Dear  Parishioners,

 

Things are happening so fast at St. Benedict’s. Good things! We had a great stewardship campaign, increasing both pledging units and pledging dollars.  THANK YOU!!

 

However, even with such great success, we feel that we have one more need that did not fit into our budget.  Based on the survey from last year and the 3 year Strategic Plan the vestry as been putting together, we have identified a need: an assistant priest. 

 

What can an additional priest at St. Benedict’s do?

· Help support and expand our youth program

· Pastoral care

· Sunday sermons

· Parish activities

 

Why do we need an assistant priest? One reason is that Fr. Brian has taken on an expanded role at the school because of the sudden vacancy of the Head of School.  The church and the school have always worked closely and will continue to do so in the future. Another reason is that we have traditionally had 2 priests, but not filled the vacancy from when Fr. Stuart left.

 

Even with your generous pledges, our budget has no wiggle room to support this additional person. So we are going to expand our stewardship drive to get the additional funds necessary for an assistant priest.

 

In order to continue to grow and reach our full potential, our goal is to hire an associate priest this fall. We need to raise approximately $20,000 to hire this person (the school will also be using them and help pay half the salary). Thus, we are looking for 150 people to give $150 by May 15th, The Day of Pentecost.  If we all come together, we can make this happen.

 

We ask you to look into your heart one more time and send a check or click the button below to give $150 (which will be added to your total pledge). Or, let us know that you will up your pledge by $150.

 

If you have never pledged, this is a great way to start. If you have already pledged, please consider adding a bit more to realize our goals.

 

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me or Fr. Brian. Thank you for your continued support of St. Benedict’s.

 

Regards,

Kate Wiley

Stewardship Chair