On behalf of the Lakeside Elders I am sending this email to update you – our Lakeside Partners – on a few things.
1. Save the date. Our AGM is set for Wednesday, June 7. More details will follow but you can mark your calendar now, and we hope you will plan to attend.
2. We are currently accepting elder nominations. We ask that you prayerfully consider nominating someone you think would be a good candidate for this role. The elder team meets twice a month on Tuesday evenings, and each elder serves a term of four years. If you know someone who would serve well in this capacity – or if that person is you (you are welcome to nominate yourself) – please send an email to nominations@lakesidechurch.ca by Friday, April 21.
3. A few weeks ago, Marc shared a financial update with our congregation. While we continue to see our Sunday morning attendance and our donations grow, they have yet to reach a place where we can break even.
For context, Marc highlighted Lakeside’s monthly budget of $104,000. Donations over the past few months have been as follows: January, $86,000; February, $89,000; and March, $92,200. While our attendance and income are growing each month, we still cannot cover all our costs.
We feel it is important to communicate clearly and transparently with our partners. Marc and his team have cut in every area possible, including lowering staff hours and voluntarily taking salary cuts. We are now at a critical point where, if our cash flow does not improve in the next two weeks, there will be no option but to remove multiple staff from the team. This would have a drastic impact on our staff, the incredible ministries they provide, and their families.
As partners, we know you care deeply about this community, and that you want to see this church continue to grow into a safe and inclusive space. Now is a critical time for us to ask our partners and those who call Lakeside home, to give towards this future vision of being an oasis for our community, a place to discover and fully follow Jesus. We would ask you to consider giving a special gift, increasing your giving, or signing up to begin giving, to link arms with us in making our community thrive. You can explore all the different ways to give here.
Thank you for your continued support, especially during this critical time, and please continue to pray for provision. If you’d like to reach the board directly, you can always email elders@lakesidechurch.ca.
4. Lastly, if your circumstances have changed, you’ve moved, you no longer attend Lakeside and/or would like to be removed from the partner list, please email partnership@lakesidechurch.ca and let us know. On the other hand, if you’re still here and you’re all in, let us know that as well. We would love to hear from you!
Sincerely,
David Root (Chair, Lakeside Elders)
cc: Sharon Schmidt, Jim Alexander, Ethan Aquilina, Gary Jonsson