“The promotion of the practice of stewardship is important for

the mission of the church for the spiritual well-being of each

individual Christian. Everyone benefits from the sacrificial gift

one makes of his time, talent and treasure . . .”

- Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI

Enhancing Your Offertory

Are you meeting your budget through regular weekly offerings?

Do you have the financial resources to provide for or expand your parish ministries?

Is your offertory keeping pace with inflation?

Is your offertory enough to secure for the future of the parish?

Answer YES to all these questions with GRATEFUL GIVING!

Why GRATEFUL GIVING?For gifts to strengthen and build God’s Kingdom.

As committed partners in your parish’s efforts to encourage faithful stewardship, I am pleased to offer a valuable resource designed to provide immediate increase in offertory revenue.

The GRATEFUL GIVING program was initially developed by a committee of clergy and laity exclusively for parishes in the Diocese of Cleveland. This unique program, offered twice a year, promotes stewardship through offertory enhancement, using personalized letters, lay witness talks, and an in-pew commitment weekend.

Cathedral Corporation is our program partner for GRATEFUL GIVING, providing all the resources and expertise you need to conduct an effective offertory enhancement campaign. The Catholic Community Foundation offers support for integrating GRATEFUL GIVING into your parish’s ongoing stewardship formation.

GRATEFUL GIVING offers a substantial cost savings when compared to programs from other vendors, thanks to the significant price reduction negotiated by the Diocese. In addition, you do not incur the expense of the program until two weeks after completion of the campaign. By then, you are already enjoying the first fruits of the increased offering! The results shared in this brochure are compelling. We encourage you to give consideration to conducting GRATEFUL GIVING at your parish to sustain and grow your parish ministry.

Please contact Terri Preskar, Director of Stewardship, at 216.696.6525 x5090 or tpreskar@catholiccommunity.org with any questions.

Patrick J. GraceExecutive DirectorCatholic Community Foundation

With 100 years of experience in Church communications and fundraising, Cathedral Corporation is a leader in personalized services for a thriving faith community. Cathedral serves more than 4,000 parishes across the United States—60 in the Diocese of Cleveland—with offertory envelopes and list management services, eGiving options, and offertory and enhancement and parish capital campaigns from Cunneen—A Cathedral Solution.

Dan Wendt is the dedicated Cathedral representative who will work closely with your parish for Grateful Giving implementation. He has over 30 years of experience in parish and diocesan stewardship initiatives and has personally managed more than 800 increased offertory programs.

Why GRATEFUL GIVING?For all the support you need, at a price that pays for itself.

The GRATEFUL GIVING program is a 9-week process that features personalized mailings, lay witness stewardship talks, and an in-pew commitment weekend.

Here is what your GRATEFUL GIVING investment of $8.50 per household includes:• Personalized parish communications from you to your parishioners• Customized ask amounts based upon current pattern of giving• First class pre-sort postage to reach parishioners where they live• Opportunities to increase enrollment in parish e-Giving and envelope programs• Printing and shipping of all materials• Program oversight and administrative support, including recording of

commitment cards to free your parish staff• Program updates and reports so you can monitor results• Spring and Fall implementation dates to fit your parish calendar

The GRATEFUL GIVING Guarantee

GRATEFUL GIVING requires no money up front. You are not charged until two weeks after the campaign has been completed. And with our guarantee, the fee will never exceed the actual amount of new money received, including outright gifts!

An offertory enhancement program like GRATEFUL GIVING is the best way to build both financial security and parishioner engagement for your parish. With sustained offertory increases, you can ensure a firm foundation for your vital mission and ministry. And engagement in GRATEFUL GIVING helps encourage prayerful stewardship practices that reap an abundance of blessings for both your parishioners and the parish.

Why GRATEFUL GIVING?For results that speak for themselves.

“Thanks to the Grateful Giving program, for the first time that I can recall, we had two $10,000 offertory collections in a row.”

Rev. Daniel R. FickesSt. Therese, Garfield Heights

“The Grateful Giving Program not only proved successful in increasing our weekly offertory by nearly 15%, but also increased the number of parishioners utilizing electronic giving, identified four new Heritage Society members, and increased the number of newly registered parishioners.”

Rev. Charles T. DiedrickSt. Mary, Elyria

Results from GRATEFUL GIVING Parishes in the Diocese of Cleveland

Parish Households % ResponseResponders

BeginningWeeklyAverage

ProjectedWeeklyIncrease

ProjectedAnnual

Increase% of Weekly

Increase

For more information, or to schedule Grateful Giving in your parish, please contact

Terri PreskarDirector of StewardshipCatholic Community Foundation216-696-6525 or 800-869-6525 x5090tpreskar@catholiccommunity.org

Communion of Saints (Cleveland Hts.)Holy Family (Parma)Holy Family (Stow)Holy Martyrs (Medina)Immaculate Conception (Madison)Mary Queen of Peace (Cleveland)Nativity of the BVM (Lorain)Our Lady of Peace (Cleveland)St. Angela Merici (Fairview Park)St. Augustine (Barberton)St. Barnabas (Northfield)St. Bartholomew (Middleburg Heights)St. Basil the Great (Brecksville)St. Clement (Lakewood)St. James ( Lakewood)St. Joseph (Cuyahoga Falls)St. Jude (Elyria)St. Justin Martyr (Eastlake)St. Mary (Elyria)St. Mary Magdalene (Willowick)St. Mary of the Falls (Olmsted Falls)St. Matthew (Akron)St. Paschal Baylon (Highland Heights)St. Patrick (Westpark)St. Richard (North Olmsted)St. Rita (Solon)St. Stephen (Cleveland)St. Therese (Garfield Hts.)TOTALS

1,7112,6722,9902,0001,150

499508650

3,1501,2203,1971,6803,669

772573

1,0691,6951,7761,2602,9301,6521,4502,275

4801,4752,646

2291,18046,558

316487529381211145196106515222711365

1,020196161305267355337433360285316213275534102229

9,572

18%18%18%19%18%29%39%16%16%18%22%22%28%25%28%29%16%20%27%15%22%20%14%44%19%20%45%19%23%

$14,500 $18,740 $26,590 $14,629

$7,128 $6,201 $4,000 $5,256

$19,672 $12,821 $24,866 $13,787 $32,412

$7,371 $2,856

$11,870 $11,975 $11,179 $12,057 $14,177 $16,298 $11,397 $18,992

$5,495 $9,595

$24,086 $3,191 $7,945

$369,086

$2,071 $2,650 $4,140 $2,369 $2,042

$901 $1,096

$898 $3,213 $1,353 $3,472 $1,875 $6,531 $1,017 $1,001 $2,096 $1,836 $1,486 $1,796 $1,321 $2,320 $1,834 $1,974

$904 $1,488 $2,892

$523 $920

$56,018

$107,705 $137,800 $215,290 $123,188 $106,169

$46,827 $57,016 $46,684

$167,076 $70,352

$180,547 $97,503

$339,597 $52,859 $52,032

$108,968 $95,472 $77,252 $93,401 $68,710

$120,645 $95,391

$102,647 $47,000 $77,367

$150,366 $27,202 $47,857

$2,912,924

14%14%16%16%29%15%27%17%16%11%14%14%20%14%35%18%15%13%15%

9%14%16%10%17%16%12%16%12%16%