The Basilica of Saint Mary has been serving its parishioners and the Twin Cities community for over 100 years. Through inspiring liturgies and sacred art, transformative learning opportunities, the extension of Christian hospitality and a commitment to work toward social justice we share our faith in both word and deed as we seek the well-being of the city to which we are called.
As an integral part of both the history and the future of Minneapolis we serve as a gateway to the city, a home for those who are seeking shelter and nourishment, a place to experience concerts and the arts, a place of gathering at times of community need and a memorable fixture in the skyline and the heart of our community.
We have been blessed with the generosity of parishioners who share their time, talent and financial resources in the service of others. We recognize people have many options of where to contribute and we are grateful that so many continue to support The Basilica.
These past few years have been challenging for our community and parish. We face the reality of a world adapting to a new normal as we come out of the Pandemic, a shift in attitudes of how individuals and families experience their faith and spirituality and a city working to restore confidence in social justice and safety.
For The Basilica, these challenges are realized through both an increasing need for the ministries and outreach we provide and an increase in the human and financial resources needed to carry out our service.
During the Pandemic, our parish began to experience a decline in financial stewardship. This was to be expected as we shifted to virtual masses and ministries for the safety of our community and staff. Our budget remained balanced as the cost to provide in person ministries also declined.
As the parish began to reopen, the Parish Council and Finance Committee made the difficult, yet necessary, decision to fully restore funding for our needed ministries and programs knowing that the financial stewardship to support them may be slower to return. A budget was approved which included a deficit of $516,000. Prior to the Pandemic, our parish had built up our financial reserves to be used for these types of emergencies.
Knowing this was not sustainable, The Parish Council and Finance Committee authorized a Long-Term Plan Task Force to develop a plan to get us back to a balanced budget by 2027. The Task Force developed a plan with yearly reductions in the budgeted deficit focusing on growth of financial stewardship, management of expenses and addressing the priorities of our parish to ensure we remain relevant and impactful to the community.
We are in the final months of the first year of our plan. All of our ministries and programs have returned and are actively serving our community, but we are falling short of meeting our budget expectations. We are currently projecting a gap of $100,000 in meeting the budget.
Our annual expenses are projected to be higher than what was budgeted as we continue to realize the impacts of inflation and higher costs needed to provide our ministries. At this time, we project our expenses for the current year to exceed our budget by $48,000. In preparing for next year’s budget, we expect these costs to remain high.
Stewardship is returning at an even slower rate than expected. We are seeing a slight increase in revenue over last year but still projecting to fall short of budget expectations by $52,000. When combined with the increase in expenses, we have an overall projected budget gap of $100,000.
We are seeking your support to ensure our ministries can continue to meet the spiritual and life needs of our parish and our community. We ask that you prayerfully consider making a financial gift to The Basilica. Your contributions will have a meaningful impact on the lives of those seeking kindness, spiritual nourishment and hope for a more just tomorrow.
Please make a financial gift or increase your current financial commitment to the parish through The Basilica Fund. Your Parish Council and Finance Committee members have already made their commitment to make a new gift and a matching gift has been established to double the value of your new contribution.
We are grateful you are part of this extraordinary community and appreciate your support of the ministries we together provide. Your prayers, your time and your stewardship have, and will continue to be a source of hope, comfort and nourishment for the community in which we are all called to serve.
Tom Paul
Trustee
The Basilica of Saint Mary
Matching Your Generosity:
We have been blessed with the generosity of parishioners who share their time, talent, and financial resources in the service of others. We recognize people have many options of where to contribute and we are grateful that so many continue to support The Basilica.
Several donors have committed a total of $50,000 as a dollar-for-dollar matching challenge gift.
Your gift by June 30 to The Basilica Fund will be 100% matched until we reach $50,000.
Please help us close the year-end fiscal gap by making a new gift today. Your help will keep our parish strong as we look to the future.