As members and friends of USR we all recognize that we receive a multitude of benefits from our association with USR. These benefits include: hearing interesting sermons, having our children and grandchildren attend our excellent religious education classes, meeting many interesting friends, participating in exciting social activities and working on various social responsibility causes.<\/p>\n
While we enjoy the many benefits , we also recognize that it takes generous financial contributions to pay the salaries of our staff, pay the utility bills, and maintain our facilities. Our annual budget is over $600,000 per year.<\/strong> (Take a look at our latest treasurer’s report: HERE<\/a>.) Providing the financial support for USR is handled via an annual pledge drive. We ask each household (members and friends) to make a pledge.<\/p>\n What is a pledge? What does it mean to be a Fair Share Donor? Fair Share Giving Guide and Worksheet<\/a> When is the \u201cfiscal year\u201d? Why pledge and how is my pledge used? Do only members of the USR pledge? Why do people pledge to USR? Do I have to pledge to be a member of the USR? Can I pledge an amount for a specific purpose? When should I pledge?<\/strong> Do I receive a bill or statement ?<\/strong> How does the pledge relate to the weekly collection during the Sunday services?<\/strong> Is my pledge tax deductible?<\/strong> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As members and friends of USR we all recognize that we receive a multitude of benefits from our association with USR. These benefits include: hearing interesting sermons, having our children and grandchildren attend our excellent religious education classes, meeting many interesting friends, participating in exciting social activities and working on various social responsibility causes. While … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-194","page","type-page","status-publish"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/194\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10394,"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/194\/revisions\/10394"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/uuridgewood.org\/usrstage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nFrequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong>A pledge is a promise to donate a certain amount of money to the USR within the fiscal year.\u00a0 It is the true expression of your values and your commitment to the congregation to\u00a0 continue its work.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>We recognize that people have varying capacities to give, based on their resources and other financial responsibilities. \u00a0Fair Share Donors commit to making a pledge equal to 2% or more of their Adjusted Annual Income.
\nPlease click on the links below to read more:<\/p>\n
\nSuggested Fair Share Explanation<\/a>
\n<\/a>Letter from Rev. Sarah Lenzi, Minister<\/a>
\n<\/a>Letter from Dawn Walter, President<\/a>
\nLetter from the 2022-23 Pledge Team<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The fiscal year starts on July 1 and ends on June 30.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>All the money collected is used to support the congregation in meeting the annual budget.\u00a0 More specifically it provides worship and music, religious\u00a0education at various levels, many social justice projects, pastoral care, community events and much more.\u00a0 It pays the salaries of the minister, RE director and the administrative staff and for the operation and maintenance of the facilities.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Anyone can make a pledge to the Society, whether you are a member or a friend.
\nPledge Now<\/a> for 2022-23 Pledge Drive “Grow Back Stronger.” (If the Pledge Now link to Realm<\/em> doesn’t work, please CLICK HERE<\/a>)<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Each of us has our own reasons, but a part of our shared Covenant at USR is \u201cto support this congregation with our presence, gifts, and service, and to care for each other and the long-term well-being of our community.\u201d Here’s a link to Mike Patterson talking about what USR means to him: Mike Patterson<\/a><\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Financial support is one of the responsibilities of membership. But we realize that certain financial hardships occur.\u00a0 We ask everyone to support\u00a0 the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood with a percentage of their income.\u00a0 This year we ask that you search your mind and heart and give at the highest level of support you can.\u00a0 Locate yourself, by income level, on the pledge guideline grid (see the links above for the\u00a0Pledge Brochure). \u201cSupporters\u201d make a contribution; \u201cAdvocates\u201d feel strongly that the Society is really important to them; \u201cCatalysts\u201d have a vision for the USR and dig deeply to provide the means to change the world for the better.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Our budgets are assembled to serve the entire congregation as a whole.\u00a0 All pledges support the work of the whole congregation and pledges for specific purposes are not accepted.\u00a0 Gifts and endowments are gratefully accepted.<\/p>\n
\nPledges will be accepted at any time of the year for new members and friends. Each year in the spring, we have a pledge drive and everyone is encouraged to pledge at that time for the following fiscal year.<\/p>\n
\nYou will receive a quarterly statement indicating how much you have pledged for the year and how much of that pledge you have paid.<\/p>\n
\nThe money contributed during the offering serves as additional income to benefit the annual budget. However some people pay their pledge by putting a check into the weekly collection plate. You should write \u201cpledge\u201d and the pledge year on the check.
\nThis will insure your pledge is credited to you correctly. Note that there also special Sunday collections for external programs\/organizations as part of our service to the larger community.<\/p>\n
\nYes, the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood is a 501(c)3 corporation so your contributions are fully deductible. Also, in some instances you may be eligible to take advantage of additional tax savings strategies. Please click the link(s) below to see if they apply to your situation:
\nGifting Stock to USR
\n<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/span>Gifts from Your IRA<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n