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The United Methodist Foundation of Western North
Carolina, Inc. is a ministry of the church for the
church whose mission is to build the church for
generations to come. We fulfill this mission by
investing in people, churches and related
institutions, and innovation. We envision a church
where people live-out their faith through the use of
their God-given resources.
The Foundation offers the following ministries:
Endowment Development
Planned Giving
Fund Management
Stewardship Education
Grants/Funding
Development Fund/Loan Program
Leadership Development
Meeting/Staff Retreat Hosting
Consultation
Miscellaneous Programs
It’s Stewardship Time of Year By David A. Sn ipes
13816 Professional Center Drive,
Suite 100
Huntersville, North Carolina
28078
Phone: 888.450.1956
Fax: 980.422.0390
Web: www.umfwnc.org
Visit us on the web!
www.umfwnc.org
or
Facebook too!
You can contact us
the traditional way
by using our address
and phone numbers
to the right.
We look forward to
the day when we can
be in ministry with
you!
Who We Are
One of the most frequent questions we receive from
congregations this time of year is: “How do we keep our
stewardship program fresh?” This is a great question to ask
and if your congregation has not considered it, you may want
to do so in an effort to increase participation among your
membership.
Our first response to this question is to make certain you do not
“float” through stewardship season without offering an
intentional stewardship program. A popular program that
has proven effective for many churches is Herb Miller’s New
Consecration Sunday. This program focuses on the need of the
giver to give rather than on the need of the church to receive.
No matter which program you choose, make sure it is
theologically sound, focuses on God’s gifts and is doctrinally
consistent with The United Methodist Church. A great place to
brainstorm possibilities as well as find other resources is on the
General Board of Discipleship’s website.
Secondly, we suggest offering an intentional stewardship
program that includes ALL ages. The biggest mistake many
congregations make is to exclude younger generations,
believing that “the money” comes from older generations and
doing so is just a waste of time. Although
most of the money may come from older
generations, when we do not include our
children and youth, we are denying them a
vital opportunity to grow in their faith.
Consider this...if we teach our children
faithful stewardship when young, habits
will be formed that will financially benefit
the church of the future.
Lastly, when offering an intentional stewardship program
that includes all ages, consider using “non-stewardship”
language. Examples include: “Faith and Generosity,” Our
Response to God’s Gifts, and “Giving Out of Faith.” The
possibilities are endless. (For more ideas, turn to The Bible.)
After all, as recipients of God’s grace we do not want to reduce
the language we use to promote faithful stewardship to pithy
sayings or catchy gimmicks.
The Foundation staff and stewardship team are available to
brainstorm possibilities with your church leaders. Give us a
call. It will be our pleasure to be in ministry with you as you
celebrate the financial blessings God has provided!
Building the Church
for Generations to Come!
Investing In:
PEOPLE
CHURCHES
INSTITUTIONS
INNOVATION
On the Inside:
Development Fund: Do Well
While Doing Good 2
Second Quarter 2012 Fund
Option Returns 2
Multiplying Talent: The New
Loaves and Fishes? 3
UMF Mission and Ministry
Offerings 4
Stewardship 4
Summer 2012 Volume 8, No. 3
FAITH & GENEROSITY
A Quarterly Publication of the United Methodist Foundation
of Western North Carolina, Inc.
Foundation awards $444,100 through the
Royce and Jane Reynolds Grant Program
What if … You could dream about creative ways to reach outside
the walls of your church…
What if … You could begin a new ministry and didn’t have to
worry about the finances so much…
What if … You could create something that would result in reaching
people for Christ…
So much of what we do in ministry becomes limited and stifled because of financial
limitations that can sap our dreams of doing exciting and productive ministries. We ask,
“What if…?” but the reality of economics keeps the answer at bay.
The Royce and Jane Reynolds Grant Program, through your United Methodist
Foundation, was established to support programs and ministries that make disciples of
Jesus Christ. This year, a total of 78 applications were received during our grant process
and, subsequently, 26 were awarded totaling $444,100. Largely awarded to ministries
here in the Western NC Conference, Reynolds Grants also serve evangelistic and
discipleship programs throughout the United States and even worldwide. For example,
there are supportive grants located in Liberia Africa, India and Chile. Equally, there are
several grants located in Georgia and Florida. Grants are awarded on the strength of
their evangelism and/or discipleship scope and are not geographically limited.
The Reverend Chris Hughes, a 2012 grant recipient, is creating a new resource to assist
our churches in reaching, evangelizing, and discipling children and youth. For his
project titled, “Confirmation Cohort”, Hughes began assembling Children and Youth
Ministers from across the country to write a robust, vibrant and fresh approach toward
reaching young people throughout the United Methodist Church and beyond. While
much of the intent focuses on the Confirmation process, this does far more. This
resource will assist pastors and staff to create an intentional discipleship path from early
childhood through High School and beyond. It stresses family participation or a
responsible adult to accompany the child’s process, and allows learning for parents as
well as their kids.
Are you tired of asking, “What if?” and not knowing an answer? Think about applying
for a 2013 Reynolds Grant through the United Methodist Foundation of Western NC.
(Due Feb. 1st 2013) Contact Rev. Scott E. Ireland, Executive Director of Reynolds
Ministries to get an application!
The Development Fund of the Foundation continues to reach new
milestones as total investments into the Fund exceed $13 million. The
Development Fund is comprised of investments by churches, United
Methodist agencies, and residents of both Carolinas. These funds provide low interest, first mortgage loans to Methodist churches and
related institutions in the Western North Carolina, North Carolina and
South Carolina Conferences for building related purposes such as
property purchases, building projects, renovations, and refinancing of
existing outstanding debt.
“It’s a great way for someone to – do well while doing good” says Bill Wyman, Executive Director of the UMF Development Fund and loan program. Bill and other Foundation
staff members welcome any opportunity to share with churches and individuals
information regarding the UMF Development Fund.
Frequently, staff members of the Foundation are asked how to determine an amount to
invest in the Development Fund. The minimum investment is $1,000 to establish an account. Additional deposits are welcome once the account has been created. A common
suggestion to both churches and individuals is to consider establishing a “Emergency Fund
or Rainy Day Fund” using a UMF Development Fund account. Funds are available upon
request, and while they are invested they receive an excellent rate of interest (Investor Rate
2%, 3rd Quarter 2012).
As an individual recently told me, “I can’t get this rate of interest anywhere else, and I like the fact of knowing that my funds are helping our brother and sister United Methodist
churches. We are a connectional system”.
Page 2
2% Investment Rate 4% Loan Rate *Rates are subject to change on a quarterly basis
2nd Quarter Fund Option Returns
Do Well While Doing Good By Christ ian Burns
*Net of Manager’s Fees
Investment Returns (%) Quarter Fiscal YTD Trailing 1 Year Trailing 3 Year
CONSERVATIVE FUND 0.33% 4.74% 5.48% 7.87%
(30% Equities/70% Fixed Income)
BALANCED FUND -0.53% 5.91% 4.45% 10.38%
(50% Equities/50% Fixed Income)
DIVERSIFIED FUND -1.58% 6.69% 2.64% 12.51%
(70% Equities/30%Fixed Income)
ALL EQUITY FUND -4.18% 7.16% -2.73% 13.03%
(100% Equities)
The Foundation offers its investment management ministry to United Methodist churches and related institutions
throughout western North Carolina and ascribes to Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) as outlined in The Social
Principles of The United Methodist Church. Our funds provide a wide array of risk levels with our Diversified Fund
specifically designed for endowments so that ministry can be funded in future years.
To receive a copy of our Investment Policy Statement, please contact Christian Burns at the Foundation office.
Janice Virtue, Leadership Development
Ashley Crowder Stanley, T.I.M. Program
Suzanne Sharp, Accounting Support
Diana Kauserud, Administration
Janey Wooliever, Administration
David Snipes, President & CEO
Claire Hunsucker, Financial Services
Christian Burns, Client Relations
Bill Wyman, UMF Dev. Fund/Loan Program
Scott Ireland, Reynolds Ministries
Page 3
Your Foundation Team
Need a place to hold a meeting or day
retreat?
We will be glad to host your group at
our office located at
13816 Professional Center Drive
Huntersville, NC
Contact Janey Wooliever
BUILDING
THE
CHURCH
FOR
GENERATIONS
TO
COME
Multiplying Talent: The New Loaves and Fishes? By Rev. Jan ice Vir tue
And so a good way to look at organizational health—and one that
executives seem to respond to readily—is to see it as the multiplier of
intelligence. The healthier an organization is, the more of its
intelligence it is able to tap into and use. Most organizations exploit only a fraction of the knowledge, experience, and intellectual capital
that is available to them. But the healthy ones tap into almost all of
it. Lencioni, Patrick M. The Advantage: Why Organizational Health
Trumps Everything Else In Business (p. 11)
Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and
blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And all ate and were filled; and they took
up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. Mark 6:41-43
The next time you read the story of Jesus feeding the 5000, try reading it as a leadership
parable. Jesus invites his team of disciples to implement a vision – the feeding of the
crowd. Their response, one not unfamiliar to us, is, “We can’t.” Really? The leadership miracle of this story may be Jesus’ capacity – the leader’s capacity – to see the
abundant possibility in the gathered people. Where the disciples could only see five
loaves and two fish, Jesus saw the generosity of a crowd that would multiply its
offering until all could be fed with ample leftovers.
In his new book The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in
Business, popular business author and consultant Patrick Lencioni invites us to see all the people in our congregations and communities with eyes of abundant possibility. He
suggests that the healthiest organizations will exhibit a Jesus-like leadership offering
clear, focused direction so the crowd can multiply their talents – their knowledge,
experience and intellectual capital – to meet the needs of the community.
Learning more about how to multiply our own gifts as leaders and then to create healthy
congregations where talent is multiplied exponentially is an important task of church leaders. Your United Methodist Foundation invests in people who lead because we
know the church for future generations will need leaders with the capacity to see
abundant possibility. If you find yourself needing to grow your capacity to lead, check-
in with Janice Virtue, Executive Director for Leadership Development,
[email protected]. In partnership with the Foundation and the annual conference, she
can help you take your next step in leading a healthy congregation.
