“I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.”

1 Corinthians 9:22-23

www.wardchurch.org/2014

FISCAL YEAR 2015

2015 MINISTRY PLAN Program Personnel Total Change

Worship $179,200 $686,668 $865,868 -1%

Group Life 73,541 359,843 433,384 9%

Next Generation 116,430 401,059 517,489 6%

Outreach 682,053 114,995 797,048 0%

Campus Services 1,120,168 829,434 1,949,602 1%

Strategic Initiatives 86,608 - 86,608 32%

Total Budget $2,258,000 $2,392,000 $4,650,000 2%

Dear Ward Friends,

At our annual meeting last year we read the Parable of the Sower and issued a challenge to make this a year of sowing seed. Hundreds of you stepped up your seed sowing by starting or joining a group, inviting a guest to Christmas or Easter celebrations, or serving in the City of Detroit. Way to go!

This year, our congregation has been studying together Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians. Paul is remembered as the

great church planter and missionary. Let us consider what it would mean for us to “become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22). This next church year will bring opportunities to interact with real missionaries through our Outreach Festival, get retooled in how to share your faith, and to pray (like Paul did) that God would open doors for the gospel message. I hope you will avail yourself of these opportunities and more.

May God richly bless you as you follow Christ this year!

Scott McKee

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR SENIOR PASTOR

2014 MINISTRY PLAN Program Personnel Total

Worship $167,900 $708,323 $876,223

Group Life 73,541 323,266 396,807

Next Gen 94,230 395,754 489,984

Outreach 670,638 123,728 794,366

Campus 1,138,166 788,929 1,927,095

Strategic Initiatives 65,525 - 65,525

Total Budget $2,210,000 $2,340,000 $4,550,000

2013-14 MINISTRY HIGHLIGHTS

CAMPUS SERVICESMobile Friendly Website – Completely overhauled our website behind the scenes and made the website mobile responsive for tablets and smartphones.Volunteers Up, Costs Down Continued – 73 new volunteers helped save the church close to $13,000 in various maintenance, repair, and upkeep costs this fiscal year.Utility Costs & Enhancements – New LED lighting in all major venues, parlors, hallways and the exterior campus is providing significant costs savings in electricity, helping to offset the increased natural gas cost due to the record setting winter conditions we experienced. New state-of-the-art HVAC and lighting controls are also contributing additional savings.

GROUP LIFENewcomers Desserts – We saw an average of 20 newcomers over six evenings.Small Group Curriculum – Produced two church-wide small group curriculums.Small Group Increase – Saw a 123% increase in small group participation. We went from 416 people in 48 groups to 928 people in 121 groups.20’s / 30’s – Began LIBERTĒ, a gathering for young adults.Financial Peace University – Ran FPU classes in the fall and winter. The winter classes paid off $134,263 in non-mortgage debt, saved $104,239 and cut up 81 credit cards!

WORSHIPLaunched Contemporary Venue – Began a new service in September of 2013.Hired Post-Contemporary Director – Mike Mains began in February of 2014.Special Offerings – A total of $264,271 was given at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter, which is a 43% increase over last year (which saw a 31% increase over the previous year), and it included the largest single offering ever in Ward’s history, $154,870 for the Dalit people of India.

NEXT GENERATION2nd Annual Student Run Variety Show – More than 200 people came out to see 20 student acts that raised over $3,000 for our student scholarship fund.Multi-Generational Teams – We had teams go to Nicaragua and Kokomo, Indiana where students and adults served side by side and developed relationships.“FX: A Family Experience” – Our monthly program that integrates kids K-5 with parents completed its second full program year and averaged over 500 attendees per FX and included 118 first-time guests over the course of the year!

OUTREACHTAG – Completion of 4th TAG class in Dearborn; 6 TAG graduates transitioned to Muslim countries.Mali – Second missionary added in Kangaba region; planted 3rd church.India – Successful completion of first phase of MEDIC; entering second phase.Motor City Makeover – Renovated a house and transitioned a family into it; work on next house is underway.E.A.C.H. – Continued partnership with local churches for prayer, Northville parade, and food drives.Festival – Preparing for the 2014 Triennial Outreach Festival in September.

BY THE NUMBERS

RECEIPTS 2013 2014 Favorable / % (45 weeks) (45 weeks) (Unfavorable) Change

Contributory Receipts

Budget Receipts $3,956,810 $4,001,832 $45,022 1%

Bequests - Undesignated 128,411 157,234 28,823 22%

Deacons 175,079 194,248 19,169 11%

Building Projects 85,536 60,341 (25,195) -29%

Restricted Giving 571,828 568,771 (3,057) -1%

Total Contributory Receipts $4,917,664 $4,982,426 $64,762 1%

Non-Contributory Receipts

Investment & Other Income - Budget $6,934 $53,607 $46,673 673%

Investment Income - Restricted 6,231 6,268 37 1%

Program Fees 605,869 573,323 (32,546) -5%

Total Non-Contributory Receipts $619,035 $633,199 $14,164 2%

Total Receipts $5,536,699 $5,615,625 $78,926 1%

AVERAGE WORSHIP ATTENDANCE May 2012- May 2013- Favorable / % April 2013 April 2014 (Unfavorable) ChangeWorship Services

Liturgical - 8:00 a.m. 109 127 18 17%

Traditional - 9:30 a.m. ENDED 9/1/2013 574 – – –

Traditional - 11:00 a.m. 579 637 58 10%

Post-Contemporary - 9:30 a.m. ENDED 9/1/2013 364 – – –

Post-Contemporary - 11:00 a.m. 317 333 16 5%

Contemporary - 9:30 a.m. BEGAN 9/8/2013 – 626 – –

Online - 9:30 & 11:00 a.m. BEGAN 9/23/2012 73 104 31 42%

Total Worship Attendance Average 1,995 1,900 (95) -5%

As a matter of math principles, individual service averages do not directly add up to total services average.

Assets

Cash and cash equivalents $1,069,290

Investments $2,356,461

Note receivable $26,903

Land, building, and equipment $33,909,128

Accumulated depreciation ($16,417,398)

Total Assets $20,944,384

Liabilities and Net Assets

Liabilities

Accounts payable $42,249

Accrued compensation and benefits $60,808

Deferred revenue $1,700

Other liabilities $26,656

$131,413

Net assets

Unrestricted

Undesignated $898,315

Session designated $918,638

Fee-based programs $273,470

Net investment in land, building, and equipment $17,491,731

$19,582,154

Temporarily restricted $1,003,977

Permanently restricted $226,840

$20,812,971

Total Liabilities and Net Assets $20,944,384

BALANCE SHEET

OUR MISSION: LOVE. SERVE. SHARE.

There’s nothing quite like a church on mission. It’s a thing of beauty. And that’s what we aim to be.

This fiscal year we are recommitting ourselves to carrying out our mission. For further financial info, stats, and videos visit our Annual Report website.

www.wardchurch.org/2014

I would like to thank all of you who have been so generous to this great movement of God and for your obedience to Him in tithing and in even giving beyond for the purposes of His work.

I want to let you know that the leadership of Ward Church is incredibly diligent about how we spend money entrusted to our care. How we spend money is well thought out and the integrity is beyond reproach. The leadership here thinks before they spend. And the personal accountability throughout is great. If a $1.69 cup of coffee is mistakenly put on a Ward credit card, the person who made the mistake will quickly make it right.

And a word of thanks to all of you who give online. Please know that the process continues to be safe and secure, and also know that we do not have access to your password or personal information. Currently, 18% of our contributions come through online giving, and we encourage more of you to consider giving online as well.

We completed an annual audit for fiscal year 2013. Now, if you are not in business for yourself or an employee of a large corporation that phrase, “we completed an annual audit” might not mean a thing to you. But believe me it is extremely important. It means that a third-party team of independent auditors who are employed by a certified public accounting firm have reviewed our financial records and have tested our processes and procedures and found them to be certifiable. It was a pleasure to complete our audit this year, and we will continue to embrace this process as a way of letting you know that financial accountability and transparency are of the utmost importance to us.

Finally, please feel free to ask me any questions about how we run the financial office at Ward. By example of this annual report, we want to be an open book with how your money for God’s purpose is handled here. I am truly humbled to be on staff at Ward, and I am very excited to be a part of seeing what else all of us can do so that people will love God passionately, serve others joyfully, and intentionally share our faith with people across the street and around the world.

In His service,

Chris Ockerman Director of Administration

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR FINANCE OFFICE

Give joyfully. Give faithfully. Give on.

Giving is critically important in the life of a follower of Jesus. It’s important not because of what it says about our wallets, but because of what it says about our hearts.

Ward is a big church with a big heart. We have a vision to do big things that bring people closer to Jesus in big ways. Join us as we love God passionately, serve others joyfully, and share our faith intentionally with neighbors across the street and around the world.

www.wardchurch.org/give