St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church
Laytonsville, Maryland

Tim Smith, one of our previous Stewardship Chairmen, has written several articles about stewardship -- stewardship of time, talents, and money. These articles give an excellent overview of what stewardship is. All of these articles are presented below:

2009 Stewardship

Thank you for the many commitments you have already made to St. Bartholomew's, and for the one will be making by accepting and returning your pledge card. Your pledge and contribution will enable our church to continue the process of spreading God's word, and it will also enable the Vestry to better plan and budget the church's finances. When you review you pledge card, please keep in mind the many ministries you will be supporting. To name just a few:

• A wonderful Music program with junior and adult choirs will benefit from your continued support
• Our Sunday School will need your support for the new and interesting programs
• Our local outreach will continue to help members of our community in a tangible way with your continued support

The month of October is the annual Pledge Campaign, where we the parishioners of St. Bartholomew's indicate the expected level of financial support for 2009. We do this by praying and considering our own lives at St Bartholomew's; determining the financial giving we expect to make in 2009; indicating it on a pledge card; and returning the pledge card to church.

Your Vestry fully supports the Stewardship program, setting an example by receiving and pledging before the rest of the parish. Each of us must determine for ourselves how much we will be able to return to God as our expression of faith.
Please return your pledge by Sunday October 26th. Don't forget to mark you calendar as a reminder to attend the Stewardship Brunch the same day, following each service. The brunch is provided by the Vestry in thanksgiving for all that God has provided us.

The campaign will continue until October 26th - a short three weeks. The Pledge Packets will be mailed out in early October. This year there will be Stewardship Minutes in October during the announcements at both services. This will be a chance for us to hear the wide range of answers to the questions: What does Stewardship mean to me? What I like about St. Bartholomew's? Why I'm still here at St. Bartholomew's? I trust you'll find them enjoyable and enlightening.

The Pledge Campaign will conclude on October 26th with a Stewardship Brunch following each of our services. All the pledges received to date will be blessed at that service. Pledges can be put in the plate or mailed to the office as soon as you've filled them out. We are looking forward to an exciting Pledge Campaign; We hope you are too.

To show our faith and thanksgiving we can return a part of God's gifts to us to help the church carry out its work. Our thanks to everyone for all your efforts and support in this important aspect of Parish life.

Information about planned giving, such as wills, bequests, trusts, and stock transfers is available at the Parish Life Center. For example, a sample letter directing a stock transfer is available which includes the St. Bartholomew account information necessary for the transfer. “A stock transfer is a viable way of fulfilling a pledge commitment." St. Bartholomew's guidelines for acceptance of stock and other gifts are available here.