Dear Church Leaders,
In response to the Conference Trustees’ announcement of available grant funding to help subsidize rising property and liability insurance premiums, nearly 200 churches applied for assistance. Collectively, these churches reported premium increases totaling nearly $1,125,000.
Due to the overwhelming number of requests, the Trustees have allocated an additional $250,000 in reserve funds, supplementing the $100,000 grant from the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas. This brings the total available funding to $350,000, enabling us to award grants to all churches that applied for assistance. Grant amounts are based on both the dollar amount and percentage increase of each church’s premium. Awards range from a minimum of $500 to a maximum of $20,000 per church and will be mailed out to churches next week.
We recognize that rising insurance costs continue to place a strain on resources that could otherwise support vital ministries. In response, we are actively working toward the development of a conference-wide self-insured plan. We hope to present at least an outline of this plan at our Annual Conference in June.
Thank you for your continued dedication to your church and its mission. Navigating insurance premiums and deductibles is seldom easy, but having adequate coverage can be the very factor that sustains a church in difficult times. Our hope is that, together, we can make this essential protection more affordable for everyone.
Sincerely,
Todd Burris
Director of Administrative Services