Foundation Highlights of 2014

By Mo Siegel, president, Urantia Foundation, Colorado, United States

To all of you who wonder what happens at Urantia Foundation, here are some of the highlights from 2014.

Website and Social Media

• Unique visits to urantia.org totaled 701,405, up 17.5% from 2013. The top five countries from which people visited the site were: 1. US, 2. Brazil, 3. Mexico, 4. Colombia, and 5. Canada.
• Converted the website to be mobile responsive.
• Improved participation in social media with Facebook “likes” up 25%.

Finances

• Decreased spending between 2013 and 2014 by $14,000.
• Transferred the Foundation’s long-term investments and Perpetual Printing Funds to a new financial advisory firm.
• Received $825,000 in donations, up 6% from 2013. Donations were above budget and 2.5% more than the needed goal of $800,000.
• Received an increase of $128,006 in unrestricted donations, up 21% from 2013. Restricted donations were down 46% due to donations for the building renovation project in 2013. 844 individuals donated in 2014.

Translations and Revisions

• Approved a translation-revision procedure and policy recommended by the Translation Sub-Committee (perhaps the biggest accomplishment of the year).
• Transferred the Urantia Foundation translation portal to a dedicated server located in the United States.
• Implemented the Quality Translation Procedure for assessing the status of potential and revised translations.
• Received an evaluation-assessment of the quality of the French, Japanese, and Hebrew translations. Submitted the Spanish and Korean translations for evaluation.
• Began the development of an English Term List, now called an English Glossary, which will be translated into other languages in which the book is published.
• Implemented a process model for the flow of the master translation text for use in different applications (print, web, eBook).
• Purchased a computer and programmed it as a vault for all the master files, printer files, and other translation-related information to be stored at Urantia Foundation.

Books (Production, Distribution, and Sales)

• Sold more than 17,000 Urantia Books which, when all sales figures are submitted, will be a few percent points higher than 2013.
• Set up new distributors in Colombia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine.
• Finished, published, and commenced distribution of the revised French translation.
• Worked with Urantia Association International (UAI) to supply books to the Philippines and Africa.
• Moved the Index Project forward.

Building at 533 W. Diversey Parkway

• Finished remodeling the third floor and coach house. For the first year in memory, rent from the third floor and coach house offset expenses. This enabled Urantia Foundation to use the first, second, and basement floors at no expense.
• Performed numerous repairs, necessary housekeeping projects, and building improvements throughout the year.

Community

• Hosted sixteen groups plus a weekly study group at 533 during 2014. Included were four Board of Trustee meetings, the Greater Lake Michigan Urantia Association (GLMUA) annual meeting and study group, two Urantia Book Fellowship Executive Committee meetings, a Women's Retreat planning sessions, and a joint Education Committee Seminar. We also welcomed international visitors after the UAI’s Study Group Symposium in Madison, Wisconsin, and we hosted the UAI’s International Service Board meeting, a Women's Retreat, a workshop on “The Soul”, the annual director’s meeting of the Urantia Book Internet School (UBIS), the annual holiday party co-sponsored with GLMUA and First Society, and a Saturday workshop sponsored by the First Society.
• Sponsored financially the UAI and the Fellowship’s conferences. Urantia Books were sold at both.
• Sent out four quarterly editions of the Urantia Foundation’s News Online, three UBIS newsletters, the 2013 Annual Report, and two fundraising letters.

Education

• Moved the UBIS software platform to Moodle. It allows for having classes in multiple languages with a friendly user interface.
• Conducted 26 UBIS classes in three languages with 22 teachers and nearly 400 students.
• Held three seminars sponsored by the Education Committee at 533 W. Diversey Parkway.
• Participated in advancing the Study Group Directory. All listed study group hosts were contacted to ensure that the group is still active. A button to find Virtual Study Groups was installed. We remain bullish for the future of this global Study Group Directory and thank the UAI and the Fellowship for their participation in this important project.