You Can Count on Me!

Dear Saint William Parishioner,


This weekend is commitment weekend. Over the past three weeks, we have had time to reflect on what it means to be a parishioner, why we register, and lastly why we tithe. Now it is time to put our thoughts into action. I have been pastor of St. William for a little over two years and we have been through many different things. We have come out of a pandemic, we lost our education building to a hail storm for a year and a half. We have gone from minimal staff to nearly being fully staffed so that we can better meet the needs of our families, a number that is steadily increasing. Interestingly, while the numbers in the pews have gone up, our collections have not yet seen similar growth. However, I am confident that together we can change this.

When we consider what it means to be family, we can reflect on how a father, mother and child often depend on each other for things needed at home. Through our unique gifts, time and talents, we each contribute in our own way to meet the needs of our families; in a similar manner, we, as active parishioners, do the same for our parish and one another. The most important message here is that each of you is an important part of Saint William, and it is through our collective and active participation that we are able to provide all that our parish offers from faith formation to ministry life to our vibrant community as a whole.

Now, at first glance, it might appear to some that Saint William is a wealthy parish. I would agree with that statement, but not it the way some may think. We are wealthy in the number of parishioners we have at our parish. And it is through these numbers that we can provide for our parish needs through our tithe. Currently, our weekly collections do not cover our weekly operational costs. But that could easily change if we all participate in tithing to our parish. For example, say we have 1,000 families that don’t currently tithe on a weekly basis. But if those 1,000 families started to tithe $20 dollars a week, do you realize that it would be over a million dollars at the end of the year? Imagine the impact if our nearly 4,000 St. William families increased our tithe.

With these gifts we could pay off the $5.85 million debt for our beautiful parish grounds sooner. We could expand ministries and our campus to meet the growing needs of our parish. The master plan of our campus was designed with a maintenance shop, which needs to be constructed to service the 10 buildings we now have. Our campus is now 16 years old and has many maintenance issues such as our eroding parking lot, our obsolete HVAC systems, and there is a need to buy lifts to better maintain our campus. We have a 4.5-month cash emergency reserve that I would like to increase to six months. All these examples and more could be easily accomplished if we work together as one family.

By making a financial commitment to our parish, you are saying, “You can count on me!” We have an incredible parish family that loves our parish. I too love our parish—and you! It is a privilege to serve you and you can count on me to be the best steward of our parish resources. All that we do is for the Glory of God through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. May God continue to bless our parish.

Ad Jesum per Mariam,


Fr. Francisco Rodriguez III
Pastor





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GIVING TIP: Whether you give via check, cash, Venmo or online, please be sure to include your envelope number or parishioner / family ID number. (Each household registered at Saint William has a unique ID.) This way we are able to reflect your giving on your parish account.

If you have any questions, or need help locating your Family ID, please contact the parish office at: (512) 255-4473 or email: [email protected].