Mid-Year Pledge Letter Information Read This First!

2020 is a distinctive year of ministry. Our fall annual giving program is as well.

‘One Together’ ThemeOur turn-key program continues with the foundation laid by last year’s Wonder in All in both its liturgical sourcing and visual storytelling. However, One Together also integrates ‘Holy Agility’ into our work and teaching (these specific documents are included in the wider program). While we cannot predict the texture and circumstances of our congregational life come this fall, we can prepare for the sacred ground ahead of us!Our 2020 theme centers on the opening words from the Holy Baptism liturgy:There is one Body and one Spirit;There is one hope in God’s call to us;One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism;One God and Father of all.(BCP p. 299)

How to engage these resources: Use these liturgically-based resources to lead your congregation on a rich

journey of connecting, reconnecting, and being ‘One Together’. Invite givers deeply into the story of your church, and how in the ordinary time

and the extra-ordinary, your community lives deeply into being ‘one Body’ together.

Name what you mourn and miss in this extra-ordinary time, And simultaneously celebrate the many diversities of ministry that are

manifestations of ‘one hope in God’s call’.Our ministry ‘icon library’ continues to allow choosing visual cues that prompt stories of specific impact both within your church community and outside in community of neighbors your serve.

Keep in touch!We wish you a good, faithful, creative, and personally-engaging journey as you prepare for annual giving in your congregation. And please – don’t forget to share your important ministry work with us!

Length of Your Pledge Letter

We have shortened these pledge letters from our first series of annual giving programs so that you can see the current, simpler trend. If you would like to read letters with more theology of giving, please take a look at ‘Walk in Love,’ ‘All Hearts Open,’ or ‘Now Into the World’. These are available on our website at www.thediocese.net. Just follow the link to ‘Stewardship’!The current trends in pledge letters are: no longer than one page including ample white space – white space attract the eye! Sometimes using 14 point font Including bullet points of ministries that have made tremendous impact over

the past year Include bullet points of how your church will serve your community if the budget

increases Including icons, graphics, and numbersAs you read the ‘One Together’ program letters, craft them for the culture, context, momentum, and current trajectory of your congregation. Tell relevant and compelling stories, especially as they relate to the holy ground of ordinary and extra-ordinary experiences this year. Bullet point. Include photos or calendars of ministry minute speakers. We can’t wait to see what you create!Content of Your Pledge Letter

In our practice of ‘Holy Agility,’ we are offering two different pledge letters along with additional writing prompts. Our more traditional letter expands on the template established last year with

visual storytelling Our new letter incorporates visual storytelling as well, but follows a template

developed by The Better Fundraising Co found here. Our writing prompts, found separately in this program, suggest language for

different approaches to your pledge letters or other church-wide communications. These options will allow you to easily pivot should the texture and circumstances of our life together change.

Ministry Minutes (referenced in letter 1)

A favorite element of annual giving campaigns is often the Ministry Minute. This is a chance for church members to tell the story of how your church has transformed their lives. Ask members to prepare no more than a three minute conversation to share. They may do this during worship announcements, during a forum, through a video, or in writing. With so many members accustomed to digital ministry now, the potential for creativity has expanded more than ever – so keep us posted!

These conversations can reveal rich stories that no one in the congregation has ever heard and draw people closer into the life of your church. Plan ahead so your participating members have time to reflect and so your messages have a consistent rhythm. Folks will look forward to hearing the next story!

Impact Bullets

Now more than ever, communicating the impact of your ministries is essential for a vibrant annual giving season. For members who do not participate often or who have not been able to participate digitally, hearing about the transformational ministries at your church may call them to either engage more deeply or reconnect after their time away. For your most active parishioners, learning more about the vitality within your congregation will draw them even closer. And for newcomers, knowing your church is truly relevant in the community it serves is essential.Placing the Icons | Additional Information

As you work with the icons, here are a few notes from Julie to help you place them in your letters

Using a publisher program will be helpful, but is not necessary. Much of my work has been in Word.

Be sure to make sure your icon size ratio is locked so the images retain their square shape

I prefer to have the ‘wrap text’ for the icons set for ‘in front of text’ so that I can move them around easily

Once I get them placed near where I want, it’s easier to move them with precision if the document is sized at 200-250% so I can see them closely

Call or e-mail if you have questions. I’m happy to help!Julie Simonton: jsimonton@thediocese.net or direct to my desk at 804-622-3175

March 8, 2021Dear Aisha and Bill, I am so excited to tell you what I saw on February 2nd! When Grace Episcopal Church parishioners partnered with medical teams and neighbors from all corners of our community to host an immunization drive-thru – over 742 folks showed up at our church of 84 members! The dedicated outreach ministries at Grace served as a foundation for children, adults, and many of our most vulnerable neighbors to be immunized, talk with medical personnel, receive vouchers for the indoor farmers market, and connect with the community. Guess what else! Our new ‘One Together @ Grace’ face masks were a community hit! Through your gifts and support over the through the fall and winter, we distributed over 1,500 face masks. While these were offered as gifts, the invitation to contribute raised over $4,000 for our outreach ministries. This essential new service in one of our cardinal ministries required standing firmly and nimbly on our ever-evolving sacred ground of service. Because of our congregation’s prayers, leadership, involvement, and financial gifts, we are living wholly into our holy new call. We are so glad you are now here to be a part of it!

2021 is indeed a distinctive & pivotal year of ministry – and at Grace, we are indeed ‘One Together’ in this

transformational time! Since you joined us in January, we have witnessed many moments of being ‘One Together’ in God’s call to us. These include:

Singing 37 of our parishioners’ favorite hymns during our virtual summertime hymn-sing – and having 100% attendance thanks to the ‘digital coaches’ from our youth groupProviding funding, space and volunteers to distribute almost 822 meals through our community “Underground Kitchen”Supporting 32 local EMTs, nurses, doctors, and chaplains who deployed to South America in response to Covid-19 work and ministryCreating 68 flower arrangements for graveside services during the pandemic resurgence by 11 Altar Guild volunteers Coordinating 137 hours of pastoral care calls through our St. Stephen’s ministry

The faithful financial support of our members during the extraordinary year

has sustained and strengthened our ONE life TOGETHER. JOIN US! ‘One Together’ are words of relationship from our beloved baptism liturgy: There is one Body and one Spirit; There is one hope in God’s call to us; One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism; One God and Father of all. They are also a call of action to you and to me. ‘One Together’ is a call to continue our journey of becoming one in Christ, one with all people, and one with God’s earth.

This is a call to move more deeply into the generous people we already are.

We are so glad you’re here with us at Grace! Join me and all our vestry members in being ‘One Together’ at Grace. Pledge today for the remainder of 2021. Your generosity for our transformational days ahead is essential to Grace the community we serve. God has given us all we need. It is our great joy to give it back.

In Christ’s Name,

The Rev’d Rachel Faith,Rector

March 8, 2021

Dear Karen and Ted, My prayers are with you today in this challenging time as we all await the arrival of our community’s Covid-19 immunizations. Along with all our vestry members and staff, we send our warmest wishes for your health and safety. Over the past year we’ve seen extraordinary changes to our daily lives following the need to temporarily close our churches to public worship, the directive to stay at home, and then the guidelines to try and re-gather. We’ve postponed services of baptism, weddings, and funerals, we’ve canceled potlucks and retreats, suspended coffee hour and lemonade on the lawn, and our church staff and vestry have spent many months working safer-from-home. Despite these circumstances, we have lived boldly into our new theme ‘One Together,’ based on the opening liturgy of Holy Baptism: There is one Body and one Spirit; There is one hope in God’s call to us; One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism; One God and Father of all. The ministries at St. Thomas’ have indeed continued – some have even thrived! I’ve been heartened by the strength and resilience of our ministry leaders as they’ve found ways to maintain connection within our parish communities and more broadly within our wider community:

Our communications and IT volunteers have developed digital templates for over 10 expressions of regular online weekly worship services, now broadcasting over47 worship services per month Our community outreach quickly pivoted to new procedures for safe, physical distancing; has added over 16 new community ministry partners in just 8 months; and has served 28% more in need than this time last year Our Altar Guild has creating 68 flower arrangements for our wider community’s graveside services during the pandemic Our St. Stephen’s ministry has coordinating 586 hours of pastoral callsOur Diversity in Action ministry has hosted 18 movie events, 7 book-reads, 4 civil discourse trainings, and 11 virtual forums

We live as ‘One Together’ through our baptism, and our one faith unites us even when we are not together physically. While we missed months of worship in the church itself last year, we are the one body – the feet and the hands of Jesus – we are the Church. And the Church has been busy following God’s call to us. We all continue to feel the pinch of this uncertain time. St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church has always relied on support from our parishioners through financial contributions. We ask you to prayerfully consider joining our community of pledgers and declare your faithful commitment to our church for the rest of 2021. Join me and our entire vestry to continue to sustain our mission and ministry. Now more than ever, your gifts make a difference.

In Christ’s Name,

the Rev’d Rachel Faith,Rector