DECEMBER 7, 2023

Dear First Congregational Church,

The members of First Congregational now and for the last 100 years have been ensuring the continued ministry of our historical church through generous gifts to our Endowments. Our Endowments are a blessing to our church as well as our service to the world. As the end of the year quickly approaches, we invite you to be a part of this legacy through a Give While You Live donation.

Many people hear “Endowment” and they think of two things: end of life giving and large amounts of money. We are here to tell you that neither of these has to be true! You can give any time and for some people, the end of the year is a great time to give or to plan for 2024 giving. Literally any gift – at any level - $10 to $10,000 – helps build this legacy.

You decide to which of our seven Endowments or the New Initiatives Fund you would like to make your gift. This year we are highlighting two of our Endowments:

The Voss Children’s Camp Endowment is a brand-new Endowment generously established by members of our congregation to honor Deborah and her incredible service to the children, families and members of FCC beginning in 1997. This fund will ensure that financial issues will not prevent any child from attending church camp or other events, especially Arts Camp, which has been a special passion of Deb’s. This giving opportunity was also highlighted in the November 8 email to the congregation about Deb’s retirement.

The New Initiatives Fund is not an endowment because any amount of funds can be used to support new ideas such as Brunch Church, live streaming our church services or one-time expenses such as a new web site (coming in 2024 we hope!). However, the funds are invested like our Endowment funds. The New Initiatives Fund will help to launch new programs built on the work of the Faith in Action teams (our strategic plan).

There are actually many ways to give a living gift to our Endowments and some of them even pay you while you are living; for example, make an outright gift, purchase an annuity that pays you now through the national UCC, or use your RMD. For more details about how to make gifts either ask for our Endowment Brochure from the church office or see our church website.

Whether you give by bequest or as a living “Give While You Live” contribution, you may designate which of the various funds – one or more – that you want

to benefit from your generosity.

Again, it is not the size of the gift that counts, but the spirit of it. Your gift might be a symbol of your gratitude for the church during the difficult pandemic years, or in honor of someone who has touched your life recently. The members of the Endowment Committee are ready, willing and able to meet with you personally to answer any questions you have about our seven Endowments. Please call the church office at (303) 442-1787 or send us an email to set up a meeting.

We encourage you to join us in ensuring a healthy present and future for our beloved church and in leaving a legacy that will endure. Pick up a card and a brochure while you are at the church and choose an Endowment for your gift, or click here to fill out an online form that goes to the church office, or here to make your gift today..

With gratitude for you and our life together,

First Congregational Church Endowment Committee:

Dean R. Fowler, Ph.D., Chair

Rev. Christina Braudaway-Bauman

Libby Black

Jon Hinebauch

Tom Lounsbury

Eric Nickell

Jay Rourke

Louisa Young

Our Endowments:

Benevolence

Capital Needs

MacKenzie Lectureship

McMane Arts

Sawyer Organ

Music

Voss Children’s Camp

New Initiatives Fund