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| Path: Main Street : Resources & Library : Research Articles : Feature Article |
Making fundraising a ministry not a mystery with a 14-month stewardship planner
By Wayne E. Groner, CFRE and Dr. Dorsey E. LevellWith contributions shrinking as a percentage of discretionary income, mainly because of competing priorities, churches are looking for new ways to fund ministries that go beyond the short-term results of offerings, bake sales, and car washes.
There is considerable research that shows people give as they understand not as they are able. The Bible story of the widow and her penny and the story of the ruler who was not willing to sell his assets and give to the poor are examples of this giving principle. When you help members and friends achieve greater understanding of giving throughout the year you take the mystery out of fund raising and increase the potential for more gifts and larger gifts. Because fund raising and stewardship are not taught in most seminaries, too many pastors and other church leaders do not understand fund raising as ministry. They may:
- Have tried fund raising once and it did not work.
- Think it is somebody else's job.
- Feel a tithing sermon once a year is enough.
- Believe members and friends will give just because they are involved in the Lord's work.
- Be afraid of alienating members and friends by talking about a "touchy" subject.
Your 14-Month Plan
You don't have to wait through years of education, training, and experience to overcome fund-raising fright. You can get started right away by using a 14-month plan to integrate stewardship education and fund-raising activities in your congregation all year long. We introduced the 14-month stewardship planner in our book, The Pastor's Guide to Fund-Raising Success. With this plan ongoing fund-raising activities are accepted alongside stewardship education and other church programs. Fund raising becomes a ministry not a mystery."At the great fund-raising churches in America, stewardship is a perpetual theme, not a special campaign," says researcher George Barna. Your 14-month plan should encompass the vision and mission of your congregation and the faith directives of your denomination. Your plan can begin in any month. Today would be fine. There are four major steps.
One: consult with department heads and other staff on suggested activities. Use a variety of activities and a broad range of subjects as shown in the sample plan. Do not try to do everything in one year. Consider scheduling activities over a three-year period.
Two: develop the activities around themes. In the sample plan the four major stewardship themes of the Bible are rotated quarterly. Use themes appropriate to your faith and that correspond to recommended schedules of your denomination.
Three: write your 14-month plan on a sheet of graph paper. Write names of the 12 months across the top from left to right. At the end repeat names of the two months first listed. You may prefer to repeat November and December as they are traditional harvest months for charitable giving. List activities down the left side of the paper. Mark with an X the month in which each activity will occur. Notice in the sample plan that some activities are repeated throughout the year. Use the graph as a broad outline with few details.
Four: write the details of the activities on other sheets and keep them in file folders marked for each month. These detail sheets will provide you with agenda items for planning sessions with staff and volunteers. Allow at least 60 days planning time prior to each activity. Be prepared to adjust your plan as the needs and circumstances of your congregation change.
Only three percent of church members talk about their finances with other members and only four percent discuss finances with clergy, according to researcher Robert Wuthnow. With your 14-month plan you will create an environment for discussion to enable donor/stewards to become more responsive.
Sample 14-Month Plan
From The Pastor's Guide to Fund-Raising Success, by Wayne E. Groner and Dorsey E. Levell. Copyright 1999 Bonus Books, Inc., Chicago. Used by permission.
Finances Giftedness Environment Service Finances Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Conduct every-member campaign and Thanksgiving Sunday Celebration X X X X Make brief presentations to each church organization on giving X X Request end-of-year gifts X Call all major donors X X Make presentations to Sunday School classes on giving X X X X Revise the budget X Take a vacation X Approve the final budget X Send a letter on tithing to every members/family and enclose a pamphlet on tithing X X Announce planned giving workshop. Name chairperson and committee X Give stewardship sermon. Enclose stewardship pamphlet in Sunday Bulletin X X Name committee and chairperson for every-member annual campaign X Plan programs and ministries for next calendar year and draft prelim. budget. Prep 14-month graph X X Conduct planned giving workshop X Conduct training for every-member annual campaign X Each Week
- Send thank-you letters to donors of $100 or more.
- Telephone selected donors and prospects.
- Call on major donors and major donor prospects
- Visit potential estate donors
- Phone visitors who made gifts of any size
- Announce "good news" gifts in Sunday bulletin or from pulpit to recognize donors.
- Announce from the pulpit successful ministries and programs, which are achieving their goals. Thank donors and volunteers who support them.
- Print a reminder statement in the Sunday bulletin on wills, life insurance, trusts, annuities, real estate, stocks, or bonds. Use a testimony from a donor who has contributed in one of these ways.
Suggested Readings
Titles that are out of print may be available at your local library.The Abingdon Guide to Funding Ministries: Volumes 1, 2, and 3 (CD), Donald W. Joiner and Norma Wimberly, editors. Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1998. See especially Volume One.
Fundamentals of Fund Raising, David L. Heetland. Discipleship Resources, Nashville, 1989 (out of print).
Giving and Stewardship in an Effective Church: A Guide for Every Member, Kennon L. Callahan. Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco, reprint edition 1992.
Growing Our Givers' Hearts: Treating Fundraising As A Ministry, Thomas H. Jeavons and Rebekah Burch Basinger. Jossey-Bass Publishers, San Francisco, 2000.
How to Develop A Tithing Church, Charlie W. Shedd. Abingdon Press, Nashville, 1961 (out of print).
The Pastor's Guide to Fund-Raising Success, Dorsey E. Levell and Wayne E. Groner. Bonus Books, Inc., Chicago, 1999.
Training Resources
Workshops, seminars, and printed materials are available from these resources to help you develop successful programs that integrate stewardship education and fund-raising activities.National Society of Fund Raising Executives (NSFRE). Programs on management, volunteers, and campaigns. A list of chapters and officers is available from NSFRE, 1101 King Street, Suite 700, Alexandria, VA 22314. Telephone 800-666-3863. Web address www.nsfre.org
Christian Stewardship Association, 3195 S. Superior Street, Milwaukee, WI 53207. Telephone 800-475-1976. Web address www.stewardship.org.
International Catholic Stewardship Council, 1275 K N.W., Suite 980, Washington, DC 20005-4006. Telephone 202-289-1093. Fax 202-682-9018. Email icsc@catholicstewardship.org. Web address www.catholicstewardship.org.
Southern Baptist Stewardship Commission, Executive Committee, 901 Commerce Street, Suite 750, Nashville, TN 37203. Telephone 800-722-9407 or 615-244-2355. Fax 615-782-8644. Email info@sbc.net.
Stewardship Unit of Discipleship Ministries, The General Board of Discipleship, The United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 840, Nashville, TN 37202-0840, telephone 615-340-7200. Web address www.gbod.org.
Wayne E. Groner and Dr. Dorsey E. Levell are ministers with more than 50 years of combined experience raising money for churches and other nonprofits. Wayne is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) who has been a fund-raising officer in higher education since 1977. Dorsey was the founding executive director of the Council of Churches of the Ozarks for 31 years. They may be reached at http://www.guide-to-funding-ministry.net.
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