Gardening Angels!! If you want to officially adopt a garden bed this year please sign the poster in the Narthex. If you plant it please also plan to weed and water it!!
April Financial Update
Our Financial Secretary, Steve Smith, provides monthly reports to the Congregation Council – contents of which were previously made available through weekly bulletins, financial reports made available in the church hallway and hard copies of the Council Meeting minutes. In the absence of that opportunity for sharing, we will be posting information on the website. The spreadsheet below provides the actual financial information so far this year. Prior years’ information was available in the Annual Report that you would have received in January.
April 2021 | Year to Date | |
---|---|---|
Total Contributions and Income for Budgeted Items | $13,461 | $48,357 |
Expenses | ($17,309) | ($72,659) |
Actual Deficit | ($3,848) | ($24,302) |
Transfer from Keeping God’s House | $1,644 | $10,654 |
Adjusted Deficit | ($2,204) | ($13,647) |
Total Contributions and Income for Budgeted Items during April were $4,288 less than the month of March. On a positive note, contributions to “Keeping God’s House” were up, totaling $6,445 for the month of April. This fund can be used for facility improvements and has, over the last few years, been used to offset utility/maintenance expenses during the month. Expenditures in the month of April were down slightly from March, partially because of lower costs for snow removal and electricity but also because the natural gas expenses were paid out of the PPP loan and not from operating budgets. This trend should continue for the next two months until the PPP loan is depleted. Please note that in this chart of the church financials, “Operating Deficit” is meant to be the deficit before transferring money from Keeping God’s House to cover utility and other maintenance type expenses. “Recorded” deficit is the deficit after use of the Keeping God’s House fund for those specific expenses. It is the strong hope of the Congregation Council that through the Stewardship Campaign and the return to in person worship, contributions will increase to reduce the continually increasing deficit.
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We are excited to announce that Worship at the Gazebo will return for a second summer beginning Mother’s Day, May 9. Please join us at 10:30 for worship with Holy Communion!
There are three convenient ways to join us:
- Bring your favorite lawn chair or blanket and find a comfortable spot in the lawn. (We have folding chairs you can use, too.)
- Park in one of the spaces conveniently located by the gazebo and remain in your car.
- Catch us online, just as always.
In the event of inclement weather, we’ll announce on our website that services have been moved indoors. According to our current (revised) COVID-19 policy, those who have been fully vaccinated are able to join us in the sanctuary these Sundays. (This means that two weeks must have passed since your final dose of the vaccine. Please contact the church office to let us know your vaccination date[s].)
No matter whether we’re indoors or outdoors, we’ll continue to take precautions to keep everyone safe – please bring your mask and keep those respectful six feet of distance from others outside your immediate household.
We are excited to return to our beautiful gazebo this summer, and even more excited to worship and commune with you in person! If you are able to join us, we can’t wait to see you at the gazebo May 9.
And if the time isn’t right for you just yet, we completely understand – we’ll be sure to wave at the camera to let you know you matter to us, too.
We’ll see you online only this Sunday, May 2… and online or at the gazebo next Sunday, May 9!
April Financial Update
Our Financial Secretary, Steve Smith, provides monthly reports to the Congregation Council – contents of which were previously made available through weekly bulletins, hard copies of reports in the hallway stand in the church as well as hard copies of the Council Meeting minutes. In the absence of that opportunity for sharing, we will be posting information on the website. The spreadsheet below provides the actual financial information so far this year. Prior years’ information was available in the Annual Report that you would have received in January.
Mar-21 | Year to Date | |
Total Contributions and Income for Budgeted Items | $17,749 | $34,897 |
Expenses | ($18,880) | $(55,350) |
Actual Deficit | ($1,132) | ($20,453) |
Transfer from Keeping God’s House | $2,766 | $ 9,010 |
Adjusted Deficit/Surplus | $ 1,634 | ($11,443) |
Total Contributions and Income for Budgeted Items during March were improved as compared with the first two months of the year as well as with any individual month in 2020. We are hopeful that with the Stewardship Campaign and the continued focus on supporting Good Shepherd’s ministries, this favorable trend will continue. We continued to receive contributions “Keeping God’s House” as well. This fund can be used for facility improvements and has, over the last few years, been used to offset utility/maintenance expenses during the month. Expenditures in the month of March were fairly normal with higher expenses for snow removal and natural gas than will be anticipated with the onset of spring. In this chart, “Operating Deficit” is meant to be the deficit before transferring money from Keeping God’s House to cover utility and other maintenance type expenses. “Recorded” deficit is the deficit after use of the Keeping God’s House fund for those specific expenses.
Support the Shelter Meal
We want to remind you that the monthly Shelter Meal in support of North Side Common Ministries continues! We usually have enough signed up to make Sloppy Joes but new cooks are always welcomed. We could use monetary donations to help with the cost of the side dishes, desserts, beverages and paper products. Use your green envelope, or a plain one, labeled Service Committee-Shelter Meal.
Again many thanks to Harry McCollum for continuing to deliver the meal and clothing donations to the North Side. Thank you to you all who continue to support this ministry.
– Your Service Committee
As a result of the great response we had with our last collection of new and used medical equipment and new supplies, our collection will continue. Spread the word to family and friends that we are a collection site, please! Once we have collected enough items, Brother’s Brother Foundation will be scheduled for a pick-up. Please call the church office at 412-372-2934 to schedule a time for drop-off. And please keep in mind, a small collection of items is kept at the church for use: wheel chairs, walkers, canes. Thank you for keeping this mission alive!
Easter Flowers
Thank you to the following who donated flowers to beautify our worship space this Easter! Please stop by the church at your convenience to pick up your flowers – give us a call so we can make sure someone’s there to help you out.
- Donna & Charley Barr – in memory of daughter Beth Lynn
- The Pogue Family – in honor of our risen Lord
- Laura Mauser – in honor of Dick & Pat Almes
- Rich Curry – in memory of Mary Lou
- Del Hauer – in memory of Shorty Burkett
- Del Hauer – in memory of Frank Mellon
- Mary Duggan – in memory of loved ones
- Bill & Fran Lewis – in honor of loved ones
- Jeanne Lewis – in honor of parents
- Dick McClain and sons Ted, Bill, Dan and Jon – in memory of Connie McClain
- Amy Imblum
All About Stewardship
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Our 2021 stewardship campaign is off to a great start! We’ve rolled out a special page at www.goodshepherdlife.org/stewardship to be your one-stop source for helpful information, videos and links about the campaign. Check it out!
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As one may have expected, we will need to make some adjustments to our worship plans for Sunday, April 4th, Easter Sunday. We had previously announced that we intended to hold two worship services on Easter Sunday in the sanctuary, for those who are fully vaccinated and for a small number of those not fully vaccinated. However, in light of the recent COVID trends in Allegheny County and the fact that we have moved into the red “very high risk” category, the Council has had to revisit our previously announced plan. Our current COVID Policy states that in the event Allegheny County is in the red category, all in-person events will be suspended. However, due to the recency of this change in status for the County and the in light of the number of people in our congregation who are already fully vaccinated, the Council has opted to make the following exception to the COVID Policy for Easter Sunday only and announce the following changes to the Easter worship opportunities:
- One Worship Service including Holy Communion will be held at 10:30 am for anyone who is fully vaccinated*.
- The Worship Service will be live streamed for all others on You Tube and via Zoom at 10:30 am and will be posted at goodshepherdlife.org
- Parking Lot Communion from 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm- Holy Communion will be made available in the Good Shepherd parking lot for anyone who is interested – between the hours of noon and 2:00pm. COVID vaccinations are not required to participate in parking lot communion. We will continue to observe good practices of mask-wearing, social distancing and hand sanitizing in the distribution and receiving of Holy Communion.
Anyone who is fully vaccinated and interested in attending the 10:30 Worship Service on Easter Sunday, in person, will still need to wear face masks and observe appropriate social distancing. Pews will be marked to aid in the seating with distance. Entrance to the sanctuary will be from the narthex and exit will be out of the door near the library. Windows on both sides will be open to provide safer air flow.
Pre-registration is required to attend the worship service in person. In order to register, please contact Donna Wenger in the church office either by phone or via email – no later than 3:00pm on Thursday, April 1, 2021. You will need to provide information regarding the number of people in your party and the information about the dates that each in your party received vaccination(s).
We are sorry that we’ve needed to make a change to our original plan but we believe this is the most appropriate response in light of the current trends. We are continuing to act with caution and care for our members and our community in establishing precautions to ensure safety for all. The Council is also preparing to revisit the current policy on COVID protocols as it relates to worship participation and the current positive trending in vaccination statistics to determine the appropriate way forward for worshipping in the future.
* Fully vaccinated – is defined as being 2 weeks after having received the \second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or 1 dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
Financial News
Our Financial Secretary, Steve Smith, provides monthly reports to the Congregation Council – contents of which were previously made available through weekly bulletins and hard copies of the Council Meeting minutes. In the absence of that opportunity for sharing, we will be posting information on the website. The spreadsheet below provides the actual financial information so far this year. Prior years’ information was available in the Annual Report that you would have received in January.
2021 Financial Update | January | February | Year-to-Date |
Total Contributions and Income for Budgeted Items | $4,670 | $12,478 | $17,148 |
Expenditures | ($18,107) | ($18,363) | ($36,470) |
Operating Deficit | ($13,436) | ($5,885) | ($19,321) |
Transfer from Keeping God’s House | $2,980 | $3,264 | $6,244 |
Recorded Deficit | ($10,456) | ($2,261) | ($13,077) |
The contributions for January 2021 were down significantly from any other months in years’ past. There was an improvement in February, however it was noted that there were two “one time” donations that affected contributions that are not expected to be recurring. We are hopeful that with some things in the economy opening up and with the upcoming Stewardship Campaign, that regular giving will return to more normal levels and even improved for the balance of the year. Expenditures were fairly typical for winter months. It is worth noting that we continue to receive collections in “Keeping God’s House”. This fund can be used for facility improvements and has, over the last few years, been used to offset utility/maintenance expenses during the month. In this chart, “Operating Deficit” is meant to be the deficit before transferring money from Keeping God’s House to cover utility and other maintenance type expenses. “Recorded” deficit is the deficit after use of the Keeping God’s House fund for those specific expenses.