Sewickley Pride Festival
I was not a believer. Not only was I not a believer, I was also a vocal naysayer. When Pastor Hannah asked me to join the volunteer team to plan Sewickley Pride, I was pretty much a firm no. “Seriously?” I thought. “Yeah, I’m gay, and an advocate for our rights, and appreciate the struggle of my LGBTQ sisters and brothers before me. But gay marriage has been legal in Pennsylvania since 2014 and nationally since 2015. I’m feeling like we’re mainstreamed. We’re here, and we’re queer, but does anybody really care anymore?”
As you might have predicted, my hard “no” turned into a “sure, I’ll help” solely because of the person who asked me and not the subject matter. I’m glad I did, because volunteering for the inaugural Sewickley Pride Festival enlightened my selfish mind.
At the Leadership Board meeting on Wednesday, July 8th, Pastor Hannah recapped the Sewickley Pride Festival. She marveled at the success of the event and how it hit every one of SUMC’s God-sized goals: Community, Inclusion, and Faith in Action. Despite the rain during the afternoon of the event, attendance was impressive. Formal counts weren’t made, but I bet there were a hundred people there at least. Vendor participation was solid, too; there were about twenty-five vendors selling their wares along Thorn Street beside the church. Most importantly, the number of kids openly expressing their identities and their families supporting them was beyond inspirational. This alone is the very reason, Pastor Hannah said, events like Pride are so important.
Say no more. My perspective on Sewickley Pride was flat out wrong. There is nothing more important than kids and making sure they are loved and comfortable in their God-given skin. Like Kara Wayne, my fellow Board member, imparted during our Board meeting, it’s all about perspective. It’s about our capacity to view things in their true relations or relative importance. Seeing those kids wearing pride flags around their necks like the superheroes they are was an awesome sight!
SUMC’s Capital Campaign
Now, the most significant thing the Leadership Board is handling for the next three years is completing the Capital Campaign. As custodians of the church and fiduciaries of its finances, the Board spent nearly the entire meeting on this one agenda item. From informing the congregation to raising funds to scheduling and budgeting projects to managing the projects through conclusion, we discussed it all. In detail. Here is a preview of what’s happening and what’s to come.
Even before the Capital Campaign kicked off formally, we added the Downspouts project, which was reported in last month’s newsletter. The cost of the downspout repairs was programmed as a placeholder in the Capital Campaign budget and timeline while we await a cost estimate from the plumbing contractor.
The Sound System upgrade is technically the first project underway and expected to be completed by the end of July. This $70,000 initiative is the installation of technology that will modernize our audio equipment and sound mixing and distribution throughout the Sanctuary and our online video feeds.
Most of us don’t have to think about getting from the Simpson Room or Sanctuary to the ground floor for activities and gatherings. But people like our brother Allen, who uses a mobility device, do. While the rest of us can simply traverse the stairs, Allen doesn’t have that luxury. That’s why a project referred to as “The Lift” is a priority and slated to be installed in November this year. The Lift will connect the Simpson Room and basement by way of an elevator. Jenine Furry is getting a final cost estimate for the equipment and work from the contractor who installed AME Zion’s lift system.
Winter is approaching fast, so another project planned for this November is the HVAC Upgrade, a $17,000 effort to improve the system on the office/library roof so we can have regulated temperature and stay warm all season long.
A complete roof replacement is needed but, thankfully, the patches made during the past year have held off water intrusion or further deterioration of the roof. As such, the Board feels as though we’ve bought some time and, therefore, can move the Roof Replacement project to Spring/Summer 2027.
A feature of SUMC that makes our church unique is the organ, a historic asset that is essential for us to keep in good repair. However, the Organ Restoration project has experienced a setback with the retirement of the expert who has maintained and fixed our organ for years. Without him, the Organ Restoration team was compelled to solicit bids for the work. When bids come in, the team will assess the work plans, cost estimates, and timelines, and then report back to the Board. This setback has pushed the Organ Restoration project into the middle of 2027.
A gala, auctions, sales, drives, matching campaigns, grants, a line of credit, and more. The Leadership Board is leaving no stone unturned when it comes to raising funds for this Capital Campaign. We are asking for your ideas, too, and engaging internal ministries for their ideas as well so we can maximize opportunities to maximize financial resources. If you have any fundraising ideas, please share them with any of the Board members so we can add them to our list.
The next formal Capital Campaign update to the congregation will be on Sunday, August 16th. Hurst Bartley will lead the presentation, which is intended to be the first of regularly scheduled updates through the end of the year. Hurst will provide details on progress of the projects, cost estimates, line of credit draws and payments, contributions collected and forecasted, and budget tracking. Please look for more information about the presentation over the coming weeks.
August Leadership Board Meeting
Our next Leadership Board meeting is Wednesday, August 19th at 6:30 pm in The Patton Library.
Lynn Colosi
Board Member