Greetings from the Treasurer!

We are now in the middle of planning for next year. Part of that is preparing a budget before our Annual Meeting (April 10), having a pledge drive, and updating members about Grow Green. I know this letter has a lot of detail but let me try to summarize as best I can.

Budget

Our fiscal year runs from June 1 through May 31. My best estimate for our current year is that income will be $160,096 and expenses $176,833, giving a shortfall of $16,737. Since we budgeted for a shortfall of $22,311, this means we should end the year in a better position than anticipated. I hope to cover this in more detail at the Annual Meeting.

The proposed budget for FY 22/23 is shown on the following page. This budget assumes Pastor Isabel has a 3/4-time appointment and that the staff and minister receive a 3% raise, which does not keep up with inflation.

Currently, our endowments and operating funds total $907,761.

Pledge Drive

Chris Bailey is leading the pledge drive which will be a much more active this year than in the past several years. Pastor Isabel started with her reflection last Sunday. This Sunday, we will have the opportunity to sign up for small group meetings. Please, please, please participate for a chance to meet with other members and talk about our future.

Grow Green

Grow Green is a way to help organizations develop an endowment. This year, the total amount of your donation will be passed directly to UUFM. The first $1,000 of your donation will be matched with a 50% grant to our endowment at Greater Manhattan Community Foundation. The maximum matching grant to any one organization is $10,000. This is an easy way for us to improve our finances.

Members who donate can tell the Treasurer (Dan Swenson at swenson.home@gmail.com) whether they want their donation applied to their FY 20/21 pledge, their FY 21/22 pledge, or as an extra cash donation. Since most people specify Grow Green as an extra cash donation, we will assume that is the case unless you contact us.

To donate by check, download the 2022 GROW Green Giving Form after April 1 at https://www.growgreenmanhattan.com/. If you want to donate online, that can only be done Friday, April 22, 2022, at the same web site.

Sincerely,

Daniel Swenson, Treasurer

swenson.home@gmail.com, (785) 341-1973 cell