Roots & Wings Campaign 2025

To take us boldly into the future, it is time to build on decades of commitment to our beloved community. Securing our Roots is about strengthening our financial health in order to support the people and programs that will allow CVUUS to spread our Wings in to the future.

The Roots & Wings Capital Campaign supports projects that will serve the current and future needs of people, programs, and infrastructure by maintaining what we’ve already built. The Campaign is a forward-looking investment. And, in a courageous move, we are conducting two campaigns simultaneously:

1. Our Annual Stewardship Campaign to pay for our programming, services and operating costs for the church year that begins July 1, 2025. Thank you for making your pledge to our Annual Pledge Drive.
2. A Capital Campaign to fully maintain and improve our Sanctuary and Fenn House, pay down our mortgage, replenish the Building Reserve Fund and establish a Strategic Initiatives Fund. Thank you for making your commitment to our Capital Campaign.

The campaign kicked off on February 9 and concludes on March 9, 2025. You will receive a call from a Visiting Steward, a CVUUS member, to make a date with you for a conversation where you can get to know each other better, talk about what inspires you at CVUUS, and discuss the Roots & Wings Campaign. We know from previous campaigns that congregants enjoy rich and meaningful conversations throughout the process–not the high pressure or uncomfortable experience one might imagine. We hope you will find the campaign fun and exciting.

The Roots &Wings Campaign asks us to make pledges toward our annual Stewardship Campaign for next year’s operating budget ($395,000). In addition, the Campaign seeks commitments, over three years, to pay for capital projects, allow for new programs, and pay down our mortgage, for a total of $880,000 (this is a Capital Campaign of the sort that the might happen once a decade). All of this is designed to strengthen CVUUS now and far into the future.

As of Feb 18, we have pledges of $157,444, putting us at 48% of our $330,000 goal for operations through June 2026. Capital Campaign: We have received commitments of $671,670, putting us at 76% of the way toward our $880,000 goal, to be reached over the next three years! What momentum toward meeting our goals for both campaigns…only 10 days IN!! We hope you share our sense of excitement over what you’ve accomplished. Our Visiting Stewards are happily setting up meetings with you. If you have not been visited or made a date, please reply to our Stewards’ email, text, or phone message, and set a date. These meetings are a chance to have marvelous, meaningful conversations with fellow members. We’re well on our way, but we’re not there yet. In the next 2-1/2 weeks we need to hit both of our goals for us to grow stronger and fly higher…giving life the shape of justice. Plans are under way for a joyful celebration on March 9, when the joint campaign ends. Meanwhile, please be thoughtful and generous.

View the Roots & Wings Campaign Brochure

Roots & Wings Campaign Team: Heidi Sulis, Steve Maier, Kate Gridley, John Barstow, Mary Hadley, Andrea Sambrook, Alan Moore, Ellen Flight, Mary Conlon. Mark Ewert, Consultant.

Testimonials

Our exciting and ambitious Roots & Wings Campaign got off to a strong start Sunday Feb 9 when Rev. Tricia gave a no-nonsense and inspiring Stewardship message. We heard a wonderful testimonial from CVUUS Board Chair Hannah Sessions telling her stirring story of growing up as a child at CVUUS.

Last week we received an email from Lynne Balman, a CVUUS member who recently moved to Michigan to be closer to family, including grandkids! Here is her heartfelt message: “Hello from Novi, Michigan. I feel blessed seeing you each Sunday on ZOOM. And it will be my pleasure to complete my pledge. Given these turbulent and fearful times in our nation, and finding myself far away (and with all pro-Trump family), the Sunday service with CVUUS brings me calm and focus again. Your living affirmation of all UU principles and intentional call to action are immeasurable blessings for our community, our nation, and our world. Messages delivered from Christina, Tricia and Tom affix immediately to my soul. Even with a local UU congregation here, my heart and spirit revert weekly to CVUUS, where the warmth of seeing friends and faith family, and the beautiful surroundings bring the greatest comfort. Thank you for all that you are, for all that you do, and for your resistance and resilience.” Blessed Be! Love, Lynne

Meanwhile, a CVUUS member recounted her and her partner’s experience with their Visiting Steward Andrea Sambrook last Sunday. “Andrea, we want to tell you how great the Visiting Stewards team is!  We had our visit, and it was 90 minutes of WONDERFUL conversation.  Now, I’ve been a steward many times, and this Visiting Steward did all the things that I learned about in the past. So I led with “X is what we’d like to commit for the campaign. And the Visiting Steward smiled and said, “That’s wonderful! I want to share that I’ve been asked by the R&W campaign to ask you both to consider TWO times X. As a result of that visit, we were very open to saying “yes”, and so we did! So, kudos to the Roots & Wings Team!”

Last Sunday we heard a moving testimonial from Jordan Young. Listen to it here.

And from Sue Rasmussen: “I am committed to standing up to support UU values, and am pushing myself out of my comfort zone to be a R & W steward.  I’m not an extrovert, but I am showing up, even though it’s uncomfortable for me (since I’m not a ‘talker’!)”

Questions about the Capital Campaign

Why conduct a Capital Campaign now?

There are several reasons:

• We are at a moment of transition toward a new settled minister, a time to ensure the long term fiscal and programmatic strength of CVUUS.
• Long-range planning has revealed that without a Capital Campaign, CVUUS will encounter fiscal constraints that could threaten our mission and impact.
• Our Board strongly believes that it is time to retire our outstanding mortgage for building our sanctuary. Current annual payment of principal and interest cost us $54,000 out of each annual budget—money that could be spent on programs and staff.
• Our 2024 Stewardship Survey of members revealed a strong desire to both secure our roots (infrastructure, financial health) and to expand our wings to support the needs of our community and our neighbors to live more fully into our social justice vision at a time when it is needed most.

How is a Capital Campaign different from the Annual Pledge Drive, special projects, or the endowment?

The Roots & Wings Capital Campaign is designed to put CVUUS on a sound and predictable financial footing. As we have seen recently, capital costs, such as a new roof, a heating & cooling upgrade, and repairs to Fenn House, currently cause CVUUS financial stress; stop-gap fundraising has to be done to cover costs because the building reserve fund is inadequate. The Roots & Wings Campaign goal is to raise $880,000, payable over THREE years.

The Capital Campaign does NOT take the place of our Annual Pledge Drive. The Annual Pledge Drive is essential to fully meet our budget for 2025-2026 and that amount is $330,150. 

Campaign funds do not grow our endowment, but rather:

• Pay down our 15-year-old mortgage ($400,000)
• Seed a new Strategic Initiative Fund ($50,000), which will allow CVUUS to respond to opportunities, aside from long term or annual operating funds.
• Increase our Building Reserve Fund ($430,00) based on anticipated expenses over the next decade to maintain and/or upgrade our buildings and systems. 

What is the goal of the Capital Campaign?

The Roots & Wings Capital Campaign is an investment in our future—strengthening both our Roots and our Wings— designed to allow CVUUS to be nimble, thoughtful, and compassionate in maintaining and nurturing this beloved community for many years to come.

Are these projects truly necessary?

The Board, Facilities Team and many others have studied how best to build for a strong future. In addition, results of a recent congregational survey have been heeded. As CVUUS prepares to hire its third settled minister, and enter its fifth decade, it is time to take these steps and make these commitments to our values and mission.

Can my usual annual donation be applied to the Capital Campaign?

NO, IT CANNOT.

What if I want to make some of my capital contribution after 2025?

You have THREE FULL YEARS to make your gift to the Capital Campaign: 2025-2027.  We welcome you to “frontload” your payments;  if we have more financial resources in hand earlier, that will allow us to get more done sooner.

How may I make a Capital Campaign commitment, and how is it to be paid?

You can make your commitment ONLINE today.

You can pay in many ways:

• Writing a check. We can accept a check monthly, quarterly, annually, or in a lump sum.
• Making credit card payments. A charge can be made to your VISA or MasterCard, monthly.
• Donating stock or other assets. If you donate stocks directly, you may reduce capital gains taxes.
• Making a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA for those over 72.5. A QCD has some tax advantages, which you should discuss with a financial professional. 
• Making a grant from your Donor-Advised Fund.

Your Visiting Steward or anyone on the Campaign team can have someone contact you with more details.

Roots & Wings Campaign Team: Heidi Sulis, Steve Maier, Kate Gridley, John Barstow, Mary Hadley, Andrea Sambrook, Alan Moore, Ellen Flight, Mary Conlon.