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ParishSOFT News & Information
Announcement
ParishSOFT Receives Warm Reception at
Clergy Laity Congress
July 12, 2010
Contact: ParishSOFT
Michael Cusick, Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Phone: 866.930.4774
Ann Arbor, MI-From July 4-8, 2010, ParishSOFT LLC joined more than 1,000 faithful in Atlanta, GA, at the 40th Biennial Clergy-Laity Congress of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
When His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America led the ribbon-cutting ceremony to open the Congress Exhibit Hall, ParishSOFT was the only software vendor on-hand to demonstrate the technology that is currently providing church management software and Web solutions to more than 4,000 parishes in the U.S.
ParishSOFT, which acquired the leading Orthodox Christian church software Deacon in March 2010, from TheoLogic Systems® Inc., was warmly embraced by staff from 128 Orthodox parishes who visited the company's exhibit and stayed well after official exhibit hours each night to talk with staff and learn how easily the company's integrated church management products will fit their specific needs.
Dan Smith, ParishSOFT Business Development Manager said, "I have been attending national denominational conferences for over 12 years. Our exhibit at the Greek Orthodox Clergy-Laity Conference was overwhelmingly the busiest I have ever seen. Most parishes are aware that we at ParishSOFT have made a commitment to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, and because we, like them, are motivated by a ministry to serve, this is clearly a 'win-win' relationship for all."
Most Orthodox parish staff reported that they lack good software to run their parishes, and they were pleased to see that ParishSOFT's integrated, well-supported solutions also offer systems that can have a high impact on financial health, like Online Giving and the ConnectNow Church Accounting Suite for churches and schools. Their enthusiasm reaffirmed for TheoLogic Systems founder and president Fr. John Touloumes that he made the right move in his seeking out ParishSOFT to take Orthodox parishes to the next generation of emerging technologies. Fr. Touloumes said, "We are confident that [Orthodox parishes] will be well-served by both the technology and people of ParishSOFT."
Orthodox parish staff also liked ParishSOFT's NotifyNow instant communication service, which uses a parish's database to deliver messages fast and efficiently to any group via phone, email, and text message. In addition, ParishSOFT's suite integrates to help staff manage parishioner information, religious education programs, ministry volunteers and communications more effectively and efficiently-all of which supports the conference theme: Gather My People to My Home. Come and See.
In his keynote address on July 5, 2010, Archbishop Demetrios called on the faithful to act upon this theme by reaching outside their parishes to help the unchurched find a home in God and in the welcoming arms of the Orthodox Church. Archbishop Demetrios specifically recommended that, ". . . each parish must appoint a committee which will have the duty of creating a list of the Greek Orthodox people who reside in the vicinity of the parish but are not connected with the Church. The committee should organize the means of contact by using personal visits, phone calls, e-mail, notices of Church events and distribution of the appropriate printed or electronic material."
With ParishSOFT, Orthodox parishes will have all of the administrative details and communication tools they need to answer the Archbishop's call and, ultimately, to incorporate a new spirit of evangelization into the Greek Orthodox Church over the long term so that it becomes a natural part of the ministry, education, and culture of each parish.
About ParishSOFT
Founded in 1998, ParishSOFT offers a complete suite of church management software and services that reduce administrative workload and connect churches with staff, parishioners, and families. ParishSOFT continually invests in improving its software and Web solutions, as well as adding new features and products. ParishSOFT presently serves more than 4,000 parishes, and the company's products have been implemented in 42 arch/diocesan offices.
For more information about the Clergy-Laity Congress or the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, visit www.goarch.org.