December 2016

If you didn’t participate in #GivingTuesday on Nov. 29, 2016, you missed a great opportunity to remind and encourage your members and supporters to give to your mission or ministry. The number of gifts given that day via the online giving platform – Presbyterian Mission Exchange – exceeded 2015 gifts by 166 percent and the total amount given was more than 59 percent over 2015.

Mark your calendar to participate on #GivingTuesday 2017 – Nov. 28 – the Tuesday following Thanksgiving and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

The Presbyterian Mission Exchange, offered through the Presbyterian Foundation, is a simple and create online system that provides resources to grow support for your mission. It makes giving easy for your members. Gifts are not limited to online options. Gifts of non-liquid assets can often provide tax benefits, and the Foundation can accept nontraditional assets on your behalf, such as real estate, business interests, restricted securities and personal property.

For more information about the Presbyterian Mission Exchange and how you can begin using it for online giving, contact your Ministry Relations Officer (MRO) at www.presbyterianfoundation.org and use the online search feature or call 800-858-6127, option #3 and we’ll put you in touch.

Whenever I have the opportunity to talk with churches about giving, I always like to talk about three types of giving. Many people will have the opportunity to participate in all three during their lifetime, and a congregation is not built on receiving just one type of gift. All three are integral to the ongoing ministry of the church.

ORDINARY GIVING is the annual commitment made to the church and put in the plate every Sunday (or put in the virtual plate through an online gift, direct transfer or other method). These funds support the day-to-day mission and ministry of the congregation. Ordinary giving comes most often from an individual’s or family’s annual income; what they bring home every week.

EXTRORDINARY GIVING is a short-term commitment for a special project, most often a capital campaign to add additional space or renovate a building. Sometimes it can be for a special fund to endow a particular ministry or in recognition of a special event like #GivingTuesday. These funds will most often come from either annual income, savings, or perhaps from the giver’s donor-advised fund, which is like an online charitable checkbook that allows the giver to direct funds to specific ministries of the church and charities they wish to support.

THE ULTIMATE GIFT is usually the largest single gift a person will make to the congregation and often is triggered at someone’s death through an estate plan or will. This gift comes from the accumulated assets of the giver.

The Presbyterian Foundation works with congregations and individuals to facilitate all three types of giving. We have resources to help you talk about generosity year-round and identify themes for those discussions. We also work with you in discussions about capital campaigns. The Foundation’s Live Forward, Give Forward program is useful in helping church members catch the vision and understand the power of bequests. Our Planned Giving Navigator technology provides the tools and resources to build a planned giving program for your church.

As the new year approaches, let us know how we can assist you in talking about the ways these three types of giving can fit your particular needs and current situation. Call your Presbyterian Foundation Ministry Relations Officer (MRO). You can find your MRO using your zip code at www.PresbyterianFoundation.org or call us at 800-858-6127, option 2 and we’ll put you in touch.