Planned Giving Program – Pitcher Hill Community Church

The Pitcher Hill Community Church deems it desirable and in its best interest to establish a Planned Giving Program.

1. Purpose: The purpose of the Planned Giving Program is to provide an opportunity for members and friends of PitcherHill Community Church to make a final and lasting statement of their faith and their support of the mission of Pitcher HillCommunity Church. The Planned Giving Program is the successor to and full replacement for the Endowment Fund Policy. Any gifts directed to the Endowment Fund Policy in documents signed before, but not yet received, shall be automatically redirected to the Planned Giving Program.

2. Administration: The Stewardship and Finance Committee shall be responsible for the administration of the Planned Giving Program. The Committee will be directly responsible to the Consistory of Pitcher Hill Community Church.

3. Use of Undesignated Funds: Undesignated bequests shall be used for the religious, charitable and educational purposes of the church with preference being given to:

a. funding the maintenance, expansion, and upkeep of the physical properties of the church

b. launching new programs for up to five years

c. funding continuing education training and retreats

d. furthering missions and other benevolences

Notwithstanding these preferred uses of undesignated bequests, the Consistory of Pitcher Hill Community Church retains the right to use the undesignated funds in other ways consistent with the mission of Pitcher Hill Community Church if circumstances require.

4. Use of Designated Funds: At the request of the donor, a Representative of Pitcher Hill Community Church shall be available to discuss with the donor any bequests for donor-designated purposes. Such Representative shall be one or more of the following: the Chair of the Stewardship and Finance Committee, the Treasurer, or the Pastor of Pitcher Hill Community Church. If the designated purpose is consistent with one or more of the purposes outlined in “Use of Undesignated Funds”, the Representative is empowered to confirm that the funds will be used in accordance with the donor’s wishes and to document such confirmation for the official church records and for the donor. If the requested purpose is outside those outlined above, the Pitcher Hill Community Church Representative will bring the specific request to the Stewardship and Finance Committee, which will then make a recommendation to the Consistory for decision. All requests for confidentiality will be honored during this process.

5. Time Period for Use of Funds: The Stewardship and Finance Committee shall have the responsibility of recommending to Consistory a time schedule for the use of any bequests.

6. Administration of Non-Cash Assets: Should Pitcher Hill Community Church receive a bequest in noncash form (e.g. stocks, bonds, real estate), it shall be the responsibility of the Stewardship and Finance Committee to make a proposal to the Consistory regarding the asset, consistent with written commitments made to the donor by a Pitcher Hill Community Church Representative (as described in Paragraph 4). Should a decision be made to maintain an asset in non-cash form or convert a cash bequest to non-cash, assets shall be managed in accordance with the Pitcher Hill Community Church Investment Policy. (Note: Adaptation of Endowment Fund Policy.)

7. Accounting: The Financial Secretary shall be responsible for maintaining a separate account of all gifts to and expenditures from the Planned Giving Program.

8. Nomenclature: All references to the Stewardship and Finance Committee and Consistory shall be construed to include, by whatever name called, the Stewardship and Finance Committee of Pitcher Hill Community Church, the Consistory of Pitcher Hill Community Church, and the rules of order of any successor or successors in interest of said church. In all cases, the Book of Church Order of the Reformed Church in America shall be determinative in cases of dispute.

9. Communication: The Stewardship and Finance Committee shall have the responsibility for promoting and communicating information on the Planned Giving Program, as it deems appropriate.

10. Amendments and Changes: Modifications or amendments to this program may be made by the Consistory.