Financial Fundamentals January 2026

This report briefly addresses finances at FUMC Fox Hill. The latest information is in the weekly bulletin available at church or through our web site.

While it is still December when this is being written, we are about to enter a new year. Finances are an important part of most everything we do here at First Fox Hill. We wholeheartedly thank you for your continued support. Clearly, donations are how we are able to do all we do. Programs and ministries require staff and materials to make them happen, while utility, maintenance, equipment, A/V, and IT expenses are needed to support it all. And, like all United Methodist churches, we share connectional expenses supporting programs worldwide. We expect to finish the year in decent financial shape due to your regular support, as well as careful spending by the paid staff and our wonderful volunteers.

As you know, we incurred substantial expenses for our major HVAC and roof repairs/replacement. Your contributions have paid for about one-third of the cost and continue to make our monthly payments, but we still have a 6-figure loan to pay off as soon as possible to minimize interest costs.

Everyone is in a different financial position, but if you have been blessed with the ability to make a directed “over-and-above” contribution toward that loan principal, your support is truly appreciated. If you have any questions about how you can help, be sure to talk with your personal tax and/or financial professionals and check in with Bill Bryan, Finance Chair, before any unfamiliar transactions.

You probably noticed we manually passed out most of our donation envelopes for next year; the rest we will mail. If you do not receive envelopes and would like some, we are happy to take care of that; just let the church office know. Simply put, the change resulted from more people making online contributions and, not surprisingly, related significant increase in postal costs.

Cash and checks work great and the envelopes are for that purpose. If you would like to make your donations on-line, we are happy to make that easily available for you. Many people find it convenient and helpful. If you are reading this online, click here for easy on-line access. You can also use your phone and the donation QR Code or manually go to our web page www.firstumcfoxhill.org, click on give, scroll down to GIVE ONLINE, and click. There you can set up one-time gifts or automatic regular giving on a weekly, twice a month, or monthly schedule. Gifts to the One Fund – General Offering allow your financial staff flexibility in managing our cash flow effectively.

Annual donation statements will be distributed by the end of January. Please check yours carefully as soon as you receive it and contact us promptly if you have any questions or issues. If you don’t receive a statement you are expecting, let the office know so we can address the issue before last-minute tax time.

Please direct concerns/questions about FUMC FH finances to our financial staff via the office or Bill Bryan, Finance Chair, at (757) 851-0748 or by e-mail to billb-1111@cox.net.

Total One Fund – Through November 2025
Income for Planned Expenses1		$457,832
Total One Fund Expenses (excludes pass through2)	Planned	$546,722
	Actual	$447,975
Pass Through Income2		$4,365
Pass Through Expense2		$4,178
“Pay-It-Forward” Contributions		$2,684
LUMENs Fund Raiser Income		$25
LUMENs Fund Raiser Expense		$0
Roof & Boiler Repair Income 20253		$65,834
Roof & Boiler Repair Expense 2025		$251,123
Loan Balance – Nov1		$158,967
1 Includes regular and memorial contributions, building use income, interest, not listed, etc. 2 Represents contributions for non-budget items, e.g., flowers, special mission programs, not listed, etc. 3 Does not include $153,922 net loan for roof project.