By Bronislaus B. Kush
Telegram & Gazette
January 31, 2009
http://www.telegram.com/article/20090131/NEWS/901310362/1116/NEWSLETTERS08
 |
|
From left, Oscar Cheffers, 5, his mother, Grace Cheffers, both of Lancaster, talk with Stephen Anderson outside of St. Paul’s Cathedral in Worcester after the noon Mass yesterday. |
Economy takes a bite out of portfolio
WORCESTER — The woes of secular Wall Street have resulted in significant investment losses for the Diocese of Worcester.
However, chancery officials said the losses are manageable and shouldn’t result, at least in the immediate future, in layoffs or program cuts.
An audit by O’Connor, Maloney & Co. P.C., along with other financial information released yesterday by diocesan officials, showed that unrealized losses on investments — combined to a degree with a decision to begin factoring in depreciation expenses on church property — produced a deficit of $615,670 for the fiscal year that ended Aug. 31.
“I am especially grateful for the generosity of all our parishioners and benefactors, without whom our diocese could not flourish,” said Bishop Robert J. McManus. “We know that we will continue to face new fiscal challenges, as will every religious, educational, and charitable organization, before economic recovery occurs.”
Diocesan officials said they were not surprised at the poor performance of their financial portfolio, given the tumultuous ups and downs of global markets.
Despite the losses, the diocese actually reported a 4 percent surplus in its operating budget. The annual report on operating activities for fiscal 2008 showed $34,372,749 in unrestricted revenues and $33,056,453 in unrestricted expenses.
Following a recommendation by the auditing firm, the diocese reformulated its report for fiscal 2007 to also account for depreciation expenses and to eliminate interdepartmental transactions.
Those procedural changes resulted in the reporting of $29,964,182 in unrestricted revenues and $28,990,807 in unrestricted expenses, for a net surplus of 3 percent for that fiscal year. In not figuring those two factors, the chancery last year reported a loss of $75,993 for fiscal 2007.
Raymond L. Delisle, diocesan spokesman and vice chancellor for operations, noted chancery officials have produced “tight budgets” and streamlined operations over the past few years to deal with the tailspinning economies.
“We’re doing our best to keep costs down,” he said.
He added that the turbulent financial markets haven’t greatly affected diocesan operations because budgets aren’t dependent on investments made by the chancery.
 |
| Bishop McManus |
Bishop McManus, in a pastoral letter issued this week, noted that most diocesan departments and agencies were able to operate with balanced budgets.
He warned, however, of tough times, noting, for example, that local parochial schools will continue to face significant financial challenges, given declining enrollment and increasing costs.
Bishop McManus added that, as part of a planning process started a few years ago, five city parishes were closed last year.
“This process will proceed as we continue to strengthen parochial life throughout the diocese,” he said. “One byproduct of this process is better use of our resources, a priority I stressed in a pastoral letter on the economy which I issued last October.”
The local church’s financial reports are available on the diocesan Web site (worcesterdiocese.org). The chancery has also encouraged pastors to report the findings in church bulletins this weekend.
Contact: bkush@telegram.com
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.