Question from congregant: It seems like it could be very expensive to change our name—new sign, stationery, business cards, etc. In this time of establishing a solid ground for Eliot’s finances, doesn’t the expense of a name change seem counterproductive?

Answer from Board of Trustees Chair, Carole Glauser: When the board considered whether or not we were open to putting the name change proposal to a vote from the congregation, considering the cost involved or any other adverse consequences was a serious discussion. Although it can be expensive for an organization to change its name and handle the logistics of updating everything to reflect the new name, that actually would not be the case in this scenario for Eliot. 

1) We have had a generous restricted donation of $35,000 for the sole purpose of purchasing a new digital sign and implementing the software and other costs associated with installing it to replace the current outdated one. The steps needed to make this purchase are underway and won’t be finalized before we have a vote on the proposed name change. Thus, there is no adverse cost involved in changing our sign to reflect a new name.

2) We do most of our printing in-house and do not keep a very large stock of preprinted stationery, business cards, etc. on hand. Our address remains the same so all efforts by anyone to contact and reach us using the old or new name will still reach our address. We plan to use up the current stock and phase out through normal use. As replacement stock is needed, it will be printed using revised template reflecting new name. This would have a negligible impact on our financial health and budget. 

3) We are fortunate to have a very capable communications expert, Debby Lovell, who can manage updating our current logo to reflect the addition of Universalist without any need to hire a graphic designer. She can do this gradually as her priorities and time allows so it doesn’t put a burden on her or unnecessarily use up her time and energy. 

4) We can also take advantage of printing labels or stickers to cover up the old name in cases where using stickers would be appropriate. Example: any brochure stock we have that has been stamped or labeled with Eliot’s name and logo. 

5) Our Director of Business Administration, Brian Franklin, believes there will be very little replacement costs involved in a name change if we use the phase-out approach. Of course, there may be a few scenarios that may rise up to incur some financial expenditures related to a name change, but they will be minimal and will not negatively impact on our budgeted money for programing, maintenance, or operations and will not be an undue financial burden to the budget or Eliot’s solid and still growing financial health and status.