By Bernie SchnippertRon Kelly joins
Finance & Planning team
By Bernie Schnippert
Once again, greetings from the office of Finance & Planning.
You may notice a slightly different title to our column--it used to be "Update From the Treasurer."
The reason for this change is because we have asked Ron Kelly to assume the functions of controller. Ron and I will share this monthly column, so we felt an update from the overall financial operations would be a more appropriate title.
My responsibilities as treasurer have included the major undertaking to sell our Texas and California properties. As you may have already read on page 3, the Ambassador University campus in Big Sandy has entered into escrow.
For the past several months we have been negotiating with several interested parties. That has consumed much of my time. Continuing dialogue, legal matters, agreements, phone calls and a host of related items are still required over the next several months as we move toward completion of the sale.
In addition, interest in the Pasadena campus continues at a good pace. We anticipate a great deal of time will now be devoted to this important project. When we enter into contract negotiations, almost all my time will be devoted to the sale and the future movement of church headquarters to new facilities.
And as the sale process continues, my time will be further devoted to establishing a pension plan for church employees. The church has never had a pension plan.
The church board feels a moral and ethical obligation to our many longtime employees who are now receiving gratuitous assistance, as well as all current employees who should have the appropriate benefit of a sound pension program.
We'll be discussing this topic more with you in future columns.
This means we needed someone to fill the shoes of controller. I talked this over with Pastor General Joseph Tkach and Dan Rogers, superintendent of ministers, who both agreed Ron Kelly was the man for the job.
Ron brings with him a wealth of experience in virtually all operations of the church. He has served as a church pastor, college faculty member and administrator, Editorial director, World Tomorrow television presenter and most recently as manager of Pastoral Development. We have every confidence Ron will do a fine job. Ron has a master's degree in organizational management. Not only does he have the experience we needed, but the educational background, as well.
I wanted to introduce you to Ron in this month's column as he will begin to write much of the update materials. I know he will appreciate your prayers as he takes on new challenges.
So for the remainder of the update this month I'll turn you over to Ron Kelly.
By Ron KellyI know you all have appreciated understanding the finances of the church in Bernie Schnippert's column the past couple of years.
Never before have our members had this much news of the income, budget needs and expenses of the church. It will also be my intent to keep you fully apprised of our financial circumstances.
As I take on this new job, it is with a certain sense of awe. To be responsible for the financial affairs of our church is almost overwhelming.
The past few years have been the most challenging since Mr. Armstrong moved church headquarters from Oregon to California in the late 1940s and early '50s.
By the time I came to Ambassador in 1956, the church's income had begun to stabilize and was growing every year. We had many financial ups and downs between then and now, but never the kind of downs we have experienced the past few years.
So it is with some trepidation I take over the office of controller. However, in faith I know our Lord and Savior is with us. And I know you loyal members of the WCG will do everything you can to provide the financial stability we need in the coming years ahead.
Our tithes and offerings are a special part of our worship to our Creator. He provides for our needs and we express our love and appreciation by supporting the church.
We in the WCG are but a small part of the work of God, but we are privileged to be part of it.
I'm sure most of you feel as we do in Pasadena that God has led us on this incredible journey as a fellowship and he has plans to use that journey for his glory and honor in even more meaningful ways in the coming years.
We solicit your continued prayers for the successful completion of the sale of the Big Sandy campus. Many weeks of feasibility study and due diligence considerations are now under way. If all goes well, when those studies are satisfactorily completed, escrow will close.
Because we have never had a pension plan, the proceeds of the Big Sandy sale will be earmarked to that project.
I pray our members will not feel that the campus sale will mean regular contributions are not as important. Only your regular, generous donations make it possible for the church to weather the severe fallout of declining income as so many of our beloved brothers and sisters stepped away from our fellowship.
As you will see in the accompanying graphs, our late summer income has taken another downturn.
August ended with a daily average income of just $97,420. Remember our budget is $110,000 a day. The year-to-date income is $106,704. And to cause me pain in my first week on the job, the month of September is off to a slow start.
I pray that in our traditional offerings during the fall festival season you will express your financial care for the needs of the church as you have always done in the past.
Even though we understand the festivals in a different light, it is still appropriate to express our love for the church in this traditional manner.
I'll let this wrap up my first contact with you. I look forward to serving all of you as the church controller. I hope to see many of you in person as we cross paths on church visits or when you come to Pasadena. All of us here pray daily for you faithful members. We love you dearly and consider it a privilege to serve in the work of God with you.
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 1998