Collection plates welcome credit cards
Churchgoers increasingly praise the Lord and skirt cash donations
By A.J. Miranda
Denver Post Staff Writer
07/20/2007

Paper or plastic?

When it comes to collection-plate offerings, churches in Denver and throughout the nation are increasingly accepting both.

Declining use of cash and checks and inconsistent attendance have left many churches looking for more-reliable revenue streams.

The answer for many has come in the form of electronic giving, whether through scheduled credit-card charges, automatic bank withdrawals or card-swipe kiosks installed inside houses of prayer.

It's not clear how many churches in Colorado offer the electronic options. But Vanco Services, a Minnesota bank and credit transaction company, has close to 200 client churches in Colorado spanning 28 denominations, according to Len Thiede, its vice president of corporate sales. the rest