Church Fundraisers On A Small Budget

Welcome to the frustrating world of church fundraisers on a small budget. Thankfully, yours is not the only congregation that is nearly broke and having to find innovative ways to make money with very little investment other than time. Luckily, there are hundreds of good ideas to help you do just that. Here are a few of those ideas to help you in your decision process.

Church Directory

Church directories help visitors as well as new members become familiar with the church family by putting faces together with names and contact information. What you have to do is sell coupons for additional family portraits to earn money for your church. Every coupon sold is money for the church.

Family Portraits

This is another of the easy church fundraisers to organize. All that you need is a small group of volunteers to sell coupons to be used for a discount on large portraits. Each coupon is money in the church coffers. The more families that buy coupons the more money. Your fund raising profits are not tied to the number of portraits that are actually sold, just to the number of coupons that you can sell.

Car Wash

Another staple of the church fund raising group is the car wash. This is a great way for a youth group to pay for a trip to camp or some other ministry. You should be able to get someone to donate parking space and their water faucet. All you need are sponges, buckets, etc. For less than $50 you can have a fundraiser underway and a profit in the making.

Crafts Class

Church fundraisers like this are best planned for just before Thanksgiving. Organize an ornament making class. By charging a nominal fee and getting a pre-registered list of attendees you will have an idea of how much money your class will make. Be sure to offer different items like ornaments, a nativity scene, or Thanksgiving items so that each person can make and decorate the holiday decoration of their choice. Variety will increase attendance.

Church fundraisers do not have to require a large budget to be successful in profits and fellowship. With a little planning you do not have to fully rely on a large group of volunteers. Some small fundraisers can become personal ministries for fellowship and the Glory of God.

Three Church Fund Raising Ideas

Church fundraiser ideas do not have to be narrow in scope. There are many ideas that any church can tackle that will fit within every belief spectrum. There are no laws that say gambling, alcohol, or dancing have to be involved. There is a broad spectrum of events that can be put on with a low budget that will turn over a nice profit. Some completely rely on volunteers, while others only need a few people to operate successfully. Here are three church fund raising ideas that any congregation can benefit from.

Church Directory

A church directory is helpful for fellowship and getting new members involved. Putting faces with names can help to bring a congregation together as an extended family. New members who may be shy about approaching others can use the directory to match names with people and use it as a tool to develop a mentor relationship with an older couple within the church. These directories are usually given away for free with the hopes that the company taking the photographs can sell a few family sittings and portraits. The more of these other items that they sell the higher the profit for your outreach programs.

Family Portrait Night

This is one of the easier church fundraiser ideas to coordinate. You only need three volunteers to be successful, but you can get the whole church involved if they are interested. You sell coupons for a discount on the larger portraits to earn money. Every coupon sold is profit for the church. You will also be filling a need. Every family wants to be able to look back on old photographs and watch themselves grow and mature. A Family portrait can be a golden treasure for generations to come.

Community Clean-up

Church fundraiser ideas like this benefit your church in several ways: money, image, and civic responsibility. Normally, the members of a youth group go out and get pledges per pound of trash collected. If you are going to cleanup a local eyesore, get the local newspaper to cover the cleanup. The mention of your church in conjunction with the effort may draw new members. The members of the youth group that are doing the cleanup will learn that it is their civic duty to help keep their city clean and will take that lesson into their adult years.

Just because your church does not want to be associated with gambling and alcohol consumption does not have to mean a narrow train of thought when you are considering church fund raising ideas. Look around you. You will see a need, then fill it.