First Presbyterian Church of Hightstown

As most of you know by now we are undertaking a campaign to raise funds to repair our Church buildings.  But before I cover some specifics of The Church's One Foundation campaign, I want to make sure we all understand why it is essential that we raise these funds now, even in this difficult economy.

Over the course of the last two years or so, we have experienced a number of mechanical and electrical failures related to the infrastructure of our church buildings.  The Sanctuary and Education Wing, as well as Wilson House, have all had problems with their heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) and electrical systems.  Repairs have been difficult and expensive, because these systems, at nearly 40 years old, are well past their useful life spans.  To complete some repairs, we have had parts custom made at considerable expense, because replacement parts were no longer available.

We can expect these costs to continue (and even increase) unless we replace major portions of the HVAC and electrical systems.  If we do not make these major upgrades to the HVAC and electrical systems, it is possible we may have a breakdown that is not even possible to repair, rendering our church buildings completely unusable.

As you might expect, the list of possible repairs and upgrades to our building systems is lengthy.  (There have been a lot of improvements to the design of these systems in 40 years!)  From this long list of possible repairs and upgrades developed by our consulting engineer and architect, the Committee selected a list of only the essential repairs as defining a necessary first phase - work we must undertake just to keep our doors open to the congregation and the community we serve.  These items include (values have been rounded):

In addition to this First Phase Work we also identified a second Phase of work that includes very necessary repairs to the Church building exterior; repairs we should also make right away to minimize further building deterioration, but those that are somewhat less critical to building usage than those in Phase 1. These include:

The total of both phases is $1,245,000. That is a considerable sum, and it may require more than one campaign to meet that goal. But even if we are able to meet this goal in one campaign, we will need to secure financing (a loan or mortgage) so that we can address the urgent repair needs in a timely fashion, since it will take three years before all of the funds from the campaign are secured. How this is structured has not been determined, but the Committee is strongly committed to raising the funds for these capital expenditures rather than tapping into the endowment.

Which brings us back to the campaign.

Our campaign, The Church's One Foundation, kicks off officially with a brunch on Sunday, May 17th after the worship service. At the brunch we will provide additional details about our need, the three-year pledge commitment we will be asking of everyone as well as other campaign specifics. Church leaders will be approached earlier and asked to commit to a pledge before the brunch on the 17th, but most members will be asked to return their pledge cards on Commitment Sunday, June 7th after three weeks of prayerful consideration. (More details about the campaign and pledges will be provided in the May Presby Press.)

We find ourselves in a difficult position with respect to the condition of our church buildings, but this challenge provides us with a wonderful opportunity to serve our current and future church generations, as well as those groups who depend on our facilities to provide valuable services to our community. Frequently, we are asked to look beyond ourselves, even beyond our country, to carry out God's mission. Today, we have been chosen to perform God's work right here in Hightstown, right here in our church. I can think of no mission more exciting than that.

David Zaiser
Chair, Building Improvement Committee