• PLAN FOR MEETING MARY QUEEN’S LONG TERM LIABILITIES

  Approved by Father Dan Noll, Pastor         September 19, 2013
   

              After hearing the advice of the Parish Pastoral Council, Finance Council, Parish Staff and other parish groups, I created the Mary Queen 2013 Task Force for Development in early May 2013. The membership of the Task Force is Dan Bork, Michelle Buerger, Cheryl Gatzmer, Steve McCauley and Rob Twist. I participate in the meetings of the Task Force. The purpose of the Task Force is to explore the fund raising ideas given in response to a parish survey in early 2013, and to make recommendations on how to best fund the parish needs with the primary focus of how to raise money to ensure we can make the required payments on our long term liabilities. We are now in the final year of a three-year campaign (Faith in our Future) which has been used to fund these obligations in the past.
  
  Current state of MQHR long term liabilities:
  
  1.     Tax exempt bonds, with a current balance of about $5.4 Million, will continue for about 21.5 years requiring annual payments of about $372,000. This debt was incurred to spread the cost of the ELC over a period of about 30 years. All payments on this debt have been made to date as required; and the principal has been paid down from $6.3 Million to the current balance of $5.4 Million. Payments have been primarily funded by three-year capital campaigns.
   
  2.     The parish has incurred other debt over the past several years due to a variety of factors totaling about $845,000. The first item of this debt is the diocesan tax incurred for one fiscal year and payable in the next fiscal year.  We have not set aside enough money during the year to pay this so it has to come from the next year.  We are always a year behind - this is $138,000. The second item is the diocesan “One In Faith and Mission” campaign that we did not participate in due to leadership changes but are required by the diocese to make this up in the future. This item is $507,000, with annual payments of about $100,000. The third item is the change in payroll practices last year which required a catch up of $200,000, which was funded by the diocese.  We are required to repay this over five years, which means annual payments of $40,000.
   
  3.     The parish has a mortgage on the priest house with a principal balance of about $275,000, with annual payments of about $21,000.
   
  The Problem:
  The development fund has brought in over $400,000 per year during the last few years and we need to keep at least that much coming in to maintain debt service and to meet other budgetary needs. In that sense we are not really looking for new money. Additional funds could be used to pay down debt early.
  
  The Goal:
  We are developing a plan and strategy to raise funds with a goal of meeting our financial commitments. Our target is to replace the $400,000 and raise additional funds or cut costs in the amount of $100,000 for a total impact of $500,000 to the bottom line.
  
  After receiving an initial report from the Task Force, and then receiving suggestions for improvement on that report from the Parish Pastoral Council, the parish staff, the Finance Council, the School Finance Council and the School Council, I received an amended report from the Task Force on September 19, and have approved it as the basis for the following plan.
  
  Way Forward-short term:
   
  1.      The foundation of these fund raising efforts will be advancing a parish culture that values an active and growing spiritual life which requires Catholics to recognize money and possessions as gifts of grace that they are called to manage and share as good stewards.
   
  2.     Funding of debt payments will not be achieved with three-year capital campaigns. We will implement an “Annual Debt Service Fund” as a replacement for the current three-year pledges. I and my delegates will request this from the pulpit each November in the form of an annual pledge at the same time as the annual offertory pledges are requested. I and my delegates will personally contact current major givers to insure a certain level of success. The goal is to raise $400,000 to $450,000 to replace the current development fund. A realistic success would be to get annual pledges of a minimum of $350,000.
   
  3.     We will enhance our current fund raising efforts around the fall festival. We will engage the parish more in the raffle and other aspects to achieve more participation and to raise more money.  Target:  An additional $25,000.
   
  4.      The Dreamstakes event will undergo significant changes, retaining its function as a spring social event. It is anticipated that there may not be an event in the spring of 2014 and that the new venue would start the following year. Members of the current Dreamstakes committee will continue the discussion of the nature of this event with the intent to have an event no later than spring of 2015.
   
  5.     The school administration, with the support of the School Council, will take the lead in deciding on ways either to raise additional funds with the support of the entire parish or to cut costs in the amount of $60,000 (with the understanding that the $40,000 per year salary loan repayment is also in the school budget each year). I strongly encourage the re-launch of an adapted Kroger gift card program and the sale of other script programs as part of these efforts.
   
  6.     We will implement a major campaign to encourage parishioners to use the “bank draft” option for making offertory donations. Also, we will launch an exploratory program for the use of credit cards for making tuition payments and offertory donations. Target:  $15,000 additional revenue.
   
  7.     Volunteers will perform tasks that are currently paid to outside companies or staff in order to save costs and to encourage participation in the parish and school. Target $10,000 savings.
   
  Way forward-Long Term:
   
  1.     The recently formed Cornelia Nash Scholarship Fund will be part of a long term annual fund mechanism to raise funds to provide scholarship money for needy families to send their children to MQHR school. The target audience would be alumni and others with a passion for Catholic education.
   
  2.     We will start an active “planned giving” program and promote it to all parish families.
  
  NEXT STEP
  The Task Force will continue to meet to develop strategies to implement the Plan, so that the implementation of the plan begins to produce revenue to meet our long term liabilities no later than January 1, 2014.
  
  I am grateful for all who have participated in this process so far, especially to the members of the Task Force, who so thoroughly considered every idea brought to our attention by parishioners and by the diocese. I entrust the future of this plan and this parish to the providence of our loving God and the intercession of our Patroness, Mary Queen of the Holy Rosary. Let us all deepen our prayer so that we will find our peace, in this and in all matters, in God’s will.

  last updated 4/02/2014 tk