to develop a schedule that respects and meets the need for families to come to church and participate in their spiritual formation together as a family. The current schedule of programming splits families and generations apart by offering church school during the main Sunday service rather than before or after that service.

Objectives: Where we want to be

1. Strengthen our existing Church School program to nourish our children in faith as they grow.

• Retain and engage our current families and children and incorporate new members

• Recruit, train and engage Sunday school teachers and youth leaders that more broadly represent the makeup of the congregation, including parents and those without children at home..
--To provide more consistency for children, develop pool of teachers who are willing to make year-long commitment (At current enrollment levels, Goal is 8 full time, fully trained, fully committed teachers to serve the whole year)

• Establish St. Mary’s as a Godly Play Regional Training Center


2. Strengthen our existing Youth Programs to support our youth and incorporate them fully into the life of the Parish as they move into young adulthood.

• Develop a comprehensive Youth Program to meet the educational and spiritual needs of the youth.
--explore new programming (e.g., J2A, Rite 13)
--seek connections with youth outside the parish at the local, Deanery, and Diocesan levels
--develop program of Confirmation Preparation consistent with Diocesan guidelines

3. Work with Spiritual Formation Committee to provide opportunities for spiritual development across the life span.

• Develop intergenerational programming for seasonal events (e.g., Advent Evenings)

• Establish an annual Family Parish Retreats (target beginning date of Fall of ’07).

• Integrate Youth more fully into the regular Sunday services (e.g., as acolytes, Eucharistic ministers, lectors, ushers).


Strategies and Tactics:

Church School:

1. Recruit and train pool of teachers who are not parents—at least two by Fall 2006 with goal of increasing numbers each year (Youth coordinators and clergy).

2. Explore ways to nourish teachers to decrease burn-out. (on-going; Youth coordinators and clergy)

2. Staff nursery with paid attendant to provide safe consistent care (Youth coordinators, Vestry, personnel committee; target date no later than Fall 2007).

3. Work with Spiritual Formation Committee to establish Annual Parish Retreat beginning Fall 2007.

4. Host Northeast Regional Godly Play Accreditation at St. Mary’s. (May, 2006; B. Hersey and staff). Determine other steps necessary to become Godly Play Training Center.

Youth:

1. Form Discernment Committee for Youth to explore options for youth programming (e.g., Journey to Adulthood, Rite 13)—January 2006 (Clergy, Youth Coordinators)

2. Develop comprehensive youth program (Youth Group for Middle School and High School ages, possible church school/education program, confirmation program consistent with diocesan policies) to be in place for Fall 2006. (Youth coordinators/leaders, clergy).

3. Increase involvement of youth with congregation and with other youth on local, deanery, and diocesan levels.—2006 and beyond, (Youth leaders)

Parish wide/lifespan:

1. Form committee with Spiritual Formation Committee to develop plans for Annual Family Parish Retreat (Early spring 2006 with target date for retreat of Fall 2007)

2. Work with Spiritual Formation Committee and Staff to plan seasonal activities for all ages (on-going).

3. Work with leaders of liturgical groups to invite and incorporate youth participants. (on-going).

4. Work with Spiritual Formation Committee to develop organization structure to co-ordinate and oversee education/spiritual development for parishioners of all ages.

Issues:

As noted above, Christian Formation for Children and Youth is one component of the spiritual formation emphasized in St. Mary’s mission statement. Because formation encompasses all that we do to shape our lives as Christ followers, we need to consider it holistically . Having in place an organizational structure that not only allows for this but also expects this will help us to ensure that we are addressing the needs of our entire congregation. Such a structure would include members of the Children and Youth program staff, clergy, and members of the Spiritual Formation Committee. It might meet quarterly (or on an as-need basis) to coordinate programming and planning.

5 Year Plan: 2005-2010
Measures of Success *

Objective Met Deadline

2 Non-Parent Church School teachers
Recruited, trained and placed in classrooms Sept 2006

4-6 Non-Parent Church School teachers
Recruited, trained and placed in classrooms Sept 2010

Hire paid nursery school attendant Fall 2007

Establish Annual Parish Retreat Fall 2007

Host Northeast Regional Godly Play Accreditation May 2006

Formed plan for becoming godly Play Training Center Fall 2006

Form Discernment Committee for Youth Jan 2006

Comprehensive Youth Group Program Oct 2006


*Additional objectives have been discussed and formulated for Christian Youth: Children and Youth yet those stated objectives are either on-going (i.e. youth participation in liturgy) or the measure maybe subjective (i.e. nourish teachers to decrease burn-out)

Music LRP

ST. MARY’S LONG RANGE PLANS

MUSIC


CHAIR : BRUCE JOHNSON
508-775-0349
brucew.Johnson@comcast.net

Long Range Plan for Music at St Mary’s


Purpose of the music program at St Mary’s

The music programs of St. Mary’s are primarily intended to support the liturgical services in the parish; and secondarily to extend those programs to the community so as to raise the awareness and perception of St. Mary’s as a leader in liturgical music. In achieving these goals, musical education for both adult and junior participants is an integral part of the program.


Where We Are

Background

Music has been a part of St Mary’s from its earliest days with choral and organ music performed regularly each Sunday at one or more of the regular services. Additionally, special services such as Evensong. Lessons and Carols or festival services have had music added sometimes with other instruments performing such as an oboe or trumpet. In recent years St Mary’s has joined with other churches (e.g. St Peters in Osterville or West Parish in West Barnstable) for joint concerts For the most part this music has been performed by an adult choir led by an organist/music director and a junior choir also led by the music director and an assistant in charge of this group. In summer and during vacation periods for regular staff, guest performers have provided music.

Current Resources

St Mary’s is blessed to have as its musical director, Dr. James F. Armstrong who brings to St Mary’s a formidable background in liturgical music most recently as Musical Director of Christ Church, Cambridge, MA. His wife, Janet, directs the Junior Choir. On average the adult choir has 16 members with paid section leaders in the tenor and alto sections. The junior choir numbers have on average nine or ten members. The music is sometimes added to by guitars played by parish members.

St Mary’s has as its primary instrument in the church a Karl Wilhelm tracker pipe organ and a rehearsal piano in the parish hall. St Mary’s maintains a music library which is regularly added to and vestments for both adult and junior choir members.

The choir has actively raised funds for the benefit of music both by mail solicitation (The Friends of Music) and in performance at which voluntary donations are solicited. These solicited funds have accounted for about 5% of the music program’s total budget. It is currently under discussion by the Vestry as to whether this solicitation should continue and, if so, under what circumstances.

The staff of the music department is aided by a music committee made up of parishioners, most of whom are adult choir members. This committee is charged with identifying and reacting to problems and opportunities as they arise and assisting the staff as directed by them. Fund raising is managed by this group, as well as arranging for support services at special events.

A music advisory board made up of community musical leaders has been identified to help with outreach to the community and to provide counsel to the music program at St. Mary’s.

Problems and Opportunities

Problems

1. Choir makeup
Membership in the choir is neither as large nor as stable as desirable. While sixteen members can perform most of the music called for, balance in the four sections is not always present. The lack of section leaders in the bass and soprano sections is one reason why more ambitious music is not chosen. Additionally many of the existing members cannot be counted on every Sunday because of travel commitments. The average age of choir members, older than the congregation at large, is a constant reminder that new blood is needed. This issue is being actively addressed by the music committee.

2. Rehearsal piano
The rehearsal piano is in need of repair and is not easily moved to the church for use in performance (a moving company is required to do so).

3. Vestments
The vestments are on average quite old and in need of repair and/or replacement.

4. Lighting
Lighting in the nave for processionals is inadequate. Lighting in the vesting rooms is also sub-standard.

Opportunities

There is a desire by both the clergy and staff to have a more robust music program. This desire is shared by the music committee and plans for such expansion are under way. This expansion includes more special performances by the choir and others within St Mary’s, more joint programs with other churches, and sponsored performances by outside individuals and groups. This is detailed in the planned activities section of this report.

We can greatly improve the publicity and promotion of our musical activities both internally and externally.

Where we want to be – Goals

Specific goals to be reached by the planning horizon of this report (3 years) are as follows:

Choir makeup.

1. 20 full time members who are usually available for Sunday services.
2. Identifying 12 additional voices that can be called upon for special services and concerts.
3. The addition of paid section leaders to the bass and soprano sections.
4. The addition, on a part time basis, an assistant director/ accompanist

A decision re the piano both to repair it and provide for a way to use it in performance or alternatively to replace it with the same capability.

New vestments to be paid for either by Friends of Music or by a dedicated gift.

New lighting to be paid for by church maintenance funds.

By 2007 the addition of at least one new joint performance beyond those now in the schedule.

The establishment of a promotion plan and budget for each special performance.

How We Are Going to Get There – the plan

The first necessity in executing a plan to achieve our goal is already in place – a management group (Clergy and staff, the music committee) committed to the task. This group has already laid out specific plans and goals for 2006 including the following:

Choir recruitment. Led by Dr Harry Irwin we are actively recruiting among the parish membership both by utilizing the information from the parish survey and by word of mouth. Invitations to participate at services will be made by both Steve Smith and Jim Armstrong. We are beginning to reach out to other organizations – schools and musical organizations - to recruit beyond parish members. As we increase the number (and perhaps quality) of special programs with the attendant publicity for them we expect to attract new choir members as a side benefit.

The piano problem will be addressed by the music committee early in 2006 and a recommendation made to the vestry. Under either choice now identified a significant cost will attach. Funding options will be included in the recommendation.

Similarly a recommendation will be made in 2006 re vestments. Included will be options for replacement and or repair, costs and funding choices.

Plans for enhancement of musical programs include a production of Godspell in April, 2006, co hosting (along with holy Spirit in Orleans) the appearance of The Exeter Cathedral Choir in July, 2006, and a plan for 2007 which will add at least one new event to the calendar designed to expand the outreach of St Mary’s music.

Further expansion of the music program will be dependent upon successful choir recruitment as above and financial resources. We have many more ideas than current resources would permit executing and we are aware that music is only one of many programs within St Mary’s that have a call on these resources.

Stewardship LRP

ST. MARY’S LONG RANGE PLAN

STEWARDSHIP

CHAIR: SHARON DONEGAN

508-362-6365
don1227@gmail.com

FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE

a. KEY OBSERVATIONS & ASSUMPTIONS (Where are we now?)

1. INCOME: A SUMMARY

a. The number of pledging units has been declining since 2001 but remained the same in 2004 and 2005. The low average pledge amount per week for the last three years is substantially below similar-sized Protestant churches on the Cape: (Average: less than 50% under $20)

Amount Pledged Weekly:
Year #Pledges -$20.00 +$20.00

2003 242 63% 37%
2004 216 72% 28%
2005 216 71% 29%

The reasons for the decrease in pledge units is varied and understood by all and need not be listed here again. The reasons why the Average Pledge % is so low at St. Mary’s needs to be researched: Are our parishioners unwilling or unable to give more?


2. EXPENSES: A SUMMARY

The rate of inflation over the last three years has averaged 3%. The overall rate of price increases on the Cape over the last three years has averaged 5%. The forecast for price increases of 45-50% for electricity and natural gas from 2005 to 2006 will be an added future expense. Over the last three years we had to expend $115,102 in necessary capital improvements. Actual expenses are for essentials only with little or no funding for projects/activities necessary to fulfill our Mission or properly maintain our building and grounds:

Year: Actual Expenses: Actual Pledge Income: Other Income*(1): DEFICIT*(2)

2003 $406,624 $266,281 $43,621 -$ 96,722
2004 $398,143 $229,210 $43,909 - $125,024
2005*(3) $424,743 $221,619 $75,860 - $127,264

*(1): Excluding Investment Income; Including the use of two Bequests
*(2): Excluding the use of Investment Income
*(3): As of November 30, 2005


3. ENDOWMENT: A SUMMARY

Over the past three years St. Mary’s has had to use 100% of our Investment
Income and Bequests to fund the Operating Budget:

Dividends &
Year: Principal: Interest Used:

2003 $1,805,874 100%
2004 $1,844,917 100%
2005 $1,859,926 100%


4. KEY OBSERVATIONS & ASSUMPTIONS SUMMARY:

A. Our parishioners are either not willing or unable to fund our stated Mission.
Therefore, we need to reconcile our Mission with our income from pledges and
other sources or get our parishioners to give more.
B. Some dividend and interest income should be used for increased outreach/services for our parishioners and our communities. The rest should be reinvested. None of it should be
used for general operating expenses.
C. We need to encourage our parishioners to help increase our Endowment Funds.
D. Our committee’s total focus is the financial portion of Stewardship. All other parts
of Stewardship must be included in other parts of the overall Strategic Plan.

b. GOALS (Where do we want to go?)

1. Goal #1: Conduct a survey to determine why we cannot fund our operating budget with pledges and other income. Is it unwillingness to give St. Mary’s more or financial inability to give St. Mary’s any more. The results should then be used to modify our Mission (if necessary) and develop our yearly budgets with full involvement of the congregation.

2. Goal #2: Increase the number and size of pledges over the next three years.


%Increase in Average Pledge Amounts

Year % Increase in Pledge Units -$20.00 Weekly +$20.00 Weekly

2006 +10% (216 to 238) -10% (71% to 64%) +10% (29% to 36%)
2007 +10% (238 to 262) -10% (64% to 51%) +10% (40% to 49%)
2008 +10% (262 to 288) -10% (51% to 46%) +10% (49% to 54%)

3. Goal #3: Increase St. Mary’s Endowment Principal. Change the use of the Dividend and Interest income.

Year % For Operating Budget % For Outreach % Reinvest

2006 75% 25% -0-
2007 50% 50% -0-
2008 -0- 0% 50%

c. STRATEGIES & TACTICS (How are we going to get there?)

Develop and implement a creative Twelve-Month Stewardship Plan
– KEY COMPONENTS:
- Biblical Foundations
- Education: Our Role as God’s Stewards
- Understanding the Budget/Needs
- Communications
- Involvement (Time/Talent)
- Celebrations
- Sermons
- Adult Forums
- Personal Financial Planning Seminars
- Youth Programs
- Personal Testimonials
- Values & Money & Stewardship Awareness

d. RESOURCES NEEDED

Financial: (2005) 2006 2007 2008
($850) $1,500 $1,500 $1,500

Committee: (2005) 2006 2007 2008
(8 Active) 10-15 10-15 10-15

Clergy Support: Guidance and support from the pulpit
Volunteers: Special Events & Mass Mailings


STRATEGIC PLAN – STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE-MILESTONES March, 2006


GOALS: FIRST QUARTER 2006

1. 100% Pledge A) Prepare Thank-You List of all 2006 pledges
Participation as an insert in the April Newsletter.
B) Prepare and send individual thank-you
notes to all 2006 pledgers.
C) Identify all un-pledged members
and send a letter requesting a pledge.
Also tell them that we plan to call and make
an appointment for an in-home visit for all
members who do not return a pledge card
and/or send a request to not be called or
visited.
(D) Hold training for visitors to un-pledged homes – Sunday, 03/26

2. Other income-raising A) Prepare materials for the $1.00 & A Prayer
Events/campaigns A Day Campaign

3. Communicate/Educate/ A) Articles/Material in every Newsletter
Motivate B) Financial Workshop



GOALS: SECOND QUARTER 2006

1. 100% Pledge A) Update Active Member Listing/Pledge Listing Participation B) Visitors call to set up un-pledged appointments
C) Visitors conduct in-home visits on Sunday, 04/02
D) Analyze data gathered
E) Finalize Active Member Listing

2. Other Income-Raising A) Launch $1.00 & A Prayer A Day Campaign
Events/Campaigns B) Prepare a Poster to chart 100% Pledge Progress

3. Communicate/Educate/ A) Articles/Material in every Newsletter
Motivate B) Children’s Presentations on Giving/Sharing


THIRD QUARTER 2006

1. 100% Pledge A) Plan & prepare materials for un-pledged visits on Pledge Sunday

2. Other A) Fall Kick-Off Event – Thanksgiving for “time & talent” – Sunday, 09/27
B) Prepare and launch “Christmas Gifts for St. Mary’s” Campaign

3. Communicate/Educate/ A) Articles/Material in every Newsletter
B) Financial Workshop
C) Testimonials – St. Mary’s & Pledging
D) Continue to chart 100% Pledge Progress

FOURTH QUARTER 2006

1. 100% Pledge A) Hold training for un-pledged home visits – 1/12
B) Make visits on Pledge Sunday – Sunday, 11/19
C) Gather data and analyze results
D) Develop and present 2007 Stewardship Strategic Plan Goals

2. Other Income-Raising A) Complete Christmas Gifts for St. Mary’s Campaign – 12/24

3. Communicate/Educate A) Articles/Material in every Newsletter
B) Christmas Cards to all pledgers from Committee
C) Celebrate Accomplishments – Pledge & $1.00 Campaign Results

ALL YEAR LONG

Support from the Rector & Assistant Rector in services, forums, communications, etc.

KEY DATES - SUNDAYS

March 26 Train Visitors for In-Home Un-pledged Visits
April 2 Un-pledged In-Home Visits
September 27 Fall Kick-Off Event “Time & Talent Celebration”
November 12 Train New Visitors for In-Home Un-pledged Visits
November 19 Pledge Sunday – Un-pledged-to-date in-home visits
December 24 Christmas Gifts for St. Mary’s Announced

Welcome to Saint Mary's

Welcome to Saint Mary's Blog. The blog will be used to provide information about on-going projects at Saint Mary's in a format that will allow readers to respond.