At Good Samaritan, we are blessed to have many volunteers who give their time and talents to the many ministries that serve our community. The offering of all our gifts is important. Your annual pledge is vital to fund our staff, ministries, buildings, and grounds. These vital resources allow us to worship, care for our parish family, and serve the local community.
In addition to annual pledge gifts, gifts to support specific ministries or the Cash in the Plate, as well as gifts in the way of stocks, wills, and planned giving will help support the life and ministry of this parish…now and in the future.
Online Giving
Make your secure online contribution to Good Samaritan via a direct debit from your bank account or credit card. For Online Giving instructions, click here.
Make Your Annual Pledge for 2024
Annual Pledges for 2024 are currently being received. Good Samaritan is a strong and vibrant community of faith. With the resources at hand when the pandemic began, we immediately launched online worship and connected on Zoom. We have worshipped outdoors when possible. Our small groups and youth ministry thrive online and in-person. We continue to reach out beyond Cedar Bluff Road, with our FISH Ministry (groceries for those in need), feeding the homeless at the Volunteer Ministry Center, and supporting Family Promise. Pastoral care continues in ways that honor safety and the needs of parishioners in the midst of crisis or celebration. Discussion groups and Adult Formation help us connect, learn, and grow our love in action. We are grateful for this community and for the opportunity to serve in these trying times. There is much we can do together. Please join us in strengthening Good Samaritan’s mission and ministry by making a pledge.
What is a pledge?
A pledge is an offering to God and a commitment to give financially for the church’s ministry in the coming year. It is a sign that you belong here. Your pledge is an investment in The Church of the Good Samaritan as your spiritual home and as a place of welcome and service to others. Together, our giving touches lives within our parish, the community, and the world, planting the seeds for tomorrow with care so future generations experience God’s grace here.
How much to give?
Good Samaritan does not generate its own revenue. We rely on contributions and offerings in pledges like yours as our primary source of income, which determines the ministry we can accomplish together. Deciding the amount of your pledge takes prayerful contemplation. Start with prayers of gratitude, giving thanks for all of God’s gifts and blessings in your life. Consider what Good Samaritan means to you and your part in the ministry we share. Decide how much you will pledge to support our ministry in 2022. Some consider their pledge a sacrificial offering, a tithe (10%) or percentage returned to God from the gifts God has given. Others set a dollar amount relative to other contributions. Make your pledge a joyful reflection of God’s own generosity and grace.
Last year, 150 parish households pledged $656,265 to support the ministries of Good Sam on campus, in Knoxville, and beyond.
Altar Flowers
During church services, how often have you said to yourself “Wow, the altar flowers are beautiful!”
We have some talented folks on our Flower Guild, but they depend on your dedications and donations to purchase the flowers they arrange each week. To sign-up to give, see the Altar Flower Book in Henslee Hall and pick a Sunday to give the altar flowers in thanksgiving for or in memory of someone special or to commemorate a special event. If you have questions or need help with signing up, contact the church office at 865-693-9591 or email office@goodsamknox.org.
You may pay through the online giving portal (choosing the Flower Fund Donation option in the giving portal. There is a required memo line for you to put the date for which you are giving the flowers. Cost: $35 for one vase; $70 for two vases.) Alternately, you can mail a check to the church (made out to Good Samaritan) or put a check in the plate on Sunday. Please put “Altar Flowers” and the date in the memo line. Thank you!
Cash in the Plate
Each Sunday, the Cash in the Plate (CITP) is designated for a specific outreach ministry or charity. Sometimes it is one of Good Sam’s own outreach ministries. Other times, it is a ministry or charity from the local community or a national or international ministry or charity to which Good Sam has ties, such as the Diocese of Kondoa in Tanzania, Africa or Rise Against Hunger.
The CITP has become an amazing part of our Outreach ministry that has helped our parish live into the name Good Samaritan. Between the CITP and Outreach dollars in our Operating Budget, Good Samaritan gave away over $100,000 to those in need in 2018 and 2019. Good Samaritans have continued to be give generously during 2020 and 2021 despite the uncertainty of the Covid pandemic.
Gifts of Stock
Whether for paying your pledge or making a significant gift to the Endowment, gifts of stock can be a great tool to reduce capital gains tax. Please contact the parish office to share all pertinent information about the gifts you plan to make.
Memorial Gifts
People often make gifts to Good Sam in memory of a loved one, often a parishioner, but sometimes just a loved one in whose name they would like to make a gift. If you would like to make such a gift, please make a check out to Church of the Good Samaritan, 425 North Cedar Bluff Rd, Knoxville, TN 37923. In the memo line please put: In Memory of (name of person). For more information about memorial gifts, click here to email the Rector.
Wills and Planned Gifts
People should plan for the hard choices that come with death. Create a medical directive to state your wishes in the event you are not capable of making your own decisions. Make a will, arranging for the disposal of the material goods you have received in your lifetime. The plans you make are huge gifts to your loved ones who will have to make decisions without you. If you are able, leave bequests for religious and charitable uses. The Good Sam Legacy Society is a stewardship program designed to celebrate the lives of those who have faithfully remembered Good Samaritan through a financial instrument or bequest like a will, trust, life insurance, or retirement assets. For more information on planned giving, click here.
Planned giving has allowed Good Sam to create an Endowment. Currently, the Endowment generates about $30,000 a year in income while allowing the principal to grow faster than inflation. This income is not to be designated for operating expenses, but rather capital improvements, building maintenance projects, outreach, or new ministries. In the last few years, the Endowment income has allowed us to install a disability lift, build the new ramp and patio outside Henslee Hall, and improve the lighting in the sanctuary. More recent projects include equipment for permanently streaming services, updating the website, and updating the bathrooms. Please consider a contribution to the Endowment, either as a gift or a bequest or other Legacy gift.