Proactive Planning

Proceeds from the annual collection help young religious communities plan for the future.

Recently, the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO) held a workshop for four religious communities with a median age of 45 or younger. Each of the communities lacks sufficient savings to fund retirement. However, because most or all of their members are still in active ministry, they have ample time to implement strategies that will enable them to continue important ministries for the People of God while setting aside adequate funding for their eventual retirement needs.

The gathering is one of the initial steps in Planning and Implementation Assistance, a comprehensive, twelve- to eighteen-month program to provide financial and consultative assistance to religious communities that are significantly underfunded for retirement. Along with all the support and services provided by the NRRO, Planning and Implementation Assistance is made possible by donations to the annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection.

The workshop included presentations on the financial and care-delivery aspects of retirement planning, and participants learned about various resources that may support their planning efforts. By encouraging the participating communities to be proactive in addressing their long-term needs now, the NRRO hopes to help them avoid a future crisis in retirement funding.

Communities attending the workshop valued the information and were eager to get started on the path to financial stability.