By Jeff Perrine

Annual Meeting and Year End Giving!

Mount Carmel’s 2023 annual meeting is on December 17th after each service. This meeting is a time in which Didi capstones our year and casts vision for the upcoming year. If you are member of Mount Carmel, meaning you have attended our membership class and affirmed our membership covenant, you have the opportunity to affirm elders in their position and indicate support for the 2024 budget.

This year Didi will be presenting revised bylaws to the congregation for affirmation. Our bylaws are a required document that we, as a church, have adopted in order to function as a 501 c 3 organization. Our last bylaws were adopted in 2009 and no longer serve us well. If you’d like to find out more about the new bylaws, our next information meeting is on December 10 at 6:00 pm in the Student Center. You can register for it by clicking here.

At this time of year, we begin to receive questions about ways to make year-end gifts to Mount Carmel to be credited to the current year’s giving. Here is summary of different giving methods and the cutoff for them.

  • Checks or cash – Any checks or cash given during services from now through 12/31/2023 will be credited to 2023 giving.
  • Any checks mailed to the church that have a 2023 postmark on the envelope will be credited to 2023 giving.
  • Bank Bill Payment – Checks sent via bank bill payment that have a 2023 postmark on the envelope will be credited to 2023 giving.
  • Donations of stock. If you wish to donate appreciated stock, please contact me at jperrine@mountcarmel.cc. I can give the information your broker needs in order to successfully make the process occur. We recommend initiating the process with your broker early in December to ensure we receive the stock in time to credit the donation to 2023. Please note that for most people, you do not pay income taxes on the appreciated value of the stock when you donate it to a non-profit. Please consult with your tax advisor to make sure that the enhanced tax benefit applies to you.
  • Donations from an IRA. If you are 59 1/2 or older, and instruct your IRA administrator to make a donation directly to the church from your IRA as a Qualified Charitable Donation, in most cases the donation amount is excluded from your income for income tax purposes. If you wish to take advantage of this option, we recommend contacting your IRA administrator early in December to ensure we receive the donation in 2023. Please consult with your tax advisor to make sure that the enhanced tax benefit applies to you.

As we head into the final stretch of the year, I want you to know that the staff and elders are so very thankful for you. Mount Carmel could not do Kingdom Work without you. Your dedication to the mission is what allows us to fund the activities that we do as a church and the support we provide to local and global missionaries. Mount Carmel is a generous congregation, and we are blessed that you are a part of the mission.

I hope and pray that you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year.

Jeff Perrine