Thank You for your Ongoing Support!
Grateful greetings to you and your family!
Thank you for being Joyful, Missionary Disciples of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
I have been blessed to be the pastor here at Guardian Angels Catholic Church for two years now. I am grateful for how generous all of you have been with sharing your time, talent, and treasure with our parish community. Even during these stressful and difficult times, you have continued to support our parish.
Below is a document that shows the State of our Parish for the last two fiscal years. Fiscal years for the parish run from July 1st through June 30th. I am happy to report that parish finances are in good shape.
Operating expenses for 2019 – 2020 exceeded revenues as budgeted. This was due to the expenditures associated with our Paving the Way campaign which included the parish having to pay the entire 2019 CSA goal of $ 109.680 to the AOD. Thank you to all of you who have supported this important campaign.
At the end of last year, we actively contacted registered families who had been inactive for two or more years to confirm whether they wished remain active parishioners or not. As result, there was a 439 decrease in the number of registered households in 2019 – 2020 vs. 2018 – 2019.
The facilities on our campus are getting older and require a lot of maintenance to provide a safe environment for our worshipers and students. We have recently completed an audit of our facilities and the number one recommendation was that we replace the church roof as soon as possible. We have received approval from the AOD to proceed with this project. This project will cost $72,000, and we will pay for this using pledge payments that continue to come in for our Paving the Way campaign.
Live streaming 9:00 mass each Sunday has allowed to remain connected with parishioners who do not feel comfortable attending services in person. Several of these parishioners have continue to support the parish financially. They have done so by mailing their offertory contributions to the parish offices or by giving online via Faith Direct. You can sign up for online giving on website or by using the following link: https://membership.faithdirect.net/enroll/MI622.
In preparing our budget for 2020 – 2021, we assumed that parish finances would be impacted by the pandemic for the entire fiscal year and as a result, we have prepared a conservative budget for the year. I want you to know that we are watching our spending closely and looking to reduce operating costs wherever we can.
Thank you again for continuing support of our parish community. I am praying for all of you to stay healthy and safe during these crazy times.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Tony Richter
