Parish Finances 2007-2008

It's time for the report on parish finances from the last fiscal year. Our fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. And each year we work on completing a comprehensive financial report which must be made to the Diocese. We had a Finance Council meeting last week to review the numbers and we finally finished the Financial Report to the Diocese of Lansing.

I'd like to describe how the financial matters in the parish are supervised, and who does this important work. Much of this is regulated, and audited from time to time by the Diocese. Similarly, the insurance company comes regularly to investigate our financial procedures.

The only commission that is mandated by Canon Law is the Finance Council. A parish is not required to have a Pastoral Council, Education Commission or Liturgy Committee (although they'd be foolish not to) but a parish absolutely MUST have a Finance Council.

Here at St. Joseph Jim Dutoit is not only a member of the Finance Council (and the Parish Pastoral Council) but Jim supervises the counting of the collection each Monday morning. Jim is the direct liaison to the Parish Pastoral Council from the Finance Council. Jim prepares monthly reports for the Parish Council on money matters.

We have several different teams of parishioners who come in to do the actual counting with Jim's guidance. Jim, an accountant with decades of experience, oversees this work and ensures the weekly deposit is made. The bank actually comes and picks the deposit up each Monday.

Shelly Bensch (who used to manage a bank) is our parish Bookkeeper. Shelly inputs financial data, makes sure the bank statements match the deposit slips, posts the individual contributions, prepares the annual tax statements, among many other things. Perhaps most importantly Shelly makes sure the bills are paid on time, and she prepares the checks. (I sign checks, although in an emergency, Lorretta can sign.) An important reminder would be that Shelly is not always able to cut a check immediately because her work is supervised and sometimes the computer is occupied by Lee Salazar, our Volunteer Business Manager.

Lee reviews the weekly and monthly financial transactions and supervises the actual parish accounting. Lee also reviews all our financial procedures and accounting practices. He does this work faithfully and he too is a member of the Finance Council. Lee and Shelly also prepare financial reports for me and for the Finance Council. We are greatly blessed to have them.

In much the same way, another member of the Finance Council, Pat McGuire, is the direct liaison to the Buildings and Grounds Committee. With Pat's extensive engineering and financial experience, he is able to ensure that bids and contracts are reasonable and in the parish's best interests. Pat and the other members of the Building and Grounds Committee also know the trades, which ensure that contractors do right by us. I am tremendously indebted to all the members of the Finance Council. Without them I'd be lost.

Emory Schmidt with years of executive experience is the finance council chair. Chris Connor, Terry Sheehan and Genny Schwartz round out the group.

And to some numbers from last year's finances…

The final numbers for 2007-2008 were:

Total Operating Receipts:

$498, 676

Total Expenditures:

$483,820

And so for the year we ran a

Surplus of:

$14,856

So we ran in the black last year and those funds will go to savings. The church needs to be good stewards of your money. I believe we can continue to cut some expenses this coming year.

I am mindful of and thankful for everyone's generosity to the parish. Without you there'd be no St. Joseph Church. And of course we must also be thankful to God for all His blessings to us.

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