Ways to Give
Making a Difference
Our story is one of transformation: nurturing lives, shaping community, and changing the world. This work of transformation is supported through the time, talent, and treasure of our church family. Our ministries are our time, our talent, and our treasure. They are our people—congregation and staff. They are our building and campus which provide welcome and refuge to the community. They are our programs, music, worship, faith formation, and outreach ministries. Together we do the work of transformation, nurturing, growing, and valuing the giving our time, talent, and treasure, for the sake of the church and world. All gifts are welcome.
You can make an unrestricted gift or a contribute to a specific fund online. You can enter a one-time or recurring contribution in the following ways:
Through Breeze, our online PCI-compliant provider:
Mail to:
The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon
210 Melrose Avenue
Tryon, NC 28722
Unrestricted Donations
General Contribution
Donate to our Church’s General Fund. This helps to support church operations and special projects.
STEWARDSHIP OF ANNUAL BUDGET (PLEDGING)
Members of our church join together to meet the ministry and material needs of the congregation. Annually, all members are asked to participate in the Stewardship campaign that will fund the next year’s budget.
The total of the pledges is the primary determinant of the church’s revenues that will be available to cover the costs of our programs and ministry to the congregation and outreach to the community as well as the salaries of our staff and day-to-day operations in the coming year.
We ask every member to make a pledge of financial support by December 31 of each year, in an amount as generous as circumstances allow. If you’d like to make a pledge for 2023, you can do so by filling out an online pledge form, downloading and returning a completed Pledge Card, or you may contact the church office at (828) 859-9414 or church@ucctryon.org for more information.
Endowment Funds
The Congregational Church, UCC has four endowed funds. Gifts, bequests and reinvestment keep this essential source healthy and current. A gift to the endowment helps guarantee the church’s financial future. There are many ways to structure planned gifts to secure tax advantages for you while benefiting our church.
memorial Endowment Fund
Income from this fund is used to supplement the churches ministries and campus maintenance every year. The fund itself is the church’s emergency reserve. This fund receives all legacies not specifically designated by donors, as well as endowment contributions and gifts in the form of memorials, which are not specifically designated for a special purpose.
Building Endowment Fund
This fund provides for future capital replacement/improvements and/or expansion of existing physical facilities.
Outreach Endowment Fund
This fund supplements the budget of our Outreach ministries, providing extraordinary (local, national, or worldwide) projects.
Youth Scholarship Fund
This fund supplements the budget of our Faith Formation ministries in providing youth programs and scholarships.
Leave a Legacy
Planned giving is a lasting investment in tax advantaged charitable giving while you have control over your assets. You should seek the advice of a professional advisor before making any decisions about legacy giving.
Charitable Bequest
Gifts provided through wills and personal trusts have become a significant source of financial support for our Church. A charitable legacy gift, also called a charitable bequest, is a direction in your will that instructs your executor(s)/trustee(s) to leave one or more of your assets to a charitable organization(s). Your estate will achieve significant tax savings from your gift. Such gifts enable a donor to make significant contributions that may not have been possible during their lifetime.
Charitable bequests can take various forms. You may leave a bequest of a specific sum of money, percentage of your estate, or the residual of your estate. If your will is already written, your advisor can add a codicil to provide a charitable bequest to The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon.
Life Insurance
You can name The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon, the beneficiary of a life insurance policy just as you can name people beneficiaries. Because you can name more than one beneficiary, you can divide the death benefit among your loved ones and the Church. There are a few ways you can donate a life insurance policy and the tax benefits for doing so vary depending on the method you use so it is important to seek advice from a professional advisor.
401k, iRA
You can name The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon as the beneficiary, or co-beneficiary, of your IRA, 401(k), Keogh, 403(b) or other qualified. This kind of charitable giving has the potential to provide significant tax advantages for you and your heirs.
charitable remainder trusts
Cash, marketable securities or real estate may be placed into a charitable remainder trust. A Charitable Remainder Trust is a way to make a gift to The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon that allows you to retain income from your property for life or for another period of time that you specify.
Other Forms of Giving
SPECIAL PROJECTS
There are many special projects, like new air conditioning for the Fellowship Hall, upgrading technology, new paraments for our sanctuary, or renovating our playground. Our church is blessed to have members who have stepped forward in the past to finance special projects or provide “angel” support to ongoing programs. The church maintains a wish list for just such situations.
IN KIND CONTRIBUTIONS
Another way to support The Congregational Church, UCC in Tryon is with in-kind contributions. An in-kind contribution is a non-monetary contribution. Goods or services offered free or at less than the usual charge result in an in-kind contribution. Similarly, when a person or entity pays for services on the Church’s behalf, the payment is an in-kind contribution.