Bethlen Almanac 2000 (Ligonier)
Tóparti Egyházmegye - Lakeside Classis
We are a bilingual church, established in 1906, yet the Hungarian language is still very much alive among us. In 1999, the average attendance of our Hungarian worship services were 68, the English 34. Our Sunday School, confirmation classes, choir, Bible Fellowships meet separately for each language group. Our business meetings, the Brotherhood and the Women’s Guild mostly use English, while the church newsletter is bilingual. Though our numbers are gradually decreasing we still count 304 voting members, most of them relatively active. Mission is important to us, especially helping the old country in the Carpathian Basin. We were delighted to welcome the Concordia Choir from Komárom, Slovakia last year. Each year we host several dinners, dances, even a three-day Carnival, where close to one hundred volunteers helped. We receive rental income from our Calvin Hall through wedding receptions and special events; and also from the weekly bingo which has been operated by a dedicated group from our church for twentyone years. At the same time, we self-educate ourselves in responsible stewardship. Selected financial data for the year 1999: Total income was $238,099: of this $86,593 (36.4%) was from individual donations; $65,816 (27.6%) from our church organizations (hall rental, bingo, etc.); $80,083 (33.6%) from social events (dinners, carnivals, etc.); and $5,607 (2.4%) from other sources (interest, etc.). Total expenses amounted to $201,975: of this, $58,654 (29.1 %) was for real estate maintenance; $67,740 (33.5%) for payroll, $24,074(11.9%) for church administration expenses; $33,879 (16.8%) for social events; and $17,628 (8.7%) for missions. We have been self-educating ourselves for years in the area of pledged-giving. This year 70 families made pledges; the average was $363. We do not want to boast about these numbers; but rather to demonstrate that spiritual work brings forth measurable fruits. As far as possible, we are trying to live and to relate to each other in an organized, democratic, open-minded, ecumenical, responsible, and humble manner in the spirit of Christ’s love. Like the manna, we daily pray for our portion of spiritual and material needs. These are the magnificent trials and victories of the spirit.Three great challenges face us this coming year. First, we approved the renovation of our Calvin Hall and the hallways in the amount of $66,500. The work is about to begin, and hopefully will end as scheduled. Second, two founding members and leaders of our 21-year old bingo program, Goldie Maxim and Joe Bak, will retire. Many thought this would eliminate the bingo at our church. It appears that new and young forces are 70
