Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

One of the blessings of working with different congregations on their capital campaigns is the opportunity to hear the amazing stories of the commitment and generosity of the saints whose passion for the Gospel brought these communities into being, built the buildings they now meet in, provided the pews they now sit in, and birthed the ministries that still continue.

• St Peter's Episcopal Church in Honolulu traces its roots to a group of Christians of Hakka Chinese ancestry who immigrated to Hawai`i in the 1870’s. In 1914, the congregation built the church in which they now worship.
• In 1908 the Sunday school of the Church of the Holy Apostles in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania sent a generous donation to Hilo to build an Episcopal church and construction was complete in time for Christmas services that year. Out of gratitude the congregation renamed itself Church of the Holy Apostles.   
• St. Francis began in 1927 as the Willow Glen Mission of Trinity Church in San Jose. The Mission’s founders remodeled a former butcher shop and established a Sunday School. In 1941, celebration of the Eucharist began after creation of a chapel inside the building. 

Our ancestors in the faith, past saints in search of a spiritual home, believed that future generations would want a place to gather for worship and service and so, without knowing who might fill those pews, they built a holy place that would last. Our present is therefore deeply enriched by their foresight and their faithfulness, and ministries they never envisioned flourish in our churches. But what about the future? Will our churches still stand? Will the ministries prosper? Will the Good News still be proclaimed? A hundred years from now, will the people who occupy your pew be giving thanks for your foresight, faithfulness and generosity as they gather for worship and service in buildings that you built, expanded or repaired?   

Maybe. The answer is up to you! 

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