Here's a brief explanation of the increases or decreases for each budget category…
STAFFING
Despite a significant dollar increase (around $119k), the percentage of the total budget for staffing only increased about 1.28%. This move still keeps us in our goal zone of 55-60% of our budget being utilized for staffing. Here’s some of what accounts for the $119k increase…
- An almost 10.5% increase in Health Insurance costs.
- Salary increases for a handful of staff after our every-few-year exercise of re-paybanding each role
- A 2% COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) increase for the remainder of the staff
- Adding salaries of staff members hired after last year’s budget was approved (these were paid for in ’22-’23 by several months of unused salary budgeted for a Worship Director)
- Adding a small number of additional hours to existing part time staff
- Moving the cost of our paid cleaners into Staffing from Operations and Daybreak’s portion of 2024 Pastoral Resident costs from Ministry into Staffing.
OPERATIONS (INFRASTRUCTURE)
While many operational costs are rising due to inflation, a number of items previously included in the Operations category of the budget have moved to other budget areas (ex. Paid Cleaners, Operations Ministry and Communications Ministry costs). The result of the shuffling is a net decrease of slightly more than $4,600 to this budget category year over year, and a decrease in total percentage of the budget from 24.75% to about 22.42%.
MINISTRY (PROGRAMMING & RESOURCES)
While every area of budget supports “Ministry”, this budget category looks at the costs of the resources and programming for each ministry department. Year over year, we see a $19k increase (and an increase in the percentage of budget allocated for Ministry from 8.53% to 8.79%). A few notes on how we came to that $19,000 increase…
- Net decrease of $10,000 to the Leadership Department budget (Decreases: 2024 Residency Cost moved to Staffing, No Alliance General Council. Increase to Several Other Aspects of that Budget)
- An increase of $12,000 by Moving Operations Ministry & Communication Ministry costs from the Operations (Infrastructure) Budget Category into the Ministry Budget Category
- Increases totaling $17,000 across the remainder of the Ministry Departments as both ministry efforts and ministry costs continue to grow
GENEROSITY
As our church family increases their generosity, it allows us to increase our planned generosity as well. This year, we see an increase of $18,500 year over year, accounting for another increase in moving towards our goal of 10% of our budget given in planned generosity (moving from 7.18% in ’22-’23 to 7.52% in ’23-’24). Keep in mind, monies in this budget category only reflect the planned generosity given from gifts to our Ministry Fund. Because of our church family’s faithful giving to the Great Commission Fund (GCF), the Benevolence Fund, and the Short-Term Trip Fund, as well as their gifts to organizations such as the Capital Area Pregnancy Center, New Hope, and 180 Ministries, we’re able to be generous well beyond this total of $145,500. The increases for ’23-’24 allow us to give more both LOCALLY to our Eastern PA Partnership with the Alliance, to Church Planting, and to the Capital Area Pregnancy Center, as well as GLOBALLY to our sent-out international workers, to our international partners (designated GCF gifts), towards projects to international partners, as well as undesignated GCF gifts.
RESERVES
With generous giving to our Ministry Fund (the Fund that supports our Annual Budget), efficient budgeting elsewhere, and with a higher number of known unbudgeted opportunities in front of us, we’ve chosen to allocate a greater portion of our budget towards Reserves this year, increasing from $36,000 in ’22-’23 to $48,000 in ’23-’24. With only budgeting around 95.3% of our expected income from generosity, we also anticipate additional monies getting to make their way to our Reserves.
2. Endorsing important nominations to our Ministry and Governing Boards: We appreciate the response we received to our call for nominations of elders and deaconesses to our Ministry and Governing Boards. The following candidates have been vetted and agree to answer the call to serve in these important roles. View nominee bios and photos here.
- Ministry Board:Mark Shuey, Colin Cameron, Diane Hakes, Susie Andrews (2nd Term), Bryan Sholtis (2nd Term)
- Governing Board: Dan Lloyd, Adam Herman (2nd Term)
- Officers of the Corporation: Vice-President – Victoria Lindstrom; Treasurer – Scott Shirley; Secretary – Bobbi Trudgeon
Because of our Annual Meeting format, all questions will be handled PRIOR to that meeting. Feel free to email us at GoverningBoard@daybreakweb.com. We would also encourage you to attend our Budget Forum on Sunday, August 13 from 7:00 to 8:00PM via Zoom for a more full and detailed walk through of our Annual Budget and an opportunity to ask any budget related questions you might have. To RSVP and get the zoom link through email the week of the Forum, head to registrations.db.church.
One last reminder to please mark August 27 on your calendar and plan to join us for our Annual Meeting as we vote on the aforementioned items, celebrate what God is doing, and are inspired anew with the vision He is fulfilling!
Blessings,
- Victoria Lindstrom on behalf of the Governing Board
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