From Mr. Peter Nathan: During April the New Zealand office received 7,257 items of mail, an increase of 70% on the amount received in April 1984. Mail for the year-to-date is now running at the same level as last year. However, the last two months have shown a very pleasing trend in donation mail, which was up by 10.6% in March and 18.6% in April. Mail income for April was up by an exciting 26.3%, bringing the year-to-date increase to 7.3%.
In February, we began a series of advertisements of Mr. Armstrong's radio broadcast in THE NEW ZEALAND LISTENER. These ads have really borne fruit! March and April have both broken all previous records for radio broadcast responses!
In April a new electronic PABX telephone system was installed in the office. The new push button phone system provides us with several useful new facilities, which helps with handling telephone responses to "The WORLD TOMORROW" broadcast.
The brethren enjoyed a very profitable Feast of Unleavened Bread, and gave very generous Holy Day offerings. Although these offerings didn't surpass the record offerings specially requested by Mr. Armstrong last year, they were up by 45% on the 1983 Unleavened Bread offerings.
Our March direct mail promotion of The PLAIN TRUTH to 9,410 TIME magazine subscribers has now attracted 610 responses, a 6.5% return. We're gearing up for a heavy workload in May, when 40,000 semiannual letters will be posted out.
From Mr. Bram de Bree: April has resulted in a 21.3% increase in income, bringing the year-to-date income for the Dutch language area to 1.4%. We received 6,222 pieces of mail, an 18.9% increase. We sent out 16,485 pieces, a 24.2% increase over the same month last year.
Our spring advertising campaign in the Dutch language edition of READER'S DIGEST and the Belgian Automobile Association magazine has now been completed. A total of 6,095 new subscribers were added to the list of De ECHTE WAARHEID, bringing the total list to 52,400.
In March and April this year we were able for the first time to offer the Dutch language edition of the GOOD NEWS to all subscribers of De ECHTE WAARHEID who have renewed twice or more. Over 10,000 letters were sent out offering a one-year subscription. The response was overwhelming, with more than 50% reacting positively. This means that our present subscription list of 854 will rise to almost 6,000!
As a result of this offer, additional visit requests have been coming in. In the past year, church attendance has increased by 10% and membership by 10.1%.
Comments From Monthly Church Reports
From Australia
MELBOURNE (NORTH), VIC — GAVIN CULLEN: It was very inspiring to hear from Mr. Armstrong again. His sermons are always very encouraging even when he corrects us. Many of the brethren commented on how they look forward to hearing from Mr. Armstrong via the tapes that are sent out.
MELBOURNE (EAST), VIC — BILL BRADFORD: This month saw an increase in PM activity. We are definitely starting to get more inquiries about church and Feast attendance. A significant number of these contacts are people who have been visited years ago by one of our ministers or have been reading our literature for over a decade. As some have expressed it more than once, "It seems I had an urgency to begin to do something about what I knew was right all along."
MELBOURNE (SOUTH), VIC — KEN LEWIS: Had an increase in new contacts this last month and they are proving more fruitful than most new contacts in the last few years.
MT. GAMBIER, SA — KARL KARLOV: I propose to start an informal inhouse monthly study at Hamilton to serve three western Ballarat and Mt. Gambier church families, who are presently unable to attend evening studies.
ADELAIDE, SA — KERRY GUBB: PLAIN TRUTH newsstands are doing so well here, they're causing traffic congestion at the main central railway station. This is a mixed blessing, since the railway authorities are wanting us to do something about it!
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