It is time for us to THRIVE! 

Thriving Through Generosity Goals

What does it mean for St. Thomas to thrive? Thriving is more than merely existing. To “thrive” means to grow vigorously, prosper abundantly, and progress toward a goal. In order for STEC to thrive in 2025, our church will need to be nourished and stimulated—we must sparkle with imagination, ideas, and energy.

Each one of us is called to make this happen through our generosity. Generosity is the fullest expression of the life of a steward, one who has been given a gift that must be used wisely and for the purpose of bringing glory to God. In other words, the generosity of each of us will move our congregation from mere existence to vibrant growth.

During the Fall of 2023, St. Thomas Episcopal Church formally adopted a comprehensive strategic plan that would guide our congregation to become a more diverse community seeking unity with God and each other in Christ.

The goals of the Thriving Through Generosity campaign for 2025 will include the following:

Resource STEC’s Strategic Plan

Scripture tells us to “love one another” because “love comes from God.” Every one of us who loves is a “child of God and knows God” because “God is love” (1 John 4:7-8). Our strategic plan is the bridge of love that connects our time, talents, and treasures to what we want to be as a church.

Resourcing our plan will:

  • Positively impact our community through outreach.
  • Build upon our “Invite, Welcome, and Connect” ministry to ensure that STEC is a safe faith home for all, no exceptions.
  • Teach crucial biblical principles that we can apply in our modern world, deepening our loving relationship with Jesus Christ and those around us.
Fund STEC’s Operating Budget

We must sustain all vital services and activities critical to meeting our vision of being a congregation living out our faith through corporate worship, lifelong education, and loving service. We will:

  • Fund facility repairs, replacement, and maintenance
  • Meet rising costs of utilities and supplies
  • Resource growing ministries
Strategically Increase Staffing

We need to increase our support staff. Doing so will also relieve some of the pressure on our hardworking volunteers and ministry leaders. Our plan is to:

  • Expand availability of parish administrator to four days per week
  • Add part-time keyboardist to assist music director
  • Hire part-time formation coordinator

Let’s take this step together, as one body in Christ:

Please fill out the PLEDGE form below to submit your anticipated financial offering to God and the church for 2025. (If you received a Thriving Through Generosity packet, you may also fill out the enclosed PLEDGE card, return to the church office, place in the offering plate any Sunday, or bring to Ingathering Sunday on October 27.) If you wish to set up a payment schedule now, you may do so. See the below FAQs for more information.

 

FAQs

Why is my pledge so important?
97% of our income to operate St. Thomas comes from our pledges. The remaining 3% comes from plate offerings (2%) and other sources such as grants and fundraisers (1%). 
What does it cost, per household, to run STEC?
The average cost to operate St. Thomas in 2024 is $4,000 per household. Our current average pledge is $3,000. 
What is our pledge goal for 2025?
Our goal is $ 540,000 in total pledge income to support the operating budget and ministries. 
What is our “real cost” of ministry now?
Based off actual and projected expenses, the cost of ministry in 2024 is expected to be $450,000. Expenses are expected to $575,000 in 2025. 
What accounts for the anticipated increase in expenses for 2025?

St. Thomas is growing: in the past two years, our congregation has doubled. With this growth, we need additional resources to support our strategic plan. We anticipate needing to:

  • Expand outreach, worship, music, formation
  • Resource our campus: maintenance, repairs, replacements utilities and supplies Maintain standard cost-of-living adjustments for current staff
  • Return to pre-pandemic support for parish administration
  • Add part-time keyboardist and formation coordinator
What progress have we made in reducing our debt?
We reduced our debt from $75,000 to $29,000 in 2024.
How do I make and pay my pledge?

First, submit a pledge card stating the amount you intend to give to God and to St. Thomas in 2025. Then set up a payment schedule. You may:

Set up automatic payments via Tithely using your credit card. (We welcome you to help cover the fee for each transaction.)

Send monthly checks from your online check-writing account.

Write a check and place it in the offering plate on Sunday. Cash is also welcome; please place cash in an envelope, marked with your household name and the word “pledge.”

Info Sheets to Download

Click on the images below to download info sheets about this year’s pledge drive.

Make a Pledge

Help us meet our goals by making your pledge for 2025 now.