Honest answers, before you ask.

No — that's the point of the assistant. Anyone who can send a text can ask, “Who visited Sunday?” or say, “Add the potluck to the bulletin.” There are simple screens too, but nobody has to master them to help.

You're exactly who this is for. FiveSixteen is built for congregations of 20–200 — few staff, many volunteers, limited budgets. Pricing is sized for that reality, and we'll tell you plainly if something isn't worth your money.

Under the hood, yes — modern language technology is part of how it works. But we don't lead with that, because it isn't the point. It's designed to behave like an experienced church secretary: it knows your congregation's information, answers plainly, and always leaves decisions with people. It proposes; your people decide.

It stays yours. Your congregation's data is never sold, shared, or used to train anything. It lives in your church's own secured space, and if you ever leave, you take it with you — in a format you can actually use.

No. The systems work alongside whatever you have. That said, if your website needs love, that's where FiveSixteen started — we'll give you an honest review of it either way.

The opposite — that's our founding rule: technology should never replace the personal touch; it should make it happen more often. Every message is written or approved by your people. The system does the remembering, not the ministering.