The Executive Board of the South Carolina Baptist Convention approved the 2009 operating budget proposal of $34,250,000 during its meeting Oct. 13-14 at White Oak Conference Center. Other agenda items included plans for new construction and renovation of White Oak and the new statewide initiative “Experiencing Kingdom Life,” which will be the theme of the annual meeting held Nov. 11-12 in Columbia.
Executive director-treasurer Jim Austin addressed the board saying it was an exciting time to be a South Carolina Baptist. Citing its place in the history of the Southern Baptist Convention, Austin said this generation must be “just as courageous, creative, and faithful as our forefathers to reach the world with the message of Christ. How will we see the fresh move of God’s Holy Spirit within our congregations and across the state?”
Austin said the Cooperative Program is the primary vehicle for the current convention vision, which reads “to urgently take the whole gospel to the whole world that all might be whole.” He said South Carolina Baptists must understand the importance of the Cooperative Program, the number of churches and believers must be multiplied, and there will be a focus on church vitalization – equipping churches to experience Kingdom life.
Budget committee chair Dennis Wilkins presented the 2009 budget proposal, which includes a total budget increase of $300,000 or .9 percent. Following the action of the convention in 2007, the budget proposal utilizes the South Carolina Cooperative Program Advance Plan. This plan allocates 50 percent of any budget increase to the Southern Baptist Convention and 50 percent to ministries in South Carolina.
The 2009 budget proposal also includes a recommendation for allocation of any Cooperative Programs gifts received beyond the budget goal. Any gifts that exceed the budget goal will be allocated as follows: International Mission Board, 55 percent; North American Mission Board, 20 percent; and scholarships for South Carolina participants in mission trips, 20 percent.
SCBC institutions Connie Maxwell, South Carolina Baptist Ministries for the Aging, Anderson University, North Greenville University, and Charleston Southern University all requested additional funds, and a total of $75,000 from the budget was allocated to them. The Baptist Courier and the Baptist Foundation did not request additional funds. There is a $75,000 budget increase for convention staff ministries.
In other news, the board voted to approve the properties committee proposal to renovate White Oak to increase its guest occupancy, with the goal of reducing its CP funding over a period of several years. After conducting online surveys and focus groups, a master plan for the project was created and includes renovating parts of the current facility to become a more open gathering place for guests, a new sports and activity complex, and new front entrance signs and landscaping. The project is scheduled to be completed by June 2009 and ready for summer meetings and activities. White Oak will also celebrate 30 years of operation next year.
In addition, the Executive Board approved a recommendation of the properties committee to sell the Spartanburg Baptist Collegiate Ministry Center to Wofford College.
Collegiate ministry group director Ken Owens said Wofford has been interested in acquiring the property and the timing of the sale is right. “The Spartanburg Baptist Collegiate Ministry Center has served South Carolina Baptists well for almost 40 years. We sense that God is leading us to?focus the center of collegiate ministry efforts near the rapidly growing USC-Upstate campus, which has the largest concentration of college students in the Spartanburg area.”
The board approved the new partnership focus “South Carolina Baptists: A Witness to the World,” set to begin in January 2010 to support the current convention vision. The international partnership with South Asia will conclude December 2009. Guidelines for distributing missions volunteer assistance funds were also adopted.
The board approved the creation of the fund in 2007 and $105,377 was designated for 2008. Guidelines specify recipient qualifications such as being a member of an SCBC church or a South Carolina Baptist collegiate ministry, and participating in volunteer training. Individuals may receive funds only once a year.
At the conclusion of the meeting, board members recognized White Oak Conference Center staff for their years of service and with gifts of appreciation for those with the longest tenure. Some staff members have served since the conference center opened in 1979.