Finances at Faith & FAQs on Online Giving

Letter from the Pastor Regarding Our Ministries and the 2022 Ministry Budget and Faithfully Forward Debt Reduction Campaign

Thank you for all of you who have been supporting the vibrant ministries of Faith UMC—and the ministries of the United Methodist Church throughout the world. Your prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness have been a true blessing. This has been a tremendous year that despite the pandemic last far longer than anyone expected we are still welcoming new guests each week and seeing folks officially become members of the church. Many people have gotten more deeply involved in ministries. Youth are coming out each Sunday evening for Bible Study and activities. New leaders are taking charge of various teams—Shepherding, Missions, Finance, Lay Leadership, etc. People are serving on the Worship Team; repairing, upgrading and cleaning the facilities; planning social events and fundraisers, teaching; visiting folks; etc. We couldn’t possibly measure the diverse ways you have served one another and the community!!

Your focus on becoming more faithful disciples is astounding as attendance is strong at our various Bible Studies, Grief Support Group, Junior Church, Youth Group and the Monday Night "Chatting" group. 

We have been able to support various individuals who have needed short-term financial help. This year many people experienced very difficult, life-changing circumstances. We have been able to provide pastoral counseling and the blessing of an entire church family that rallied around them with prayer, support, sympathy, friendship, and guidance. Innumerable hospital, hospice, and nursing home visits have extended the love of the church to those in pain. We have comforted families during the loss of loved ones and celebrated lives through funeral services. We have blessed several young couples beginning their lives together through pre-marital counseling and officiating their weddings.

The Fellowship Hall and Education Wing was used to host bridal and baby-showers, birthday parties, etc. AA and Al Anon leadership meetings take place here. The church has been packed for the Breakfast with Santa and has served several drive through meals. Tuesday and Wednesday mornings we host the Bible2School Class for students from Reidenbaugh Elementary School. You have truly enabled us to live into our mission of being a Community Hub by your generous support of our Ministry Budget and the Faithfully Forward Building Expansion.

This work does require financial support. As we calculate outstanding costs for local ministry that are due by Dec. 31 and compare that to the current balance in our checking account as of 12/19/22, we will need to raise an additional $1,000 by the end of the year to break even. That is a very achievable target. However, that would mean starting the new year with no money in the account and no buffer. Additionally, we are behind in paying our required 2022 Connectional Apportionments to the United Methodist Church by $12,711. This includes 1) The World Service Fund which supports the boards, agencies and missional organizations that resource our UMC ministries around the world, 2) The Connectional Ministry Fund which supports our missions, programming, and staff in Eastern Pennsylvania, and 3) The General Church Fund which provides for the operations of the General Conference. So, to pay all of our local ministry costs and Connectional Apportionments, we need to raise an additional $13,711.

We are confident that we will be able to pay all of our regular bills. Our goal is to also pay as much of our apportionments as possible—rather than carrying that debt into 2023. However, Church Council has also set a target of having paid our regular bills and having $15,000 in the checking account to start the new year before we pay those past due 2022 Apportionments to the UMC. Bills and salary will be paid, but paying apportionments will be delayed until we can start the year able to cover the January 2023 expenses.

We are also still in the midst of paying off the mortgage and bonds on the Faithfully Forward Campaign for the Fellowship Hall and Education Building Expansion that was completed in 2017. We retired one loan in December of 2019. Our remaining loan was $450,000 for 21 years--and we only have about 15 years left on the loan and under $400,000 to repay. The repayment is about $3,800 per month in principal and interest. Thank you for faithfully giving to help reduce this debt in addition to supporting our ministries directly.

Please prayerfully consider if you can make a special end of year gift to help us meet these targets. You can place a gift in the offering plate, mail a check, or donate online at FaithUMC.US under “Online Giving.”

In conclusion, we want to thank you for your prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness! Finally, if you haven’t already, we are asking you to prayerfully consider making a pledge to the Ministries and the Faithfully Forward Capital Campaign for 2023. If you have not yet pledged or if you need to make a change please submit a new pledge card (available online or at church) to the church office.

Thank you and God Bless!

The Rev. Jason Perkowski

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Online Giving:

• How do I make a contribution through the Vanco Online Giving System?
  • Click on "Online Giving" (here or via the button on the left sidebar menu) and a new window will pop up prompting you with instructions on making a donation.
  • There are other ways to give digitally to the church, but this is the simplest way for you to transfer funds directly from your card or bank account to the church's account.
  • Many banks / credit unions allow you to go online and set up a schedule for them to automatically mail a check. You can have them mail it to Faith UMC, 1290 Fruitville Pike, Lititz, PA 17543 and we will manually process it when it arrives.
  • If you have questions about other ways of making a donation (like Venmo, Facebook, etc.) please contact the Church Office at (717) 560-0321 or Office@FaithUMC.us.
• How do automated contributions work?
  • You select a payment method, start date, frequency and contribution amount. On the scheduled date(s), donations will be processed and deposited into the church bank account.
• When will my contributions be processed?
  • Your contributions will be processed on the date(s) you authorize (or the next day if it is after 3 PM).
• What can I use to show I made a donation?
  • The itemized list of electronic transactions that appear on your bank or credit card statement can be used as proof of your donations. You will also receive quarterly and year-end statements from the church. If you create a profile in the online giving system you can also pull up a list of all of your transactions in your giving history.
• Will I receive a receipt?
  • Yes. You will receive a receipt via email, and you will also be able to view transactions in your giving history if you created a profile in the online giving system. Guest donors will receive a receipt if they choose to enter their email address when completing a donation.
• How can I participate in the offering during service?
  • “I Give Electronically” cards will be available on the Information Table at the church to drop into the offering plate.
• How safe is electronic giving?
  • Vanco Payment Solutions meets or exceeds all industry standards to safeguard your data. To help ensure your data stays safe, Vanco leverages technology such as tokenizing card data and encrypting sensitive information for transmission and storage.
• Can I cancel or place a hold on my donation?
  • You can cancel or suspend donations by notifying the church or by going online and signing into your account in order to make changes.
• I made a mistake and donated the wrong amount. How can I get a refund?
  • Contact the church office at (717) 560-0321 or Office@FaithUMC.us and they will be able to credit the amount donated in error back to your account – just like when you return an item you bought at a store or online.
• What payment methods can I use to donate?
  • Donations can be made with all major debit/credit cards. You can also give or pay using your checking or savings account.
• Are there any fees when I make an online donation using Vanco?
  • The donor is not charged any fees by Vanco. There may or may not be fees charged by your bank/vendor based on their policies. However, the church is charged $0.45 per transaction as well as 1% for transactions made directly from your bank account (ACH Transfers) or 2.5% for transactions made from your debit / credit card (except for American Express which is a 4% fee).
  • When you set up your donation to the church you can choose to increase your gift to cover those fees by the following method:
    • For ACH transfers (all those that come directly from your bank account) you will need to calculate the amount by multiplying your donation by .01 and adding $0.45. That amount can then be added to your desired donation by typing it into the box where you can insert how much you want to add to cover fees.
    • For Debit / Credit Card transfers there is a check box (on the screen where you enter the credit card number) to have the system automatically calculate the percentage for you and add it to your donation. However, that does not cover the $0.45 transaction fee. You could add $.045 that to the ACH box or directly into your donation amount if you wanted.
    • You are not obligated to cover those fees, but if you do that amount is also tax deductible.