Farmington Lutheran. Here for good.
For decades, Farmington Lutheran Church has sought to live out our call, led by the Spirit, to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God. Since 2004, our church building has been a space for heartfelt worship, authentic relationships, and community connection. Now we have an opportunity to come together as a community of faith and purpose to make wise choices with the resources we seek to faithfully tend. Through our sustainable stewardship, generous collective spirit, and care for each other and our community, Farmington Lutheran is here for good.
Retiring our debt.
Responding to our call.
Living into our purpose.
Watch why and how we’re starting this journey together. Hear our Lead Pastors, Ben and Kristen Eisele, and Campaign Chairs Scott DeGraff and Jared Rendell share about the heart behind this opportunity we’re embracing together.
Listen to FLC families share some of where we’ve been, where we are now, and where we’re going, together.
Stories of Life at FLC
Our Building’s Origin Story
For decades, Lea Guenther has called Farmington Lutheran her church home. Listen as Lea, who also compiled our church history book, shares some of the origin story of our current building and what remnants from our previous building were brought over to carry the legacy of FLC.
Our Beautiful Land & Grounds
On many a day, you can find Bob & Karen Brownawell cultivating the deep blessing that is the outdoor space at FLC. Watch the dozens of pictures and hear them share stories of how hope has been cultivated alongside the oak trees.
Our Opportunity
In 2024, a generous donor approached FLC leaders with an offer of a significant financial gift of $250,000. This incredible donation was made without specific designation, trusting in the wisdom and vision of church leaders, and with a simple hope that this gift would inspire others to join in laying a solid foundation for the future of Farmington Lutheran and our impact in the community.
The first $50,000 of this gift was used to help inspire Signs of Life, our 2025 campaign to build a new sign for our property, meet our budget needs, and support local organizations we care about.
Through prayerful consideration, many thoughtful conversations, and careful research, our financial and stewardship teams, along with our church council, believe the most impactful way to use the remainding $200,000 of this gift is in creating a path to eliminate the remaining $710,000 mortgage on our building, saving thousands in interest, freeing our annual budget of approximately $120,000 in loan payments, and leaving FLC completely free of debt.
The For Good Campaign is designed to focus on our opportunity to eliminate our mortgage debt, expand and sustain our staff and programs, and faithfully increase how we’re able to live out our spirit of generosity in our community.
Our Possibilities
With this opportunity before us, FLC leaders explored options. We considered the implications of staying the current course with mortgage principal and interest payments, using the remaining $200,000 from the generous gift alone to pay down the principal, and the possibility of creating a campaign to secure the funds to make additional principal payments to eliminate our mortgage in 25 months, or less. Our entire community of faith is being invited to come together through a campaign to generate $345,000 to meet this mission together.
As we move forward in this campaign, many have asked, “What if we raise funds beyond our campaign goal, or receive funds sooner than 25-month projection?” Accelerating the timeline would allow us to free up budget and put them to good use sooner, plus offer additional interest savings. Additionally, if campaign gifts are greater than the projection, the budgeted payments and seed funds, could potentially be redirected to other projects, people, and purposes.
The Finance Path to Retire Our Building Mortgage
As of April 2026, the current mortgage balance sits near $710,000. The table to the right shows the sources from which principal mortgage payments will come: continued regular mortgage payments, the remaining $200,000 from an existing seed gift, and gifts from this “For Good” campaign.
Per the response to “For Good,” additional principal payments will be made until the balance reaches $0.00. A funded campaign enables mortgage elimination in 25 months (or sooner), starting in April 2026.
What good can happen when we reach our goal?
The path is before us and the future is bright. We’re blessed to be able to wonder, “What good could happen for the sake of God's mission, our church, and our community if we were debt-free nearly five years ahead of schedule?” We’re embarking on this journey together because we’re confident in God’s call and provision. A successful campaign affords our church the opportunity to deepen our roots and live into our calling. As we walk this path together, we’ll be able to focus on:
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We have been blessed with a high-functioning, wise, creative staff at FLC. The culture among that team is vibrant. Recently, we added a .75 FTE role for a Minister of Youth & Community Connection to provide capacity and direction for youth programming, varied pieces of pastoral support, and intentional community building within Farmington and beyond. We’d seek to expand this role to full-time as soon as possible, and look toward other roles that would positively impact our church, including roles focused on volunteer coordinating, additional pastoral visitation, and ministry-area-specific administrative and operations support.
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The FLC treasurer and finance team have worked hard to create balanced budgets each year. This also aligns with our church and finance team bylaws. For a number of years, due to the trajectory of regular offerings, we’ve had to plan to seek additional funds through extra appeals, most often in the spring, to cover the projected gaps in incoming offerings. Success in this campaign would allow for more sustainable budget projections, likely free of necessary additional appeals.
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We believe, as followers of Christ, we are called to love God and love others as the foundations of our faith. This means we seek opportunities to positively impact our community. FLC’s legacy of this kind of living and giving is already strong, has allowed us to listen and respond to need, and has elevated our reputation as faithful servants. We believe our future can and should continue this mission, and unlocked funds within our budget to increase this impact is why we’re here...for good.
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While we already have much happening in the life of FLC, with a full calendar of opportunities driven both by staff and by volunteers, we know there are people within and outside of our church that could be engaged through increased opportunities for Bible study and adult education, new creative programs for children and youth, and to create space for community partnerships that help people learn and grow, form faith, provide a pathway to being part of this community.
Watch the Campaign Launch Info Session
Watch back the information session conversation among FLC participants and campaign organizers from the March 1 campaign launch day.
Campaign Giving Methods
Campaign Co-Chair Scott DeGraff shares some of the opportunities for tax-advantaged giving to the For Good campaign.
To learn more about these possibilities, contact Scott DeGraff or Chris Lynch, FLC Treasurer.
Milestones & Moments
March 18, 2026
Lead Gift Gathering
& Dessert Reception
with the Stewardship Team
& Our Pastors
April 19, 2026
For Good Sunday
Declaring way forward, together.
Statement of intent submission day.
March 25, 2026
Tax-Advantaged & Legacy Giving
How-To Session
with Scott DeGraff
Thrivent Financial
