Generations and Stewardship

Session 3 of the Online Academy of Faith and Generosity was held on November 5, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom.  Grace Duddy Pomroy, Director of the Stewardship Leaders Program at Luther Seminary, led a session called Generations and Stewardship.  

Synopsis

So often younger people are overlooked by congregations because people assume they aren’t generous. Join Grace in taking a closer look at generational characteristics and giving patterns across all living American generations – seeing how the trends have changed and what’s stayed the same. She’ll explore what percentage of each generation gives to charity, average gift size, giving priorities, and preferred channels for giving using research from the Blackbaud’s 2018 Study: “Next Generation of American Giving.”  After naming the assumptions placed particularly on younger generations, she’ll dive into more research centered on the demographic and giving trends associated with Millennials and GenXers. She’ll also share the focus group study she conducted with over 60 Millennials and GenXers about money, stewardship, and the church. She’ll end by sharing some ideas that have worked to engage younger congregation members in giving as well as some questions to start a focus group of your own. 

Resources

• Here is a link to the Prezi presentation Grace used.  If you are interested in reading more about the data Grace presented, her presentation includes links to many of her sources.
• To receive a link to the recorded presentation, please email us at info@umfwv.org
• During the presentation, Grace mentioned a personal finance study that can be used with congregations called Six Weeks on Money (sixweeksonmoney.com).  Jeff mentioned that he is reviewing a new UMC resource called Saving Grace.  Read about it here.
• Grace is the co-author of the book Embracing Stewardship: How to Put Stewardship at the Heart of Your Congregation's Life
• Grace blogs at www.gracepomroy.com.

Presenter

Grace Duddy Pomroy is the Director of the Stewardship Leaders Program at Luther Seminary. She’s a lay, millennial stewardship leader, speaker, and financial educator based in Minneapolis. She is the co-author of the stewardship book, Embracing Stewardship: How to Put Stewardship at the Heart of Your Congregation’s Life, as well as author of the 2013 ELCA stewardship resource, “Stewards of God’s Love.” Grace blogs on her website: www.gracepomroy.com where she helps people connect their money and their values to create a more fulfilling life.