Jefferson Unitarian Church At A Glance
March 15, 2008
Money
The median pledge per pledging unit at Jefferson Unitarian Church (JUC) is $1,015. The average is $1,467. Members are encouraged to pay pledges by electronic funds transfer (EFT), and about 40 percent do. "It's eliminated our summer cash flow problem," says Cyndee Dries, church administrator. Prospective new members are told it costs about $1,320 annually per member (not household) to maintain JUC and its programs. The 2006-2007 fund drive raised $744,000 in pledges, an increase of 23 percent from the previous year.
The biggest fundraiser apart from the stewardship drive is the annual auction, which nets about $35,000 a year, with professional auctioneers. See InterConnections, Winter 2003, for a story about JUC's auction procedures.
JUC has contributed its Annual Program Fund Fair Share amount per member to the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) most years but not for the past two. It expects to resume Fair Share next year.
Facilities
JUC's semi-circular sanctuary, which seats 300, was built in the 1970s. A large commons area was built in 1982. A new RE wing, chapel, and renovated offices were completed in 2005.
Being welcoming extends to the bathrooms at JUC, which come in threes—male, female, and family. That not only makes families with small children feel welcome, but also transgender people. All the bathrooms have stepstools so children can reach the faucets.
Next Steps
JUC recently started a young adult group—a demographic in short supply there—and also established a stewardship council. "We'd really like to find a way to not have to do an annual stewardship drive, but to do it every two or three years," says Dries. "Every year we devote four to six months to the campaign. It would be nice to develop a culture where people are motivated all year long to support the church because of its value to them rather than our having to rely on asking for money once a year."
Try This at Your Church
Here are the tools that helped JUC became a 770-member congregation.
- JUC's Path to Membership resources are online, including all of the forms that JUC uses for guests and new members, the outline of its class for prospective members, and a checklist of actions to take with guests and new members. Visit JUC's website and click on "Programs" and then "UU University."
- JUC's Foundations of Fellowship program is on the front page of jeffersonunitarian.org.
- JUC's bylaws are also on its website, including its policy on disruptive behavior.
- Take a virtual tour of JUC's buildings on its website.
- For JUC's complete presentation at the 2006 UU University, including its workshop, "Repelling Fewer Visitors," go to the JUC website, click on "Programs" then "UU University."
- Better yet, buy a copy of JUC's Ideas for Growth DVD on welcoming guests and integrating members. The DVD, professionally made at JUC, takes viewers on a how-to video tour of JUC's membership practices. The DVD is $8 from the UUA Bookstore.
For more information contact interconnections @ uua.org.
Last updated on Friday, April 18, 2008.
