Annual Giving Campaign

In Their Own Words

Jean Lefever “St. Paul's means so many things to me. It's hard to capture them all. The great warmth of people here…. the great giving spirit of everyone…and one of the biggest things that I truly cherish is the ability to learn so much about myself, about others, and our journey.  The whole thing to me is about journey. And I think St. Paul's is really wonderful in allowing us all to travel the path in the way that we each need to.

I pledge annually because I want to be able to keep this going for my family, but also for future generations. And there are so many things this church does…it’s about our community and the greater church, and how we can really support all these things going forward together.”

 
Betsy Carr “St. Paul's Church is simply central to my life.  That's why I pledge. It is also central to what goes on in our city, providing a spiritual foundation. It's a center of community life, involved in so many things, in so many ways. And to me, it's just crucial to the vitality of our area as well as being so important to me personally in my own life.”
 
 

John Taylor “There are so many reasons that St Paul’s means so much to me. It first became a home when my son and I were confirmed years ago.  And the liturgy, the worship services, mean a great deal to me. And then there are the people - these people that you get to know, who become a part of your church family.  And the amazing things we accomplish here, through the dedication of so many different parishioners, who do so much…it’s truly an exhibit of love and caring.

“I feel a responsibility to give because I receive so much.  The love, the love of the Lord… it really comes to me through everyone here. And when you see how much we do.… you just feel like you have to help, you want to help pay for it.”
 
 

Kate Gareau “St. Paul’s is a fellowship and a place where I come for respite.  I also really enjoy the outreach that I’ve had the opportunity participate in. I'm a life-long member of St. Paul's. I’ve really enjoyed being a part of it, not only as a youth, but then later as an adult…and now, having my own girls in this church.

I pledge because I believe in what St Paul's Church does for our community. I believe that the people that we help and the programs that we support are where we need to be. This church community does a wonderful job of helping others.”
 
 

Chip and Debbie Jones
Debbie:  “We both felt like St. Paul’s was a really welcoming place, and that it is a symbol and a sign of God's love right here in downtown Richmond.  People are friendly, people are welcoming, and so much community involvement comes out of St. Paul's on important issues.” 

Chip: “ We pledge,first of all, because we believe it’s our duty as members and as Christians. But the past year or so we’ve really been amazed at the energy and the power of our youth group (Journey to Adulthood, J2A program), that Debbie and I have been blessed to be a part of as mentors.  And so I think this year when we pledge… we’re going to think seriously about the importance of continuing to support the youth groups. The bonding is so incredible, the love that they show for each other (and to us!)  These kids really bring Christ's love into the world.”
 
 

Lydia Galvin (10 years old) “I've been in the youth group since I was a little baby. I like it because there's a room for younger children, and when you get a bit older there's another place to go and you learn about the bible there. And then when you get old enough, when you're in 6th grade, you can be in the older kids' youth group where they do neat stuff like go to Israel and San Francisco. It's really cool because you get to do a lot of stuff, and it all has to do with the Bible.”

Brian Carr “To me, St. Paul's means community.  A community of people that know each other and love each other.  You know, St. Paul’s provides a sense of community that really doesn't exist often in our modern world. It’s almost like the old small town or village. Our family pledges because a community can't function unless people are willing to do the work to make it happen. It takes money, it takes time and effort, and that's just part of being a member of a community.”

Jennine Sherrill “I was thinking about what drew us first to St. Paul's.  When Scott and I moved to Richmond, we visited churches. When we came to St. Paul's, the warm welcome we received, coupled with the service to the greater Richmond area and to the community… well, since then, what St. Paul's has grown to mean to me is an extended family.  We've raised our children here, we worked together in the Emmaus program. When I was on bed rest with my twins, meals kept coming for months from St. Paul's, from people I didn't even know.  So I came to feel like this community is part of our family, and I know we are part of others’ families. We pledge because of the important work that St. Paul's does (and having grown up as the child of a priest, I know that each family is integral in making that parish work).  It's not just the ones who can pay more. It's not just the ones who are more visible. It's every single family.”

Frank Mountcastle “It's all about community. That is the main driver for us … We all have a lot of communities -  family, friends, work, recreational activities. Our number one community is St. Paul's because it’s where we learn what Jesus would do in various ways, and it’s a place where others are also searching for the meaning in life, how they should lead their lives… and it's all right here. Deane and I support St. Paul's because this community means so much to us that we want it to prosper and survive. And you can't do that without financial resources. Outside of our family, it's by far our largest pledge each year.”