Thanks to the parishes and dioceses we serve, we took a major step forward in October hosting the first annual ParishSOFT Users' Conference. There were many highlights to the conference for me:

• Welcoming 200 attendees from 84 parishes and 20 dioceses who came from Alaska to the Virgin Islands. Many attendees have had a very important impact on ParishSOFT over the years. Our newer users experienced firsthand how much ParishSOFT values customer input and uses it to grow and improve our products and services.
• Experiencing the Lord's presence in the Eucharist during Mass for the first time at a ParishSOFT function each of the two mornings of the conference
• Observing and learning from our marvelous presenters—about half users and half our staff—who worked so hard and conscientiously to prepare and present excellent workshops
• Seeing all 35 of our Ann Arbor-based staff host our guests graciously—and get energized in the process
• Watching people of the Church build new professional relationships and deepen existing ones
• Experiencing so much appreciation for what we do and receiving lots of constructive feedback

Conference Highlights Technology, Best Practices

The First Annual ParishSOFT Users' Conference was held in Ann Arbor on October 27-29, 2008, with over 200 participants who came from New Hampshire, California, Alaska—even the Virgin Islands and Bahamas.

In his welcome letter to participants, ParishSOFT President Bill Pressprich reminded them that even though their service to the Church is hidden among the endless details of managing her day-to-day business, they hold a special place in God's heart.

During the opening session of the conference, Pressprich introduced the theme of the conference—"Organize, Communicate and Collaborate"—and drew attention to ParishSOFT's mission: To serve the Church by helping staff organize and manage church operations and ministries, improve communication to the various audiences in and outside the parish, and foster collaboration through the sharing of data. "This allows staff, volunteers and others to work more closely together," he said. The effect on parish life is very visible. "We've seen many churches use technology to connect with the homebound, reach out to fallen-away Catholics, and engage their youth."

Emphasizing the importance of lay ministry and reaching out to those in need, keynote speaker Ralph Martin presented a talk on Pope John Paul II's New Evangelization. Martin, Director of Graduate Theology Programs in Evangelization at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit and President of Renewal Ministries in Ann Arbor, hosts the Catholic television and radio show "The Choices We Face."

"It is the wave of the future in the Church," Martin told participants, "to respond to Pope John Paul II's universal call to holiness by evangelizing those who are already believers." Martin's talk provided the context for our work in the Church and set a positive tone for the conference. (See Ralph Martin article below.)

A highlight of the conference was the unveiling of ParishSOFT's newest additions to its integrated suite of software—the Parish IQ and ConnectNOW! family of web-based software modules that includes Parishioner Portal, NotifyNow, Ledger & Payables, and Online Giving. Because of the easy-to-use interface, any staff person can run Parish IQ to analyze data and obtain fast, accurate answers to nearly any question, no matter how complex. All ConnectNOW! products allow users to access their data anytime, anywhere by logging in to the secure web-based applications.

Over 50 workshops—led by parish, diocesan and ParishSOFT staff—were organized to meet specific needs at the parish and diocesan levels. Subjects included Effective Parish Communications, Stewardship, Online Giving, e-Documents, Customized Queries and Reports, Diocesan Development Manager—Best Practices, The Power of Data When Good Standards Are in Place, and many more. Key software workshops were aimed at beginner, intermediate and advanced users.

Tuesday night's festivities included a formal dinner followed by entertainment by internationally known comedian and juggler Roberto the Magnificent. Roberto—aka Robert Stuverud—demonstrated his cirque-style skills by riding very tall unicycles and industrial strength pogo sticks, juggling flaming torches and spinning hand saws, all the while keeping the audience laughing at his comedic chatter.

ParishSOFT customers who attended the conference were enthusiastic in their response. "This users' conference was fantastic," Donna Borman said afterward. "It was easy to learn in such a collaborative environment." A parish accountant at SS Faith, Hope and Charity Parish in Winnetka, Ill., Donna was especially impressed by learning how much the ParishSOFT system can do to expand a parish's management strategies. "Many parishes do things 'their own way', so training for staff is limited to one person's view of what works best. I am meeting with my Lay Leadership committees in the coming weeks, and I'm on a mission to use the system more fully to meet the needs of the Parish."

Plans for the 2nd Annual ParishSOFT Users' Conference in 2009 are underway as staff members search for a larger facility to accommodate expanded workshops and training. Everyone at ParishSOFT is looking forward to meeting more of their customers in person next year. For the latest conference updates, visit www.parishsoft.com/usersconference.

In December 2008, we are launching a new, fully automated National Change of Address (NCOA) update for the addresses in your ParishSOFT database.

The NCOA update will keep your mailing information in compliance with new United States Postal Service (USPS) regulations, effective November 23, 2008, that require any list used in a First Class or Standard mailing to undergo a USPS-approved address correction ("Move Update") every 95 days. This stricter mandate for mailings will reduce undeliverable mail expenses for both your parish and the USPS.

ParishSOFT will provide you with a convenient way to run your NCOA updates—just one click from your Family Directory module will send your addresses through the NCOA database and update your entire ParishSOFT database with any changes. The process is quick and easy, and it complements our Mailroom: CASS module, which cuts mailing costs with certification, sort, and barcode options that qualify your mailings for the most economical postage rates, including bulk mailing.

If your parish uses address lists for reduced rate First Class, Standard or Bulk mailings, order your ParishSOFT NCOA Update today. At rates of $.01/address, with a $35 minimum per update, it's easy to qualify for the lowest possible USPS mailing rates!

• Complete, sign, and fax/email the USPS "PAF" form, available on www.parishsoft.com/support/faqs.asp#familydirectory.
• Activate the NCOA Update functionality in your software by entering the Key Code we send you.
• Keep your address lists clean and compliant—all from your ParishSOFT software.

Contact us at 866.930.4774 x 1, info@parishsoft.com or www.parishsoft.com for more information on NCOA updates or ParishSOFT's Mailroom: CASS module.

Catholic evangelist Ralph Martin asked the participants at ParishSOFT's First Annual Users' Conference to step back for a moment and think about what the Holy Spirit is saying to us. Drawing from Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter, Novo Millennio Inuente—"On the Beginning of the New Millenium"—Martin suggested three points: 1) A rediscovery of the universal call to holiness; 2) A rediscovery of the Church as a communion of love in which all its organizations are about love; and 3) A rediscovery of the power of the Holy Spirit to make the New Evangelization possible.

John Paul II's language is strong on this point: Holiness is an important dimension that we've lost sight of. Contrary to being only for priests and nuns, the call to holiness is for everyone. It goes back to Baptism, which is not just a ritual, but a sacrament that brings us into living contact with God, who takes hold of us and lives within us. And this is how we grow from Baptism to the beatific vision.

We come into a relationship with Jesus—not just the historical Jesus, but Jesus alive in us. This is not simply an article of faith: Jesus wants to share with us his loving relationship with the Father. Being one with Jesus and the Father is the key to freedom—we no longer need to feel we're orphans.

In addition, being a Christian means allowing Christ to live in us as he carries out his mission to seek and save the lost. And he wants us to help. "Use your software to find them," Martin said, "then help them surrender more deeply to Jesus."

Today, after 1700 years of Christendom, the world lives in an aggressively pagan, even anti-Christian culture similar to what the early Church experienced. In response, Pope John Paul II summoned Christians to a New Evangelization, to rekindle in ourselves the burning ambition of St. Paul, who said, "Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel."

The Holy Spirit is awakening in us this impulse toward Mission. It cannot be limited to special groups or committees in parishes but must be fundamental to what it means to be a Christian.

Leading a normal Catholic life means that we cannot keep Christ to ourselves. There are four ways for Catholics to participate in Jesus' mission:

1. Through the witness of our lives—staying married, being open to having children, being honest with customers, paying bills on time, treating employers/ employees honestly,
2. By works of charity and mercy,
3. Renewing the temporal order by helping to make the world's structures work better for people,
4. By looking for occasions to draw people by word to a more fervent life in Christ. And the fullness of being a Catholic only comes with this evangelistic outreach.

There are natural ways of sharing your faith, according to Martin. If you read a good spiritual book, share it with friends. When you hear an inspirational talk, tell others about it. Embracing the call to evangelize is a little easier when we realize that in our dechristianized culture, people are looking for meaning—and we've got the "real deal."

We Catholics need the heart of Jesus to weep for the loss of our own people who are going toward destruction. We need to tell fellow believers that getting into harmony with God's will for us—to become who God created us to be—is not a burden. It is a blessing!

Ralph Martin is Director of Graduate Theology Programs in Evangelization at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, President of Renewal Ministries and host of "The Choices We Face" on television and radio.

Parish IQ (Intelligent Query) Builds Fast & Easy Custom Queries
Get answers to nearly any question quickly and in plain English with the new Parish IQ—and you don't need to know a thing about raw database structures or high-level database functionality.

Users at all levels of technical expertise can pick from menus containing family, member, and contributions data fields that use the same names as the fields you use every day in your ParishSOFT applications. It's familiar, fast, and powerful.

Change your selections or add conditions, sort and aggregate functions (i.e., count, average, etc.) on-the-fly and see the results instantly. Use the tools in any combination for precise, creative data analysis using clean, real-time results.

Saved queries update automatically so you can use them again and again, viewing freshly updated results each time. Export results to Excel™ and Word™ formats for true custom reporting. And with collaboration-enhancing options like email, query import, and a global/private designation, Parish IQ offers many ways to share queries; or keep them confidential for your personal use.

The examples below illustrate just a few of the ways parishes are using Parish IQ to better understand their finances and the people they serve.

• Among the older teens in our parish, age 15-19, list those who have been baptized but not confirmed so you can design an outreach for them.
• Show which families made an offertory pledge last year but not this year in order to invite them to participate.
• Of our families with children in Religious Ed, list the adults who are not volunteering in parish ministries in order to involve them personally.

Parish IQ lets you use your ParishSOFT data to its fullest potential to improve ministries and stewardship, enhance decision making and boost productivity in your parish office. Get started today! Contact us at 866.930.4774 x 1, info@parishsoft.com or www.parishsoft.com to place your order or request a demonstration of Parish IQ.

3.6.25 Available Now
Our dedicated team continues to improve ParishSOFT technology to give you the best tools available to manage your churches and schools. Version 3.6.25 brings many new features to your desktop. Some of those features are mentioned below. For the complete list of enhancements, see the 3.6.25 Update Guide on www.parishsoft.com/support.

New Electronic Giving Features
Electronic Giving, the product that collects and posts family contributions automatically, has the following new features:

• Enhanced encryption better protects the security of your Electronic Giving transactions.
• Expanded change log reports provide better information and a more complete audit trail of your data updates.
• Multipledge capability lets even those families who have multiple pledges to the same fund pay electronically—just choose the desired ACH Date on your Membership Pledge Records screen.

• New Import/Export Utilities add-on lets you electronically post hundreds of pledge and contribution records—in seconds—from your bank's data file. Whether you use a bank lockbox or an electronic giving provider other than ParishSOFT (e.g., Vanco, ParishPay, etc.), this new contribution import can save your church staff countless hours of manual posting. For complete instructions on using this feature, please see the v3.6.25 Update Guide.
• New permission controls for funds now allow administrators to grant or remove any user's permission to access church funds. These permission settings carry through to all areas of the software, including reports and the new Parish IQ. The new settings are available on the Funds screen to administrators who click the Set Fund Permissions button.
• Post contributions faster than ever when you use your <Enter> key to move through the Family, Amount, and Save fields. Use the <Tab> key with the Rapid Check Number Entry (RCNE) feature to include the Check # and Memo field; or uncheck RCNE to include the Payment type in your data entry. A new Preferences menu option lets you include or exclude the Memo field from your data entry when you post using either the <Enter> or <Tab> options.

• End-of-Year reports now include the check number posted with any transactions.
• MultiPledge Reports options are now available for pledge statements, coupons, and reports, so you can create the reports you need even for families that have multiple pledges to a specific fund.
• Pledge Reports have new date formats; an option to view pledge data as of a specific date or for a specific family; and enhancements to accurately reflect pledge adjustments and calculations for overdue & unpaid pledges.

Sacramental Details (all modules)
The Sacramental Notifications templates have a more complete selection of Mail Merge fields, so your communications with a parish of baptism from a particular member's sacramental record can include full member and parish information. Sacramental Notifications are available from any member's Sacramental Details when you click the Send Notifications menu option. The menu offers Mail Merge templates for letters regarding Baptism, Confirmation, First Communion, Funeral, Matrimony, and Reconciliation.

Can I fill in the Informal Name, Formal Salutation, and Informal Salutation for all the families in my database at once?

Yes! If you use version 3.6.20 or later, the bulk Auto Fill will populate these fields.

1. Log in as Exclusive_Admin.
2. Click the Utilities menu > Auto Fill Additional Names.
3. ParishSOFT will ask you to choose whether to overwrite or skip any of these fields that already have data in them—click No at the prompt so that you don't overwrite any data entered by parish staff.

Don't forget to set your Name Preferences to designate which mailing name style to use on your reports, labels, and templates. Set your preferred style using the About menu > ParishSOFT System Info. > Preferences button.

Can I copy a workgroup?

Absolutely. Many of our users find it handy to copy an existing workgroup to a new workgroup when most or all of the families belonging to one group also need to belong to the other. Here's how it's done:

1. Click Modules menu > Family and Dynamic Workgroups.
2. Click on Family Workflow Groups (in the "tree").
3. Click Groups menu > Add Workgroup, and type the name of the new group.
4. Click and drag the name of the existing workgroup to the new workgroup name.
5. Answer Yes to the prompt to add all families to the group.

I need a quick custom report. How can I get what I need quickly?

Check out our query library on the support page at www.parishsoft.com/support, where you can find ready-to-use queries designed by our support staff and other parish users like you. We also offer the new Parish IQ (Intelligent Query)—this new product lets you create custom queries without the complexities of Access. Just pick your field names—they're in plain English—apply any sorting, functions, or aggregates; and get your results instantly. Visit www.parishsoft.com for more information on Parish IQ.

Do you have a question for our support team? Please e-mail us at support@parishsoft.com or call us at 866.930.4774 x2.

ParishSOFT year-end, hands-on teletraining courses are offered in convenient 60-minute sessions, led by our top-rated instructors! Classes are popular and fill quickly, so register today at www.parishsoft.com/training to reserve the date and time most convenient for you.

• Comply with the IRS rules
• Ensure accuracy by cleaning up your data
• Use the ParishSOFT year-end checklist
• Prepare end-of-year statements

• Reconcile balances and process W-2s and 1099s
• Review changes to 2008 tax forms
• Perform year-end maintenance on employee files
• Archive and back up your data

• Meet financial reporting requirements
• Complete detailed history reports
• Prepare budgets and projections for the new year
• Close out the year