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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, JULY
8, 1986 '
Another new development in the month of May was the installation of a
Bedford Computer system in the Italian office. This addition will help
streamline the production of the "Pura Verita" magazine, making page make
up more efficient.
Publishing Services employee Dick Grizzard will be
operating the new machine and will act as an extension of the Publishing
Department within the Italian office.
Circulation has remained just over
90,000
for the past few months.
A
recent direct mail shot and a READERS' DIGEST ad entitled "What Next for
Europe?" has caused white mail figures to soar. In May we added
8,718
new
subscribers to our file, representing a 64 percent increase in incoming
mail over last year's figures for the same month.
In March an all-time record was set for visit requests, with
33
pouring in
the one month.
This year to date, we have received
97,
which is a
31
percent increase over the same period last year.
This continuing barrage of visit requests has kept minister Michael Caputo
extremely active. Says Mr. Caputo, "Life continues to be very hectic on
the boot, and we will make it much more so as the day-time gets longer and
rain, snow and fog get replaced by the balmy Italian spring."
Areas
visited this spring include Puglie, Lombardy, Sicily, Naples and the
Italian Riviera.
Concerning this last area Mr. Caputo commented, "The
Riviera will most probably produce sufficient fruit to form a congregation
in the not too distant future."
This burgeoning growth has created a great need for manpower in Italy. On
May
14,
Clifton Veal, Italian department employee, was named a Ministerial
Trainee.
Mr. Veal, his wife Connie and their three children will be
arriving in Italy shortly before Pentecost. During the summer he will be
enrolled in the University of Perugia where he will complete his study of
the Italian language. After the Fall Feast, Mr .• Veal will work with Mr.
Caputo in Rome, offering some needed assistance to that busy area of God's
Work.
(Submitted by Carn Catherwood, Regional Director)
From Australia
We entere9
1986
with an extremely tight budget with little
available to promote the "Plain Truth" magazine, other than through the
"World Tomorrow" telecast and our newsstand program. In spite of this,
the "Plain Truth" circulation in Australia has remained steady throughout
the year at around the
95,000
mark.
So far this year the "World Tomorrow" telecast has brought in
3,321
new
subscribers--up
16.5
percent over
1985,
and
7,832
new subscribers have
responded to the newsstand program--a
40.2
percent increase over the same
period last year.
Mr. Armstrong's foresight in offering the "Good News" magazine to "Plain
Truth" readers who write in for literature or respond to a renewal letter
is bearing much fruit in this country. Our "Good News" mailing list has
risen steadily to
19,165
subscribers--a
32.9
percent increase over May,
1985.
By its sheer excellence and lack of competition from any other similar
magazine, "Youth
86"
continues to promote interest among young and old.
"Youth
86
11
circulation in Australia has risen steadily and now totals
5,786
subscribers--a
19.7
percent increase year-to-date.