Mission - Vision - Plan

Last month, we began a discussion on where we, as a faith community want to be in the next five or ten years - in other words, "What is our vision of our future?" As we reevaluate in the coming year where we want to go, it is important to have a good idea of who we are. Organizations or communities often articulate who they are in a mission statement so my first question to you this month is, "What is the mission of Channing Memorial Church?"

The word "mission" has a religious origin. Its etymology is the Latin word mittere, "to send". As far back as the 18th century, Samuel Johnson in his Dictionary defined mission as "persons sent on any account, usually to propagate religion." A "mission", therefore, was sent into the world to do something. Over time, the word came to mean not only "to be sent to do something" but "to be established to do something". The question for us then is, "What were we established to do?" or in other words, "What is our reason for existence as a faith community?"

Why should we spend time on this question? After all, one could argue that we already know what our mission is - how could we exist otherwise? I suspect, however, that each of us has his or her own personal idea of what our mission is; defined by how each of us answers the questions I posed to you last month. These personal perspectives are important. It is equally important, however, that we have a common understanding of our mission because our community's reason for being is the foundation of our vision and the bedrock of any strategic plan we formulate to achieve that vision.

As a commanding officer in the Navy, my vision for my Sailors was that we would accomplish our mission and all come home safe. To do this, I made sure that each of us understood what our mission was and what our individual roles were in accomplishing that mission. My job, as you can imagine, included making some difficult decisions. When confronted with a tough decision, such as whether I should put someone at risk, I would ask myself, "What course of action will best accomplish our mission and will give us the best chance of all coming home safe?" Reflecting on this question and answering it truthfully made what appeared to be a tough decision a very easy one - one over which I seldom lost sleep.

I use this example to illustrate the value of a clearly defined mission statement. When we as a community agree on what our reason for existence is, it becomes easier to evaluate different visions of the future and pick the one that best accomplishes our mission. With a clear vision of the future - where we want to go - it becomes easier to refine our strategic plan to realize that vision. With a detailed strategic plan that we can embrace enthusiastically, it becomes easier for each of us to commit the time, talent and resources necessary to carry out our mission and realize our vision.

Mission - Vision - Plan. "What do I want our congregation to mean to our community?" "How big should Channing be?" "Where should we worship?" These are among the questions I asked you to consider this year. Establishing consensus on our mission will help us answer these questions. The answers will define our vision and lay the groundwork for the plan that will take us into the future.

Building on a Solid Foundation

Did you know that in the last 10 years we have increased our collective pledge of support to Channing by an average of 16.5% annually? This steady increase is the clearest indication that we are committed to the growth and prosperity of our faith community. This year we continued that commitment by pledging a total of $141,525, an increase of $10,081 over last year's pledge total. That, coupled with some additional contributions from our endowment funds brings us to within $500.00 of our canvass goal of $143,000. To balance our budget, the Board has decided to apply this small residual shortfall to the amount of money we need to raise in other fundraisers this year.

At the Annual Meeting in May, we faced a canvass shortfall of nearly $13,000. At that time, we asked members and friends who had already pledged if they would increase their pledges to help us "close the gap". Over 30 families and individuals did so. More than anything else, this increased commitment indicates that, unlike some other organizations, we are sustained not just by the generosity of a few but by the commitment of many who are dedicated to supporting Channing. You make the health and vitality of our community possible. Thank you!

Tom Beall
President of the Governing Board