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 investment returns. 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

The two endowment funds we have are the Property Endowment and the General Endowment.  The Property Endowment provides funding for major maintenance, repairs and capital improvements subject to strict spending limits and procedures.  The General Endowment is a long term investment in the overall mission and ministry of our church, and it generates an income stream to support current year budget needs.  Both funds provide a solid financial base on which the church's future is built.

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 Property Endowment fund.

Designated Gift Funds

Gifts to the church designated for an express purpose other than for Memorial, General Endowment, Property Endowment or current operations shall be placed in the Designated Gift Fund. It is the fiduciary responsibility of the First Fund subcommittee to ensure that the designated intent or purpose of all monies placed in the Designated Gift 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. 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.  She will arrange for a committee member to meet with you to confidentially discuss your intentions and the options for designating the gift to the General or Property Endowments, or as a Designated Gift fund. A gift made to the church with no other designation is allocated to both General and Property endowments according to our bylaws.


The 1890 Legacy Society

Christians often express their faithfulness to God and their local church through bequests of some type at the end of their lives.  These planned gifts are a response to Christ’s role in our lives, and the importance of our church to us and our families.  The First Presbyterian Church of La Grange has received many such gifts over the years, which have been used as they are designated, or accumulated in our First Fund Endowment.  
 
The 1890 Legacy Society recognizes and celebrates such planned giving, and includes those living members who have remembered the church in their wills or estates.  It is named for the year our church received it's charter from the Presbytery of Chicago, and is a testament to our proud history and the giving of those who preceded us, just as our gifts will benefit those who come after us.
 
For more information on the 1890 Legacy Society please contact a member of our First Fund Committee, or the Church Office.   To download a registration form for the society, please click here: Enrollment Designation Form.

Estate Planning Tools

Introductory Brochure [PDF]

Estate Planning Worksheet [PDF]

Guide to a Christian Will [PDF]

Personal Record Book [PDF]

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