March 8, 2023
We are about halfway through the 23-24 pledge drive. This is the point that fatigue can set in both with the Team and the Congregation. We realize that you are getting frequent messages from us in writing, in spoken announcements, and in the services. We hope this is not overkill, but we are following a set of recommended best practices. The goal is to run the campaign for two months and have a result that we are all proud of. Several of your Stewardship Team members are also attending a class with the UUA Region and Stewardship for Us on how to bring in the last quarter of the pledges to close a campaign. We are learning and experimenting.
Similarly, I know the constant bombardment of political ads gets annoying to all of us. Currently, I’m getting ads for an election I can’t even vote in. On top of this, PBS News seems to be going in to a second week of their own pledge drive. This is when my TIVO button comes in most handy. I know who I’m going to vote for in my local elections, and I have already made a pledge to PBS. So my finger hits the skip button pretty quickly and without any second guesses.
If you have already attended a Cottage Meeting and made a pledge you feel good about, thank you. You are now free to tune out those messages from us. I do still appreciate the member testimonials because of the overlay with spiritual practices and because I get to know the speaker better. But the reminders can go on the back burner. We have heard from so many of you who really appreciate these testimonials describing religious and spiritual journeys.
While money pays the staff and keeps the lights on, it should never be the sole driver of how people feel about coming to church. Our hope is that each of you will listen to the information, make a pledge that feels right to you, and then move on to other business.
If you haven’t yet signed up for a Cottage Meeting, please do that now by clicking here. Thank you to the 74 people who have attended and commented on how welcome the information we are sharing is in the name of being informed and financial transparency. We’ll all be happy when the job is done. Especially your hard-working Stewardship Team.
~ Tom Dempsey (on behalf of Gary LaBedz, Debbie Lee, Emilie Cheng, Rick Rayborn, Lisa Gilley, and Rev. Denise)