A CAPITAL CAMPAIGN OF DALTON FIRST UMC
For Dalton & The World
Almost 180 years in this city, and the work in front of us is bigger than any one of us. So we're doing it the way we've always done it — together.
The Story
For almost 180 years, this church has sat in the middle of Dalton and done the same two things: opened the door to whoever walked up, and sent people back out better than they came in. That's the whole job. Make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world — starting on Thornton Avenue and not stopping there.
Most of what you'll find on this page is about that front door. A welcome center so a first-time guest knows where to go. A place to sit down with coffee and actually meet someone. Signs that tell you where the Fellowship Hall is. An entrance that looks like somebody's expecting you. Unglamorous things that decide whether a stranger comes back.
The rest is the building itself — a roof, a steeple, an elevator, a fire alarm. The ordinary upkeep of a place that intends to still be here for the next generation. None of it happens because one family writes one check. It happens the way it always has around here: a lot of people, moving in the same direction, going further together.
Why We Give
This church is our spiritual home. We met as youth in Methodist Youth Fellowship, were married in the sanctuary, raised our girls here, and celebrated the lives of our parents here. We are excited to offer leadership, spiritual, and financial support as we go “Further Together.”
Our giving is a direct reflection of our deep gratitude for DFUMC. Our church has held our hands through tough times, celebrated our joys, and continuously nourished our faith. We give because we want to ensure that our church remains strong and vibrant for everyone who walks through our doors.
Where the Money Goes
No mystery line items. Every project is listed below in the order we intend to do it, with a real number attached. Some of it is already finished and in use — you've been sitting in it on Sunday morning.
Funded, finished, and in use every week
Multiple speakers had simply stopped working, and half the room couldn't follow a sermon. The system is repaired and running. Front pew or back corner, you can hear the message, the choir, and the prayers — some of us for the first time in years.
Our online ministry runs on real equipment now instead of workarounds. Homebound members, college students, folks traveling for work, and people who haven't walked through our doors yet — they're all in the room.
Paid for in full — the build is still ahead of us
*Concept Rendering
One space doing the work of a real front door. A welcome center where a first-time guest can ask a question and get a straight answer, and a coffee area where people actually linger after worship instead of heading straight for the parking lot. The money is in. Now we build it.
Committed in full — the gifts arrive over the pledge period
*Concept Rendering
Sound panels for a room we use for nearly everything — dinners, meetings, receptions. Right now the space fights whoever is talking in it. Covered in full over the weekend.
The atrium is one of the best rooms in this building, and right now it leaks. Several skylights are failing and taking the sheetrock down with them. This repairs the glass and the damage underneath — and several commitments came together to cover it in full.
Steeple Repair & Balcony
$32,500
Duplex Renovation
$36,000
Exterior Painting, Renovation & Repair
$110,000
LED Lighting Conversion
$70,000
Fire Alarm System Upgrade
$60,000
Valley Drive Entrance & Signage
$50,000
Purchase Lift
$8,000
Elevator Full Modernization
$175,000
Security & Cameras
$129,500
Music Across Our Campus
$50,000
Parking Lot Updates & Resurfacing
$100,000
Roofing
$100,000
Water Heaters
$40,000
Prayer Garden Fountain Update
$5,000
Sanctuary Video Projection System
$70,000
Every project above is covered — this is where your gift goes now
Not every need announces itself in advance. This is the part of the goal our trustees hold for the greatest need they see in the facility — the repair nobody planned for, the system that gives out before its time, the chance to do something right while the scaffolding is already up.
How This Works
We'd rather over-explain this than have anybody wondering where their money went. Here's exactly how it works.
This is above and beyond
Our $1.5 million goal sits alongside the annual Stewardship Campaign, not in place of it. Your regular giving is what keeps the lights on and the ministries running week to week. A pledge to Further, Together is something extra on top of that — it's what pays for the projects on this page.
Everything is listed, in order
Every project our church needs is on this page with a real number next to it, ranked by what has to happen first. Nothing hidden, nothing vague.
We fund them one at a time
Gifts go to whatever project is currently funding. When it's fully funded, we do the work, and the next one opens up. You'll see it happen — in the building, not just in a newsletter.
Or take one all the way
See a project further down the list that's yours? If you want to fund one in full, we will absolutely let you knock it off the list. Just tell us which one.
Pledges run over two years
You are welcome to spread your total pledge amount out into payments over the course of up to two years. By letting us know what your total commitment is and when you would like to fulfill it, you are helping us responsibly plan for the projects ahead.
Between now and then, take some time with your family and decide what your part in this looks like. Any amount, over any timeline you can manage — it all moves us further, together.
Pledging is just telling us your intent — nothing is charged now. Prefer to hand us a card? There's one in the printed brochure, and we'll have them at the ministry fair table.
Form not loading? Open the pledge form directly.
Everything on this page is also in a printed brochure — same projects, same numbers, same pledge card. Pick one up at the ministry fair table, or call the church office and we'll get one in your hands.