What is a Fair Share Pledge?

In the information you receive about the 2023 Stewardship Campaign, you will see the term “Fair Share Pledge. What does that mean?

One way to describe a Fair Share Pledge is a pledge amount that brings you joy —the joy that comes with supporting those values that matter to you the most.

Our Unitarian Universalist faith is based on our covenantal relationship to each other and the world, as evidenced by our Principles. Our church is our spiritual home, where we live our values as individuals and as a community. And while most of us support a variety of worthy causes, this covenantal relationship gives our support of the church a higher priority when we make our giving decisions.

Just as we are a self-governing church, we are also self-financing. We depend on our members’ pledges for the majority of our annual operating budget. Pledges enable us to plan the church’s budget each year, by providing us with a fairly accurate idea of how much income we can expect to receive.

At First Unitarian, we ask that you consider a pledge of 3% to 5% of household income as you define it. For instance, for every $10,000 of income, the fair share range is $300 to $500. Many members can and do give more than 5%, while others can afford to pledge less than 3%. No matter the amount, each and every pledge is welcome and appreciated.

We understand that our members’ life circumstances vary. We do not expect you to place an undue hardship on yourself in order to support the church. However, neither should your pledge be easy. We ask that you consider an amount that is significant for you, but not onerous.

Past pledgers should have received a letter with your “rollover” pledge for 2023. If, after thoughtful consideration, you believe that amount reflects an appropriate pledge for you, there is nothing more you need to do. If you wish to make a change to that amount, you can do so online. If you have any questions about the pledging process, please email the committee at stewardship@first-unitarian-pgh.org.

After thoughtfully considering your circumstances, let your pledge represent your joyful commitment to our shared values