2026 stewardship:

Home is where the heart is

Nurturing a parish where all God’s beloved children feel at home.

We will kick off our stewardship year on Sunday October 26th following the 9:30 am service.

We invite you to bring a dish to share that comes from your family background, and in addition to share the recipe so we can create a small parish cookbook! You can submit the recipes here.

Bring a dish any Sunday between October 26 and November 23!

Over the past year, as we’ve shared in community conversations, time and again people have said: “I feel at home at St. Matthew’s.” “My friends and family are here, this is my home.” “It feels like coming home every time I walk through the door.”

That sense of home doesn’t happen by accident. It is created and sustained by the faithful gifts of time, talent, and treasure from this community. Every pledge, every act of generosity, helps make possible the worship, fellowship, and outreach that make St. Matthew’s feel like home.

As we look toward 2026, our theme “Home Is Where the Heart Is” invites us to reflect on what it means to belong and to build that sense of home for others. This theme will accompany us through the year ahead as we continue shaping a home where God’s love dwells among us.

We have witnessed the comfort of home in many ways: our Newcomer Committee welcomed new families; the Wine Walk team extended hospitality to our Parker community; we supported our neighbors through the Parker Task Force and Heart2Hand; and our pastoral care team, Helping Hands, modeled deep compassion for all. Home is built through acts of welcome, hospitality, care, and gratitude.

Your pledge makes this work possible week by week, year by year, helping us live into our call to be a community where all God’s beloved children feel at home.

2026 Pledging link
Once you pledge set up regular giving here.

Stewardship faq

  • Through the 2026 liturgical year (beginning with our annual pledge campaign, continuing through Advent, Epiphany, Lent... etc) we are focusing on the theme of Home Is Where the Heart Is. Each season we will reflect on ways that we cultivate an openness of heart welcoming all God’s beloved children to find a home at St. Matthew’s.

    There will be opportunities to discern stewardship through volunteering, using your talents, and caring for the community in many ways.

  • A financial pledge commitment is one way you connect with God’s love in your life. It is a commitment to pray, work, and give to the flourishing of our local church.

    A pledge is a giving estimate of what you are able to give in the upcoming year.

  • St. Matthew’s is in the midst of growing ministries and programs which are opportunities for us to connect with God and community. The work of the church is to fully support and sustain small groups, children and youth programs, music ministries, and more through the operating budget, volunteer commitments, and clergy leadership. 

  • Giving to St. Matthew’s is a process of prayerful discernment and faith, it is treated with respect and confidentiality. We receive pledges that range from a few dollars a week, to several thousand dollars a month. In 2025 we received pledges from 62 different households, and exceeded our goal of $220,000. Whether you are pledging for the first time, or increasing your pledge, you are invited to prayerfully consider what amount feels most joyful and right for you.

  • You can give weekly or monthly online, cash or check, or you can consider a gift through estate planning too. You are encouraged to give through Realm online, and there are folks happy to help you set that up. You can email our treasurer, Chuck, at: treasurer@smecp.org.

  • At St. Matthew’s we approach stewardship as a year-round consideration of how we care for our community. There are many ways throughout the year to offer your time, or talent to support the work and ministry of our parish.