I would like to present you with some ideas that emphasize the importance of stewardship, usually defined as time, talent, and treasure. However, we find many religious institutions overlook the “treasure” part. It is relatively easy to think about asking people to give you their time and talent, but to ask for their treasure seems painful. 

My hope is that you will look at stewardship, and especially the fundraising part, in a new light. First, let’s talk about Stewardship in terms of time and talent. You will probably find, as most religious leaders have, that your house of worship has a small group of people who do it all—they may be liturgical ministers—singing in the choir, serving as lectors, and/or Eucharistic ministers in church and to the homebound and those in nursing homes. And then there will be a number of people who are good at organizing events, both social events and fundraising events. Still others serve in leadership roles on Pastoral Parish Councils, Finance Councils, or Stewardship Councils. Many times, these roles will overlap, and some will be involved in almost all aspects of parish life. But what about the rest of the parish? Are they content with attending Mass and going home, maybe not even attending a social hour after Mass? Or are they reluctant to serve because they don’t think they have any useful talent? Or, because they see the same people doing everything and are afraid if they volunteer for one thing, they will be expected to be like the overachievers in the parish, and do it all? Or perhaps they don’t feel welcome because they have never been asked.

So first, you need to determine what tasks and ministries you need volunteers to do. Some possible tasks in addition to the liturgical ministries named above might include:

• Hospitality ministers to welcome new parishioners

• Hospitality ministers to serve refreshments after Mass during social time

• Clean up crew, to assist your maintenance person(s)

• Environmental Stewardship Committee, who would be responsible for planning events such as Earth Day, Laudato Si events, or Saint Francis Day celebrations

• Liturgical Environmental Committee to focus on the liturgical environment—banners, altar cloths, and seasonal decorations

• Outdoor environmental helpers to plant pollinator gardens or other native plants in your community and your parish

• Social Justice Team to work on issues relating to Catholic Social Teaching, such as Stop Abortion, End the Death Penalty, Immigration Rights, and so forth.

• Community Involvement Team to have your parish represented at local, or regional events, such as parades, fairs, or community organizing about local issues.

• Religious Education for children and youth

• Religious Education for adults

• Bible study leaders

• Book club leaders

• Office assistants to help with mailings, answering phones, etc.

• Diocesan representatives for Diocesan wide activities, such as a Vocations Committee

• Specific areas of concern in your parish—such as sign language interpreters, Spanish or other language interpreters, Black Catholics, etc.

• Other special needs such as food pantry volunteers, soup kitchen volunteers, or helpers with other community services you might have in your parish

Perhaps your list is long and you’re thinking, where do we find all these volunteers? The good news is the more volunteers you have, the more you can remove from your plate so you will have time and energy to complete your never-ending work. I assure you that finding volunteers is not as difficult as you might think. So, what are some ways to do this? If you have a Stewardship Committee, first enlist their help. You can also ask your Welcoming Committee to distribute a list of parish ministries and tasks to new members of your parish. Many times, new people are eager to get involved as a way to meet people, and often they bring valuable experience from their previous parishes. And, if you personally welcome new members through a letter, an announcement at Mass, or a phone call, you can also ask them about the talents, skills, and interests they have which might be helpful to the parish. Another great way to recruit volunteers is through an annual Ministry Fair which we will talk about in my book and in a webinar which I will be leading in January. As important as volunteer recruitment is, it is not the only thing about stewardship that is important. People like to be appreciated, even if they don’t expect any rewards for what they are doing. But a thank you now and then goes a long way. 

I talk about the Stewardship Committee, running a Ministry Fair, and the one part of stewardship which is often the bane of many pastors—money—in my book, The Pastor’s Guide to Stewardship and Philanthropy  and will answer your question about stewardship and philanthropy in the webinar upcoming on January 13. Watch for an invitation to the webinar in you inbox.