FAQ's About Our Transition - Money

We're putting together a list of these questions. Most of these have been passed out to folks at the end of November at Communitas. Some of them (like this post) just answer very simple, practical questions like where we will meet and how we will be able to give. Others are more theologically oriented or deal with our philosophy of ministry. Please feel free to email Asher with any further questions as we want to try to answer as many of your questions as possible and be as transparent as we can be.

• ​What about the money?
  • ​We are still working on this. Our tithes and offerings are currently administered by First Presbyterian. For the time being you can keep giving in the giving box here at Communitas or online, but hopefully within the next few weeks we will be able to transition so that a Communitas bookkeeper will administer our tithes and offerings so that First Pres will no longer function as a middle man. We will keep you up to date as soon as we know anything further that is definitive on that.
• Will Communitas be taking a special offering to help fund the start up costs of our new location as we become our own 501c3 organization?
  • Most likely - yes. We will be needing about $30,000 savings in the bank to ensure that we will have enough resources to get started to fund things like any sound equipment, any other office items, to be able to pay rent and payroll, etc.
• ​Can I give to the Communitas Transition Fund now rather than continuing to send my tithes and offering through FPC?
  • ​Those are really two different questions. Regarding helping out with the Communitas Church Plant Fund - there are two easy ways to do that. The first is to drop a check in the Communitas Giving Box on Sunday nights and mark in the memo line "Communitas Launch Fund" and that check will be designated to a special account for Communitas that First Pres will send with us when we are incoporated as our own 501c3 organization. The other way is that you can give online to the special church launch fund with this link.
  • The second part of your question regarding giving directly to Communitas instead of FPC. It's important to remember that right now (through December 31, 2016) First Pres is still administering all of our giving and all of our expenses and we don't want to put them in a bad position where they are still spending money, but not receiving donations. They have been very generous and gracious to us over the last five and half years and as we look to have a great long term relationship it is important for us to see ourselves as ministry partners with FPC and dealing with our money well is one way to do that. The big thing is this: when we give we give to the Lord. Whether FPC or Communitas is the steward ultimately we are giving to the Lord.
    Starting January 1 we will absolutely need you to give sacrificially, generously and joyfully to Communitas and we will have our new online giving tool available by then if at all possible.