As of September 30, Per Member Asking (PMA) contributions received by the Office of the General Assembly since the July 1 start of Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21) total $561,266. The amount received is 3.5 percent—$18,977—higher than the same period in Fiscal Year 2020. The EPC’s fiscal year runs from July 1 through June 30.

Fiscal-year-to-date contributions are 19.6 percent—$91,829—above the $469,437 budgeted projection to support the EPC’s Collaborative Ministries, Connectional Support, and Custodial Operations.

The 12-month rolling average for monthly PMA contributions is $200,904—1.3 percent higher than the rolling average as of September 30, 2019. PMA support in September 2020 was $224,301.

“The EPC is in good financial shape through the first quarter of the fiscal year,” said Jeff Jeremiah, EPC Stated Clerk. “Our churches that continue to support PMA in such uncertain economic times have declared with their contribution that connection to the EPC is a priority. We are very grateful for that and we don’t take their commitment for granted.”

Of the $561,266 received, $112,253 (20 percent) was contributed to EPC World Outreach.

In addition to PMA contributions, $491,728 in designated gifts were received through September 30. This total was 13 percent—$76,483—less than $568,212 in designated gifts received in the same period in FY20. Jeremiah noted that the reduction is largely a result of more than $160,000 in donations to the EPC Emergency Relief Fund in 2019 following Hurricane Dorian.

Designated gifts include support for World Outreach global workers and projects, and contributions to EPC Special Projects such as Emergency Relief, church planting and revitalization initiatives, and the EPC’s holiday offerings.

Of the total, $486,193 was designated for World Outreach workers and projects, and $5,535 was designated for EPC projects. These amounts only reflect gifts received and distributed by the Office of the General Assembly, and do not reflect donations given directly to WO global workers or other projects.

“If we take away the $160,000 in Dorian relief, we received nearly $85,000 more than the same period last year. It is clear that EPC churches and individuals are exceedingly generous to our World Outreach workers, care of Chaplains, church planting, pastoral care, and more.”