Second Century Endowment

Yes! We did it! We met the incredibly generous Challenge Match to stimulate St. John’s Second Century Endowment. Our Endowment consists of donations received to date plus planned gifts that will benefit our church and/or Woods Hall at a future date. Investments in the Second Century Endowment will sustain the work of St. John’s and leave a lasting impact on the Madeline Island community. Together, we are touching lives and enhancing our community… now and in the coming century.

When we established the Second Century Endowment, we identified three objectives that we believe will have the greatest impact – and benefit – for our community. These objectives include:

• One Sacred Place provides ongoing support for pastoral leadership and maintenance and improvement of campus-wide facilities of St. John’s and Woods Hall. Some funds may be designated for specific capital projects or improvements. 
• Island Home supports the spiritual, artistic, social, and economic needs of those who call Madeline Island home. Some funds may be designated for emerging issues in our local community. 
• New Initiatives establishes innovative projects in any area of the congregation, our local community, or wider church at the discretion of the Church Council and Woods Hall Board of Directors. It may not be used for on-going support of projects. 

Partnering with Wisconsin Foundation UCC and Wisconsin Conference UCC gives us a tremendous opportunity to promote and grow our endowment funds. We will draw no more than five percent per year from our Second Century Endowment. Of course, the more we grow the endowment, the more income we will be able to designate toward these three primary objectives.

Now that the work of meeting our Challenge Match is complete, our next big push is to encourage planned giving. We hope Madeline Island families – people for whom this island is a special place – will want to create a legacy for future generations 

Making bequests to St. John’s Second Century Endowment through the Wisconsin Foundation UCC is easy. Most estate gifts come as bequests because these gifts can be easily created as part of a will. You can also make a charitable bequest by designating the St. John’s Second Century Endowment as the “payment on death” (POD) of a bank or stock account.

Working with Andrew Warner, Wisconsin Conference UCC, has been a delight. Andrew has helped individuals and families decide whether their preference is to make a bequest as either a percentage of an estate, a specific dollar amount, or contingent on the primary beneficiaries. In addition, he helps people develop clear instructions on the purpose of their gift. Some prefer to direct their gift to one organization, while others prefer multiple organizations.

Rev. Andrew Warner, Director of Development for the Wisconsin Conference, will gladly answer questions about making a bequest and explain how your gift will impact St. John’s work. He can also answer your questions about how to make a restricted gift or gifts of real assets, like real estate, in keeping with the Gift Acceptance Policy of the United Church of Christ.

For more information about financial options that can benefit St. John’s and Woods Hall, please contact:

Rev. Andrew Warner
Wisconsin Conference UCC
4459 Gray Road
DeForest, WI 53532
(414) 758 6233

awarner@wcucc.org