This Busy Parish Secretary Does It All - Thanks to Her Trusty Time & Talent Module!

Version 3.5.2 Now Available!

Is God Honored with Electronic Donations?

Teletraining Manuals Now Updated and Available Online!

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This Busy Parish Secretary Does It All - Thanks to Her Trusty Time & Talent Module!

In the picturesque town of Chester, Connecticut, St. Joseph's parish secretary, Liz Tinker, is kept busy with the 650 household parish that spans a nearby town and surrounding area. Among other things, she schedules marriages, registers parishioners, posts Sunday contributions, and records registrations for their 250-student Religious Education program. But her busy office today is nothing compared to running the office two years ago, before they purchased the ParishSOFT family suite, which includes the Time & Talent Module.

Putting together a three-month liturgical schedule used to take Tinker an entire week. But the process is simple and easy now with the auto scheduler feature in Time & Talent. Entering exception dates, such as those weekends when ministers will be out-of-town or unable to serve, is especially useful because it is stored in the database for future use. And if a parishioner participates in two ministries, such as Eucharistic Minister and Lector, the auto scheduler automatically avoids scheduling both duties for the same weekend.

Just a year ago, St. Joseph began a Stewardship Committee to investigate the all-too-common plight of "a few doing a lot" in their parish. When Tinker told the committee that names and information could be entered into the ParishSOFT database, the committee soon found all the contact and ministry information they needed right at their fingertips.

The Stewardship Committee put together a two-fold plan to recruit parishioners that resulted in nearly 50 new parishioners signing up for ministry commitment, a 30% increase for the parish! Naturally, Tinker entered all the new information into her Time & Talent Module, and printed out reports for the Stewardship Committee and the pastor.

This hard-working parish later hosted two fundraisers the same year and raised $30,000 for the parish and new youth center. Once again, Liz Tinker used her Time & Talent Module to organize all the necessary volunteer and committee information.

Stay tuned next month when ParishSOFT will run the full version of this story in their quarterly newsletter.

Version 3.5.2 Now Available!

ParishSOFT's latest suite of Church Management Software is now available, version 3.5 Service Release 2, and contains many enhancements to improve performance and save you time.

Sacramental Details screens have a fresh, new design that places the basic sacrament information (i.e., date, parish, celebrant) into a single view. The familiar tabs for Baptism, Reconciliation, First Eucharist, and Confirmation store the full sacrament details (i.e., sponsors, best man, confirmation name, etc.).

Your sacramental details load instantly! Most of the time-consuming lookup tables for sacrament person and place fields have been eliminated completely. Now, just type the text for witnesses, sponsors, birthplace, etc. directly into the field. Those parishes that tested the limited release of 3.5.2 reported that their sacrament records opened many times faster than in earlier versions.

For the complete list of enhancements and update instructions, please see the 3.5.2 Update Guide for Parishes, available now at www.parishsoft.com/support.

Is God Honored with Electronic Donations?

Many parishes today are looking at Electronic Giving and weighing the options. On one hand, Electronic Giving appeals to many of today's families who prefer to handle their finances electronically. On the other hand, it seems to lessen the time-honored tradition of putting a Sunday offering in the collection basket. Real-life parish examples are showing, however, that Electronic Giving pays off in many ways. It's easier for the parish, easier for the families, and provides a consistent giving level ­ exactly where envelope collections fall short. But is God still honored if the donation is electronic? Many parishes have removed this stigma by educating their parishioners about the advantages of electronic giving and then thanking those who choose this unseen method during Mass and in the Sunday bulletin. Without taking away the solemn ritual of tradition, these parishes have enhanced the opportunity for stewardship, and given both parish and parishioner something to thank God for.

In a real-life example, the Electronic Giving statistics for a parish in Michigan are as follows:

• 41 families contribute $6,432 monthly to the Sunday Offertory electronically
• 36 families contribute $4,200 monthly to the Capital Campaign electronically.

Even though monthly envelope contributions spike up and down at this parish, collections via Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) have remained constant, and even increased, as families have grown comfortable with the convenience and security of EFT. See chart.

1. EFT deposits never go on vacation.
2. EFT deposits never forget their wallets.
3. EFT deposits never get sick and miss Mass.
4. EFT deposits are secure, safe, and free.
5. EFT deposits offer a convenient giving option.
6. EFT deposits eliminate costly envelopes and postage.
7. EFT deposits post accurately and automatically.
8. EFT deposits are easy to set up.
9. EFT deposits make parish budget consistent and more stable.
10. BEST of ALL: You already have the software to do this - if you're using the Offering & Tuition Module. Simply call ParishSOFT at 866.930.4774 or visit www.parishsoft.com/support to complete an application.