As we are all aware, 2009 was a very difficult year in the church finance business. Churches have been struggling with the effects of the “great recession” which has negatively impacted their revenues to a degree that is unprecedented in the last several decades. We are constantly hearing negative stories in the press about churches struggling to make their budgets during a time of both lower donations and higher demands for charitable giving. Members have seen their savings and home equity resources devalued, and many have been further impacted by the stubbornly high unemployment rates we have experienced.
Here at Strongtower, we have witnessed this battle from the front lines. As we watched the economic crisis begin to unfold, management made the decision to join the battle on behalf of churches who are struggling with sinking fund payments, missed maturities, and a host of other financial issues they face in these tumultuous times. In doing so, we hoped to help them through the crisis, and at the same time help our bondholders weather the storm with minimal disruption.
We have invested a huge amount of resources to save as many churches as we can, and help both them and our bondholders get through the storm to more prosperous times. This can be a very gratifying experience when we can see the positive results of our efforts, but it can also be very unsettling if we continually focus on the problems and lose sight of the positive things that are happening.
As we enter the new year, we thought it would be good to look back on 2009 with a different set of eyes and celebrate some of the many good things that have happened with our churches. This is certainly not an exhaustive list, but it will hopefully refocus us on some of the good things that are happening every day.
We have a more detailed document that expands on these positive events. To request a copy, click here.