These Bellingham religious non-profits received loans from the paycheck protection program
Six Bellingham area religious institutions received at least $150,000 in forgivable loans through the federal Paycheck Protection Program this year.
The federal relief program directed low-interest loans to small businesses and non-profits to keep workers on payroll and reduce the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Congress passed the program in April and extended the application period to Aug. 8 in July. The program spent more than $320 million in Whatcom County with over $202 million of that going to Bellingham businesses and organizations, according to aggregate data.
The loans can be forgiven if the recipient meets certain requirements involving job retention. However, there has been some national controversy about who benefited from the program ostensibly aimed at helping small businesses. The Trump administration has previously defended opening up the loans to religious institutions, saying they did not want to discriminate against such organizations.
In the Bellingham area, Lighthouse Mission Ministries, Cornwall Church, Hillcrest Church, Bellingham Christian School, Church of the Assumption and The Firs Bible and Missionary Conference each received loans over $150,000, according to public records from the United States Small Business Administration. Other religious non-profits may have received loans below $150,000 that were not detailed.
Cornwall Church on Northwest Drive and Hillcrest Chapel on Larrabee Avenue each received between $350,000 and $1 million through the program to keep on about 52 and 57 jobs respectively, the records show.
Cornwall Church, a Christian church with live music, has allocated 75% of the $352,300 it received to payroll and used the remainder to cover utility expenses, wrote senior pastor Bob Marvel in an email statement. At this point, Marvel wrote Cornwall Church has not asked for any of the loan to be forgiven.
Hillcrest Chapel, a Christian church and child care center, received $549,600 through the program to cover expenses in three divisions with 79 employees, wrote lead pastor Christian Lindbeck in an emailed statement. The chapel decided to take the loan to protect employee jobs and benefits, according to Lindbeck.
Lindbeck added the loan has primarily supported Hillcrest Kids, a childcare center, which has seen a dramatic decline in demand since the pandemic reached Bellingham.
“As Hillcrest Kids is a fee-based operation, we would not have had the revenue to support the expenses,” Lindbeck wrote. “It also provided for keeping the portions of the facility dedicated to childcare, the food bank, and maintenance teams operating in that time. Ultimately the PPP loan ensures we are fully staffed and ready as the demand for these services inevitably comes roaring back.”
Hillcrest Chapel has not yet decided how much of loan they will ask forgiveness for, according to Lindbeck. However, they recognize the purpose of the loan and strive to be good community members with it, Lindbeck added.
Meanwhile, Bellingham Christian Schools on East Sunset Drive and Church of the Assumption on Cornwall Avenue received between $150,000 and $350,000 to support 30 jobs each, according to the records.
Bellingham Christian School, a private pre-K through 8th grade school, confirmed it received a PPP loan to primarily cover payroll costs but did not specify the exact amount, according to an emailed statement from principal Shawn Cunningham. However, the Church of the Assumption, a Catholic parish under the Archdiocese of Seattle, confirmed they received a loan totaling $312,800 in an email statement from Father Jeffrey Moore.
Of that total, the parish received $114,981.57 and Assumption Catholic School received $197,818.43, Moore wrote. About 93% of the total went to payroll and benefits while 7% went to utilities and interest on a building loan, he added.
“We took the assistance so that we could guarantee employment to our many employees, rather than furloughing them or firing them in order to prepare for an economic downturn by building up cash reserves,” Moore wrote.
Religious schools such as Assumption Catholic School have been excluded from federal aid to support online learning at public schools, Moore wrote. The parish relies on donations and the school on voluntary enrollment, so the church expects revenue to decrease with the economic downturn, according to Moore.
“As a non-profit, we don’t have any shareholders or elites to benefit by playing the system,” Moore said. “Every dollar we receive, either from our donors or from this governmental aid, goes right back into our mission, in this case, by keeping our ministers and teachers employed.”
The Firs Bible and Missionary Conference, a non-profit Christian campground on Cable Street, also received between $150,000 and $350,000 to retain 47 jobs, the records show.
Tom Beaumont, The Firs executive director, confirmed the loan range in an email statement but did not specify an exact amount. The Firs spent 93% of the loan on payroll and health premium costs and 7% on utilities and mortgage interest, Beaumont wrote.
“We are grateful to the government for making this emergency loan available to The Firs and other non-profits and small businesses,” Beaumont wrote. “We were able to protect (retain) full-time jobs and benefits (with just minor salary reductions), which was well received and undoubtedly a benefit to the Whatcom County economy.”
The Firs expects to start repaying whatever part of their loan is not forgiven in November, according to Beaumont.
Lighthouse Mission Ministries, a Christian non-profit that supports people experiencing homelessness, received between $150,000 and $350,000 to retain 45 jobs, according to government records. Executive Director Hans Erchinger-Davis was not available for comment for this story.
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