The New Church Development Ministry Team grew out of a report from the Florida Conference Blue Ribbon Committee on Church Development which was approved by the Florida Conference at its 2003 biennial gathering. The report called for, among other things, the establishment of a ministry team whose focus would be ‘to establish new congregations in areas where none presently exist.’ Team members are:
Dr. Ron Nutter Team Leader
Rev. Bob Townsend
Rev. Linn Possell
Dr. Mary Nutter
Rev. Jack Remaly
Rev. Barton Buchannan
Rev. Jim Morey
Rev. Dr. Raymond Hargrove
________________________________________________
The Florida Conference now offers our churches unlimited access to demographic information through the on-line based resource MissionInsite. MissionInsite has offices based in Irvine, CA and Columbus, GA. The up-to-date information that they provide comes from a variety of sources including: census data, mapping data from MapInfo, local developers, city or county planning departments, county parcel data and Google base maps. Through this site, UCC churches have 24/7 access to a wealth of local demographic information that can be useful in a variety of ways to churches of any size. In order to access this information you must first become a registered user. See the attached information for instructions on how to register. You may also register on the Conference website at (www.uccfla.org). This resource is made available at no cost to you as part of your generous support of Our Church’s Wider Mission.
Please feel free to contact the MissionInsite representative or your Regional Conference Ministers should you have any questions.
Download the kit here
________________________________________________
The Florida Conference
Church Redevelopment Endowment Fund
Purpose Statement
The Church Redevelopment Endowment Fund offers matching programming funds to Florida Conference churches undergoing revitalization and renewal. Through a thorough application and evaluation process, the Developing Team can provide grant money to those congregations which demonstrate need for financial support of a renewing ministry.
Principles Guiding the Administration of the Fund
• Purpose of the grants is programmatic rather than buildings
• Matching funds will be expected before a grant can be issued
• Expectation that congregations applying for grants will be active in the life of their area Dean Group, Ministry Team and the Florida Conference
• There will be a semi-annual funding cycle
• A member of the Developing Team and the primary Contact Staff to that church will visit the congregation to discuss application and make recommendation to the Developing Team
• The grants are paid out in full at the time of the award and the pool of funds available for grants depends on the performance of the Endowment Fund for Church Redevelopment
The Developing Team
The Developing Team will act under the direction of the Board of Directors of the Conference to receive grant requests, evaluate, and recommend grant awards. They will work in consultation with the primary Contact Staff to that church.
Possible Programmatic Efforts Funded By This Grant
Those receiving grants would be expected to create programmatic use of said funds. A sampling of such programs may include but be not limited to:
Creative Worship: Materials, resources, equipment, instruments, scholarship aid to workshops which assist a church in the enhancement and/or development of worship experiences.
Publicity: The creation of innovative ways to get the word out.
Leadership Development: Scholarship aid for lay and clergy leadership to resource and develop one’s skills in the area of strategic planning and church development.
Demographic Studies: Monies would be used to resource projects which determine the demographics needs and make-up of the community in which the church resides. (i.e. Telephone survey and invitation to those within the church’s sphere of influence.)
The total amount of grants given annually is $5,000. For more information contact the Florida Conference office at 1-(800) 432-8311 or Rev. Dr. Raymond Hargrove, NE Regional Conference Minister (rhargrove@uccfla.org).