God has graced us with warm summer days, but with the kids home from school, it can be hard to find the time to enjoy it. This year, look to your church community to accomplish all of your goals. Check out our list of FUNdraisers for ideas on how to make time for God, family, and fun-in-the-sun this summer.
1. Pie the Pastor
Bake sales are always a fundraising success—who doesn’t love a smorgasbord of delicious desserts? Add an amusing twist to yours this year and allow people to pie the pastor, priest or whoever will draw in the biggest crowd in exchange for a mandatory donation.
Adding this element to an ordinary bake sale will make it more interactive and engaging. As pies start flying, people will gather to get in on the action. Make sure you have plenty of cream pies on deck, though. Before you know it, passers by will be hopping in line to get a turn. Sell some extra goodies like brownies and cookies on the side as well and watch the donations roll in.
Tip: Hold this event right after a church service. You are most likely to grab participants as people are catching up with friends and walking to their cars.
2. Sidewalk-chalk Block Party
This may sound like an event just for kids, but it’s really fun for the whole family—a block party for parents coupled with an activity that will excite and engage the children for hours.
Keep costs low by hosting the party in your church parking lot. Set up a few plastic folding tables and chairs, while leaving plenty of room on the asphalt for artwork. If you have the resources, grill burgers and hot dogs and sell meal tickets to party goers. If your church doesn’t have a grill, make it a potluck event and sell artist passes for access to the sidewalk chalk.
Develop buzz in your community about this event during the weeks leading up to the party—advertise the event in your church bulletin, post it on social media and utilize the power of word of mouth. A good turnout is the key to success. After the chalk dust settles, attendees will rave about the party for weeks to come.
Tip: Before guests arrive, draw out a few hopscotch and four-square courts and grab some bouncy balls to add additional activities.
3. Snow Cone Sale
Snow cones are the quintessential summer treat. Appeal to everyone’s inner child host a snow cone sale to raise money for the youth group’s mission trip or fall retreat.
If your town has a local snow cone retailer, try setting up a profit share and drive customers to the store. If not, you can rent a snow cone machine from a special events company and hold your event in your church’s parking lot immediately following a worship service. Reach out to summer sports leagues and your city’s recreations department for permission to sell snow cones at local baseball games, soccer tournaments, festivals and more.
Tip: As with any charity initiative, transparency is always appreciated. Make sure to explain to your community members how the money will be used, like to send a teen youth group on a mission trip. Keeping the community in the know will help encourage participation.
4. Children’s Talent Show
All year long we yearn for summer, but once the calendar turns to June it’s just a matter of time before the words “I’m bored” become your children’s mantra.
Hold a talent show at the end of the summer to give children something to work toward and practice for all summer long. The fundraiser will offer the opportunity to get kids excited about charity work and making a contribution to their church. For parents, this is a win-win scenario. Not only do they get a front row seat to watching their children nurture their talents, they can encourage practice time when they need to tackle those four loads of laundry sitting idly by in the next room.
To raise money, charge a small sign up fee for participants and an entry fee at the door.
Tip: Open the event up to students at the schools in your neighborhood. This will help the event generate more money in donations and may even result in a few new members for your church.
5. Church Olympics
After snow cones and bake sales, you may feel the urge to up your fitness game, and your children will need a place to burn off their energy. Stay active during the summer by planning an annual tournament-style “Olympic Games” for your community.
Charge an entry fee of $10 and have families sign up to participate in the event. Break participants into teams, each representing a different country, then host the games at your church or community center.
This event could last a few hours or it could be a summer-long series of tournaments—depending on the size of your church and the number of participants. If you want to hold a summer-long event, rotate activities—play basketball one week, kickball the next, soccer after that, and so on. If you want to limit it to a one-day program, choose activities that are quick to win like relay races and obstacle courses.
Tip: Have t-shirts made for the games and sell them leading up to and at the event to build buzz in the community.
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