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Year-Round Volunteer Appreciation Ideas

04/18/201304/18/2013 Kathie Phillips 2 Comments

Yesterday, I mentioned that Volunteer Appreciation Week is next week. I shared ideas to get you started in thinking about how to show your volunteers how much you care. You can find that post here.

Today I’d like to share seasonal ideas that will make your volunteers feel appreciated any time of the year.

Fall

Anything pumpkin or cinnamon scented (candles, air freshener)
Anything pumpkin or cinnamon flavored (muffins, bagels, bread, coffee)
Classroom survival kit
Football game tickets
Smores around a fire pit
Hayride
Spaghetti dinner
Comedy Night
Enrichment workshop (maybe have a speaker come in)

Winter

Coffee gift card
In-house coffeehouse
Personalized Christmas ornament
Game Night
Sledding/snowboarding/skiing
Ice skating
Christmas Cookie exchange
Christmas Party
Karaoke Night
Bowling Night
Roller skating
Spa Party
Laser Tag (rent out the entire facility for your volunteers and their families)
Basketball game outing

Spring

Bouquet of fresh flowers (maybe from your garden)
Tea Party
Golf outing
Pancake Breakfast

Summer

Camping trip
Ice Cream/Italian Ice Party
BBQ/Picnic
Outdoor Movie Night
Bouquet of fresh flowers (maybe from your garden)
Pool Party
Baseball game outing
Fireworks
Music/worship under the stars
Free car wash

This list is by no means exhaustive. Brainstorm with your team for even more creative ideas.

What else would you add?

Free and Inexpensive Ideas for Volunteer Appreciation Week

04/17/201304/17/2013 Kathie Phillips 4 Comments

If you’re like me, you know how important volunteers are to Children’s Ministry. It is a true partnership: we cannot accomplish the work of our ministry without our dedicated volunteers; they cannot effectively accomplish the work of our ministry without a leader at the helm.

When I think about the volunteers who serve in my ministry, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for each and every one of them. In an age when people are busier than ever, the thought that people choose to serve week in and week out humbles me so very much. Many of my volunteers are parents themselves; that means long nights up with a sick baby or child, carpooling, sports, volunteering at school, extra-curricular activities, and homework. Some of our volunteers travel for work, sometimes for weeks at a time. Some of our volunteers have spouses who travel a great deal for work. Some are single parents who are juggling many, many balls. Some have health challenges. Some are caring for elderly or sick parents. Some are looking for work or have a spouse who is looking for work.

As often as I can, I let my volunteers know how much I appreciate them. I cherish them. Next week (April 21 – April 27) is being recognized as “Volunteer Appreciation Week”. Those who work alongside volunteers – schools, non-profits, etc. – will be expressing their appreciation to people who are the backbone of their organization.

I am one who believes that showing our volunteers how much they mean to us should not be limited to a one-week time frame. We should let them know how much they mean to us as often as we can. It doesn’t have to be expensive or over the top but it should be genuine, personal and regular.

If you are in need of creative, inexpensive (and some free!) ideas to show your volunteers how much they mean to you, here are a few ideas to get you going:

Pray for you volunteers and follow up with them
Donuts and coffee
Carnation or rose with a hand-written note attached
Video from you, thanking them for their service to your ministry
Video from the kids in your ministry, thanking their teachers
God-sighting wall that displays ways that kids, families and your ministry have been impacted by their service
Favorite candy bar
Breakfast or luncheon in their honor (have kids and/or parents serve)
Buttons to wear
Decorate their classroom with streamers, balloons, noisemakers and party hats
Thank you cards from the kids
Social media “shout out”
“Shout Out” in your church bulletin
Note on the windshield of their car
Special song or poem
Items personalized with your ministry logo (t-shirt, backpack, coffee mug, water bottle, lanyard, hat, etc.)
A Saturday or Sunday free of ministry responsibilities
Balloon bouquet

You can also find more ideas on my KidMin – Volunteers Pinterest board.

You might also be interested in a previous post, Speak Your Volunteer’s Love Language, that offers additional ideas. My kidmin blogging friend, Lindsey Whitney, shared a gift idea that she recently blessed her volunteers with. You can find that here.

Be sure to stop by tomorrow because I’ll share appreciation ideas for each season of the year. You won’t want to miss it!

Are you doing anything special to honor your volunteers next week? Share your ideas below!

Easter Reflections

04/03/201304/03/2013 Kathie Phillips 2 Comments

This week, I am in total “chill” mode. Since our children are home on Spring Break, my husband and I took time off this week to have some good quality time as a family. This time together is precious and priceless to me because, if you work in ministry, you know that preparing for Easter keeps you very busy. Now that things have settled down somewhat, I’ve been reflecting on the flurry of activity I’ve experienced over the past 10 days.

Here’s a peek into what my world has looked like recently:

For the past several months, we have been busy preparing for our church’s annual Easter Egg Hunt. This year, I provided oversight for the Registration Team. As a team of nine, we welcomed over 120 families and over 200 children to this highly anticipated event. This year’s event included four activity areas: games, 4 “Journey to Easter” stations, refreshments and the actual Easter Egg Hunt. It was a lot of work but seeing so many faces, especially new ones from the neighborhood, made it all worthwhile.

Good Friday was the next highlight for me. My entire family and I (16 of us) attended my parent’s church because my mom was participating in the service. The scripture passage for the evening was Isaiah 53:1-5. Five different members of the church leadership (including my mom) took one of the verses and shared their gained and personal insights into their assigned verse. My mom did a fabulous job – she made us proud! The evening was also special because I served my 5-yr old niece her First Communion. I will never forget sharing that special moment with her.

By the time Easter Sunday rolled around, I was in overdrive mode. I had tidied classrooms, recruited additional volunteers to serve, hung banners, and set up various activity stations for our elementary and preteen students. After church, we hosted a family dinner for 20+ family members at our home.

While the season was busy, we are now thankful to take some time for much-needed rest at one of our favorite vacation spots. School and work resumes next week, but for now, we rest.

Are you taking some time for rest this week? What restores your soul?

What More Could I Have Done?

03/15/201303/15/2013 Kathie Phillips 4 Comments

For the past several weeks, I have seen several friends and ministry colleagues come under serious spiritual attack. While each circumstance is different, they are all trusting God for the next steps after seeing dreams become shattered pieces of what could’ve or should’ve been.

Earlier this week, I read a passage of scripture that made me ponder the feeling of defeat. The passage was Isaiah 5:1-7.

“What more could I have done to cultivate a rich harvest?

Why did my vineyard give me wild grapes when I expected sweet ones?”

Isaiah 5:4

Have you been in a place like that, a place of disappointment and heartbreak? Have you wondered why all of your hard work returned a ‘loss’ rather than a ‘win’? I have, both personally and professionally. After all, none of us work to fail. We invest and work hard to see results – favorable results.

One thing that I remind my children’s ministry team is that while we can plant the seed, it’s up to God to grow it in His time. We might not see the results right away; we may never see the results. But that doesn’t mean that we should give up.

If you feel like throwing in the towel because an event that took weeks of planning flopped, leaders that you invested in turned against you, a door was closed, you don’t get the recognition that you feel you deserve, you were removed from a cherished ministry position or job, the child you raised in the church is no longer interested in following Christ, or you aren’t as far along in life as you thought you should be, don’t give up. Be encouraged: God will give you the strength you need to endure every season of your life, the highs and the lows. Lean into Him, do what He has called you to do and trust Him for the results.