The Episcopal Diocese of Utah owns 27 properties (22 parishes and 5 properties), including the new and modern, eco-friendly Episcopal Church Center of Utah in downtown Salt Lake City. These properties have a conservative value of $58 million. And with the exception of the loan of $275,000 on the Episcopal Church Center building and a small construction loan for one parish, there are no mortgages or debt against any of the properties.

Over its 10-year life, Project Jubilee provided nearly $47 million for parishes, ministries, community grants, and projects of the Episcopal Diocese of Utah. In addition, the Perpetual Trust has provided more than $100 million for parish support and ministries throughout our diocese over the past 20 years. And after all of this, the corpus of the trust is almost unchanged.

Yet this abundance masks challenges that lie ahead. Annual revenue disbursements from the Trust are based on a rolling four-year average of Trust investment balances. The securities market declines of 2008 and 2009 will substantially reduce revenues over the next few years. We expect revenue will be about $300,000 less each year for at least the next four years. That is, revenue for 2010 will be about $300,000 less than in 2009, revenue for 2011 will be $300,000 less than in 2010, and so on. We will begin making principal payments on the $32 million loan against the Trust assets in 2013. That will represent a substantial cost not now experienced.

We are under no illusions: Our strategy for the future must adapt to this changing economic landscape.