Over the last month, I learned someone else at my church has taken on the mantle of organizing the church festival the youth group and I started some years ago. We have not had it in two years because of dwindling resources and, well, interest. In a nutshell, we started it as a means to provide the neighborhood surrounding St. Margaret’s with an opportunity to visit in the Spring time. We already have a longstanding and very successful pumpkin patch in the Fall. I hoped this would provide year round outreach opportunities for us. In addition, it was a practical means for teaching the youth group about organizing and hosting a church event, not to mention that all important outreach effort. The youth get a fun day on the front lawn and the church gets a chance to say “hello” to our neighbors. It looked like a win-win situation for me.
The main problem, as anyone who has organized a public event will tell you, is getting folks to actually show up. Advertising and work of mouth within the church and extended community will only get you so far. For a truly successful event, you need the public to attend. Our pumpkin patch enjoys hundreds of visitors during the month of October each year. They come back and bring others. Area stores send them our way. We have managed to carve out a niche that folks appreciate. Every year, minimal advertising will continue to bring in visitors because they already know about it and want to buy pumpkins.
This year, the event organizer has done many of the same advertising strategies we used in the past. Door to door flyers, word of mouth and other proven methods. The one thing she accomplished (that I never could) was to engage the local business community. She has several large donations of goods/services as well as one who will give out free samples to visitors. All those businesses will help increase her advertising footprint. In addition, she also kept our rummage sale area that will increase both church and community involvement.
All told, I am hopeful this year’s event will be our largest. Taking the event from under the youth group to the mainstream church body will help increase visibility and the all important volunteer base, not to mention church budget assistance. The youth group can only expect so much each year and must support that entire ministry. A line item in the church budget dedicated to one event is even better.
With any luck, I will have wonderful news here next week after our event this weekend. No matter what, each chance you get to bring Christ into someone’s life, you should take it. Whether it’s a church festival, pumpkin patch or casual meeting, these events add up in someone’s life.
[Update]
The simple truth is our annual festival was a success all the way around. We received more visitors and vendors than in past years, and enjoyed a greater church member participation. While we look forward to next year, I think it speaks volumes about (even) a small church’s ability to plan an event. Don’t let the size of the event keep your from enjoying God’s presence with your neighbors.