Electronic
Giving
Recent Giving
Trends
Electronic giving has greatly improved the cash flow in
the General Fund account since it was first implemented in 2005.
You will like the convenience and time savings associated
with electronic giving and it smooths the church's cash flow
especially over the summer months.
How
Electronic Giving Works
The service is called ELECTRONIC GIVING or Electronic Funds
Transfer (EFT). It is
administered by Vanco
Services Inc., and recommended by the General
Council on Finance and Administration of the United Methodist
Church.
To begin using this service you must complete an
EFT
Authorization Agreement Form (must install the free Adobe
Reader
to view form) and provide a “VOIDED” check. The authorization form and the voided check will be retained
at the church office and the information you provide will be
uploaded to Vanco, via their secure website.
On the date you specify (weekly, monthly, or semi-monthly)
Vanco will electronically transfer your contribution from your
account to the church’s checking account.
When the funds have been transferred, Vanco will send a
report to the finance office via e-mail.
The finance office will enter the information into the
Record of Contributions file in our computer.
The date and amount transferred will appear on your monthly
bank statement, and the information will be included in your
annual Contributions Statement.
There are several advantages to Electronic Giving:
-
You
save time by eliminating the need to write checks.
-
The
service is safer than writing checks or depositing cash since
the transfers are made electronically, eliminating the chance
they could be lost, stolen or misdirected.
-
The church’s year-around cash-flow will be more
consistent, since your contribution will be made at the time
you designated, regardless of vacation, weather conditions, or
any other reason which might
prevent you from attending on any given Sunday.
Some people have asked, “What will I do when the offering
plate is passed to me?” When
you sign up for the service we will be glad to supply small cards
that read “I Give Electronically”, which may be placed in the
offering plate.
As has always been the case, your family’s commitment to
financial support at First Church is a personal matter between you
and God. The
congregation has been most generous in making these commitments
and fulfilling them through the use of the offering envelopes you
receive each month in the mail. This will continue to be the
primary vehicle for contributions. Now we are offering an alternative method for giving, a
modern service that fits the lifestyle of many of our members.
Signing Up
For Electronic Giving
If
Electronic Giving seems right for you, please print an
EFT
Authorization Agreement Form (Must install the free Adobe
Reader
to view form) or pick one up at
the Welcome Center or church office. Complete
the agreement, attach a voided
check or savings deposit slip, and return it to the office.
Deductions from your account will begin on the date you
specify. You may stop this service at any time by contacting the
church office and you may make changes by submitting a new EFT Authorization
Agreement Form. If you have any questions, please contact
me via e-mail
or at 717-533-9668 x107.
Reimbursement
Voucher
If you are a church member seeking reimbursement for
ministry expenses, print this
Voucher
Form (must install the free Adobe
Reader
to view form) and submit it to John Fisher via the church
office. If you have any questions,
contact
John via e-mail
or at 717-533-9668 x107.
Note - In response to our church audit, checks will be
signed/issued on the 10th, 20th, and 30th
of each month. Vouchers may be turned in anytime.
Fundraising
Application Form
You
may now download and print the
Fundraising
Application Form and return it to the Church Office or Larry Grunden.
The form is also available at
the Welcome Center and Church Office.
Read
the Communiqué
from Church Council about the new fundraising process:
To: All First
United Methodist Church of Hershey Leaders
In light of the
fact of increased fundraising activities by various program groups
in our church, concern was expressed that there needs to be more
communication and coordination of these activities. Therefore, by
consensus at the September Church Council meeting it was agreed
that all church program fundraising plans be brought to the Church
Council prior to any promotion of the fundraising event. The
intent of this decision is not to limit fundraising activities,
but to facilitate planning and coordination among all groups.
The process for
fundraising event approval is:
- The program leader desiring to
do a fundraiser will provide details to the Ministry Area
Director who represents the ministry area at Church Council.
- The Ministry Area Director
will advise the Church Council of the plan.
- Potential conflicts with other
ministry areas and timing of activities will be identified and
the affected program groups will be expected to work through
the issues before proceeding with the fundraiser.
In all
fundraising events, two important points must be stressed:
- Any
giving should be over and above the regular church tithe.
- There
are many opportunities to give, so choose only the fundraising
events that you wish to support.
Effective date
for the beginning of these procedures will be with the November
Church Council meeting on Tuesday, November 15, 2005. Please
notify all in your Ministry Areas of this process, so that
appropriate communications may be presented at Church Council
meetings for all future fundraising events.
For more
information, contact Pastor
Jim Dawes and Lay Leader
Larry Grunden.
FUMC-Hershey Endowment
FUMC-Hershey has an endowment managed by the
Hershey Trust. Comprised of several smaller gifts and other
funds set aside over the years, the earnings from this Endowment
is used to support Mission Projects, Building and Equipment
Projects, and Special Needs as determined by Church Council that
cannot be supported by the operations budget. The proceeds of
this Endowment Fund will support our church’s ministries in
perpetuity. For more information, contact Don Francis or
Pastor
Jim Dawes.
Property
Donation Form
You
may now download and print the
Property
Donation Form and return it to the Church Office. The form is also available at
the Church Office.
Read
the Notice
from the Trustees about the property donation process:
Our
Church is very fortunate to have such giving members. In
addition to financial giving, members often find themselves in a
position of having personal property that they no longer need and
would like to donate to the Church. Some recent donations include
a large screen TV and an air hockey table. The Church certainly
appreciates these useful gifts and we encourage it. We have
instituted a procedure for making this type of giving a little
more formal. We have developed a "Property Donation
Form" that can be obtained from the Church office or by clicking
here. This form
will help to insure these donations are added to the property
inventory (for insurance purposes), and will help to ensure the
property can, and will be utilized. The form will also help
to ensure that the donor is recognized (if desired). Please call
the Church office at 533-9668 or click
here to obtain a copy of the form. Thank you for your
cooperation and giving spirit.
Our
Virtual Bookstore
Our church has partnered with
Cokesbury to launch a virtual bookstore that will enable our
members to have quick and easy online access to the finest in
books, Bibles, music, software, and church supplies. Members also
can receive a 20% discount on many of Cokesbury's products.
Cokesbury will be capturing sales information that comes through
our virtual store in order to calculate a 5% rebate of qualifying
sales (curriculum, downloads, official products do not qualify)
for our church. In other words, each purchase made by a member
through our virtual store will increase the rebate check our
church will receive from Cokesbury. To visit our store, click
here or on the Virtual Bookstore image below.
United
Methodist Giving Links
To learn more about United
Methodist Giving, click on the below logos.
 
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