Those of you who receive paper envelopes probably noticed that, starting in October, you now have a monthly “outreach” envelope. “Outreach” is our term for ministries to those who are not Catholic, usually to the poor. Those of you who give online will see an “Outreach” category in our online giving portal. So what is that all about?
We have had outreach envelopes in the past. However, a few years ago we decided to stop the outreach envelope in favor of a “parish tithe” – that is, the parish would include outreach in our annual budget instead. Fr. Scott was right to make this change, given other changes he was making at the parish at the time. A parish tithe is a best practice in the Stewardship world because it (1) models in the parish’s own budget the same tithing mentality we are asking our parishioners to adopt, and (2) it simplifies giving by telling parishioners that they only have to focus on giving to the parish, and the parish will take care of everything else.
Unfortunately, this is only a best practice if Stewardship becomes an all-encompassing mindset at a parish, and Fr. Scott was unable to get our parish all the way there before he was reassigned. Theoretically, the parish tithe would also include all second collections and even the Annual Catholic Appeal. A fully Stewardship-oriented parish would even go so far as to not charge fees for faith formation, sacraments, etc. The idea, again, is that parishioners would give only to the parish, and everything else would be taken care of for them. To develop this kind of culture requires a significant increase in giving paired with a radical change in the structure of a parish budget, neither of which are true at our parish.
So, at the recommendation of the Finance Council, we are separating outreach out again. This was partly to stabilize our parish budget, which has stagnated due to demographic changes and therefore struggles to keep up with inflation and cost increases. But this is also because I believe an outreach envelope will actually be better for outreach. We have been unable to increase our outreach allocation over the last several years, meaning that we are giving less and less to outreach every year. Plus, I am guessing that many parishioners did not realize that a portion of every dollar they gave to the parish was going to different non-parish outreach ministries, and that visibility is essential to a continued attitude of carefor outreach.
The way the outreach envelope will work is that every dollar given will be broken up by percentage. The initial percentages we chose were these, though these will be reviewed and modified annually depending on how things evolve over time.
- 50% – Hope House
A Catholic Community Services ministry, hosted on Assumption’s campus. Because the money given by Assumption is not governed by the same grant and governmental restrictions as most CCS funds, our donations are usually used to assist with small but high-impact financial needs of the destitute, like replacing lost driver’s licenses, subsidizing prescriptions or new glasses, or providing a small amount of gas for a vehicle. - 15% – Interfaith Coalition
A collaboration of religious groups in Whatcom County oriented toward serving the underprivileged. Probably best known for “Family Promise”, a program to move families with children from homelessness to housing. - 10% – Lighthouse Mission
The primary homeless assistance organization in Bellingham, best known for street outreach and for running the Base Camp shelter on Cornwall. - 10% – Pro-Life
The money in this category will be divided between three programs: (1) the Prepares program, overseen by Catholic Community Services, which provides material assistance to expectant and new mothers, (2) the Project Rachel program, overseen by Catholic Community Services, which helps post-abortive women find support and healing, and (3) the Whatcom County Pregnancy Clinic, which provides pregnancy services for expectant mothers. - 5% – Shoulder to Shoulder
A parish fund used to assist parishioners who need temporary assistance. Most often used to help a parishioner remain housed in a month when they cannot make rent because of loss of work or an unforeseen expense. Overseen by our Pastoral Care Committee. - 5% – International Relief
Generally headed to Catholic Relief Services, though a portion of this money may be used to support overseas ministries and missions with a direct connection to our parish. - 5% – Emergency
This money will be held in a restricted fund, to be used for unforeseen outreach needs, at the discretion of the pastor.
Parishioners are, of course, welcome to give to any of these organizations directly. However, if the check is given to the parish, the “memo” line must state clearly which organization the money should be given to, otherwise it will be divided up according to the above percentages.
Fr. Moore 