How to Have a Christmas Mini-Party for your Volunteers
Your Christmas Party doesn’t have to be huge and expensive to be awesome.
I love Christmas parties and I love getting our volunteers together to show them how much they are appreciated. Each year it seems like people are more and more busy and the Youth Ministry Christmas Party, while fun, is one more thing on the calendar that is hard to squeeze in between school programs and life.
We had a party planned for a week night. It was nothing extravagant. Just food, games, and gifts. But as time got closer it became pretty obvious that everyone’s schedule was so full that if they could make it to the party at all, they would probably be racing from one event to another.
That’s when it struck me…..there has to be an easier option for everyone. One that makes everyone feel appreciated without stressing them out. Besides, if making time for a party is stressful, is it really a party?
So here’s what we did…..and let me warn you…it is very underwhelming.
I’m not about to give you a creative idea. I’m basically sharing this to help release you from the pressure and remind you that sometimes simple is better.
I asked our volunteer team to arrive 30 minutes early and come to a room in the church.
We had a table full of good food…..we usually have pizza….so this was a welcome surprise. The food was a nugget tray & a fruit tray from Chick-Fil-a, tea & lemonade from Chick-Fil-a (and for a small fee they deliver….worth it!). We also had a turkey wrap tray and cookie tray from Kroger. Finally, I had some Reese’s Christmas Trees scattered all over the table.
Our team LOVED it! They were going to be there anyway so they weren’t all stressed out. They came expecting pizza and got Chick-Fil-a. So for 30 minutes we sat and laughed and ate. It was one of the best parties I’ve ever thrown. I wrapped things up with a quick thank you and passed out Christmas cards that I had wrote a handwritten, personal note in, and included a $5 gift card to Dunkin Donuts.
Don’t stress yourself out with parties. Just keep it simple and let your team know that they’re important. They’re all secretly glad they didn’t have to go to an extra event on another night of the week….they just didn’t want to hurt your feelings.
Jono
Jono Long is the Student Pastor at Journey Church in Loganville, Georgia.