Help us be good stewards

From the beginning of my tenure as editor of the South Texas Catholic, I have strived to be a good steward of the resources entrusted to me.

It has been a challenge to balance the need to care for resources while doing the most with the resources to effectively carry out the mission we are called to do–to evangelize.

The South Texas Catholic–to my knowledge–has always been a free publication used by the Diocese of Corpus Christi to evangelize the faith community in south Texas. It is funded by contributions made directly to our annual appeal and by contributions parishioners from throughout the diocese make to the annual Catholic Stewardship Appeal.

To receive the publication all one has to do is register at their parish, participate in the Catholic Stewardship Appeal or merely ask to be included in the subscription list. Over the years, unfortunately, this list has become unreliable and consequently we often get magazines returned by the post office because of bad addresses. People move and do not let their parish or the South Texas Catholic know of their new address.

Sadly, too often we receive calls or letters from readers to tell us their parents have both gone to the Lord and for us to stop the subscription. Often, people make multiple contributions to the appeal and we end up sending magazines to Mr. Smith, Mrs. Smith and Mr. and Mrs. Smith, all at the same address.

In today’s world that is connected via the Internet, many people prefer to read their magazine online at www.southtexascatholic.com. They toss the magazine aside and sit at their computer to read.

To more wisely use your generous contributions, the South Texas Catholic is evaluating and updating its subscription list, which will include eliminating and taking into account all these circumstances. Paying to print, mail and then for returned postage is a costly process. Our goal is to mail only to readers that have a valid address and who want to continue to receive the magazine.

In the front of this issue we have included a post card that already has the reader’s name, account number and mailing address. All the reader has to do is cut it out along the perforated lines, place a stamp on it and drop it into the mail.

We invite all readers to use the post card to confirm their interest in continuing to receive the South Texas Catholic. In this way we will be able to “clean” our subscription list. If you have made a contribution to the Catholic Stewardship Appeal within the last five years AND have not had a major life change, such as a change of address, you do not need to return this card. You will continue to receive the South Texas Catholic.

We will provide this post card in this and the next issue, after which we will only mail to those who have sent us a post card indicating their wish to continue to receive the South Texas Catholic. We do not want to leave anyone off the list that wants the magazine but we also do not want to pay for printing, mailing and returned postage if it is not necessary.

Thank you for your cooperation to this request, and thank you for all the kind compliments you have been sending to us regarding the conversion to a magazine format. We are truly grateful for your support.