Give
Ways to Give
Want help getting started?
Contact Steve Hansen, our Financial Secretary, financial-secretary@calvaryefree.church to help you get started with Church Center and answer any questions you may have.
If you want help setting things up in Church Center giving, you will need to have your bank account information (routing code, account number, online banking info (username, password)) or credit card. That information needs to be available to get through the initial setup process. We will walk you through entering the banking information yourself.
Give Now via Church Center
All three Church Center giving methods: Church Center attendee website, app and text-to-give have the same transaction fees so choose the way you prefer.
- 2.15% + $0.30/donation for credit and debit card donations
- 0% + $0.25 per ACH bank transfer donation
One method used by many today is online giving. Online giving allows you to make an immediate contribution, schedule a single contribution, or schedule regular contributions from your checking or savings account or credit card. You will also be able to view your giving history.
Church Center Online Giving
To give online, go to our Church Center Attendee Website and login by entering your mobile phone or email. Then go to the give web page to enter your donation.
Give Now
For detailed user instructions please view, https://pcogiving.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/217380608-give-online
Please email Steve Hansen, financial-secretary@calvaryefree.church if you have questions.
Thank you for supporting Calvary Evangelical Free Church’s ministry with your financial gifts.
Calvary has a quick, simple and secure way to give via a text message. Giving via text can be done during our Calvary Worship offering time or any other convenient time.
How does it work?
Text any dollar amount to 84321 to give.
Click link and follow prompts to register (First time only!)
That is it! Next time only complete step 1.
For detailed user instructions please view, https://pcogiving.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/217380608-give-online
Looking for the mobile app?
Now we have a new giving option for your mobile device. Church Center is available for download on both Android and iOS.
For detailed user instructions please view, https://pcogiving.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/217380608-give-online
Cash and checks are the most common way donations are received by the church. In fact, the church financial secretary processes over 8,000 donations every year. Gifts may be placed in the offering plate, dropped in the mail slot in the office, or mailed to the church Attn: Financial Secretary.
Year end giving statements will be mailed in January for all gifts received the prior year. These statements will be provided for all identifiable gifts, whether contributed in an offering envelope, via check, or in some other form (see other types below).
Because some donors wish to give cash and receive confirmation of all of their gifts, the church provides numbered giving envelopes. In addition to gifts received by check or otherwise identified, any gifts received by the church in these giving envelopes will be tracked and a statement produced by the church for the donor. If you would like to sign up to use giving envelopes, please call the office at (507) 282-4612 or stop by the information booth.
There can be tax benefits to bundling or stacking your donations. The recent tax law change made the standard deduction more attractive, increasing it to $25,900 for a married couple and to $27,000 for the year 2022 if they are over 65 years old. If you have the capacity to stack or bunch donations and fund multiple years of your typical giving in one year, it may be possible to choose the higher allowed deduction in alternating years. However, choosing this strategy may cause concern about the impact on the church since you would be making sizable donations in some years and none in other years. The solution to this is the use of a Donor Advised Fund (DAF). By funding the DAF with the amount you plan to give to the church over the next several years it allows you to take a deduction greater than the standard deduction in one year and then request that the DAF distribute the funds over several years. The important thing to understand is that the year you give the funds to the DAF is when you get the deduction, not the year(s) they distribute it to the church. This allows you to itemize deductions in the year you donate it to the DAF and claim the higher standard deduction in subsequent years as the DAF distributes the funds to the church. If you feel this may be something you are interested in exploring we suggest you consult your tax advisor before implementation.
The tax law favors charitable giving from IRA’s provided you are at least 70 1/2 years old. A qualified charitable distribution (QCD) allows IRA owners to distribute funds directly from their IRA to the church. This is beneficial for several reasons; the QCD counts toward satisfying the individuals required minimum distribution for that year, the distribution is excluded from the individuals income, and since most individuals will now use the higher standard deduction when they file their taxes they may not be hurt by not claiming the donation as an itemized deduction. If you feel this is something you may be interested in we suggest you consult a tax professional before implementation.
It is possible to transfer stocks and mutual funds directly to the church. If this is done with securities that have been held for more than one year, the donor will be able to deduct the full fair market value of the securities and avoid paying any capital gain. If, however, the securities are sold first and then the proceeds are given to the church, the donor will still have to pay capital gain taxes. A little planning in this area can help you take full advantage of the tax benefits allowed by the government.
Here are some details which may help. If additional help is needed, please contact Steve Hansen via email, financial-secretary@calvaryefree.church or the church office.
Calvary Evangelical Free Church has a brokerage account at Stifel Nicolaus. Some brokerage accounts allow securities to be directly transferred using a ‘Charitable Gift Letter of Authorization’ or similar form. Here is information needed to fill out a typical form:
- To Account: Calvary Evangelical Free Church
- Social Security Number: (leave blank)
- Address: 5500 25th Ave NW, Rochester, MN 55901
- At: Stifel Nicolaus, 102 S Broadway, Suite 300, Rochester, MN 55904; Phone: (507) 288-9622
- DTC number: 0793
- Account number: 2361-8562
It is good to contact Stifel to let them know a transfer is expected. And also to communicate any special directions for use of the proceeds. It is also good to communicate the same information to Steven Hansen by emailing to financial-secretary@calvaryefree.church.
For other questions or requests, please contact one of the above. In particular if you wish to donate securities for which you have hardcopy certificates, special instructions will smooth the transaction.
In general, gifts of real estate have the same tax benefits as giving appreciated securities. If the property has been held for more than one year, the donor can typically take an income tax deduction for the full fair market value and avoid capital gain tax on the appreciated portion of the property. It is also possible that other benefits can include savings in estate taxes and avoiding probate.
Every year the church is given books, and more. We gratefully accept all gifts-in-kind that we can truly use, or we try to direct donors to other ministries that have specific needs. Gifts-in-kind can be a little more complicated due to I.R.S. regulations, but we will be happy to help you with the process. Please arrange all gifts-in-kind with the office before dropping off any tangible property.
Contribute to our Calvary Ministries
To offset the expense of offering Wednesday Night Family Meals, Sunday Morning Coffee Connection Coffee and treats, and Thursday morning child care, we are asking Calvary attendees to consider supporting the ministries financially. Any help you can provide to cover these expenses is appreciated!
