The Finance Committee would like to offer this summary of the past year’s spending, hoping that it will give people an overview of how Asbury has used the money it received in 2017.
First of all, once again it is worth noting how faithful our members have been in their financial support of Asbury. In 2017, we received $576,961 in pledge income, which represents 98.9% of the amount we had budgeted at the start of the year. Such strong support has enabled us to meet all of the past year’s salary, program, and maintenance expenses. Thank you!
The pledge income is by far the largest source of funds that make up Asbury’s General Fund. The total amount received was $616,909 in 2017. This money was applied in the following general areas:
| Description | Amount | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Salaries | $346,769 | 56.2% |
| Utilities/maintenance | $104,734 | 17.0% |
| Methodist church support/apportionments | $67,854 | 11.0% |
| Administration/office | $36,122 | 5.9% |
| Asbury Programs support | $29,482 | 4.8% |
| Unspent surplus | $16,947 | 2.7% |
| Budgeted mission support | $15,000 | 2.4% |
As we will describe below, the total amount of mission support in 2017 was much greater than the $15,000 listed above.
One highlight of the year was the transfer to the Endowment Fund of $90,000 of unspent funds that had accumulated over the past 8 years years due (mainly) to less than full-time pastors. Combined with memorial gifts and some direct donations, the Endowment Fund stood at $131,575 at the end of 2017. Each month we continue to invest $6,000 among a diverse suite of mutual funds. Hopefully the Endowment Fund will continue to grow until the day comes when its assets are needed.
In addition to General Funds contributions, Asbury also receives money during the year that donors have specifically directed be credited to particular programs (our so-called Restricted Funds). Mostly, these contributions are for mission related programs. For example, some mission-related Restricted Funds received in 2017 include the following:
| Restricted Funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Guatemala wheelchair mission | $24,150 |
| Partners for Change | $15,755 |
| Youth mission fund | $15,950 |
| UMCOR | $9,472 |
| Tri-Valley Haven | $9,360 |
| Laundry mission | $7,475 |
| North Bay wildfires | $7,361 |
| Conference special offerings | $6,034 |
| Backpack project | $4,925 |
| Pastors’ Special Fund | $3,702 |
| Shower Ministry | $3,613 |
| Other local mission | $14,964 |
In total, we received the following in specifically designated donations:
| Designated Donations | Amount |
|---|---|
| Mission and benevolences | $158,319 |
| Asbury programs | $11,299 |
| New office space & capital projects | $36,610 |
The total mission support in 2017, combining General Fund support and Restricted Fund contributions, totals $173,319 or 28% of our operating budget.
We hope this review is helpful. If anyone has questions or would like more detailed information, please feel free to contact Dave Braun (Finance chair), Dick Crawford (Treasurer) or Roger Everett (Bookkeeper). A copy of the more detailed monthly finance report is always available on request.
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