With the end of 2023 approaching and with it the half-way mark of our current year of church programming, I wanted to take a moment to say thank you to the hundreds of households who have supported UUC throughout the year and who joined their fellow members in a few giving milestones at UUC:

• For the first time in our history, UUC was able to top $1 million in pledged gifts during its spring campaign for the current fiscal year of operations! For the 350 households who were willing and able to join this campaign, this represents a great deal of promise for the whole community. Thank you!
• With a burst of energetic stewardship, over 130 households stepped up with extra capacity to help the church finish its borrowing for the construction project completed in 2019. The original pledge period for the Not for Ourselves Alone (NFOA) capital campaign ended this summer with $1.7 million remaining on loan to pay by January 2024. With a new round of commitments to the Building for Our Future (BFOF) campaign this fall, members of the congregation came together to raise the remaining funds, with some extra to begin rebuilding capital reserves. Outstanding!

As we reach the end of calendar year 2023, now is a great time to make gifts to these campaigns, or new gifts that you feel inspired to give to the church. All gifts that you wish to see reported on your 2023 Giving Statement for tax purposes need to be received by December 31. Statements will be sent in January 2024. Some notes about year-end gifts:



• Tax-advantaged gifts are a great way to end the year. If you have appreciated stocks or mutual funds that you would like to donate and skip paying capital gains tax, UUC can receive those assets at Schwab or Vanguard.
• If you are over 70.5 years old and have required distributions from retirement accounts that need to be met before the end of December, those can be given tax-free directly to UUC. Please contact me if you have questions about donating investment assets or giving from a retirement account. Many UUC members have done both for years and have found it very easy.
• Many new supporters who have arrived this fall may not have settled into a giving pattern yet. There’s always time to do so, and as we approach the middle of our fiscal year in December and January, new pledges or one-time donations will make a tremendous difference. It is easy to give online at UUC Connect or by texting UUCHURCH and a donation amount to 73256. Pledges for gifts to church operations in the first half of 2024 can be made on our Make a Pledge page.

Pledge payments should be marked for “operations” or “capital” (either late NFOA gifts or new BFOF gifts). Split gifts are accepted as well; please clearly indicate the proportion of your divided gift. If you are giving to a special collection in December, please describe the collection purpose in the memo line.

If you have any questions about pledge or gift information that appears or has not yet appeared in UUC Connect, please contact me at byron.krystad@uuchuch.org or Chris Budd, our accountant, at chris.budd@uuchurch.org. Either of us would be glad to help you.

Thank you for holding UUC in your generous care this year, and for considering UUC in your end-of-year giving! Best wishes for the holiday season and a healthy and thriving new year.

Byron Krystad, Director of Operations