Our Endowment: First Fund

Our church has an annual budget, whose income is derived from a variety of sources, such as annual pledge giving, special gifts, and income from our investments. We also have an endowment - money set aside for special uses or to generate interest income. Our endowment is managed and invested by church members with keen financial sense, who help guarantee the long-term health of the church. The fund that stores and manages this endowment is called the First Fund.

First Fund is administered by the First Fund committee, subject to the First Fund by-laws, and is separate from the operating expense funds of the church. This committee is a sub-committee of the Finance Committee. Sound, extensive planning assures good stewardship, efficient handling, accurate record keeping, and helpful communications for your desires to share in His service. Preservation of capital is the primary investment objective.

First Fund is comprised of Endowment funds, Memorial funds, and Designated Gift funds, described below:

Endowment Funds Our endowment is stored in a variety of funds, including the permanent endowment fund. This fund's monies can never be spent, except under the most exceptional circumstances. It builds up, providing a solid base on which the church's future is built. The interest generated by this fund can be used for certain capital expenses and improvements, building maintenance, and other long-term expenses. Staff positions, mission work, and other day-to-day expenses are not funded by the endowment or its interest income. The intent is that monies placed in the Fund shall be inviolate and the fund shall be maintained in perpetuity during the corporate life of the church.

Memorial Funds Gifts to the church in memory or honor of a person or event shall be placed in the Memorial Fund unless otherwise directed by the donor. If no instruction or expressions of intentions are received from the donor, honoree, or honoree's family, then the gift shall be invested in the Permanent Endowment fund.

Designated Gift Funds Gifts to the church designated for an express purpose other than for Memorial, Endowment, or current operations, shall be placed in the Designated Gift Fund. The income earned will be added on a pro-rata basis to the principal of such gifts.

It is the fiduciary responsibility of the First Fund subcommittee to ensure that the designated intent or purpose of all monies placed in the First Fund be utilized as expressly donated.

Create a Legacy First Fund provides a vehicle for the receipt and management of gifts or bequests made to the church other than funds and/or property pledged or given for operating expenses or benevolences. All of us accumulate some assets during our lifetime. If the church is important in our lives, we can extend our love beyond our living through endowment gifts. Endowment gifts express our gratitude for what we have received and our confidence in God's work in the future.

Once we have fulfilled our regular responsibilities to the church, (such as annual stewardship pledge and gifts for special projects) we have the opportunity to make a gift to one of the church's endowment funds. The funds allow for long-term support of First Presbyterian Church.

If you would like to make a substantial gift to the church, or to include the church in your estate planning, please contact our Financial Secretary in the church office who will arrange for a finance committee member to meet with you to confidentially discuss your intentions and the church's needs. A large gift made to the church with no other designation is passed to the permanent endowment fund, per our bylaws.

Gifts can be made to the church for specific purposes, such as audio/visual equipment, Sunday School supplies, scholarships, etc. Designated gifts such as these must be approved by our church session. Such gifts are invested by First Fund until they are needed.

The church always has needs for the annual expenses of staff and programs. It also has needs for its long-term health, which are met through donations to the various endowment funds. Please consider the long-term endowment of the church as one of your gifts.

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