As part of our Thanksgiving Day celebrations, The Permanent Endowment & Planned Giving Committee would like to wish everyone the happiest of holidays and to invite you to remember your church in all of your holiday giving plans. We join with you in church support by pledging our commitment and paying our pledges personally, just as you do. In addition, we serve as the investment managers for the Permanent Endowment Fund.
Most of you are familiar with the Permanent Endowment Fund, but some of you are new to the church, so let me give a brief history. In the year 2000, two visionary church members, Max Coppom and Kay Lathrop, working with a host of supporters, created a permanent fund here at Mountain View, supported by gifts of every size. Those gifts, plus investment progress, have grown the fund from zero in 2000 to nearly $425,000 as of the end of September.
The interest and dividends of the fund provide grants for church events that are above and beyond the regular church budget. These funds are also available as a funding source for extraordinary events. We conduct the grant application process in the early spring, as soon as our year-end financial information is available.
The Permanent Endowment Committee has been quiet for the past few years. The church experienced some hard times, and we felt that all giving should flow to the general fund. And 2020 has been a whopper of a year. But still, we have granted the church an average of $7,500 in funds each of these past few years, even though we have not asked for contributions.
Because you have been such a faithful congregation though, the church is in sound financial condition right now. Thank you for all that you have given and done for the church in these stressful times and in this eventful year. In addition to your support for the greater church, we would like you to consider a gift to the Permanent Endowment Fund. When contemplating a gift to the Permanent Endowment Fund during this Thanksgiving Season, please consider it to be in honor of someone or in memory of someone that you are thankful for. I know that I am going to give in honor of my little granddaughters!
You can mail your Permanent Endowment Fund gift directly to the church. Checks should be made out to Mountain View with a note in the memo line directing it to the Fund. Thanks in advance for your response to this appeal.