A Tale of Two Congregations
November - December 2008
It was the best of times but not the worst of times for two congregations that turned to the ELCA’s Stewardship Key Leader (SKL) program for their recent capital campaigns. Each had different needs. Each had very successful outcomes.
Grace Lutheran, Rock Hill, S.C., needed to reduce debt in order to enhance its ministry. The congregation of about 600 members owed a $1.3 million debt from a previous $2.5 million building project. “We definitely had a need,” said Pastor Ray Mohrmann. “It’s not easy to get people fired up for debt reduction, but they were excited about the possibilities of future ministry — which means adding staff and reaching the ultimate goal of calling a second pastor.”
Aided by members with capital campaign experience, Grace Lutheran turned to SKL Director Pastor Charles “Chick” Lane for an August 2007 campaign launch. “As our consultant, Chick made two visits and kept in touch by phone or e-mail,” Mohrmann said. “He knew he didn’t need to ‘hold our hands’ through the process, but provided us with guidance and leadership.”
Pledge Sunday was held September 30, a bit of a delay in Grace’s annual campaign. “This didn’t negatively affect our annual campaign because we were getting a good stewardship education (from SKL).”
Mohrmann said the program was a great fit with their congregational culture, especially in the area of prayer and scripture. “The message was the joy of giving rather than the duty,” he said. “We responded well to that. It wasn’t heavy-handed, but rooted in the Lutheran theology of grace. The low overhead with the program was also very attractive. We’re just very pleased with the results. Contributions have come in faithfully, and I’ve recommended it to several colleagues.”
It was October 1, 2000, one hour before the Minnesota Vikings’ kickoff. Pastor Josh Nelson spent an hour knocking on doors in search of members for a new mission church. Four months later, Spirit of Joy began worship at the high school in Buffalo, Minn. “We grew to such a size that it was time to do a building campaign,” Nelson said. “We interviewed two other fundraising organizations before choosing Stewardship Key Leader because of its affordability and the structure of the program.”
Spirit of Joy launched its program last spring. From laying out expectations to Commitment Sunday, Nelson said the program went “smooth as silk.” He added, “We received a lot of support in setting up and training our committee. The members had a good sense of their duties, which included a one-page job description.”
An organized person, Nelson said he liked the structure of SKL — as did the committee members. “We were a little nervous at first because the economy was slowing down. Our consultant helped calm those fears by assuring us that people respond differently to a faith need.”
Spirit of Joy exceeded their pledge goal of $300,000 by $35,000. “We have a 20-acre lot and an architect now with the hope of having our building ready by the fall of 2009,” Nelson said. “We definitely have momentum now.”
For more information about the Stewardship Key Leader program, contact Charles Lane at
skl@elca.org or 800-638-3522, ext. 2606.