Introduction
GHCA is owned and sponsored by the Greater Houlton Christian Academy Association, Incorporated, a 501(C)3 non-profit corporation. It costs the Academy approximately $5,000 to educate a single child per school year. This cost is broken down in the pie chart to the right. GHCA offers an affordable tuition of $3995 per student (for the 2010-2011 school year), with discounts for families with multiple children. The difference in operational costs and tuition is made up by the Annual Fund.
Every student, today as in the past, receives a "hidden scholarship" which comes from gifts and donations. The reality is that many parents could not afford to pay a tuition that fully covers the cost of educating a child. This is why the Annual Fund is so critical the GHCA.
GIVING TO THE ANNUAL FUND
Anyone can give to our Annual Fund. In the past, parents, alumni, Board members, staff, grandparents and friends of the school have participated in meeting these special needs. Whether you are tied to the school or not, you should know of the benefits of giving to the Annual Fund. Your contribution:
- promotes a strong academic program based on traditional Christian values.
- provides a strong financial base for the school to pursue programs and expansion that allows our students to reach their maximum potential.
- is an investment in a young person's life, who educated in GHCA's tradition, can positively affect the lives of thousands. Some of the world's greatest leaders came from small rural schools.
- ensures that families continue to have a high-quality, Christian alternative to our secular public school systems at a tuition they can afford.
- is tax-deductible!
When you give to Greater Houlton Christian Academy's Annual Fund, you can be assured that "every gift counts." Consider the failed investments that have been headline news in our slumping economy. Now consider what an investment in Christian education can provide in returns. If you haven't yet, take a minute to view GHCA's Promotional Video to learn more about what your contribution provides! If you have any questions about what you see, or you'd like to discuss the mission of the Academy further, please feel free to email our head of school at head@ghca.com
WAYS YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE
CASH DONATIONS
The most frequent way of donating to the school is through cash gifts. These gifts have an immediate impact and are tax-deductible. We invite you to stop by our office to discuss your desire to make a cash donation. If you live far away, you can mail us a check, payable to Greater Houlton Christian Academy. Our address is:
Greater Houlton Christian Academy
27 School Street
Houlton, Maine 04730ONLINE DONATIONS
GHCA is currently investigating ways to allow you to make your donations online via your credit card. We pursued one option, but it ended up being too costly to be useful to us. We hope to have this feature for you soon. In the meantime, you are welcome to email our office (office@ghca.com) about your desire to make a donation, or call us at 207-532-0736. For your own protection, never send account information or credit card numbers via email!
MATCHING GIFTS
Many companies support education by matching or multiplying their employee's gifts. Please check directly with your company's Human Resources department to see if your employer has a matching gift program. Often this benefit is extended to employee spouses and retirees as well. Many companies also offer a monetary matching gift for those employees who contribute to their communities through volunteer time. This is a great way to stimulate personal giving as well!
IN-KIND DONATIONS
In-kind donations are tangible gifts of personal property, such as furnishings, computers, auction items, and office equipment. Assets related to the educational mission of the Academy can be deducted for their full fair market value, which is determined by the donor unless we are provided with original receipts. Please make sure to contact the Academy before bringing in-kind donations to us, as we are not able to accept certain items.
STOCKS & SECURITIES
Gifts of appreciated securities can provide you with an income tax charitable deduction and a capital gains tax savings. Notify your broker that you wish to make a gift of securities to GHCA. After authorizing the transfer, instruct your broker to contact the School Office to speak with the School Treasurer.
In order to credit your gift properly, we must know your name, the name of the stock, number of shares, and date of transfer. The gift is complete when the stock is transferred to the GHCA account.
FUNDRAISERS AND EVENTS
GHCA offers many fundraising opportunities throughout the school year. Whether it is a spaghetti supper, the GHCA concession stand, an auction, or our annual Bike-A-Thon, you can participate! We can always use volunteers to help run these events, and we invite the entire community to participate them. Frequent our website often to learn when fundraising events are coming up.
Questions?
Your questions are important to us! Members of our financial committee will be glad answer specific questions regarding where your donations go, how they are used, or any detailed questions regarding our budget that you may have. Our Head of School is always eager to talk to people regarding Christian Education and GHCA's mission, which is: "GHCA exists to educate the mind for knowledge and to enlighten the spirit for wisdom in order to empower the next generation of godly leaders who will impact the world for Jesus Christ." We can even arrange a tour! You can start the process by emailing our main office at office@ghca.com.
Thank You!
We at Greater Houlton Christian Academy, where "Teaching Minds, Touching Hearts." is our motto, express our sincere gratitude for your contribution to our Annual Fund. Remember, every gift counts!