HONORING OUR LADY’S MESSAGE OF PEACE, WE WORK AND PRAY FOR THE UNITY OF ALL PEOPLE, AND FOR TRUE AND LASTING PEACE ON EARTH.
OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE CATHOLIC CHURCH - WINDSOR, CA PRAYER GARDEN
Sponsorship Overview
At the beginning of the Prayer Garden Project, the estimated total cost (including activities not directly associated with construction) was approximately $90,000.  This estimate was based on an assumption that some of the labor involved with construction tasks would be performed by skilled volunteers. There were two potential sources of revenue to meet this $90,000 target: funds from the Diocese Capital Campaign and donations from parishioners. At the start of the project, during the exploratory stage in February of 2015, $2,500 was allocated by the Diocese.  Over the next 11 months, additional funds were allocated as they became available.  Approximately $40,000 in Capital Campaign funds was eventually allocated to the Prayer Garden from the Diocese Capital Campaign.  We had one family in the parish that pledged an in-kind donation to provide all of the labor and materials required to create the Grotto Area platform on which the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe would be mounted.  The value of this in-kind donation was approximately $7,000.  The challenge then was to find ways to raise the remaining $43,000.  The answer to that challenge was a well-organized and ultimately very successful Sponsorship Program. This program would offer several types of sponsorships to parishioners, church ministries and the general public: A small group of olive trees and benches would be offered for sponsorship.  Each sponsored item would have an attached bronze plaque with text specified by the sponsor.  The acquisition of the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe would be supported through the use of Sponsorship Bricks. Sponsors would purchase one or more "engraved" bricks that would be installed in a Grotto Area surrounding the platform on which the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe would be mounted.  The profit from these sponsored bricks would be used to pay for the bronze statue.  There would two sizes of bricks: 4"x8" and 8"x8" We would offer five different options for the arrangement of text on a brick (three formats for the small bricks and two formats for the larger bricks.) Three of the formats included an icon of a cross or a dove with an olive branch. The engraved wording on the brick would be specified by the sponsor and could be in the language of the sponsor’s choice. A detailed Sponsorship Plan was worked out to develop the procedures and tools that would be necessary to carry out a successful Sponsorship Program.  For information about the Sponsorship Plan, click here. We announced the Prayer Garden Sponsorship Program in early December of 2015 – the weekend before the annual celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  For information about the promotional materials used during the Sponsorship Program, click here.