January 21, 2018
Here at AllSaintswe are blessed toreceivebequestsfromtimetotimefromourparishionersandfriends. It is the desire of the Vestry to honor those who have remembered our parish and to cultivate in our faith community a commitment to planned giving.
In John 10:10 Jesus said" I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” They are we and planned giving is a way that we mayshare that abundance; in doing so we make our lives more meaningful, purposeful, joyful and eternal. Certainly we do this in part by loose plate giving and by pledging each year. But we also do so when we make a planned gift to All Saints. The loose plate and annual pledging are absolutely necessaryto pay for the day to day running of our parish.
Planned giving on the other hand helpsassurethe longevity and financial stability of our parish. It strengthens and enlarges our endowment so thatwe can successfully sustain the inreach and outreach initiatives that are a continuing commitment of our congregation. It also providesthose who come after us with stronger resources to meet and overcome such challenges as our parish may face as future generations carry on the mission of our church.
To move this planned giving effort forward and give it continuing vitality the Vestry has approved establishment of a standing committee for planned giving and the creation of a Legacy Society thatwill meet periodically to celebrate with its members God's love which has touched their hearts.
The Society will present to the parish speakers in the different areas of planned giving, do workshops, and provide a forum to listen to stories and personal testimonials of individuals who have been moved to give legacy gifts.WearealsoworkingwithourDioceseandtheEpiscopalChurchFoundationin providingplannedgivingresources for us here atAllSaints.
Anyone who gives a planned gift to All Saints of any amount becomes a member of the Legacy Society. Your membership is perpetual even after you have passed into God's Kingdom.
We are making available at today’s Annual Meeting handouts with further information on planned giving including"Stewards of God's bounty" produced by the Episcopal Church Foundation and our own "Planned Giving" pamphlet.
MembersoftheAllSaintsPlannedGivingWorking Group:
Reverend RobertNagy
JosephDeAmicis
Richard Derrick Mark Durham
Gerald Harvey
Otto Lowe
Scott McMurray