Current Financial Needs

Everyone knows it takes money to run a ministry and Chi Alpha is no different. Derrick and I are blessed to actually be required by our national supervisors to raise a full budget to be active on campus full-time. The stress of trying to run an active ministry in addition to maintaining a full or even part-time job is too much for one person to handle. Derrick and I know that the sacrifices of our financial support team members make it possible for us to do what we do and we love you guys for it! Seriously! We think about you guys all the time - we pray for you and your families. Thank you for giving!

Please pray about what you can do to be part of the work God is doing at SFA, and see below for a list of our current financial needs!

Current Financial Needs:

Monthly Support - In order to reach 100% of our monthly budget, we need an additional $651.57 in pledged, monthly support.  (Any money received monthly is a HUGE blessing and greatly appreciated; but the national office only considers pledged commitments as counting towards our 100% raised status)

Ministry Monthly Support - Our personal finances are completely separate from those of Chi Alpha at SFA.  The ministry also runs on monies given by alumni, students, friends and family, and churches.  As the full-time, primary Director, Derrick is also responsible for raising these funds (in addition to our personal budget).  We are currently working to raise an additional $250 in monthly support for the ministry.  This money would allow us to pay our monthly expenses in full.

*If you would like a breakdown of the minstry's finances, we can provide you with it.

XA House -  The house on North Street is used for office space for staff and, currently, housing for me and Derrick!  Under normal circumstances, we lease the rooms upstairs to students - leaving the downstairs space for offices and event use.  It's a wonderful property and has recently been updated in several major ways.  However, there are a few repairs that need to be made to the XA House/property:

• Repair kitchen pipe (it broke Fall Semester and will cost around $1,000 to fix - it has been temporarily fixed, but will not last much longer)
• Repair collapsing retention wall along south side of property
• Fix broken bricks on the front porch
• Pressure wash the front porch

XA House Furniture & Decorations - The furniture in the Chi Alpha House (1613 North Street) is currently mis-matched and rapidly falling apart.  We would love to be able to replace it.  Pieces Needed include at least one couch, loveseat, and oversize chair (the rooms are large enough that more can fit).  We also need new curtain rods in the living room, dining room, and office.  We currently have only two mirrors hanging on the walls, both of which belong to us (one of which is an antique - I would really like that one back safely in my house).  We would love to do something creative and unique to the ministry and/or SFA on the walls as both decoration and an expression of who Chi Alpha is and what we're all about.  All furniture needs to be durable (it's got to hold up to college students!).  We have a few ideas of furniture we like if you're interested in helping in this area!

Sound & Lighting Equipment - Chi Alpha currently has a functional sound system that is stored and used at the Chi Alpha Cafe.  However, we are quickly outgrowing that space (Praise the Lord!) and as a result, need to make some major updates to the sound system.  Think portability on all sound equipment, as we will be loading and unloading the entire system every week for XA Service.  Sound/Lighting Equipment is used not only at XA Service meetings, but also at almost every fellowship event hosted by the ministry.  Here's what we need:

• 2 (active/powered) main speakers
• 2 (active/powered) subwoofers
• 1 smaller, portable sound board (24 channel, preferably)
• Instrument stands
• 3 microphones (and cords, if corded)
• 1 music stand
• 2 boom microphone stands
• 1 direct box
• 4 microphone cables
• 1 Furman power conditioner 
• Drum mic kit
• 2 Light Trees with 4 Par Cans on each (8 total)
• Lighting Controller
• Video Projector (or replacement bulb for current projector)

Contact Derrick for details on preferred brands, current equipment, etc.

Office Equipment - We are currently blessed to be able to use our church's office to print whatever we need for the ministry.  However, it's a bit of a drive to get there.  If we could raise the funds to cover the additional office supplies, we would love to have a color laser printer for printing promo materials, newsletters for us and our quarterly alumni newsletter (The Legacy).

International Student House - We currently manage a rental property bought specifically to house international students at SFA.  We want to reach out to international students from around the world through cultural exchanges and real friendships - I can't think of anytime this happens better than when you share a house together! Our property at 329 Blount Street here in Nac is in a prime spot - across the street from campus, one block from the stadium!  Six bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, with a full kitchen and living/dining room, the house can hold up to 8 girls (at the time of this posting, we only have 5 full-time renters).  Structurally, the house is in great shape; however, the interior needs quite a bit of work!

• Repair broken burner and surface heat indicator light -OR- New kitchen stove
• Hall Shower needs new shower head & hose
• Front door locks are not working
• Closet doors replaced or repaired
• Wall repairs in several bedrooms
• New window blinds throughout
• Broken dishwasher removed and converted to cabinet space
• Wall paint throughout house
• New flooring throughout house
• New Living and Dining Room furniture & window treatments
• Second refrigerator freezer added (with 6-8 girls at any given time, freezer space is a premium!

To see pics of the house in its current state, click here.

XA Cafe - Every week 50+ students meet together to learn more about who God is and His plan for their lives through singing, interacting with one another, prayer, the preaching of God's Word, and living out the Gospel!  And all that happens in a renovated garage!  Just before we arrived at SFA, the twin, two-car garages at the International House were combined and converted into a meeting space for Chi Alpha's use.  When we started having XA Service meetings there, we had around 20-30 students each meeting.  As you can see, the Lord is growing the group by leaps and bounds!  Before our first meeting in the 2008-2009 school year, we needed to finish up some of the work on the Cafe:  we painted the wooden stage, cleaned up the tables and chairs, borrowed sound equipment we were missing, and put out some large rugs from Ashley's sister to cover the unfinished floor.  It was a great improvement!  This school, we were thrilled to have the funds to be able to replace broken and mismatched folding chairs (we need more seating to accommodate all the new people!) and add wall decorations, too!  It's beginning to feel much more comfortable in the room now.  (See pics of the Cafe here!)  The last major project to complete the Cafe is to finish the floors.  We have two options:  the first is to stain the concrete and the second to put in carpeting.  If you are interested in helping with this project, please contact Derrick today!