Financial state of the church letter - July 17, 2007 - Ways and Means Committee

July 17, 2007

Dear Westminster Members,

With 2007 a little more than half over, it is an appropriate time for the Ways & Means Commission to bring you up to date on the financial state of the church and how your generous gifts are being put to use. Thanks to your ongoing support, and by operating conservatively, Westminster Presbyterian Church is in solid financial shape at the present time.

The 2007 operating budget is on track and the general financial health of our church is sound. As of June, pledge collections are moderately below budget – but expenses have been too, so overall the church currently has a balanced budget. We expect expenses to rise in the second half of the year for the following reasons.

1) Having grown in size over the past decade, the church is in the process of hiring a new

"half time" office support person,

2) we need to hire someone to oversee various nursery and other childcare duties,

3) computer hardware in the church office needs to be updated,

4) we are considering the purchase of an integrated security system to make our physical

property safer, and

5) the Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) will soon begin its work in earnest.

All of these items will add to expenses in the second half of 2007, so we ask that you continue to keep your pledge payments up-to-date.

Here is a brief summary of our operating financials, year-to-date through June 2007:

	2007 Annual Budget	2007 YTD Budget	2007 YTD Actual	2006 YTD Actual
REVENUES:
Operating Pledges	866,079	433,040	429,536	888,838
All other revenues	101,906	50,953	60,592	94,801
Total	967,985	483,993	490,128	983,639
EXPENSES:
Staff Compensation	536,040	268,020	262,140	503,096
Benevolences	225,645	112,822	112,822	232,320
Property Management	104,709	52,355	41,240	113,056
All other expenses	101,591	50,796	38,808	111,657
Total	967,985	483,993	455,010	960,129

The Session is exercising caution when considering discretionary or new activities, and striving to operate within a balanced budget in 2007 despite slightly lower pledges than in recent years. In addition, we have planned ahead for some anticipated expenses. For example, a maintenance fund of $89,000, accumulated over the past several years, is available for major building maintenance events, such as the roof replacements that will soon be required on one or two of our buildings.

WPC is continuing its well-established mission program. Our $968,000 operating budget this year includes nearly $226,000 in local, global and denominational benevolences, all of which are on schedule. As of June, an additional $63,000 in non-budgeted benevolence contributions have been received and disbursed to a variety of funds and missions, in particular for last month’s Mexico mission trip.

It is worth noting that planned mission and benevolence spending for 2007 is approximately the same as was spent in 2006, consistent with zero growth in the overall budget for 2007. The Session is hopeful that Westminster can increase mission and benevolence spending in 2008.

Property enhancement and maintenance is keeping pace with our growth. A committee led by Norman Gaddis has prioritized a schedule for renovation and remodeling work inside the Sanctuary.

Phase 1, completed earlier this year, involved updating the narthex, fixing a concrete problem in the narthex floor, and repairing and adding low-energy glass panels to Sanctuary windows to make them more energy efficient and to protect Sanctuary furnishings from ultraviolet light.

Phase 2 will involve re-carpeting the Sanctuary, refinishing the pews, and interior painting. We anticipate costs of up to $100,000 for this work, and a small capital campaign will likely be needed in early 2008 to raise the necessary funds.

Norman Gaddis and C.V. Conner are also investigating ways to make the church campus and particularly the Holderness Mission Center safe and secure for church staff and others using our facilities. At the present time, the cost of this project is not known.

Finally, Westminster's computer infrastructure has become somewhat antiquated and over the next 12 months we anticipate adding a central server and updating computer back-up capabilities and security.

The search for a new pastor is ready to begin in earnest. The Pastor Nominating Committee (PNC) will be elected by the congregation before the end of this month. We do not expect to incur large expenses for pastor search activities; however, $4,000 has been earmarked for the PNC’s work for the remainder of 2007. Funding needs for ongoing PNC work will be addressed in the 2008 operating budget.

Thank you again for your continuing generous contributions of time, talent and treasure that are essential to support these and other works at Westminster Presbyterian Church. Please let me, or any member of the Session, know if you have any questions or concerns regarding the operation and facilities of the church.