MINISTRY PARTNER GATHERING / APPRECIATION EVENT
(Adapted from The Navigators MPD Team tools)
Purpose:
To express your gratitude to your ministry partners
To deepen your connection to your ministry partners
To affirm their importance to you, your ministry, and to the Kingdom
To confirm the need for continued partnership
Choose an event date with your ministry partners in mind:
Do they have young children? Choose a family-friendly time.
Are they retired seniors? An early afternoon weekday event might work best.
What local events (sports, fairs, festivals, etc.) should you know about and schedule around?
Group Size:
Take into account if a larger or smaller gathering will best suit you. Which size gathering will allow you to connect to all the guests at some point throughout the time together? Go with that.
Venue Options: Invitation:
Choose a location that will serve your needs and is also easy reached by your guests. Whether you choose a home, a park, a room at your church, or another location, consider enlisting some helpers to make the planning easier. If people offer to help as they receive an invitation, a YES is always a good reply.
Who to Invite:
Invite both current and past ministry partners who live nearby.
Invite 1-2 people from your ministry whose lives have been changed by the ministry to attend and tell their story.
Invite people who might know something about your ministry but haven’t yet joined your team. You can follow up personally with them after the event to answer questions or schedule a funding appointment.
If you have a group of ministry partners in another location, schedule a ministry partner appreciation event and go there explicitly to connect with them.
Invitation Options:
There are many ways to invite your ministry partners. What method will get the best response:
Printed invitations
Postcards
Evite
Telephone call
Facebook Message
Text Message
Sample Invitation:
Title ideas:
Ministry Open House
Ministry Partner Appreciation Evening
[Your Name’s] Ministry Open House Invitation
Ministry Partner Gathering
Please join us (or me) on [date/time/place] to celebrate what God is doing through our (or my) ministry at [place].
Learn more about the ministry
Hear first-hand testimonies from people whose lives have been changed
See the impact of your gifts and prayers
Meet some of the people you have helped bring into the Kingdom.
Stop by any time, but don’t miss the brief presentation at [time].
Light refreshments will be served. If you are unable to attend but would like more information, text or email me at [phone/email].
Please RSVP to [phone or email] by [date].
[Signature]
Refreshments:
The food does not have to be fancy or take a lot of time. If you live in a country different from your ministry partners, consider bringing foods with you to offer “A Taste of [your country of service]”.
During the Event
Mingle and personally thank each person for coming.
Write down the names of everyone who came so you can thank them later for attending. This task can be delegated.
Program Example (15 minutes)
Welcome guests
Thank them for coming and for being ministry partners
Introduce 1-2 people who are sharing a testimony about how this ministry has impacted their lives. If you don’t have live testimonies, show a 1-2 minute video from someone in the ministry or show 1-2 photos and tell changed-life stories about them.
Q&A
Other information
It is nice to have someone preplanned who will pray for you and the ministry.
Thank everyone again for coming.
After the Event
Follow up with each person with a personal not to thank each one for coming and being part of your ministry partner team.