It has been a true privilege to serve this congregation as your Treasurer for the past 4 years. We are fortunate that Pat McClard has been willing to take over the post—with him at the helm I’m confident that all Trustees, employees and congregation members and friends will work together to nurture a solid fiscal foundation for our mission-based activities.

Have you ever wondered what the Treasurer is responsible for doing? The way I’ve explained it over the years was that the Treasurer made sure that the money coming in and the money going out was counted accurately, and that the information was shared with all stakeholders. In addition, the Treasurer provides strategic guidance to the Board of Trustees on budgeting and the financing of capital projects.

My parting thought is that we should all strive to think about our church’s finances through a multi-year lens rather than what happens in any one month or year. Because our fiscal circumstances can change enormously from one year to the next, we need to always be looking at what is possible—plus what is probable—over the next three years, and more broadly even over the next five years.

If you haven’t heard, I will not be hanging up my spreadsheets quite yet. As the newly created volunteer Fiscal Analyst I will be working closely with the Church Administrator to implement day-to-day financial activities of the church so that Pat as Treasurer can focus on Board topics and big-picture thinking. As we as a congregation consider whether to embark on a Capital Project his financial view from 35,000 feet will be crucial to future decision-making.

See you in church!