St. Mary's Parish and School Giving

​By our baptism as Catholics, we are called to be stewards of God’s gifts to us - to use them in ways that build up our families, our parish, our community, and our world. When we give to our parish and to the greater Church, we are demonstrating to our children and to the world our values and what is important to us. The Offertory, or Collection, at Mass is an integral part of the Sunday liturgy, not just because it is the primary means by which the parish receives financial support from the parishioners, but because it is also an expression of our gratitude to God for the blessings He has given us.

• Weekly Offering: The weekly offering is to the parish what your paycheck is for your family. This is how the bills get paid: utility bills, insurance, salaries for clergy and staff, and all the other line items you see in the annual or quarterly financial reports. The weekly offering is the collection (the first one if there are two in any given week) taken up at Mass on Saturday or Sunday.
• Restoration & Maintenance Fund: Maintaining and improving a historic church, a mission church, and two schools is very expensive. Gifts to this fund support needed repairs and maintenance. 
• Special Collection: As Catholics, we are part of a universal Church that extends beyond our own parish boundaries. National second collections combine our resources to support important causes that carry out the mission of the Church.
• In Memory Of - Honoring a Life by Helping Others: The tragedy of losing a loved one is difficult, but many families find comfort in honoring the life of those they have lost by requesting memorial contributions be made to St. Mary’s of Annapolis. Through memorial contributions, family, friends, and acquaintances can express their condolences with the positive action of supporting programs and services helping our students, our parishioners and the overall benefit of St. Mary’s. 

The St. Mary's School Annual Fund is the most direct way for parents, alumni, parishioners and friends to support St. Mary’s Schools. The Fund accounts for approximately 10 percent of the schools budget.  

A meaningful gift means something different to each of us. A gift to St. Mary's School Annual Fund enriches the intellectual, social, and personal development of every student, every day. Your gift demonstrates your loyalty to St. Mary’s and the quality Catholic education it provides. Each year, we must raise these indispensable funds to provide dependable, recurring, budgeted support for the Schools’ highest priorities and greatest opportunities. Additionally, the Tuition Angel Program, a vital part of the Annual Fund helps to provide tuition assistance for students with demonstrated need.

Why Annual Giving Matters
Tuition only covers approximately 90 percent of the cost of educating each student. The St. Mary's School Annual Fund provides the remaining nine percent of the School’s annual operating budget. The difference, in part, is made up through contributions from parents, alumni, parishioners, and the community at large.

Whether you designate to curriculum development, athletics, campus ministry, new tools or technology for the classroom, fine and performing arts opportunities, or eye-opening outdoor educational experiences such as our fifth grade Science on Display Greenhouse Project or our high school’s Environmental Studies Program, your support provides current students with opportunities for success. Unrestricted gifts permit the schools to allocate resources where they are needed most during the current school year. As such, the St. Mary's Annual Fund plays a primary role in enabling the schools to realize their missions, inspiring students to realize their greatest potential.