St. Gabriel parishioners,
With our Finance Council, I am grateful to share our annual financial report. Our parish is thriving, and our finances are strong—a gift from God and a testament to your faithfulness and generosity. We are a parish on mission, followers of Jesus Christ—here for a real encounter with the Lord! The Holy Spirit is moving among us, changing lives every day.
With 30-40 new households joining our parish each month, we are creatively and joyfully making space for all who are called to worship with us. Jesus has not called us to become comfortable or rest in our faith. We are continually invited to step out of the boat and walk in faith with the Lord.
Our highest priorities are worship and the sacraments, growing in relationship with Jesus, and sharing his Good News with others. These priorities remain constant and guide us in the use of all of our parish resources and everything we do.
We are in a season of investment—responding to growth and addressing critical maintenance issues on our aging campus. With trust in the Lord, our prior and current year budgets forecast(ed) an operating loss, with needs and expenses exceeding offertory. Through God’s grace and your financial participation in ministry, that gap (and our use of savings) was significantly smaller than expected for this past year. Generous gifts in support of our property debt reduction were part of this. Our critical church HVAC was refurbished for significantly less than expected, we did not fill several staff positions, and we continuously reduce expenses.
A 2022 investment that is already bearing fruit: new lighting, audio-visual equipment, and other upgrades to the parish center/school cafeteria. For a parish of our size, we now have critically needed space that is suitable for adult and youth programs and additional Sunday Masses (attended by 3,700+ during Lent).
Of special note: we have 8 years remaining on our $2.6M property loan (Sharon Lane properties acquired August 2021). With scarcity of available nearby land, this was an investment in our future but also an act of faith. Our monthly loan payments of $31k are a stretch, as we pursue so many other areas of life-impacting ministry. Financially supporting this forward-looking investment is an impactful way to participate in our mission. Please prayerfully consider a gift. We are especially grateful to families who were able to make gifts in the past year. Paying down the loan early frees up critical funds for ministry.
We look to the coming year with great excitement, asking the Holy Spirit to continue guiding and blessing us. Thank you for participating so faithfully in Jesus’ mission through our parish. May all that we do here at St. Gabriel and in our homes be oriented to him – a Savior who walks with us and loves us – pointing the way toward eternal life for all humanity.
Peace and joy in Christ Jesus,
Fr. Richard Sutter
Pastor, St. Gabriel Catholic Church
Galatians 6:9-10
The St. Gabriel Catholic Church
FINANCE COUNCIL
Bill DiScuillo
Sean McDonnell
Jason Oakes
Lynne Roux
Catherine Walsh
Margaret Westerhaus