Fundraising in Youth Ministry and Church Branding

Bubba Crowder, a long time friend of Roger Davis and YM360, is the founder and Director of Fund the Nations - 52 Threads, a company founded based on the Great Commission and with the intent of helping students and adopting parents to fundraise. Oh my does Bubba have a lot of experience with fundraising in youth ministry!

Growing up, Bubba always had the fear of fundraising because of negotiating and asking people for money. He asked himself if there was a better way to do it, and after seeing a girl at his college print off shirts and fund her entire mission trip, with the help of others, he started learning design and printing shirts for friends who were needing help fundraising.

How do you start to think about fundraising on the church level?

First and foremost, something they say often at Fund the Nations - 52 Threads is that "the funds should not determine your call, they should help you get there."

There is shared fundraising, where everyone puts funds in a pot and divides is even. There is also personal fundraising. It's important to encourage your students to fundraise on their own.

There is still a faith aspect to going out and raising the money. You're trusting that God is going to provide, and a t-shirt is just a physical way for God to do that.

What about a Church individual needs to brand themselves?

The first question should always be: "Does your brand match your goal?"

Does the aesthetic that you are trying to push forward match with what your church is doing? You don't have to be the next Hillsong Church and only brand yourselves around teenagers and young adults if you have a large population that is 50+ years old.

Anything that looks good is going to be worn and shown in more places.

Make sure your logo can fit on a shirt, or a hat, or a sticker, and so on.

"I'm a Youth Minister who wants to rebrand my ministry. Where do I start?"

Get in touch with Bubba and Fund the Nations - 52 Threads to get started. If you chose to print T-shirts with them, the design work is free. Bubba and his team would love to help you get started on how you can line up your brand and your ministry.

Enjoy this Conversation with Roger Davis and Bubba Crowder! 

 Or listen on the go with our podcast!