Community Outreach Event

Event Title: Jingle all the way: A Christmas Caroling Event

Event Description: A chance for families to go around and sing Christmas carols to spread Christmas cheer and to have
an outreach for our church.
Purpose of Event: To spread and celebrate the good news of Jesus birth, create a fun and faith filled tradition for families
in our church, and to have created a welcoming outreach event for our church.
Target Audience: All Families
Event Date and Time: Sunday, December 15th 2013 12-2:00pm
Event Location: First Shepherd Lutheran Church
Cost: $4 per family
Estimated Attendance: 200 people
Activities:
Rooms
Welcome
Station

Tasks
-Sign guest registry
book (give name tags,
caroling hats)

Materials Needed
-Guest book

Expenses
-Guest book- $10

-name tags

-Name Tags-have

-Assign families into

caroling groups

-Packets with map of

neighborhoods, agenda, and
scavenger hunt, include
policies for missing
children/injury reporting

-Packets-$15

-Have families meet

the leader for caroling
group

-Hats-$200
-Decorations-Have

Volunteers
-3 Friendly
volunteers

-Give and explain

scavenger hunt sheet

-Different caroling hats for

each group
-Decorations

Gym: Lunch
and cookie
decorating, hot
chocolate
station

-Get give aways to

leave at the houses
-Call secretary about
reserving gym

tables and chairs for around

200 people

-hot dogs $150

-buns $150

-See if a specific
ministry wants to
donate and cook

-table cloths
-Chips- $20
-silver wear and plates
-condiments $15

-Get serving
volunteers

-4 Youth and 1
adult for cookie
decorating + set
up and take down

-food (hot dogs/buns)

-2 servers (Lunch
and Hot
Chocolate)

-cookies-Donations
-garbage cans

-Price and make food

-1 Custodian
-frosting-$15

-Servers
-sprinkles- donations
-zipblock bags for cookies$15
-hot chocolate mix-$15
-plastic spoons donations
-Table Cloth-donations
-Silverware and plateshave

Neighborhoods -Train group leaders

-Song books

-Song Books-$20

-10 Group Leader

volunteers

-Scout out for

scavenger hunt
Miscellaneous tasks: -Reserve the Narthex for the Welcome Center and the Gym for the meal and Hot Chocolate.
-Talk to Custodial staff to sort who can come and what materials we need for the event.
-Train the welcome and group leaders in preparation for the event.
-With the congregational families make sure that there is at least 3 welcoming families in each
caroling group.
-Group Leaders need cell phones to call if they need it; they also need to have a map of their area to
cover, and the time when they need to come back.
-Map out the Pine Ridge Neighborhood and highlight 10 different paths for the 10 groups. Calculate
the time it takes to walk and give the time in the packet for the group leaders.
-Make the songbooks
Publicity Plan:
Inside Church
o Posted in Childrens Ministry section in the bulletin
o Children will give verbal announcements in church
o Posted on churchs website
o Youth will be asked if they are interested in helping (sign up sheet will be on the Childrens Ministry
bulletin board
o Donations sign up is on Childrens Ministry bulletin board
Outside Church
o Add in public newspaper
o Outside sign
o Add in local shops
o Children will receive postcards 3 weeks before the event (every week they will receive a postcard to
give to a friend)

o Parents will receive a postcard to give to a non-member family

Board announcement
Event: Jingle all the way: Christmas Caroling
Request:
That First Shepherd Lutheran Church provides a fun filled, family event that helps us focus on whats important in Christmas, Christ!
I want to host a family Christmas Caroling event that will become a cherished tradition in many homes, and the event will encourage
the community to participate in singing Gods praises.
In the community families are looking for events to do and because it is Christmas time they are more open to learn more about God.
This event will both complement our purpose statement of training families in the faith (by having them carol together), and be a vital
evangelism and witnessing tool for our church (inviting the public to participate and caroling at their door).
Event Details:
(Schedule)
11:45-Welcome Center stationed and caroling groups sorted (event starts at noon)
Noon-Hot Dog Lunch and Christmas Cookie Decorating in Gym
12:45-Carol in the Pine Ridge Neighborhoods (scavenger hunt optional)
1:30-Hot Chocolate in Gym
2:00-End
All guests will start with the welcome center which will open at 11:30 in which new people will receive a welcome packet, agenda,
map of the Pine Ridge Neighborhood, their caroling group name and their leaders name and number. Guests will also have to fill out
a emergency card and then they can get their hat that designates which caroling group they are in. Lunch will be served at noon and
once people finish eating they can decorate Christmas cookies. At 12:30 we will gather people into their groups and explain the rules
and the optional scavenger hunt. There are group leaders that are directing each group through the neighborhoods so no one gets lost
and at 1pm they will direct the group back to the church for some hot chocolate.
Budget:
Food-$500

Caroling Supplies-$175
Miscellaneous-$75
Total-$750
Needs:
-Volunteers (Caroling Guides, Servers, Cookie Helpers, Greeters)
-Maps of the Pine Ridge Neighborhoods
Final Statements:
With this event I hope to spread the love of Christ to our community and to get them excited for the real meaning of Christmas,
Christs birth. I want this event to be a bonding opportunity for the whole family, and I hope that this can be a cherished tradition that
we have at our church not just for our members but also for the local community.
Questions?

Press release for Christmas Caroling event

To: Cindy Brown chief executive for Metro News One Station
From: Andi Lynch- Director of Family Life at First Shepherd Lutheran church
Phone: 993-284-9938
Email: Andi.firstshep.org
Todays date: December 4, 2013
Date of Event: Sunday, December 15th 2013
Jingle all the way: A Christmas Caroling Event
Looking for a fun Christmas event the whole family can enjoy? First Shepherd Lutheran Church is having their annual
Christmas Caroling celebration and all families are invited to attend. Meet at the church at noon for a $4 per family hot dog lunch and
cookie decorating, followed by caroling in the neighborhood and hot chocolate.
After last years caroling, little Charlie said, It was so much fun, we got to sing songs about Jesus and how he got to sleep in a
manger!!! The hot chocolate was yummy too!!!
The Church is located on 825 Holy Ghost Rd. in Ann Arbor. If you have any questions please feel free to contact the Family
Life Director Andi at 993-284-9938 or email her at Andi.firstshep.org.

Post-Event Article
On December 15th we hosted our first Family Christmas Caroling Event and I am pleased to say that we made a joyful noise
for the Lord. We had 30-congregation families and 25 families from the community with a total of 210 people. For our event we sang
to a total number of 115 houses! 10 of the community families have visited the church, and many of the families have said that they
will add our Caroling event as a family tradition for their Christmas celebrations. We have many stories of how wonderful the
singing was and one neighbor was heard saying, I thought Christmas Caroling only existed in the movies. Thank you for all of the
helpers that made this event possible and thank you for all of the families that came and sang. What a wonderful way to spread the
Joy of Jesus birth to others. We hope to see your family next year.

Bulletin Post- to go in the Childrens Ministry section in the bulletin

Jingle all the way: A Christmas Caroling Event
All families are invited to our first annual Family Christmas Caroling Event. Join us from 122:00 as we celebrate the birth of our Savior by inviting the community and singing in the Pine Ridge
neighborhoods. Cost is $4 a family; there will be a hot dog lunch and Christmas cookie decorating
station provided. After lunch join our special caroling groups as we sing Gods praises to others and
enjoy some hot chocolate afterwards. Please sign up on the Childrens Ministry bulletin board to
register. Have questions contact the Family Life Director Andi.

Oral announcement-Children and I will go in front of congregation before service starts. (Children
will be wearing the special hats that the Caroling groups receive and will have jingle bells.)
Child 1- Want to help us create a new family Christmas tradition? Come to the Family Christmas
Caroling event and sing like an angel for Jesus!

Me (Andi)-Thats right our very first Family Christmas Caroling event is on Wednesday, December
15th from 12 to 2:00pm. Cost is $4 a family. There will be a hot dog lunch, Christmas cookies to
decorate, and hot chocolate after caroling.
Child 2- All families will get a fun hat for caroling and have a chance to do a Christmas decoration
scavenger hunt!!!
All three of us- Come sing with us as we (ring bells) jingle all the way!!!