Per Member Asking (PMA) contributions to the Office of the General Assembly in fiscal year 2022 (FY22) through April 30 total $1,946,152. The total is $76,977 (3.8 percent) less than the $2,023,129 FY22 PMA support projection to fund the EPC’s Collaborative Ministries, Connectional Support, and Custodial Operations. April PMA support was $183,842—$23,138 less than the monthly projected budget amount of $206,980.
PMA contributions through 10 months of FY22 (which runs from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022) are $88,819 (4.4 percent) behind the $2,034,971 contributed over the same period in FY21.
“I am very grateful that so many of our churches remain faithful to support the mission and vision of the EPC through their PMA,” said Stated Clerk Dean Weaver. “The downward trend is concerning, but our Lord owns the cattle on a thousand hills. That truth gives me peace that even during rampant inflation and economic hardship for so many, that He is able to do more than we could ever ask or think. I continue to pray that we close the growing budget gap over the last two months of the fiscal year.”
Of the $1,946,152 received, $389,230 (20 percent) was contributed to EPC World Outreach.
In addition to PMA contributions, $5,724,144 in designated gifts were received through April 30. This total was $1,032,471 (22.0 percent) more than the $4,691,673 in designated gifts received in the same period in FY21. Much of the increase over the previous fiscal year can be attributed to nearly $400,000 donated to Ukraine relief through the EPC’s International Disaster Relief Fund and $275,000 donated through the Domestic Emergency Relief Fund following Hurricane Ida’s landfall in Louisiana in August 2021.
“While I hope and pray that our PMA support catches up, the generosity of the EPC when disaster strikes has gone way beyond what we could have imagined,” Weaver said. “I have no doubt that God is going to continue to use those sacrificial gifts to His glory in Eastern Europe and elsewhere around the world.”
Of the total, $5,281,570 was designated for World Outreach workers and projects, and $442,573 was designated for EPC projects. These amounts only reflect gifts received and distributed by the Office of the General Assembly, and do not reflect donations given directly to WO global workers or other projects.
Designated gifts include support for World Outreach global workers and projects, and contributions to EPC Special Projects such as Emergency Relief, church planting and church health initiatives, and the EPC’s Thanksgiving and Christmas offerings.