Two Stories Remind Us That We’re All in This Together I recently had the pleasure of working with several congregations in a weekend cluster event we called a Stewardship Saturday. During one session, a participant shared a wonderful story of how she brought home to her congregation that we make our commitments not just […]
Envelopes, Elevators, and Empathy Read More »
Some of us feel our financial gifts or volunteer efforts are too small to make a real difference. Not so. Imagine a chair missing a leg…. by Bill Clontz, Stewardship Consultant In my conversations with fellow Unitarian Universalists, I often hear something like the following: “I really love being a UU, but I am
Do My Gifts Really Make Any Difference? Read More »
Generosity is a funny thing. The more you give away, the more you gain. Congregations that “Share the Plate” every week, for example, usually find that gifts increase overall, not just for the sponsored cause, but also for the congregation itself. It seems that regular opportunities to share, to give to worthy causes, and to live
by Bill Clontz, Stewardship Consultant Does the title above sound familiar? Your website is effectively your Electronic Commons and your Electronic Front Door. It’s where potential visitors find you and where members come for information, ideas, and inspiration. Where and how stewardship is seen on your website is important. Unfortunately, on too many of our
“On A Scale of 1 -10 (10 = Great), I Would Rate Stewardship on Our Website at About -3” Read More »
Thanks to Larry Wheeler for his intelligence on this topic! Honestly, it is always concerning and surprising to me when people ask about the minister knowing the pledge and giving amounts of the congregation members. Concerning because the question may indicate discomfort with the topic of money generally or around the role of the minister,
The Minister Knowing What People Give Read More »
Bill Clontz, Stewardship Consultant Long before I became a stewardship consultant, I recognized that my fellow Unitarian Universalists often have find it difficult to talk to each other about money, stewardship, and related topics. That realization is one of the reasons I became a stewardship consultant – I knew we needed get past this speed
Look at Each Other- Eye to Eye, One Person at a Time Read More »
How Do Children and Youth Fit in Our Stewardship Culture? Bill Clontz, Stewardship Consultant Not long ago, a couple of members of the Stewardship for Us team met with a senior Unitarian Universalist leader to discuss the state of stewardship within our movement. We asked the question, “Where do you think we most often come up
What About the Children? Read More »
Why aren’t there more good annual drive videos from our congregations? I search around the web regularly for appealing congregational stewardship videos – ones that I can use as examples for other congregations. And they are very rare indeed. This puzzles me, since making videos is so easy with technology almost all of us use,
Video Tips for Pledge Celebration Read More »
Why Do We Pledge: Part VI This is actually an article from 2012 on another blog. But worth a repost in this series! We want our congregations to be welcoming to people of all ages, genders, races, sexual orientation, and economic levels. Our congregations are obvious in how we celebrate people of color, LBGT, folks
Pledging and Economic Justice Read More »
Why Do We Pledge: Part V This is actually an article from 2012 on another blog. But worth a repost in this series! If you have worked with me as a consultant for your congregation, or you have been in a workshop with me at General Assembly, you probably know that I am quite fond
Real Welcoming Includes Pledging Guidance Read More »
