Preservation

On Tuesday, I had a great experience that is related to my coursework. I attended my first training session in the New Dollars/New Partners for Your Sacred Place program. As a member of the Session (administrative board) of my church, I had recommended that we apply for acceptance into this training, which might lead to a much-needed grant for repairing our building.

The trainers spent half of the day discussing how to research your church's history and how to preserve its significant documents. The second portion involved methods of placing a dollar value on the programs your church offers to the community. In other words, if the church closes due to a financial crisis, what is the significance of the loss to the surrounding area? The "numbers" provide a church with concrete information to present to people, like local legislators, who might be in a position to help. In the fall, I'll attend a training module on fundraising. I know that the material will help me in my church work as well as in my goal of working in the administration of public libraries.

The trainers gave us a lot of "homework." I know what I'll be doing on my break between semesters!