DEEPENING OUR COMMITMENT
With the privilege of membership comes the responsibility of Stewardship
Each year we ask every member of St. Stephen’s Church to prayerfully consider how much of their time, talent and financial resources they wish to commit to the work of God through the ministries of the parish. Our prayer is that each one will give cheerfully in Thanksgiving for God’s many gifts to us.

This year’s Abundance theme of “Deepening our Commitment” calls us not only to become more active in the parish, but to deepen our financial commitment to the church as well.

Investing in the future of your community
St. Stephen’s is a self-supporting, non-profit organization that raises all of its funds through the generosity of its members and friends. When you make a decision to commit your time, tal­ent & financial resources to St. Stephen’s, you are not just supporting a place to worship on Sunday. You are investing in the future of your faith community.

Your increased support this year will allow us to catch up on deferred building maintenance, provide additional outreach to the needy, and add a staff member to direct our youth and adult spiritual formation programs. In addition to all of our parish programs, your support also allows us to offer the following programs to the community at large:

• Music
• Dramatic Arts
• Preschool
• Youth Groups
• Adult education
• Boy Scout Meetings
• AA Meetings
• Assistance to Seniors

The Pledge: Making The First Step
Each fall, we ask each member to tell us about their financial pledge by completing a pledge card. It is important that we know about your pledge before the new budget year so we can more accurately plan for our upcoming ministry and programs. Your pledge is an expression of your intention: it is not a contract. It can be changed, raised or lowered, whenever your financial or life situation changes.

How do I decide how much?
We ask you to think about your financial sup­port of St. Stephen’s in terms of proportions. To simplify this, we suggest that you pick a percent­age of your income and pledge it. The “tithe”—which simply means “tenth” or 10% - is the only number mentioned in the Bible. We ask you to thinkand give propor­tionally, leaving the actual percentage to your prayerful, personal decision.The chart below shows average giving percent­ages compared to household income. Once you've arrived at a reasonable percentage of your income to give, we hope you can set a goal

Average Percentage of Donations Compared to Household Income
National Church Average 2.2%
CA Diocesan Average 1.5% 
St. Stephen’s average 1.2%

Growth and Goals for 2008
Our pledge goal for 2008 is 300 pledges averaging $2500 per pledge. Any increase in funds raised will be specifically targeted for campus improvements/deferred maintenance, additional outreach to the needy, and staff to direct our youth and adult spiritual formation programs.

Together we can achieve this goal!
2006 had 272 pledges averaging $2288 per pledge ($622,349 total)
2007 had 273 pledges averaging $2386 per pledge ($651,396)

Where does the money come from to fund the parish?
The St. Stephen’s operating budget for 2007 was $762,981
89% Comes from annual pledges of our members
6% Comes from open plate offerings, Easter and Christmas offerings
5% Comes in the form of outreach donations, space use donations and miscellaneous donations

Where does the money go?
54.9% Staff of Clergy, Music Director, Children’s Ministries Coordinator, Parish Administrator and Sexton (custodian)
17.1% Diocesan assessment
11.7% Care of buildings and grounds
6.7% Office expenses
4% Education for children, youth and adult programs, childcare and worship expenses
.5% Reserve fund
.09% Outreach*

*In excess of $100,000 is contributed to outreach outside the St. Stephen’s operating budget.

Resolution on Stewardship adopted in 2006 & 2007 by the Vestry
As members of the Vestry or other parish committees, we are among the leaders of the congregation. In this role, we have the responsibility & privilege of directly influencing the various programs the church offers.We therefore agree not only to participate in the annual pledge campaign, but to set a personal goal of growing our pledge over time. Continued growth is expected from individuals not yet achieving the Modern (5%) or Biblical (10%) tithe.