The new year is in full swing and the St. Bart’s community continues to display resilience and fortitude as we embark on 2024. As we reflect on 2023 and prepare for the upcoming Annual Meeting, we wanted to share a brief update on our work related to St. Bart’s Strategic Plan. Please find our updates below:
Pillar 1: Build the Organization to Support Growth
- Our athletic rentals (the gym and the pool) had a banner year in 2023, yielding the highest revenue we’ve seen since the pandemic. We continue to rent spaces throughout the Community House for lectures, concerts and other events and are adding new clients to our list each day as the neighborhood (re)discovers our incredible space offerings. We are working hard to improve our rental income over pre-Covid levels.
Pillar 2: Achieving Financial Stability and Increasing Giving
- With an influx of end-of-year gifts as well as significant growth in the number of pledges received, the 2023 projection for overall contributions, including stewardship, is expected to come in at ~$2.2M. Though short of our original Mission Plan goal, we are so grateful to all who have supported St. Bart’s during 2023 – your generosity is ensuring the parish continues to thrive.
- The 2024 pledge campaign is in full swing with 280 pledges and over $1M pledged to date representing a 12% increase in pledging units and a 7% increase in dollars pledged. We pray that the early success of the ’24 pledge campaign continues this spring and brings forth increased financial support throughout this year.
Pillar 3: Growing and Diversifying Membership
- The next session of Pathfinders – our group for those exploring St. Bart’s and led by the Reverend Zack Nyein – begins on February 25 and will culminate with a Pilgrims and Pathfinders Retreat in late April. Stay tuned for details and please share with friends and neighbors who may be searching for a spiritual home.
Pillar 4: Boosting Parish Engagement
- The Advent and Christmas seasons saw record attendance at Candlelight Carols and strong attendance on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. In-person attendance was 87% of 2019 levels, easily surpassing our goal of 80%, while combined in-person and live stream attendance was 152% of 2022 levels, dramatically surpassing our goal of 2% year-over-year growth.
- Weekday liturgies have returned – join us on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 12:05 in the Chapel. Each day provides a different opportunity to rest and reflect.
- As Lent approaches, there are many opportunities to deepen your spirituality. More information about various offerings coming soon.
Pillar 5: Fully Leveraging Buildings and Mission Supporting Activities
- As previously shared, the Vestry unanimously voted to close the Preschool at the end of this year school. While a challenging decision, significantly decreased enrollment coupled with the reality of hybrid work and universal Pre K, have made operations unsustainable. We are assisting families with finding new school placements and focused on ensuring teachers and staff are taken care of during this time.
- It’s crucial that we identify a tenant for the space on the 4th and 5th floors of the Community House in order to generate revenue to fund our mission. We anticipate gaining traction on the long-term plans for this space as we move into spring.
- SBC’s HVAC/MEP project is progressing as we’ve entered the schematic design phase. The Properties Committee and Vestry are vetting proposals for many aspects of the project.
Pillar 6: Capitalizing on Digital Trends
- In December, we achieved significant milestones on social media, reaching 10,000 followers on Facebook and 2,500 on Instagram, culminating in a fan/follower growth of 30% for 2023.
- Additionally, by the end of the year, we reached 3,577 subscribers on YouTube, marking a 24% increase in our subscriber base for 2023.
Thank you for your prayers and ongoing support of St. Bart’s. We remain so grateful for this community and for the work God has put before us.
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