Launching a Ministry Endowment

A Step-By-Step Guide to Starting a Ministry Endowment
Jeffrey W.Steed, D.Min, MBA

G. Scott Hubbard, professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Stanford University, has stated: "It is true that, for every dollar we spend on the space program, the U.S. economy receives about $8 of economic benefit."* The costs for maintaining the space program including the launching of space exploration vehicles is costly from a time and financial standpoint, but the benefits of their impact are numerous and long-lasting literally within the world that we live. The costs of launching an endowment ministry can be costly from a time and financial standpoint, but the benefits of their impact are numerous and long lasting for ministry and Christ's Kingdom.

The purpose of a ministry endowment is to provide more funding for executing God's work. Donors give to an endowment during their lives or at their deaths. Income generated from the endowment is available for use by that ministry for a designated or undesignated purpose. The bottom line is that ministries make available to donors a vehicle to perpetually benefit the underlying purposes of those ministries.

To establish an endowment, several steps are involved:

1. Guidelines: A ministry's leadership develops the guidelines for the endowment including gift acceptance policies. A third party that manages endowments may be able to provide a template document of items to consider within those guidelines.

2. Management Structure: A decision needs to be made on whether a ministry will directly manage its own endowment or hire a third party organization to manage the endowment. Management details include asset allocation decisions, investment selection, providing charitable receipts, handling various types of assets given, accounting/reporting, legal considerations and potentially other details.

3. Leadership Structure: The ministry's leadership needs to determine the leadership structure for the endowment. This leadership could involve the delegation of the endowment leadership to an individual that could be a full-time or part-time individual that could be a paid or volunteer position. The endowment leadership could also be delegated to a team of individuals. The endowment leadership, whether an individual or team, would be responsible for the ongoing endowment operation and promotion to the ministry's consistency base. If a third party organization helps to manage the endowment, then the endowment leadership monitors the performance of that third party.

4. Approval: If the ministry's leadership needs further organizational approval to establish the endowment (guidelines, management structure and leadership structure), then such approval is sought. Documents are executed including any agreements with third party organizations.

5. Promotion: The endowment leadership develops an ongoing marketing strategy for promoting the endowment to constituents encouraging gifts during life and at death. Initially, this promotion will likely involve an educational or awareness emphasis. The overall marketing strategy may be developed in conjunction with a marketing consultant or firm.

The details involved in establishing and managing an endowment will often depend upon the funding size of a ministry and its constituency base. Also, depending upon the funding size and its constituency base, a ministry may consider developing its own foundation instead of having an endowment. Advisors to the ministry can help determine whether establishing a foundation might be more beneficial to a ministry. Whether an endowment or foundation structure, the bottom line is providing a vehicle for providing more funding for ministry.

The time and funding involved in adequately launching and maintaining an endowment can be costly. However, the benefits can be numerous and have perpetual impact, as a ministry is better able to touch the lives of many with its underlying purpose for the Kingdom.

Jeffrey W. Steed is Vice President of the Arkansas Baptist Foundation and Christian Ministry Services. He has a Doctor of Ministry degree from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts and a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Steed also has a Master of Business Administration from the University of Texas in Arlington. He is a business instructor on the adjunct faculty of a local college in Little Rock, Arkansas. Steed has authored several books and articles. To contact the writer, please email him at jwsteed@sbcglobal.net.

* Reference: http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/is-space-exploration-worth-the-cost-a-freakonomics-quorum/