LEWINSVILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH FOUNDATION
"Render
unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's,
and unto God the things which be God's."
Luke 20:25 (King James)
The 1% Distribution - Ties that Bind
A message from the
Lewinsville Presbyterian Church Foundation Governing Board
What do the recent establishment of The 1846 Covenant Society, the payment of the “Peters’ Property” mortgage and the annual 1% distributions made to Lewinsville from 2005 through 2008 have in common? Answer: They are all initiatives of the Lewinsville Presbyterian Church Foundation.
The purpose of The 1846 Covenant Society is to recognize members and friends of the congregation who have indicated they have included Lewinsville in their estate planning. The Foundation’s current payment of the “Peters’ Property” mortgage and the “1% Distributions” were made possible through income earned by the Foundation’s Endowment Fund.
The Foundation was organized as a responsible way to provide stewardship of the bequests and gifts made to Lewinsville. Over the years its Endowment Fund has grown and now stands at slightly above $1 million – but it is not yet where its founders hoped it would be. Growing the Endowment Fund is one of the Governing Board’s primary goals.
On October 18, 2009, The 1846 Covenant Society was announced to the congregation and an invitation was extended to join our new legacy organization. If you have a will and have made provisions for Lewinsville in your estate planning, you are eligible to become a member. For additional information, please CLICK HERE or click on the link to The 1846 Covenant Society on the menu on the left.
In 2007, Lewinsville and the Lewinsville Retirement Residences had the opportunity to jointly purchase the “Peters’ Property,” which was adjacent to both of their current properties. To facilitate the transaction, the Foundation agreed to assist by paying the church’s monthly mortgage payment on its “Peters’ Property” loan. These payments are approximately $26,000 annually.
Beginning in 2005, the Foundation provided Lewinsville an annual one percent distribution based on the total value of the Endowment Fund as of the end of each year. Through January 2008, $42,535 was disbursed from the Endowment Fund to Lewinsville for capital projects outside the normal operating budget. In August 2008, the Foundation and Session agreed to suspend the annual one percent distribution until such time as the Foundation’s financial obligations pertaining to the “Peters’ Property” loan are reduced.
The Governing Board extends its gratitude to donors – past and present – whose generous gifts continue to strengthen the Foundation. Your gifts have made possible the purchase of the “Peters Property,” loans (later forgiven) that helped jumpstart Chesterbrook Residences, and many improvements to Lewinsville Church, including a computer system, carpeting and furniture for the youth center, extensive landscaping and exterior doors for St. Andrew’s Hall, to list a few. |
BE SURE TO VISIT THE 1846 COVENANT SOCIETY PAGES - Click Here
BECOME A MEMBER TODAY!
A
Legacy of Love and Giving
The Lewinsville Presbyterian Church Foundation is a tax-exempt organization under section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations and bequests can be made directly to the Foundation with the same tax benefits as if they were made to Lewinsville Presbyterian Church. The Foundation, established in 1985, is charged with supporting large-scale projects and capital improvements, which would normally fall outside the regular operating budget of the church.
The Foundation processes all memorial gifts made to Lewinsville and also invests funds for various committees that are either permanent accounts or accounts holding monies that will be used in a future budget cycle.
To explore gifts to the Foundation, please contact the current Chair of the Foundation’s Governing Board, Rosalind Phillips, via email (rap6516@yahoo.com) or by regular mail at Lewinsville Presbyterian Church Foundation, P. O. Box 538, McLean, VA 22101. The Foundation will gladly provide general information regarding donations and bequests upon request.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD OUR BROCHURE
The Peters Property
The late Katherine Peters proved a good neighbor, arranging her will so that we could purchase her property at a price which still looks very reasonable after the real estate downturn. She ignored developers’ offers and plainly stated that her home place “should” go to our Church and Retirement community – to be used in furthering their goals and programs.
To purchase the parcel, the Church and Lewinsville Retirement Residence (LRR) formed Lewinsville Property Holding, LLC (“Holding”) in 2007. LRR paid $600,000 for a 60% interest in the Company; LRR appoints three of its five Directors. The Church borrowed $400,000 to purchase a 40% interest, and appoints the other two directors. The million dollar investment allowed “Holding” to purchase the land for about $875,000, to raze the old building (termite-ridden, etc.), and to pay annual expenses such as lawn care, tree trimming and the like.
When you enter our two large parking lots from Chain Bridge Road, the driveway between those lots leads up the hill to the Peters property, which lies between our east parking lot and the new LRR building you see over the hill. The property’s potential uses include another LRR facility, a Church manse or other building, or perhaps just a beautiful park.
The Lewinsville Foundation asked me to provide this description because many of our congregation are not familiar with the property. The Foundation pays the interest on the note for the Church’s 40% interest. You may assist by making a separate taxdeductible contribution to the Church, indicating “for Peters property” on your check. To date, such contributions have reduced the principal on the note to $379,000.
And, please, after church on a nice day, and perhaps after designating a small contribution, wander up that driveway and look out over this lovely garden spot in the making.
--Bill Chenault |
Updated
April 20, 2011
|
