GOAL
Invest in Sacred Places and Inspire Additional Support
Thanks to generous supporters, Partners has been able to significantly increase the planning and capital funds we provide to sacred places each year. These funds are of vital importance to under-resourced congregations, but of equal or greater importance is the power of our grants to serve as catalysts for additional support. For example, congregations that have completed projects with grants from the National Fund for Sacred Places have raised nearly $ 7 for every dollar granted.
In 2026 Partners will increase our direct investment in sacred places, thanks to generous gifts and grants. In addition to the Pennsylvania Faithful Fund, Partners will invest in America’ s sacred places in the following ways:
• The National Fund for Sacred Places will award approximately $ 9 million of capital grants, as well as approximately $ 450,000 in planning grants to help congregations prepare for major capital projects.
• The Intervention Fund will award approximately $ 1.25 million to support congregations recovering from emergency situations.
• The Philadelphia Fund for Black Sacred Places will distribute $ 214,000 to Black-led sacred places in Philadelphia to help them create or improve portions of their property that serve the public.
GOAL
Build a Shared Understanding of the Public Value of Sacred Places
Partners has long been a thought leader and research partner, helping to build public knowledge about the value and vulnerability of older and historic sacred places. We helped establish and demonstrate the public value of religious assets with our 1998 landmark study, Sacred Places at Risk: New Evidence on How Endangered Older Churches and Synagogues Serve Communities, and our 2016 study, The Economic Halo Effect of Sacred Places. More recently Partners published Transitioning Older and Historic Sacred Places: Community-Minded Approaches for Congregations and Judicatories, a guide to help congregations rethink or reimagine their buildings, and The Economic Halo Effect of Rural United Methodist Churches in North Carolina, the first statewide study of the economic contribution of rural congregations.
This year we are collaborating with scholars from Notre Dame, the University of Southern California, Yale and other universities to further our shared understanding of how sacred places contribute to their wider communities. We also help congregations measure their own community contributions through our Public Value Tool, which was refreshed last year and will be shared with a wider audience in 2026. Learn more at www. sacredplacespublicvaluetool. org.
• Projects in the Upper Midwest and Central Appalachia will distribute $ 78,000 to historically and culturally significant sacred places for repairs and restoration.
Partners also supports investment in sacred places through our capital campaign consulting services. In 2025 we helped 14 congregations raise $ 13.5 million via community-wide capital campaigns, and we expect to help an equal or greater number of congregations complete campaigns in the coming year.
With a seed grant and training from Partners, Wil Posey and the Murphy, NC, community were able to replace the roof and restore the cupola of the historic Harshaw Chapel. The site, which had fallen into disrepair, will be used for ecumenical worship services and for historical and cultural presentations. Photo: Wil Posey
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