For those that do not know, my job within Youth for Christ for the past decade has been a full-time missionary. Whether I was a youth worker for teenagers in Ohio, serving military teenagers at the Air Force Academy, or now doing my job within the National Service Center as their Social Media Specialist, I fundraise my full support and have to do fundraisers at an individual and corporate level for my salary and health insurance. (Want to see what is going on with my missionary job? Check it out on my YFC blog)
The problem with fundraising as any missionary can tell you is trying to get people to be willing to invest large amounts of donations on a consistent basis. Even more difficult, as someone that wants to support missionaries, what if you are unable to give $100/month for a yearlong commitment? What if all you can truly afford as a college student, a single mother, or someone on disabilities paychecks is a one time giving of $20?
Forafriend.com is a solution that looks not only at the missionary as someone that needs a place to fundraise, but also the donor who may need an alternative to traditional missionary fundraising models. Do you do relational ministry with teenagers and need to buy two cups of coffee for a specific discussion? Have website fees that are coming out of your salary? You can have a budget line for that in your overall missionary account, but this fundraising model helps you out further by giving with a very specific intent.
I even have my own account for Youth for Christ.
Not sold yet? Need more reasons to consider signing up or giving through this website? Here are a few from Adam, co-founder of the website:
- Gifts are intended for relational ministry with a nonbelievers or new believers.
- All gifts are under $20 to show a small amount can make a big difference. Also to show that it is more about the relationship then the money. This also helps Christians learn to give when they can no matter how much they have.
- 100% of the gift goes to the missionary. We ask if the giver would want to give us a donations at checkout, but that is optional.
- Missionaries can thank the giver for their gift and they can build a relationship with them which helps the giver feel a part of the gift.
- We are nondenominational, so any missionary sent from a Christina mission organization can get a profile.
- Security is very important to us to help protect the missionary.
I highly encourage the missionary readers to go create your own profile. If you are someone that would like to support any of these missionaries, go make a small impulsive donation and make the day of a missionary.
[…] some way, many churches are involved in missions. Some help fund individual missionaries or give to organizations that feed multiple missionaries. Other churches raise up and send […]