8 Ways To Communicate With Volunteers

There is no one way to connect with all of your children's church volunteers. Everyone is different in the way they communicate. Not everyone is on social media and some young volunteers will only communicate with you on social media. Therefore, you must have several routes to reach your children’s church volunteers. Here is a list of several routes that we use to communicate.

1.Planning Center - Our church staff actually require that we use planning center to schedule Children’s Church volunteers so that we aren’t double booking the volunteers in other areas of the church. For example, if John is scheduled for the worship team this Sunday, he doesn’t need to be double booked in the nursery. Planning Center offers a way to send a text, email, or Facebook message to your children's church volunteers to remind them of their schedule. However, planning center has proven to be very cumbersome to use. None of my class leaders like using it.

2.Facebook Group - I personally love Facebook group communication the best because it’s easy to use and it reaches a mass group of children's church volunteers at one click of a button. It can also open up a discussion where we can make decisions as a group or ask questions in a moment. I have a Facebook group for all of the children's church volunteers and parents. I have a separate group for the class leaders and yet another for the parents of the kids worship band. However, not everyone checks Facebook.

3. Texting - Almost everyone texts these days and those people almost always have their phone on them wherever they go. I try to send personal texts to remind the children's church volunteers that this is their Sunday to prepare. I also try to remember to send them a text after church to say thank you and encourage them about something positive I noticed in their teaching method.

4.** Email** - I have gotten to where I don’t like email anymore. I still check it, of course, but it is loaded with advertisements so my inbox is always full and I can’t keep up. I don’t send an email to all of the children's Church volunteers about their schedule, but I do send them a copy of their curriculum for the week via email. We tend to post the schedules on planning center and Facebook more than anywhere else.

5. Phone Calls - There are a few people (very few) who do none of the above methods. These folks are from another generation or those who pride themselves for being “off the grid”. In this situation, you are going to have to make a few phone calls that involve you speaking.

6. Paper Copies - We make paper copies of our parent newsletters that go out each week. We want the parents to feel connected to the Kids Ministry. It is important that parents know what their kids are learning so that they can continue to teach throughout the week. We also send out invitations to events through paper. Sometimes this method seems antiquated and people just throw that junk in the trash. However, sometimes people really appreciate the paper method and they put it on their fridge or stick it to their calendar so that they can keep up with the many events that are coming at them.

7. Hand Written Notes - It takes time and effort, but handwritten notes are excellent ways to show appreciation to others. Have you ever received a handwritten note that meant the world to you? I have thrown many generic thank-you cards away, but I have also kept a handful of meaningful notes that were written to me with thoughtful words of encouragement.

8. Face to Face - Speaking to someone’s face is the best communication method there is. I highly recommend this method especially when trying to get someone new to join your team. But, it is equally important to speak directly to your children's church volunteers on a regular basis to let them know that they are important to you and you consider them a friend in ministry. People tend to volunteer for friendship. They want a place to belong and connect.

What is your favorite mode of communication with your children's church volunteers?