Successful Church Capital Campaigns

St. Thomas More Catholic Church

St. Thomas More Parish in South Kansas City welcomed their new pastor Fr. Justin Hoye with open arms. They gave him a whole month before the parish staff brought up the required fire suppression system in the church. The parish had less than a year to abide by the City Code enforcement department requirement to bring the worship space up to code, Then the School Board notified Fr. Justin that the school technology was 20 years out of date, that they needed a security update, and that an education fund could be a blessing to new families who could not afford school costs. The Pastoral Council calmed his nerves by reminding him that the parish conducted a very successful capital campaign 10 years earlier (that was managed by Church Development) that resulted in a new foyer that was well loved by all. So Fr. Justin and the Church Development capital campaign consultant held a series of town hall meetings in which all the proposed projects were laid out visually, and parish staff walked through all the details and answered the many questions. Fr. Justin produced several high quality videos that presented the capital campaign, the facility plans and the calling to do all they could to fulfill the parish mission. He even produced a video which presented his request to all households throughout the parish. The parish responded generously with pledges in the millions of dollars. Fr. Justin is now considering a planned giving campaign which will invite all members to remember the parish in their estate plans.

Holy Trinity Catholic Church

At Holy Trinity Parish in Lenexa, Kansas, Fr. Mike Koller had already run one debt campaign with modest success, so he was not excited when the new parish business manager Sean Malone, suggested that they consider another debt campaign. Both Fr. Mike and Sean had previous business experience so they took a rational look at what might be possible financially and how they could increase annual giving. Their first smart move was to hire Jeremy Heinen as the Director of Stewardship. Jeremy took the Church Development’s Stewardship System and implemented it systematically, which resulted in an increase in annual giving of 18%. Then Jeremy worked with the Church Development consultant to manage one of our most successful church capital campaigns. $3,200,000 later, the parish debt is under control and the culture of stewardship is growing in the parish.

New Hope Presbyterian Church

New Hope Presbyterian Church built a beautiful new sanctuary, but the ensuing debt had been strangling their operational budget for years. Their town of Castle Rock Colorado is among the fastest growing communities in the US, and new homes, shopping centers and commercial facilities were blossoming all around the church. Unfortunately, the crippling debt prevented the church from investing in outreach/evangelism to invite newcomers into their vibrant church. Pastor Russ Kane asked the congregation if they would like to mount a debt campaign. The Session guided the congregation through a consensus based decision making process. Their solution was to invite all members to make a three year pledge, with 90% of the funds to go towards debt relief and 10% to go towards outreach. They retained Church Development to manage a successful church capital campaign that had community building and prayer at the center. At this point, both giving and morale have reached an all time high.

Oglethorpe Presbyterian Church

Rev. Marthame Sanders was the pastor of the church of Dick Van Dyke’s childhood. Unfortunately, that was the last time that the church had a new roof. Marthame had to raise funds for the roof, and other maintenance items that were not exciting, but necessary. The Session interviewed several firms but hired Church Development because of our focus on stewardship. Together, we designed one of our most successful church capital campaigns that engaged all members socially, provided members who were uninvolved in an episodic volunteer opportunity, and made the time of prayer and discernment fun. During the capital campaign our focus on stewardship resulted in an increase in annual giving of over 50%.

Grace Presbyterian Church

Grace Presbyterian Church had long since outgrown their facility when the foundation began to crack and allow weeds to grow up through the floor of the fellowship hall. The geodesic dome shaped sanctuary was unique, the stained glass windows were colorful but the facility no longer served the congregation. Pastor Dan Dolquist facilitated a year long visioning process that invited all members of the congregation to share their highest hopes for the church. The results were a unified body that boldly purchased land in a field that was out on the edge of the growing community in south Denver. The new church now stands high on a hill with dramatic views of the front range of the Rocky Mountains. The vibrant congregation welcomes new young families every month. Their efforts to grow their facilities matched their efforts to grow in their relevance to young families. Three capital campaigns (that were managed by Church Development capital campaign consultants) in a row funded the construction and growth of Grace, and the dividends are now paid all week long in this vibrant church.

Holy Family Catholic Church

Since its foundation in North Kansas City in the 1980’s, Holy Family Parish’s size had nearly nearly tripled and an expansion was desperately needed. With the help of Church Development, they devised a plan to run a series of successful church capital campaigns to raise funds to pay off debt and purchase new land for a larger church.

To build a foundation of positivity for future capital campaigns, Church Development assisted Megan Burdolski, business administrator, in a vigorous stewardship education effort during the initial campaign. As a result, $1.8 million was raised—$1 million from a grant by a special donor and $800,000 from smaller donations by the parish community.

The promising foundation laid during the initial campaign led to a prayer-based solicitation process during the second campaign, the goal of which was to build a new church. Capital raised totaled $1.8 million once again, but this time from family donations alone—with no huge grants from wealthy donors. This doubled the parish’s annual giving, which was about $900,000 at the time.

St. Matthew Catholic Church

An older parish in a working-class neighborhood, St. Matthew’s focused largely on complete parish-involvement when it looked to expand. Its capital campaign to build a new parish hall, an early childhood center, and rectory secured pledges from 670 of the 1,100 families. Church Development raised over 2.5 million in pledges, exceeding annual giving by over 1 million dollars. The parish’s focus on involving all members in the planning process led to high levels of satisfaction reported by parishioners and staff and an unusually large executive team of over 60 people. Church Development’s three-year follow-through program included assistance in increasing giving during the church’s annual stewardship campaign.

St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church

St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church was losing parishioners and facing a debt equal to the its total value. Just after the Denver Presbytery advised the session to close the doors, sell the church, and use the profits to repay its debt, St. Paul’s pastor resigned. With no leadership and an uncertain future, the safest move was to sell, which would leave the remaining parishioners looking for a new church home.

However, because of their love for the parish and its members, the Session decided to save the church. They believed in each other, their mission, and their community enough to move forward with fundraising efforts despite the risk. Assisted by Church Development, they conducted a capital campaign, raised more than enough capital to repay the debt, pay their mortgage to the Presbytery, and hired a new full-time minister.

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church

According to a 2012 Pew Foundation study, nearly 37% percent of religiously unaffiliated Americans consider themselves “spiritual, but not religious” (SBNR). Fresh off of a successful “Triple R Campaign” that centered on rebuilding, restoring, and renewing St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Kansas City’s Brookside neighborhood, Fr. John Spicer looked to expand and diversify his parish community by targeting SBNR individuals.

After overseeing research conducted by the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Fr. Spicer found that low-pressure promotion along a popular walking trail, which ran adjacent to the church’s youth center, would be the most viable way to promote the church’s message to surrounding spiritual community members. Thanks to focused, goal-oriented research by its pastor, St. Andrew’s identified its next project: a youth center. With the help of Church Development, a successful church capital campaign will allow for construction of the center, which will appeal to young adults in the Brookside neighborhood and who fall into the SBNR demographic.

Southminster Presbyterian Church

Southminster Presbyterian Church was anchored by a compelling core of parish leaders, including a bank president, a small-business owner, and an experienced pastor, for nearly a decade. The group guided Southminster’s annual capital campaigns for nine years to a moderate level of success, raising an average of about 100% of annual giving in three-year pledges each time. Exasperated with running three back-to-back campaigns, the team, intrigued by Church Development’s average of raising 250% of annual giving, decided to contract the company for outside help.

After tailoring the campaign to the unique needs of the parish, Church Development raised over 300% of annual giving in three-year pledges. One leader, satisfied with the results, asked a facetious question during the post-campaign evaluation—“Why didn’t we call you nine years earlier?”