Read this week’s issue of our newsletter here: The Weekly Liberal Feb. 16

Rev. Arif writes:

Last Sunday we held our state of the church meeting. This is an annual opportunity for staff to report back to the congregation on progress we’ve had thus far toward our yearly work plan, to share a mid-year budget update, and to look forward to what’s coming as we end the church year. It is also an opportunity to answer questions that are coming up for the congregation. We have a recording that is available to watch here, and in addition are offering this high-level “key points” recap.

• We are still here. The last three years have been challenging in ways we never could have imagined, and despite those challenges, we are still here. The pandemic and racial justice uprisings impacted all of us in different ways and as a church, we showed up and cared for each other and for the wider community. 
• Our progress toward our work plan is proceeding well. Participation in small groups, circles, and community gatherings is strong and continues to grow. The Wednesday night community dinners are a new tradition and have provided a much-needed source of connection and community building. Religious Education continues to be strong, as do the opportunities to connect in identity-based communities.
• Our Visionary Goals process is underway. Training for facilitators will happen this weekend, and you can sign up for sessions that start the week of February 20. You can learn more about this effort on our website.
• The Change Team and Covenant Development Team will both be sharing updates at this month’s board meeting.
• The church has experienced conflict this year, and each time we do, we learn and get better at it. Conflict at church is particularly painful and we wish that it did not occur, but as Rev. Pyle pointed out in his report, it is a normal part of any culture change process. We are heartened by the participation in the different conflict related circles and are grateful for the ongoing opportunities to repair relationships, learn, and grow together. We anticipate a Right Relations Team training with Rev. Pyle later this year in conjunction with teams from Unity Unitarian and White Bear UU Church.
• Regarding our budget, we made substantial progress toward closing the $200K revenue gap that was in the budget the congregation adopted in June 2023. The board and members of the church led an invitation to close the gap and the congregation responded generously, contributing more than $100K. And, based on our projections, we project a deficit of $137K. Closing this gap is far from impossible, and it will require that we come back to the congregation later in the year for additional fundraising.
• Also on the topic of fundraising we shared that in the “peak” pandemic years, we made the decision not to push hard on fundraising because the PPP loan provided some budgetary relief and because we felt we had a responsibility to prioritize caring for people through the pandemic’s financial hardships. We believe that was the right move, but it had unknown costs that are now reflected in our current financial status: the choice to be softer on fundraising meant that we did not hold the kind of 1:1, member to member conversations that are traditionally part of a fundraising campaign. This had a direct financial impact, and also meant that we missed out on important community building work that is a natural part of fundraising.
• One more fundraising related item: we talked about the cycles of fundraising for the remainder of the year:

1. In March, we will launch our annual giving campaign asking the congregation to support next fiscal year’s operating budget. We make these asks in March so that we have a good sense of the revenue for the coming year and can then develop a budget for the congregation’s vote at the June annual meeting.
2. In April/May we will engage the congregation in additional “close the gap” fundraising to close our revenue gap
3. In June, we will vote on our annual budget for our next fiscal year.

• Finally, we shared some highlights of the year’s end:

1. Annual meeting in the beginning of June
2. General Assembly at the end of June, where delegates will be invited to vote on a proposal regarding changing how we understand and articulate our Principles and Sources, and vote on a new president for the UUA.

It is an honor to serve this congregation. If I can be of help or support with any questions or concerns you may have, please don’t hesitate to get in touch, and please do take some time to review the recording from the state of the church meeting.

In faith,

Rev. Arif

Rev. Arif Mamdani
Associate Minister
First Universalist Church of Minneapolis