Mission Endowment Fund for

Deerfield Lutheran Church Deerfield, WI

Continuing Resolution to Establish the Mission Endowment Fund

Of Deerfield Lutheran Church

Whereas, Christian stewardship involves the faithful management of all the gifts God has given to humankind - the created world, the Gospel, life, time, abilities, money, including accumulated, inherited, and appreciated resources; and,

Whereas, the biblical principle of proportionate giving, to return to the Lord a portion of the gifts God has first given to his beloved children, is both a privilege and an appropriate response in all times and circumstances; and,

Whereas, Christians can give to the work of the church through gifts in and from wills, life insurance policies, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder and other trusts, and transfers of property such as cash, stocks, bonds and real estate; and,

Whereas, it is the desire of Deerfield Lutheran Church (herein referred to as Congregation) to encourage, receive and administer these gifts in a manner consistent with the loyalty and devotion to our Lord in accord with the policies of this congregation, now,

It is Resolved, that this Congregation, at a duly called meeting on (insert date of Deerfield Lutheran annual meeting) hereby establishes a new and separate fund to be known as The Mission Endowment Fund of Deerfield Lutheran Church, (herein referred to as Fund), and,

It is Further Resolved, that the purpose of this Fund is to enhance the mission outreach of Deerfield Lutheran Church apart from the general operation of the Congregation so that no portion of the distributions of the Fund shall be used for the annual operating expenses of the Congregation, and,

It is Further Resolved, that the mission endowment fund committee (herein referred to as Committee) shall be the custodian of the Fund, and,

It is Further Resolved, that the purpose, governance, administration and management of the Fund and Committee are established and defined by the plan of operation as hereinafter set forth.

Plan of Operation

Committee Membership

The Committee shall consist of three, all of whom shall be voting members of Deerfield Lutheran Church. Except as herein limited, the term of each member shall be three (3) years. Upon adoption of this resolution by the Congregation, it shall elect three (3) members to the Committee: one (1) for a term of three (3) years; and one (1) for a term of two (2) years; and one (1) for a term of one (1) year. Thereafter, at each annual meeting, the Congregation shall elect the necessary number for a term of three (3) years. No member shall serve more than three (3) consecutive three (3) year terms. After a lapse of one (1) year, a former Committee member may be re-elected. The Pastor, the President of the Church Council, and treasurer shall be advisory members of the Committee.

The Nominating Committee of the Congregation shall provide for the nomination of potential members of the Committee, and report same to the annual congregation meeting in the same manner as for other offices and committees. In the event of a vacancy on the Committee, the Church Council shall appoint a congregation member to fill the vacancy until the next annual meeting of the Congregation, at which time the Congregation shall elect a member to fill the term of the vacancy.

The Committee shall meet at least semi-annually, or more frequently as deemed by it in the best interest of the Fund. A quorum shall consist of two (2) members. When only two (2) members are present a unanimous vote shall be required to carry any motion or resolution.

The Committee shall elect from its membership a chairperson, recording secretary and treasurer. The chairperson, or member designated by the chairperson, shall preside at all committee meetings. The recording secretary of the Committee shall maintain complete and accurate minutes of all meetings and supply a copy to each member of the committee. Each member shall keep a complete copy of minutes to be delivered to his or her successor. The recording secretary shall also timely supply a copy of the minutes to the Church Council.

The treasurer of the Committee shall work with the Congregation's financial secretary and/or treasurer in maintaining and coordinating complete and accurate accounts for the Fund. The treasurer of the Committee and one other Committee or advisory member shall sign checks and all other necessary documents on behalf of the Congregation in furtherance of the purposes of the Fund. The financial records of the Committee shall be audited annually by a certified public accountant, church audit committee or other appropriate person who is not a member of the Committee. The Committee shall report at least semi-annually to the Church Council. Further, at each annual meeting of the Congregation the Committee shall render a full and complete account of the administration of the Fund during the preceding year.

The Committee may request other members of the Congregation to serve as advisory members and, at the expense of Fund, may provide for such professional counseling on investments or legal matters as it deems to be in the best interest of the Fund.

Members of the Committee shall not be liable for any losses which may be incurred upon the investments of the assets of the Fund except to the extent such losses shall have been caused by bad faith. No member shall be personally liable as long as he or she acts in good faith. Each member shall be liable only for his or her own willful misconduct or omissions, and shall not be liable for the acts or omissions of any other member. No member shall engage in any "self dealing" or transactions with the Fund in which the member has direct or indirect financial interest, and shall at all times refrain from any conduct in which his or her personal interests would conflict with the interest of the Fund.

Decisions to hold, sell, exchange, rent, lease, transfer, convert, invest, reinvest and in all other respects to manage and control the assets of the Fund (including stocks, bonds, mutual funds, debentures, real estate, mortgages, notes or other securities) shall be made at the discretion of the Committee. However, the Church Council shall approve each decision/transaction involving an amount in excess of 50% of the value of the fund. The Fund assets shall not be used for loans. Members of the Committee shall be bonded under the Congregation's insurance policy.

Defining Principal and Income

The Committee shall determine what is principal and income, and shall have the discretion to include all appreciation of the assets of the fund within the definition of income.

The Fund shall accumulate until a principal amount of $25,000.00 is achieved, after which up to 8 % of the assets of the Fund shall be distributed annually according to the distribution formula below. The committee distributions shall not reduce the Fund balance below $25,000. The distribution percent shall follow as nearly as reasonable the distribution recommended by the advisors of the ELCA Endowment Pooled Trust Fund A. [The current distribution percent, based on a 5 year rolling average of interest and growth with inflation and 1% annual fund management expense considered, is 4.5%. The Mission Endowment Committee is free to select whatever percent is prudent. While there is no assurance that the recommended percent will not reduce principle value, higher percentages than recommended has a greater probability, in poor economic conditions, to erode the principle. ]

Distributions

Income from the Fund shall be distributed annually, or at such other times as is deemed necessary or feasible to accomplish its purposes through the following distributions:

If the Fund balance is below $250,000, the committee shall determine how the distribution will be used. The distribution for a Fund balance over $250,000 is to be a guide; however, the committee is not bound by the distribution guidelines.
If the Fund balance is over $250,000, the distribution guidelines are as follows.

Ten to thirty-five (10-35%) percent for outreach into the community and synod, including, but not limited to, grants to Evangelical Lutheran Church in America seminaries, colleges or students attending such institutions, social service agencies, institutions and agencies to which this Congregation relates, and to special programs designed for those persons in our parish area who are in spiritual and/or economic need.
Ten to thirty-five (10-35%) percent for missions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, nationally and worldwide, including, but not limited to, grants to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America for new congregation development, professional leadership, educational ministries, global mission, ecumenism, evangelism, social ministries, disaster response and capital financing.
Up to thirty-five (0-35%) percent for capital improvements, debt reduction for a building program, or for the development of any special ministry of the Congregation.
Up to twenty-five (0-25%) percent for any one or all of the above designated areas in any proportion as determined by the Committee, or for causes and programs which at the discretion of the Committee are deemed consistent with the purpose of the Fund in enhancing the missional outreach of the Congregation.

The Committee shall determine both the percentage of available funds per category to be distributed annually and the recipients of the annual distribution within any category. Such determinations of the Committee shall be approved by the Church Council prior to the disbursement of funds.

Emergency Distributions

When, in the opinion of the Committee, circumstances are so dire and of such an emergency nature that the future of the congregation is at stake, and that the only recourse seems to be the use of the Fund principal beyond any portion distributable under the foregoing provisions, the Committee may, upon a unanimous vote, recommend such authorizing action to the Congregation. Such an emergency distribution of principal shall require a two-thirds (⅔s) vote of the members present at a duly convened meeting of the Congregation.

When, in the unanimous opinion of the Committee there is a need so great of one of the recipients in one of the categories of distribution that Christian compassion and stewardship requires a distribution greater than available under the previous distribution provisions of this plan, the Committee, with the prior approval of the Church Council, may distribute up to 5% of the Fund to such need.

Amending of Resolution

Be it further resolved, that any amendment to this resolution which will change,

alter or amend the purpose for which the Fund is established, and/or its distributions, shall be adopted by a two-thirds (⅔s) vote of the members present at an annual meeting of the Congregation, or at a special meeting of the Congregation called specifically for the purpose of amending this resolution.

Disposition or Transfer of Fund

In the event Deerfield Lutheran Church ceases to exist either through merger or dissolution, disposition or transfer of the Fund shall be at the discretion of the Church Council in conformity with the Congregation Constitution and Bylaws, and in consultation with the Bishop of the synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to which this congregation belongs.

Designated Gifts

The Mission Endowment Committee encourages undesignated gifts. Should a donor wish to designate their gift to a specific need or ministry, the Mission Endowment Committee (MEC) requests that the committee be informed in writing of the designation prior to receiving the gift. Further, the MEC reserves the right to clarify the designation with the donor and not accept gifts that do not comply with the mission or purpose statement of the congregation. Gifts to a designated fund will be independently accounted for and will be separate from all other endowment funds.

Monthly Offering Envelopes In ECHO

Thanks to the Stewardship and Finance Committees each household will now receive your Deerfield Lutheran Offering envelopes in our monthly ECHO! You will no longer need to remember where you put your envelope boxes since the offering envelopes will arrive each month in your newsletter. (NOTE: you contribution number appears in the upper corner of your address label and is correlated with the envelopes enclosed.) The Echo itself is now mailed in a large envelope that allows us to include regular and special offering envelopes inside along with the newsletter.

Our special thanks to Dave Riggle for getting these large envelopes printed, to Pira Mueller, Mark Ziety, Rae Ponath and Arlyn Turnquist for the work they have done to correlate our Echo and offering database.

We realize that some of you make your contributions by writing a check monthly or on a semi monthly basis – you may continue to do so! Also, those who give by direct deposit can continue to give in this fashion. However, since we have already purchased enough offering envelopes for all our household, this system enables everyone to receive regular and special envelopes on a monthly

FROM THE TREASURER:

It was just a while back that I had real difficulty even thinking in terms of automatic payments on my bills. I like to know the exact amount and on what date payments are made. What changed my thinking was our mortgage payment, which occurs on the same day each month and is a specific amount. I don’t gave to write a check, mail it in or worry about on-time payment if I am out of town. It was a relief!

I found out I could do the same with my commitment to the Lord’s work. I choose when I will pay and how much is to be deducted from my account. When I am gone for the weekend my support is still there!

Nor did I thin about how important this would be for a congregation until I became the Treasurer and have responsibility for paying the bills and sending our contributions to our ministries throughout the world. Let me tell you – automatic transfer makes a difference. This was the first summer in years we did not have to borrow funds in the summer. A major reason was that we have a number of families who are on automatic transfer this year. These are dollars we can count on no matter what the families are doing or where they are each week.

Perhaps you are among those who send a check by mail when you don’t make it to worship, or you make up for past non-payments when you miss worship, in either case honoring the commitment you have made to our ministry. There is an easier way to assure your timely support, and the beginning of a New Year is a good time to start!

If you are interested in automatic transfer, you may pick up a form at the church or get one directly from your bank. Thrivent for Lutherans will also handle this for you at no charge. I would appreciate knowing both the timing and the amount if you sign up, so I know prior to the end-of-month bank statement what is transferred and when. Automatic transfer giving is a great way to share the gifts with which we have been so richly blessed.

Arlyn Turnquist, Treasurer

IT’S NOT HOW MUCH WE GIVE,

BUT HOW MUCH LOVE WE PUT INTO GIVING!

Mother Theresa

STEWARDSHIP AT DEERFIELD
LUTHERAN CHURCH (DLC)

Many think that Stewardship is the church’s way of getting money. This is not true. Education is the cornerstone of Stewardship. Helping people to use what they have wisely and thankfully is the goal. Almost all families, at one time or another, have financial stress. The church¹s stewardship program can help people clarify priorities and develop healthy relationships and attitudes toward material things.

A new educational aspect of Stewardship at DLC is our environmental stewardship program "Caring for Our Mother". We continue in our efforts to reduce our garbage by using the china, rather than plastic and Styrofoam, for fellowship events. The paper from the office is being separated for recycling. A number of DLC women have sewn fabric shopping bags and gift bags. The use of such reusable bags will reduce the amount of plastic and paper bags and wrap which goes to the landfills. The bags are offered for sale periodically after worship.

We have each been blessed. The vast majority of us enjoy good health, we are employed and we are able to live in a country that allows us to live where we want, vote for our representatives in government and we are free to exercise our faith. As Christians we sense that all that we have ultimately comes from God. In gratefulness we give a portion of what we have to the ministry of Jesus Christ. We do that in many different ways. While some of our contributions are financial, our contributions of time volunteered to help in the neighborhood, at church, the food pantry, the school or another philanthropic organization is also important.

DLC has a history of celebrating the financial commitment of its members. During each season of the year members complete a Time & Talent survey to allow the leadership to better utilize the talents and interests of the people in congregational and community projects and programs.

DLC is also committed to support missions beyond our congregation. We support Lutheran Social Services, Lutherdale Outdoor Ministries, and the World Hunger Appeal of the ELCA and the Jail Ministries on a regular basis by receiving special quarterly offerings.

Please contact us if you have any ideas for other stewardship programs, if you would like to serve on the Stewardship Committee or make contributions to any of the programs.