Fundraising is always a touchy subject in student ministries. I borrowed an idea from Adam Cleaveland and it truly leveraged our budget for several items this past summer. The idea is fairly simple. I printed out two sets of envelopes numbered 1 to 100. Inside the envelope was a response card along with a card that listed out the various items we were trying to fund: summer camp scholarships, vacation bible school, mission trip to AL, etc.
I used a sheet of steel roofing in a wooden frame and magnets to hold/attach the envelopes in sequence. I cast vision from the front during our announcement time that we would have the Wall up in the cafe for two weeks only. Members were encouraged to take an envelope for the amount they wanted to donate. (if you took #45, a check for $45 should be included) The beauty of compounding takes 200 envelopes, if all are returned and creates $10,100. In our effort we raised $7,000.
I was clear in the promoting that this was a “special” opportunity and should only be contributed to if it was above and beyond their normal support (we’ve learned that when special offerings are taken, many times members just shift their giving, which isn’t helpful because it creates shortages in the general and building funds).
A strange name…but such is needed to prick a person’s interest. we announced a mini-campaign of sorts today and goes through next Sunday, April 24. All to leverage our impact together in the Kingdom.
The purpose of this effort is raise additional and new monies to invest in several opportunities to reach our current families and invite new ones to connect.