We are excited to announce the launch of Church Center! Keep reading to learn more about this new way for us to stay connected!
Church Center is a mobile app and web experience that will help us better connect with one another and our mission to share the love of Jesus. It will be your one-stop-shop to find out what's happening at St. Paul's and get involved.
We expect that Church Center will help us better connect you with what you need to grow your faith, serve, and get involved at St. Paul's. It will also improve church communication and provide tools to help our leaders better serve the church.
Access Church Center by downloading the Church Center App on your smartphone or tablet. Go toΒ https://spalutheran.churchcenter.com/setup, download the App, and follow the instructions.
You can also access it from a PC through a web browser like Chrome Β at https://spalutheran.churchcenter.com. Use the Login button at the upper right.
When you access Church Center for the first time you will connect with St Paul's by entering your mobile phone number or email address, then entering the one-time 6-digit code code that you receive.
No. Both the church website and Weekly Connect email newsletter will continue to be important communication tools. Our website, spalutheran.org, will get a makeover this fall to better welcome potential visitors. Mass emails from the church will soon look different but will still provide the info you need.
Features will be rolled out gradually. Right now you can find:
We will be rolling out new features over the next several months. These include:
For now, you can continue to give through Vanco. At some point later this year we will migrate everyone to Church Center and shut down giving through Vanco. Your past giving history will be moved into the new system for a seamless experience at tax time. We will communicate with you once migration details are finalized.
You can also immediately start using the new Giving button in Church Center (General Fund only for now, designated funds will be available soon). Our business manager, Heidi, will be glad to help you with a smooth transition, especially if you have set up recurring contributions, so that you do not double-contribute or skip a contribution. Contact her at business@spalutheran.org.
The Church Center Giving platform is available right in the app for convenient giving. Church Center also has lower processing fees than Vanco.
Please use the Giving button in Church Center to set up one-time or recurring gifts. For now gifts can only be made to the General Fund in Church Center. If you'd like to make a one-time gift to a designated fund (like Mission to Serve or VBS), please use Vanco for now (spalutheran.org/give). Designated funds will be available in Church Center soon. If you have questions, Heidi, our business manager, will be happy to help. You can reach her at business@spalutheran.org.
Planning Center is the company that developed the Church Center app. It's also a suite of software tools that church staff and some ministry leaders will use to perform ministry tasks and run Church Center behind the scenes.
Church 360 is our current church member database software. Over the next several months, we will transition away from Church 360 to Church Center and Planning Center. Our Church 360 database will be retired by the end of the year.
Yes. Both Planning Center (the company that developed Church Center) and St. Paul's prioritize the security and privacy of your information. Planning Center follows industry best practices to keep your data secure. St. Paul's does not sell your data and only uses it to better minister to you and the congregation as a whole. When the Directory is rolled out later this year, you will get to choose what is and isn't shared with the congregation. You can also control how your information is shared in any groups that you join.
The St. Paul's Technology Team is here to help! Later this summer we'll be available in the Narthex before and after worship to answer your questions and help you get connected with Church Center. You can also ask questions using the form linked below or contact the church office.
