ELECTRONIC GIVING FACTS – TUALATIN PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Q. What is electronic giving?
A. Electronic giving (also called online giving) is a direct paperless debit/payment transaction whereby your contribution is deducted electronically from your bank checking or savings account or charged directly to your credit/debit card account.
Q. What are the advantages of electronic giving?
A. Electronic giving is all about convenience for you and consistency for TPC. It eliminates frequent check writing and allows you to stay on track with your giving even when you are unable to attend worship services. TPC in turn benefits from donation consistency and a reduction in staff time required to process donations.
Q. How does electronic giving work?
A. For contributions from a checking or savings account, money is transferred automatically from your bank account to the church’s bank account using the Automated Clearing House (ACH) network. For contributions made by credit and debit card, money is electronically deposited into the church’s bank account without delay within 2-4 business days.
Q. When will my contribution be debited from my account?
A. The first debit to your account will occur on the date you specify. Thereafter, your account will be debited according to the frequency you select. Currently one-time, weekly and monthly options are available.
Q. How will I keep track of contributions in my check register?
A. Since your contribution is made at a pre-established time, you simply record it in your check register on the appropriate date. Electronic contributions will appear on your bank statement.
Q. What can I use to prove I made a contribution?
A. Your bank statement will show an itemized list of electronic transactions that can be used as proof of your contributions. You will also receive an email contribution receipt (from eservicepayments.com). TPC will continue to send you giving statements listing all of your contributions to TPC.
Q. Is electronic giving risky?
A. Electronic giving is less risky than writing checks or carrying cash to services. To process electronic donations, the church uses Vanco Services, LLC—an established and highly-regarded company that moves funds directly from member bank accounts to the church bank account on the same day without any delay. Vanco processes contributions for more than 20,000 churches and nonprofit organizations.
Q. How much does electronic giving cost?
A. It costs you nothing and it costs the church very little. There is an option to pay an additional amount to help offset the church fee. Paying from a checking or savings account (ACH) is the most beneficial and preferable to TPC because our fees are minimal.
Q. Can I change my contribution amount, frequency, bank account information, credit card expiration date, or any other online giving option once I’ve established a recurring donation?
A. Yes, all of these services are available. Just return to the TPC online giving page (click GIVE at the top of any page), choose GIVe NOW, and logon to your profile using your secure login. You will be able to view your contribution history and edit any of the information.
Q. Can I participate in the weekly offering if my contribution is automatically deducted from my bank account or is charged to my credit/debit card?
A. If you wish you can write “I give online” on an offering envelope. This is, however, not necessary.
Q. What if I try electronic giving and don’t like it?
A. You can cancel your authorization at any time via your secure login or by notifying the church.
Q. Can I make contributions in memory of or in honor of someone?
A. Yes, that option is on the payment page.
Q. Can I make contributions to special offerings via this feature?
A. Additional giving options will be provided for special offerings (e.g. One Great Hour of Sharing). There is also an option to make a donation for a specific purpose via the Other Contribution line on the Giving page. Just specify the purpose of your donation in the text box provided.
Q. I have set up auto pay for my contribution through my bank bill pay application – should I change?
A. TPC will continue to accept checks – personal and printed by financial institutions. To eliminate paper and reduce clerical work in the office, you may want to consider making the change to electronic giving. Electronic giving will give you easy access to your contribution history, If you set up electronic giving, don’t forget to cancel your bank auto pay.
Q. How can I sign up for electronic giving?
A. To sign-up, you can click on the GIVE link at the top of the TPC website (tpcspirit.org). A secure login enables you to make one-time contributions, set-up a recurring giving schedule, view personal donation history and change / delete pending donations. If you want to make contributions without going online, contact Mike Shiffer in the church office.
Q. Who can I talk to if I still have questions?
A. Julie Flint, TPC Financial Assistant, will be happy to answer your questions and provide more information. Also see Julie for assistance with online giving setup. Julie can be reached via email finance@tpcspirit.org or in the church office 503 692-4160.