The annual pledge drive provides the money needed to operate our Fellowship – salaries, utilities, supplies. etc. Think of it as money you’d spend each month from your income or checking account. The Board creates a budget for the coming year based on pledges, or commitments, from members, and then spends the funds as the pledges are paid. This is an annual cycle.

The capital campaign is for big, one-time expenses. Others before us gave time and money and labor to build the facilities we have. We have an obligation to care for and improve what we were given for those who come after us. Think of this as coming out of your savings account or your reserves – like if your house needed a new roof or buying a new car. You might make payments over time, but it’s not an expenditure you make every year. We have already taken care of long-overdue maintenance and upgrades on the existing parking lot, classrooms, administration building, kitchen, main stairway, bridges, and Founders Hall. The amphitheater is the final phase of this once-in-a-generation capital program.

 

We expect to be inviting members to make a financial contribution at the start of the campaign to enable us to proceed with the safety and accessibility infrastructure work in Phase 2, and then a multi-year commitment to fund the amphitheater improvement work, which won’t start until Phase 2 is at least underway.

 

At this point in the life of our Fellowship, it is clear that we need both – annual pledge payments to fund our ongoing operations, staff, and programs, and a final push for capital funds to complete the work of making our campus safe, accessible, and comfortable for us and for future generations.