Lilly Endowment Grants Presbyterian Organization $265,000 to Assist Planned Giving Programs of PCUSA Churches and PCUSA-related Not-for-Profits
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 28, 2011
CONTACT: Karl Mattison,
kmattison@peernetwork.org
240-429-5789
Lilly Endowment Grants Presbyterian Organization $265,000 to Assist Planned Giving Programs of PCUSA Churches and PCUSA-related Not-for-Profits
Silver Spring, MD – The Presbyterian Endowment Education and Resource Network, (commonly called PEER Network, and known on the Web as presbyterianendowment.org) has received a grant of $265,000 from the Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc. to expand its work in assisting PCUSA churches and PCUSA-related not-for-profits to develop and improve their planned giving development programs.
“ In the midst of the huge intergenerational transfer of wealth currently under way, our churches are too often left out in the cold simply because no one at the church asked its members to include the church as a beneficiary, whereas other worthy charities did ask,” said Kim Warner, president of PEER Network’s board of directors. “PEER has the resources that enable our churches and not-for-profit organizations to incorporate an effective planned giving component into their overall stewardship efforts,” Warner added.
“PEER’s resources streamline the planned giving component, a component that would otherwise be difficult and costly to develop, and the resources provide our churches with the same tools that have been used for years at large nonprofits. Those resources include customized planned giving Web pages, comprehensive communications plans, effective print materials (posters, brochures, mailers) and an extensive online planned giving library. PEER also conducts round-table meetings and webinars to educate church leaders on timely planned giving topics. But the most important part,” Warner stressed, “is that an effective planned giving program helps church members to be more generous in their own lives. It provides more resources for congregations to embody God’s love through worship, outreach, service and community partnerships.”
The cornerstone concept of PEER is sharing ideas and best practices. “There’s really great stuff out there which churches are eager to share, but historically there wasn’t a good way to distribute it. Technology has changed all that,” said Karl Mattison, PEER’s executive director. Mattison was previously a development officer with the PCUSA Foundation, so he has seen up-close what churches need to do in order to have an effective planned giving program. For its services, PEER charges a very modest membership fee, which slides based on church membership. PEER enjoys the active support of both the PCUSA Foundation and the Texas Presbyterian Foundation.
“The Lilly Endowment grant will enable us to reach out to many more of our churches and not-for-profits,” said Mattison. “Without this grant, the future ability of PEER to provide high-quality service to an expanded base of members would have been greatly restricted. We are extremely grateful to Lilly Endowment for its generous support, which is expected to enable us to reverse the downward trend in estate giving that our denomination has experienced for years. Thankfully, those days are behind us.”
To learn more about PEER has to offer, visit www.presbyterianendowment.org.
Presbyterian Endowment Education and Resource Network, Inc.
1924 Grace Church Road, Silver Spring, MD 20910