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Temple Beth El Blog

Increasing Membership Contributions

05/09/2022 09:45:54 AM

May9

As we described in the previous Giving Spotlight, the fiscal year at Temple Beth El begins in July. We’ve been busy preparing the budget for the coming year, and while we continue to fine-tune our projections and plans, we do know this: personnel and building costs make up the bulk of our expenses, and these costs continue to rise faster than our revenue.

Approximately 70% of our revenue comes from our community through membership contributions. When we introduced the Temple Community Contribution program in 2021, we asked all of our member households, as partners with Temple Beth El, to give from the heart and determine a giving amount that feels comfortable and meaningful. For 2022 membership renewals, TBE members were encouraged to increase contributions to help meet rising costs. The response to the 2022 renewals is gratifying: 40% of our members completed their membership renewal by December 31 (an increase from the typical average of 30%), and 90% of those who renewed did so at an increased or sustaining contribution level. We are so appreciative of these generous responses. And, per our current policy, memberships that were not actively renewed by the start of 2022 were automatically renewed at the same contribution level as the previous year.

To keep the renewal process simple for everyone, automatic renewal will continue for members who do not actively renew by the start of the calendar year. In January 2023, however, we will include a 10% increase in contribution when automatically renewing members’ contributions. We understand that not everyone is able to increase their contribution by 10%, and we will continue to remind you of this change as we approach the renewal period in late 2022. If you want to choose how much to increase your contribution, it’s important that you actively renew your membership when those materials are mailed to you. As always, you’ll have the options of returning the renewal card in the mail, managing your renewal online, or calling Executive Director Stefanie Kushner to discuss the amount you are comfortable giving.
This is an important step toward increasing our revenue to meet rising costs. We are all grateful to be part of this community that continues to be supportive in so many ways, including financially.

April 30, 2025 2 Iyar 5785