Finances

Everence offers assistance and relief options during COVID-19 outbreak
As part of its mission to help people, churches, businesses and organizations integrate their faith and values into their financial decisions, Everence is offering assistance and relief options to help members and customers impacted by the evolving COVID-19 outbreak. To learn more, see https://bit.ly/EverenceCOVID-19Response.

Giving slows in February
After strong levels of congregational giving in December and January, Ohio Conference experienced a drop in receipts during February. According to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth, receipts for February totaled just $14,770, including $14,664 in giving from congregations. Expenses for the month totaled $23,369, resulting in an operating balance of -$8,559 for the month. Even so, that shortfall…

Strong January giving erases deficit
Giving to the Ohio Conference was strong for the second month in a row during January, resulting in a positive operating balance for the first time during this fiscal year. According to figures supplied by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth, receipts for the month totaled $59,642, including $47,199 from congregations and $11,312 from individuals. That monthly total was slightly lower than…
Proposed spending plan for 2020-21 is available
The proposed Ohio Conference spending plan for 2020-2021 was distributed and discussed at the winter cluster meetings. A copy is available here: 2020-2021 Proposed Spending Plan.

Giving increases during December
Giving to Ohio Conference increased greatly during December, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. In fact, the amount received in December was almost double the amount received in any other month of the current fiscal year. (See the accompanying chart for details.) Receipts for December totaled $60,581. Of that amount, $36,966 came from congregational giving. During December…

Deficit increases during November
During November giving to the Ohio Conference was lower than expenses for the third month in a row, according to figures supplied by Ohio Conference Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts during November totaled $22,774, including $18,909 in giving from congregations. Expenses for the month were $37,046, resulting in an operating balance of -$14,272 for the month. After the first eight…

Deficit increases during October
Ohio Conference’s deficit increased during the month of October, according to figures provided by Ohio Conference Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts for the month totaled $27,274, including $26,274 in giving from congregations. Expenses in October totaled $30,795, resulting in an operating balance of -$3,521 for the month. As of Oct. 31, the Conference’s operating balance is -$26,479 for the 2019-20…

Giving to Conference increases in September
Giving to the Ohio Conference increased during September, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Total receipts for the month were $34,991, the highest monthly amount so far in this fiscal year. Expenses for September totaled just $23,520, resulting in a surplus of $11,471 for the month. That surplus helped to reduce the Conference’s running deficit. As of…

Giving to Conference drops in August
Giving to Ohio Conference was down in August, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Total receipts for the month were just $15,776, including $15,084 in congregational giving. That amount was less than half the amount received in July, $34,968. Expenses for the month totaled $26,574, resulting in an operating balance for the month of -$10,798. As of…

Giving to Conference is stronger in July
Giving to the Ohio Conference in July was much stronger than in the previous three months, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Total receipts for July were $34,968, more than double the $15,312 received in June. Expenses for the month totaled just $28,462, leaving the Conference with an operating balance of $6,506 for the month. However, because…

Deficit increases during June
During June giving to the Ohio Conference was lower than expenses for the third month in a row, according to figures supplied by Ohio Conference Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts during June totaled $15,312, including $14,599 in giving from congregations. Expenses for June were $25,993, resulting in an operating balance of -$10,682 for the month. After the first three months…

Deficit increases during May
During May giving to the Ohio Conference was lower than expenses for the second month in a row, according to figures supplied by Ohio Conference Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts during May totaled $19,256, including $18,914 in giving from congregations. Expenses for May were $24,260, resulting in an operating balance of -$5,004 for the month. After the first two months…

Conference begins 2019-20 with a deficit
Ohio Conference is beginning its 2019-20 fiscal year with a deficit, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts for the month of April totaled just $13,253, including $12,305 in giving from congregations. Expenses for the month totaled $27,705, resulting in an operating balance of -$14,452 for the month. Even so, expenses were well below the amount budgeted…
2019-2020 pastor salary guidelines now online
The 2019-2020 MC USA pastor salary guidelines are now posted on the Mennonite Church USA website at http://mennoniteusa.org/resources. This year there is a new link to the Everence website which will help pastors and/or congregational representatives complete the form, which can be printed out when completed.

Conference ends 2018-19 in the black
Ohio Conference has ended its 2018-19 fiscal year in the black, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. The fiscal year ended March 31, 2019. Giving to the Conference was down somewhat during March. Income for the month totaled $18,615, compared to $37,455 in February and $54,545 in January. Expenses for March totaled $35,824, resulting in an operating…

Giving outpaces expenses during February
For the third month in a row, giving to the Ohio Conference outpaced expenses. According to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth, total receipts for the month were $37,455, including $37,082 in congregational giving. Expenses totaled just $26,367, resulting in an operating surplus of $11,088 for the month. That surplus boosted the year-to-date operating balance to $32,783. Thank you…
Delegate News — Winter 2019 #3
ACA registration price increases after Feb. 15 We are looking forward to seeing you at the 2019 Annual Conference Assembly (ACA) on March 8-9 at Salem Mennonite Church in Kidron. Thanks to all who have already registered! The registration deadline for ACA is Feb. 15. The cost to register is $45 by Feb. 15, and $60 thereafter. There is an…

Deficit is erased during January
Giving to the Ohio Conference was strong for the second month in a row during January, resulting in a positive operating balance for the first time during this fiscal year. According to figures supplied by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth, receipts for the month totaled $54,545, including $42,925 from congregations and $11,573 from individuals. That total for the month was somewhat…
Everence program benefits Ohio Conference
In January the Ohio Conference received a check for $747.24 from Everence Federal Credit Union as part of its MyNeighbor credit card program. With the MyNeighbor program, individuals and businesses generate reward dollars for their favorite nonprofits every time they use their MyNeighbor credit cards from Everence. Everence donates 1.5 percent of each purchase to the card user’s chosen nonprofit…

Giving increases during December
Giving to Ohio Conference increased greatly during December, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. In fact, the amount received in December was more than double the amount received in any other month of the current fiscal year. (See the chart below for details.) Receipts for December totaled $60,171. Of that amount, $41,174 came from congregational giving. During…
Lilly Endowment grant to assist pastors
GOSHEN, Indiana – Everence, through its affiliate Mennonite Foundation, has received a second grant of $1 million as part of Lilly Endowment Inc.’s National Initiative to Address Economic Challenges Facing Pastoral Leaders. This additional grant is part of the second phase of the Endowment’s national initiative. Everence was one of the first 37 organizations receiving grants as part of the…

Giving increases, but deficit remains
Giving to the Ohio Conference was higher during November than during October, but expenses still outpaced receipts during November. According to figures provided by Ohio Conference Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth, receipts for November totaled $28,450, compared with just $13,169 during October. Of November’s total, congregations gave $26,386, individuals gave $2,050, and the remaining $14 came from interest income. Expenses for…

Giving to Conference drops in October
Giving to Ohio Conference dropped considerably in October, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Receipts for October totaled just $13,169, the lowest monthly amount since April, and substantially lower than the $24,753 received in September. Expenses for October totaled $27,012, resulting in a -$13,843 operating balance for the month. That shortfall, combined with the previous deficit, led…
MyNeighbor program can benefit Ohio Conference
Do you have a credit card through Everence? If so, your purchases can benefit the Ohio Conference. Everence donates 1.5 percent of the transaction total of each purchase made with a MyNeighbor credit card to the charitable organization of your choice. Donations are distributed each January and are based on the card holder’s choice of “neighbor” as of Dec. 31. In January…

Giving to Conference increases in September
Congregational giving to the Ohio Conference was higher in September than in the previous month, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Congregational giving in September totaled $24,417, compared to just $18,515 in August. Total receipts for September were $24,753, while expenses totaled $20,974, resulting in a surplus of $3,779 for the month. However, the Conference still is…

Conference deficit increases during August
Ohio Conference’s financial deficit increased during August, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Total receipts for the month were $19,524, including $18,515 in giving from congregations. Expenses for the month totaled $24,772, resulting in an operating balance of -$5,248 for the month. That shortfall added to the year-to-date deficit. At the end of August the operating balance…

Giving increases during July
Congregational giving to the Ohio Conference increased during the month of July, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Congregations gave $28,513 to Ohio Conference during July, the highest one-month amount for this fiscal year. Total receipts for the month were $29,018, and expenses were $25,640, resulting in a surplus of $3,378 for the month. That one-month surplus…
Stronger giving is needed to meet budget
A reminder from the Stewardship Ministry Team: At our Annual Conference Assembly in March delegates strongly affirmed the 2018-2019 budget. This budget allows us to hire a full-time conference minister. Currently, our congregational support is not adequate to support our budget for 2018-2019. Please consider increased support of our Conference needs, both as a congregation and as individuals. Your prayer…
Conference deficit continues during June
Ohio Conference’s expenses were greater than receipts during June, according to figures provided by Financial Coordinator Stan Helmuth. Expenses for the month were $24,784, while receipts totaled just $19,460, resulting in an operating balance of -$5,324 for the month. For the first three months of the fiscal year, the Conference’s operating balance stands at -$23,435.
Stewardship Ministry seeks volunteers
The Ohio Conference Stewardship Ministry has been considering ways to save money for the Conference. One area of focus is expenses of the Conference office located in Kidron. The Stewardship Ministry is seeking volunteers to conduct a feasibility study. This group will review the current Conference office structure to see if/where costs can be trimmed. If you would be willing…