How to Raise Money for a Mission Trip or Other Philanthropic Adventure

December 18, 2007 By Matthew Paulson

Having the opportunity to be a missionary or serve those who are less fortunate in another part of the world can be one of the most rewarding things one can do with some of the time in their lives. It doesn’t mean you have to travel to Africa for years on end, it could be something as simple as traveling to a major city in the United States for a week and practicing conversational evangelism or helping at a homeless shelter. These things are rewarding, but they are not cheap. Fortunately it’s really easy to raise money for these types of things if you have the right tools. Here are some ideas to help you get started fundraising for any sort of philanthropic trip.

Letters Asking For Support. Well written letters to friends and family indicating where you will be going, what you will be doing there, why you will be doing it will be one of the single best fundraisers you could possibly do. People love to give to philanthropic activities, especially when it’s for someone they know, and when the money is going somewhere very visible to them. If someone gives money to the American Red Cross, they have no idea how it will be spent. If they give money to support your mission, they know exactly where it’s going and will be a lot more likely to give. Asking your friends, family and coworkers to partner with you in prayer and financially will often raise hundreds if not thousands of dollars for your mission.

Your Local Church. If you’re going to be doing any sort of mission work, it’s perfectly acceptable to ask your church body for some help. Often churches will have missions boards and be more than willing to support a member who embarks on some missionary journey.

Creative Fundraisers. If you sign up with a company that will have you sell stuff and give you  a small fraction of the profit, you won’t make a lot of money. If you hold your own adult spelling bee, charge $10.00 a head, and have a lot of fun with it, you could easily raise hundreds of dollars. Google for creative fundraising ideas and you’ll get all sorts of results. Doing something unique and interesting will be much more of a draw than going around and selling stuff for a company!

Be a Good Steward. You can save a substantial amount of money by maintaining a tight-ship in your own financial household. If you write and stick to a budget, plan out your spending, and continually look for ways to spend less money, it’s very easy to save $100 a month if not more.

These are just some of the ways to raise money for a mission trip and you will likely have a lot of success with them for a short term philanthropic trip. If you want to become a full-time missionary, you’ll have to put in a lot more visits to churches, ministries, and individuals, but it can be done.

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