Grace

Updated April 2007 and approved June 2007

In light of the clear admonition of scripture to care for the poor and to share with others what God has given to us; in light of the history of the Grace ECC community of sharing freely with those in need in our midst and beyond; and in light of Grace’s history of commitment to having a healthy Watchcare Fund; the Church Council adopts the following updated policy for the oversight of the Watchcare Fund:

Purpose: to enable the church to respond in a timely and orderly fashion to

• Emergencies within the church body that can be averted or lessened by a one-time purchase of services or goods (such as a gift certificate for food or rent deposit)
• Time-limited purchase of services to ease a transition or to make a substantial step towards stability (such as baby sitting for specified occasions or partial school tuition).

Administration:

• The Fund will be primarily administered by an individual annually appointed by the church Council.
• The selection of this Fund Coordinator will be made in consultation with the Pastor.
• Envelopes for donations to the Fund will be in bulletins on Communion Sundays and available anytime on the back table or in the literature rack in the back of the sanctuary.
• The donations will be kept in a separate account monitored by the Fund Coordinator, the Pastor, and the treasurer.
• The checkbook for the Fund will be checked twice annually by the Financial Secretary or Treasurer at a face-to-face meeting with the Coordinator.
• Payment by check is preferably made directly to a service provider and not to the individual in need; exceptions will be noted.

Requests:

• Requests may be brought to the Fund Coordinator by a staff person, congregant or the individual in need.
• The Coordinator will discuss with the person in need the amount of money needed, the name and address of the service provider and how the money will meet the use requirements of the Fund. This information will be recorded by the Coordinator and kept in a confidential record accessible to the Pastor and Treasurer.
• An individual may be given a single gift from the Fund up to $300, within a 12 month period, at the discretion of the Coordinator.
• Requests over $300 and repeated designated gifts will be evaluated by the Coordinator, Pastor, and a designated Council member and granted at their discretion.
• Individuals requesting a second gift from the Fund at any time following the first gift, within that 12 month period, must meet with two of the three evaluators (the Coordinator, Pastor, and a designated Council member), and then any gifts will be made at the discretion of the evaluators.

Other:

• In the unlikelihood of the Fund accruing a large amount of money that goes unused, the Council may designate some of the use of the Funds for other worthy needs.
• If the Fund Balance is sufficient, at the discretion of the Fund Coordinator, generally along with another person, gifts may be given in December to deserving parties in the congregation. Such gifts do not have any bearing on requests by these parties at other points in the year.
• Individuals within the church who become aware of a need which they want to meet may maintain anonymity by designating a gift of any amount to the Watchcare Fund for a specific individual or family. In such cases of an individually designated gift, it is understood that the gift is not tax deductible and of this the donor will be informed.
• Additionally, any general donor to this fund seeking a tax-deductible gift needs to be aware of the IRS regulation stating that a donor gives up the final decision regarding disbursement of the funds; any member of the congregation may bring a need to the attention of the Fund Coordinator.

It is hoped that this Watchcare Fund will be a vehicle for sharing financial resources in a way that will honor God, maintain confidentiality of the donor, and preserve the dignity of the person in need.