March 2023
The church was willed a house on some property in a neighborhood of Chico, CA in 1987 by Creston Patterson (a long time member of SCFBC) for Evangelistic Outreach.
PURPOSE
The primary purpose of the Patterson Fund (the “Fund”) of Santa Clara First Baptist Church (SCFBC) is to be used for Evangelistic Outreach as defined in the will and trust of Jean and Creston Patterson. The Board of SCFBC interpreted this to mean to use the funds from this gift to expand the witness and mission of Jesus Christ in the world, serving human needs in our community and around the world. It is not intended to compete with the regular annual giving of members (managed by the General Fund), or to diminish the opportunities for responsible stewardship by present or future members.
We, the Board of SCFBC, believe that God provides resources, including finances, to equip His church for His work. Gifts provided to the Church should be considered as such, and we would be wise stewards to responsibly and fully utilize His resources for His work. Nothing contained herein should be interpreted as recommending these gifts be hoarded, idolized or otherwise buried in the ground (See Matthew 25: 24-27).
TYPES OF GIFTS
SCFBC may be the recipient of special (e.g. end-of-life) gifts from members or friends of the church. Unless otherwise specified by the donor, all unrestricted special gifts received by the church will be added to the church’s Patterson Fund and be governed by this policy. Donor-restricted special gifts will be held and accounted for separately from the Board of SCFBC-governed Patterson Funds.
If you have questions, you may reach out to the Board at office@scfbc.org