Dear FCC Member, 

We have scheduled a congregational meeting for August 28th after our church service.  Our design team has met over the last few months to research the best options for FCC moving forward.  The congregation met on August 14th to discuss the options that came out of the design team and they are included with this communication.  It is now time for us to choose.  We will be voting on these options on August 28th.  The consequence of this vote cannot be overstated.  We will be deciding the future of FCC, and we would like to have the most representative group of our congregation possible.  Please make every effort to attend.  Votes will only be accepted from those attending in-person and online through our livestream. 

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By selecting one of these three options, the Congregation will be ready to take the next step in calling a pastor.  This decision will provide a direction for our church’s future and clarify what type of pastor we will call.  Under each option, we will continue to look for ways to reduce spending and increase revenue.  Our congregation will also work over the following few weeks to plan the chosen option in more detail.

Option 1 – Leave a Legacy (Search for Pastor with training in Leaving a Legacy)

What this is:  This way forward recognizes that we simply do not have the financial resources to continue ministry longer than five or six years into the future.​ Closing FCC is not a failure but a recognition that its current ministry has run its full course, that it has been a great source of love and hope for over one hundred years, and that God is simply trying to do something new. ​The goal is to retain outside help to assist us in closing gradually over the next 5-7 years and to intentionally focus our remaining resources on leaving a legacy in the community.

Potential Consequences and Next Steps:

• Keep doing what we’re doing, less focusing a lot of energy on financial.
• Continue to understand financials and better understand what closing means, and how to do it intentionally and with grace.

Option 2 – Swirl (Search for Pastor while reducing the budget and attempting to find new sources of revenue)

What this is:  This way forward focuses work on fixing the financials by finding small wins.  The Design Team’s fear in this decision is that it will ultimately result in attrition of membership and mission.

Potential Consequences and Next Steps:

• Need to find volunteer team leads and team members to implement ideas that were brought forward over the past year.  (weddings, new member drive, yoga/workout space, cooking classes, sharing staff, sharing building).

Option 3 – Massive Mission (Search for Pastor whose passion align with our Massive Mission focus)

What this is:  This way forward is to go “all-in” on mission and ministry in the community with the hope that it might revitalize the congregation. This would require the congregation to come to agreement about a new focus of ministry utilizing our best resources (food insecurity or community engagement as examples).  This requires a withdrawal of money from the endowment to support this ministry and potentially a staff position to direct this effort.

Potential Consequences & Next Steps

• Need to have a team lead and willing team members to further detail what this looks like, most critically designing the staff required to support.  Assist in hiring.
• Authorize $150,000 per year for 2023 and 2024 (staff member plus funding to support the mission)
• Congregation needs to be ready and willing to plug into programs (volunteer)
• Revisit finances at the end of 2024.  By that time, we will know if we have been able to energize existing and recruit new members in a way that balances our budget.  If we have not, then the Congregation will once again need to make tough decisions about what options are available.