A Guide to Giving 

There are as many ways of providing resources that serve our church
and our Christian faith as there are talents, resources, and interests
among our congregation and the people of the communities in which we live.

Monetary Donations   Annual Pledges of Support are fulfilled through regular donations via the offering plate or checks mailed in. These provide the bulk of our income for church operations and mission outreach. Non-pledge Offerings Many church members and friends make regular donations without pledging a specific amount of support for the year. Donations Linked to Purchases occur when we buy goods at the fall bazaar hire high school youth who are earning money for summer camp get a car wash from the Youth Group patronize a merchant who will donate a percent of register receipts that are turned through the church (see below). Several income-sharing agreements have been approved by the Session and are noted in the boxes at right. Special Offerings are extra donations for holidays or other special occasions. These include donations from our Sunday School and our Youth Program. Restricted Donations for Specific Projects You may feel called to support a specific need, such as those listed on      Red Clay's Wish List. Pledges for Building are special commitments beyond regular donations. A construction campaign is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build or rennovate to make an attractive and functional place of worship and activities for this and following generations. Smaller campaigns provide funds for enhancing worship, social, or mission programs by enhancing existing facilities or answering special major needs. Time, Talents, and Other Non-Monetary Donations   Personal Time provides labor that could not be purchased with what we can afford from pledge offerings: teaching Sunday School working on a church committee preparing food for Emanuel Dining Room working on Habitat for Humanity working with a Youth Program or with a Scout unit. This gift of self provides personal growth and happy memories from working with others in the faith community. Local Missions: Red Clay Work Camp Special Talents provide valuable services to the church and its missions: leadership (as an elected church officer) music (singing in the choir) homemaking (yard cleanup, making items for the bazaar) building skills (Habitat for humanity, church maintenance) working with precollege youth, etc., Donating In-kind Items (reducing the need for cash to buy materials) such as driving yourself or others to meetings or appointments food for local missions items for kits for Armed Forces personnel overseas household items donated to the bazaar items that satisfy needs on Red Clay's Wish List. Organ Donors give the most personal gift of all. Simply ask the state to note on your driver's license that you permit transplanting your organs after death to someone in need. While these donations may not be known to the church, they are profoundly appreciated by the recipients.

??Did You Know that: Red Clay's children and families donated nearly $5,000 to "One Great Hour of Sharing" during Lent of 2007. The Sunday School provided "Fish" boxes (commemorating the miracle of the loaves and fishes), which were filled with change during Lent. Adults made donations using special envelopes during worship services.   Save your register tapes from Zingos. and turn them in at the church office, Zingos gives Red Clay 1% of the total on these tapes.   ??Did You Know that: At the 2007 Fall Festival various Red Clay groups raised a total of $8,000 to support their work.   Tell the waiter at Joe's Restaurant? that you're from Red Clay and Joe's Restaurant will donate 2% of your dinner total to Red Clay. ??Did You Know that: In November 2007 Kelly Gast is serving with the Peace Corps in Turkmenistan. John Hawley is serving with the Peace Corps in Peru. Susan Leininger spent a week in Bolivia with Operation Smile, providing surgery for children with cleft palates. ??Did You Know that: In May 2007 church members (aided by our Boy Scout Troop 29) collected over a ton of food. This was picked up by the Food Bank of Delaware for distribution to local families and children's programs.

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