The Best Church Youth Group Fundraising Ideas For You!

The best church youth group fundraising ideas do more than raise funds. They get the younger generation more involved with your church and engage them outside the ministry. 

In general, the dwindling youth participation in the Church and Ministry can be attributed in part to the following:

1. The youth is twice more likely to hold atheistic views than previous generations
2. Moral relativism – the youth are uncomfortable (or see it as morally wrong) to express or share religious views

Credits: Barna

I am not saying that the church youth group events can break through atheism. I suggest that using events to introduce Jesus offers an alternative to connecting with God outside of sermons.

If you are struggling to engage millennials and Gen Zers in your congregation or raise funds, this post can help you with church youth group fundraising ideas.

This will not only show you how to get the younger generation interested in your ministry but also highlight how you can raise funds while you’re at it. 

5 Church youth group fundraising best practices

Successful church youth group fundraising ideas are adapted to engage the younger generation better. 

Here are some best practices to improve the fundraising ideas received by your church youth group among your congregation.

1. Make it easy for youth to participate in your events (and donate). You can do that by:

• Having online forms on the website with limited form fields.
• Enabling sign-up via texts.
• Allowing for RSVP via social media.

2. Communicate with them via channels that they frequent. It could be:

• Instagram and Snapchat on social media.
• Using church texting services instead of merely calling.

3. Outline the objectives of your church youth group events before beginning. The goal of the events could be:

• Solely focused on fundraising.
• Looking to engage the youth of the congregation.
• Bringing in new members to the group.

4. Define the metrics for success once the objectives are outlined. 

• If it is fundraising, you could aim to make $3000 from the church youth groups.
• If you are focused on engagement, each member of the youth group should participate in 2-3 activities.
• Or, if you are looking to attract new members, the goal can be to attract 10 new members to the congregation (each youngster can bring a ‘friend’).

5. Check if you have the digital infrastructure to support your communication and event coordination

• A church web management software can help you keep track of the members.
• A church communication software can enable communication via call and text.

Though these best practices may seem obvious, they are still worth mentioning because the number of churches implementing them is relatively few. 

For instance, only 13% of churches have Instagram accounts, despite more than 55% of the channel’s demographic being youngsters between the ages of 18 and 29. 

Here is a breakdown of different social media channels and their demographics.

So take a hard look at your existing church communication strategy (especially around events) and see how to tweak it to engage millennials.

How can a church youth group raise money? 

Church youth groups raise funds through events and activities. The congregation’s youth volunteer at events or even organize them. These could be bake sales, yard sales, or a simple movie night. 

The proceeds collected from the event will go directly to the church. Here are ways the impact of the events can be maximized:

• Involving the community (and friends) to participate via buying tickets or buying the items on sale.
• Encouraging the parents to sponsor the event (or part of it).
• Having matching gift pledges for the money raised by the volunteers.
• Promoting the event/activity on social media and encouraging donations online.

A substantial social media presence always backs successful church youth group fundraising ideas. The Celebration Church, for instance, has a separate section on its Instagram stories dedicated to events.

Such posts build excitement about events among the congregation’s existing members and encourage new members to join and sign up. So, ensure that your church’s social media strategy aligns with the church youth group fundraising ideas you develop.

Top 20 church youth group fundraising ideas

Church youth group fundraising is different from your regular fundraising efforts in three ways:

1. The fundraising events are highly local – e.g., something as simple as a block party can be organized.
2. The events can be centered around ideas (and themes) the youth are excited about, such as summer, Halloween, festivals, etc.
3. The parents should also be considered – as they would (hopefully) have a say in the decisions the youngsters make.

Here is a snapshot of how church youth group fundraising events differ from your regular church fundraising events.

These differences show that your church youth groups’ communication and event organization differ. Here are some ideas to get you started.

Church youth group fundraising ideas for summer

Summer is a great time for youth fundraising – they (the youngsters) have more time, the weather is excellent, and there is general enthusiasm about holidays that you can harness. 

This is an excellent time to plan activities centered around youth outreach rather than hardcore fundraising (the ideas suggested here will be similar).

Note: Ensure that you plan these activities well in advance. Summer is also the time when families leave for vacation. Giving families a heads-up about the activities planned will help them plan the holiday around your events.

1. Prayer walk

Get the youth in your community to walk to a local hospital and pray for the patients there. The prayer walk can also be at a park where you meet, pray, and walk back.

How can you raise funds with these church youth group fundraising ideas?

• Every youngster who participates can register with a token amount of $10.
• Parents can sponsor their children (or other kids) to register.
• Church donors can sponsor the event.
• You can ask your online community to participate virtually and pledge $10 for every km walked.

2. Volunteering at vacation bible school

The local VBS can be an excellent opportunity for youngsters to spend their free time during the summer holidays doing fruitful work. They can positively impact the children who come there and also collect money for your cause.

How can you raise funds?

• Parents of children who come for VBS can sponsor a volunteer.
• Volunteers themselves can raise money (matched giving) online for their time.

3. Text to tithe 

Though texting to tithe can be used throughout the year, it can be specifically used during summer to raise funds. For example, GenZers and millennials can text “SUMMER” to 33339 and contribute money to the local orphanage.

How can you raise funds through these church youth group fundraising ideas?

• Promote the keyword and shortcode across channels and ask the youth to participate.
• Encourage youngsters who have already donated to bring in their friends.

4. Church picnic

The picnic you organize need not be as big as the 113th Westphalia picnic. It can be a lot smaller, with only youngsters managing it.

How can you raise funds?

• Parents and the older members can pay to participate in the picnic – with the youngsters organizing the event
• The food and drinks can be charged, with ticketed activities that can also raise money for your church.

5. Gospelized car wash

Car washes are always a hit with the younger generation. You can use it to raise money for your church and get the youngsters talking about the gospel to customers. 

How can you raise funds?

• Of course, you can charge for each car wash. However, if this is too restrictive, you can get the parents in your church to sponsor the event.
• You can also ask regular donors to pledge matching gifts. E.g., Samantha can pledge to donate $10 for every $1 raised by her grandchild during this car wash.

If planning a ticketed event, keep the entry fee nominal to encourage maximum participation. These events aim to have a conversation about God and the Gospel, facilitate the same, and encourage the youngsters to reach out for talks.

Church youth group fundraising ideas for Christmas and Halloween

Giving during the holiday season is generally high. So, church youth group fundraising ideas around festivals are an excellent way to raise funds.

These events can focus more on fundraising rather than merely engaging the youth. 

1. Gift wrapping kiosk

Encourage youngsters to volunteer at the gift-wrapping kiosk to help church members wrap their gifts. 

How can you raise funds?

• You can charge a nominal fee for every wrapped gift.
• You can also have a tip box at the kiosk and encourage the members to tip.
• Make it fun – members can pledge money based on whose child wraps the most gifts.

2. Christmas decoration putting up and removing

Youngsters can also volunteer to help the members put up Christmas decorations (and take them down later).

How can you raise funds?

• Charge an hourly fee for every volunteer who helps decorate or take down the decorations.
• Church members can sponsor volunteers to help others (e.g., putting up decorations at the local orphanage).
• You can make it fun by having ‘best decoration’ contests – with the family of the winning volunteer donating.

3. Custom calendar/t-shirt sale

Selling festival merchandise, such as a Christmas calendar, Christmas tee shirts, or custom-made Christmas postcards, can be an excellent way to raise money for your church.

How can you raise funds?

• Encourage volunteers to create custom merchandise. Handmade Christmas postcards are always a hit. The money from the sale (or a percentage of it) will, of course, go towards the church.
• Ask your members to pledge or match the money raised.

4. Christmas gifts for disadvantaged

You can encourage volunteers to make (or buy) gifts for the disadvantaged. The church members can then auction off these gifts. Of course, donations will reach the needy, and you can use the money raised for the church.

5. Cookie dough/gingerbread/Ornament sale

Like custom merchandise sales, youth volunteers can make ornaments or cookie dough and sell it after service.

Notice that some of these ideas (like an ornament sale) bring in low amounts per sale. That means the number of youngsters (or volunteers) you need to recruit for these drives should be relatively high. 

You can also use social media to amplify the message and run online donation drives for each idea.

You May Also Like: How to Write a Great Phone Script for Ministry Fundraising (Sample Scripts Included)

Best church youth group fundraising ideas for round-the-year

Apart from the above ideas, here are a few more ways to encourage your church youth group to raise money. 

1. Church giving kiosk
2. Text to tithe
3. Youth charity auction
4. Online fundraising (social media/crowdfunding)
5. Hosting a parent party
6. Make the grade fundraiser
7. Sunday fundraisers
8. Churchyard sale
9. Movie night
10. Walkathons

The 10 ideas listed above can also be modified for specific events. For example, the churchyard sale can be Christmas-themed if it is held at the end of the year. If you are looking for a wider variety of events, you can also take some school fundraising ideas and use them for your church youth group. We also have a detailed guide on executing some top church fundraisers for 2022.

Takeaway

Remember that these ideas’ success depends on how well you communicate with your youngsters. That means talking about the events on social media, sending event updates (and notifications) via text, and even encouraging donations via text. Follow church communication best practices to ensure that your messages reach your audience.

“Youth ministry is not about getting things accomplished – only the act of God can bring about the transformation we seek. Youth ministry is about participating deeply in young people’s lives as we await, together in suffering & joy, the coming of God.”

– Andrew Root, Unlocking Mission and Eschatology in Youth Ministry

Feature image credits:Cottonbro, Pexels