Vestry

A Report on Saints Alive Book and Gift Shop
The dream of St. Michael’s Church having a presence on Broad Street began over 10 years ago. Rick Belser discussed the possibility of having a bookstore there through which St. Michael’s might reach the many people who visit Charleston and others who live here but may have never thought about joining us for a Sunday service. What an opportunity it would be to have street front retail space, rent free, on Broad St.! Not only could it be a ministry window to the public for St. Michael’s Church, but it held the potential for producing profits to be used for outreach. It was a “no brainer.”

This dream became a reality over a year ago as the hard work of the Bookstore Committee appointed by Rick Belser and led by Joe Nicholson saw its efforts come to fruition in Saints Alive Bookstore and Gift Shop. The Bookstore Committee interviewed five Christian bookstore managers or owners and explored product mixes, target customers, and bookstore management. They developed a preliminary business plan and a performa which showed the bookstore could break even from its inception.

Since its grand opening in November 2007, everyone involved, the Bookstore Committee, Joe Nicholson, Robbie Marion (who became the Vestry liaison to Saints Alive), and most especially Christine Meredith and our Saints Alive volunteers, have done everything possible to make this venture a success. Nevertheless, the reality is that Saints Alive’s operations have produced an average cash flow deficit every month of about $4,000. This is an expense that was not anticipated and never has been provided for in our operating budget. The Vestry has given the bookstore over a year to succeed and has allowed borrowing to fund the monthly deficits which now totals about $80,000.

Our Vestry has struggled with this situation in recent months in an effort to find a responsible way for Saints Alive to continue to operate. Christine Meredith has spent countless hours providing a service to potential customers to encourage business and promoting the business through sales and events. The Vestry’s hope and efforts have always been focused on the goal of preserving the dream of having this window to the world at our front door. However, the overwhelming financial reality of the nature of the retail business has forced us to realize that we cannot afford to continue to pursue this dream. In our effort to be good stewards of the resources entrusted to St. Michael’s, the vestry has agreed that we can no longer avoid the very difficult decision to close the doors of Saints Alive. The Vestry did not make its decision lightly or unadvisedly.
Now, having said that, Christine has asked that she be given the opportunity to present a new business plan and proforma for continuation of the bookstore business to the vestry, and to ask that the vestry reconsider. She will be given this opportunity at the Dec. vestry meeting. I do not know what the outcome will be.

Assuming that we proceed with the closing, the details and process for the sale of our inventory are still being worked out. . We will close the doors of Saints Alive for a complete inventory on December 29, 2008 and thereafter work to liquidate the merchandise. We hope to do this as cost effectively as possible and will need your help!

Many have invested their hearts as well as their time in Saints Alive. This has been for you a ministry, and our appreciation is impossible to express.
You may well have questions, and I would encourage you to direct those to me, to Ann Willis, or to Robbie Marion since we have been those on the vestry most closely associated with this process in recent months.

Please join us in prayer that the ultimate use of this space will be something not yet thought of; something that will be so much better than what we have desired or prayed for. Pray that when this comes to fruition we will all say, “Why of course. This is what God had planned all along.

In the immediate future we will go ahead with Men’s Night at Saints Alive to be held this Tuesday from 5-7 pm. This will be a great opportunity for men to do some Christmas shopping accompanied by man food, beer and wine.
~ God’s Peace, John Sosnowski, Senior Warden