Greetings, Forum Family!
It costs about $40/month to keep this site running, "if all goes well."
All extra money collected in the past just stayed put in the PayPal account, and I used it to purchase long-term renewals at discounted rates from time to time.
From 2002-2012, I had good personal finances and did all my work on this site as a volunteer--we're talking thousands of hours, minimum. Sometimes, I paid bills out of my own pocket.
In 2012, things in my personal life took a dive, and I lost focus on our fine site gradually.
In 2015, I did a series of upgrades as things came to a head. I was not able to do this work for free; instead of hiring it out, I paid myself from the pot so to speak due to actual and real necessity. I then used the rest of the reserve to renew the site for another year, and purchase a new server plan that is a real improvement (as far as I can tell).
I'd like to request that everyone who can, donate now to build the pot up again. I will use part of the funds to renew the server space further; part of the funds I will appropriate to myself to pay for upgrades to the site and improvements/fixes you all have been requesting (instead of paying someone else), and if there is any remaining money, I will distribute it to our fine moderators as a token Christmas gift.
Keep in mind that I am regularly contacted by marketers seeking to make OCnet into an advertising place; I have assiduously avoided allowing advertisements on this site, but in the process, am giving up hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars a month in revenue (we get about 2 million hits a month here--no small feat). I want to keep OCnet ad-free and I want to continue to improve it, but there are various restraints.
Can you help alleviate these challenges? If so, follow this link and donate:
http://www.orthodoxchristianity.net/forum/index.php?action=treasuryThank you for your generosity,
In Christ,
Anastasios Hudson
Co-Founder of OCnet