Tips on Raising Funds for a Volunteer-Lead Church Youth Group

A church youth group lead by volunteers can usually be counted on to have several basic characteristics. It likely has little funding behind it, is understaffed by those willing to help out, and contains teenagers with great hopes for what their leaders can do for them. The heart of a volunteer is such that most any obstacle can be overcome for the sake of kids and teens looking for support, but most volunteer youth leaders work full time jobs outside of the church, aren't being paid for their ministerial work, and are giving their services to churches that cannot offer a youth budget of any kind. As such, making miracles happen requires a miracle in itself. However, there are ways to accumulate funding without having to make too many requests of the already financially strapped adult congregation. Check out the following tips on raising funds for a volunteer-lead church youth group.

Tip #1: Open a small, targeted snack bar for operation before and after services. Ok, so plenty of youth groups have snack bars for the kids, but the churches that offer them usually have money. However, with careful planning and by starting out slowly, you can use a snack bar to actually raise funds for your youth and in turn make it self-sustainable. You'll have to start out with money that's coming straight from your own pocket, so start with items that are almost certainly going to fly off the shelves. Canned drinks and hard candies that are long lasting (Blow Pops, Ring Pops, Jolly Ranchers, etc) are usually a good pick. Only buy enough to last one or two services to begin with, and use the profits to restock. Later, you can move on to popcorn, chocolate, bottled water, and even coffee and pastries for any adults that may wish to stop by and contribute. Not only does a snack bar raise funds once the basic supply is built, but it's also a great way to grow your small group with ease. If there's food, teens will come. Don't forget to ask local businesses about product discounts offered to churches.

Tip #2: Sell community tickets to fundraising events. A common problem for volunteers raising funds for church youth groups is that they find themselves asking the adult congregation to purchase tickets to dinners, auctions, plays, walk-a-thons, and other fundraising events nearly every month. Inevitably, ticket sales suffer. Instead, consider widening your approach and setting up ticket sales booths at storefronts, on street corners, and from within supportive businesses. While a volunteer's time is limited, you can likely set up one or two days a month where the youth members and yourself can go out together to make sales months in advance of your planned fundraiser.

Tip #3: Set up donation boxes. A church is a non-profit organization, meaning that those authorized to request donations for it can set up change depositories at cash registers all over their communities. Do be sure, however, to add a message on each depository box clearly stating the name of the church, the department that the funds are going toward, and the address and contact number that you or your pastor may be reached at. It's also a good idea to add a picture of youth members to the box to allow others to instantly view who they are helping with their spare change. You might also list activities, tools, and ministries that the change will be directly going toward.

Tip #4: Set up quarter banks throughout your church. While many youth group volunteers set up change banks for church members to contribute to, asking for quarters only sometimes increases the amount contributed. Instead of throwing in a few pennies, congregants are forced to actually take a look at what they are contributing. The hidden effect here is that throwing in a handful of change causes one to feel that they are contributing a great deal, but counting out quarters forces one to realize how little is really being put in ($.25 isn't a tremendous contribution for most of us). Not only that, but it isn't likely that contributors will only place one quarter at a time in the box or bin. Rather than giving six pennies, three nickels, and two dimes, a person is likely to give four or five quarters. That kind of a difference adds up quickly.

Tip #5: Find business sponsors for special events and trips. While it may be difficult to find business sponsors to help you grow a small youth group, especially one with no paid leaders to ensure its growth, it may be possible to find business owners who will be willing to sponsor a child for a special event. Ministry training, missions trips, and events that will allow a teen the opportunity to help others are often much too costly for a teen to afford on his or her own (even with the help of parents). While the church may contribute, some of these trips can cost thousands of dollars and sending just one teen can be a daunting task. If an entire groups wants to participate in a special event, especially a missionary trip, a volunteer may feel helpless and overburdened. Rather than disappointing your teens, hit up businesses in your area for contributions. Create information sheets detailing the purpose of the trip or event, how much it will cost, and how the teens are working to help themselves go. Hand them out in person, and don't forget to point out that all contributions are tax deductible.

Tip #6: Create support mail-outs to obtain monthly sponsors. This is where enlisting the help of adult friends and family members of the teens, rather than local business owners, comes into play. Have teens create a list of addresses of extended family members and friends of the family who might be interested in contributing monthly to their youth group's needs. You'll need to list in each letter why your youth group is necessary, what it provides for the teens (such as positive social interaction or leadership training), what it does to reach out to others, and what it needs in order to grow. A great way to garner donations from individuals not directly associated with the church is to list items such as CDs, musical instruments, snack bar items, literature, giveaways, etc, that they can choose to make contributions directly toward. Be sure to list items within a wide price range, and also give the option of contributing cash to the general youth account. Be sure to send specific thank you notes to all who give, and give them the option of receiving quarterly updates on how the group is doing.

Creating a sense of community is essential to raising funds for a volunteer-lead church youth group. Because volunteers, in most cases, will not have the time to put in a full time effort into managing the youth budget, asking others to contribute and giving them a sense of purpose in doing so is key. Be sure to send out yearly statements on church letterhead thanking each contributor, whether within the church or not, and listing the specific amount recorded for their donations (for tax purposes). As some contributions may be small, do be sure to also acknowledge prayers, volunteer efforts, and thoughtfulness more than the actual dollar amount. Also consider creating a newsletter for all contributors so that they can remain abreast of what is needed, what is being planned, and what they can do to help. In the end, your volunteer work will be less of an individual effort and more of a source of community pride.