Event/Activities should have one or more of the following purposes:
- Faith Development, Education and/or Skill Development.
- Fund Raising
- Ministry/Missions
- Community Building
They should be designed to actively seek to include non-members and to bring them into contact with members on a regular basis. A special emphasis should be placed on attracting people under the age of 40. Events are not intended to attract everyone – different events for different folks. To add depth to an event, add a personal testimonial from a member.
For small groups, tag onto already scheduled events to do the heavy lifting. Let others do much of the preparation so that you maximize your teams hours.
The parenthesis following a description indicates an enhanced description of the activity is described in detail at the end of the list under the specified number.
Alumni Parties
Amateur Hour Program
Antique Car Show
Art Dispay
Awards Dinners
Bakery Sale
Ballroom Dance
Barbeques
Bicycle Rehab Events
Bingo Party
Blue Grass Music & Food
Bocce Ball Challenge
Bowlathon
Bridge Nights
Bring a Pet Party
Build a “PET” Road Trip (2)
Build Props for Youth Event
Camping Out
Canoe Trips
Car Wash
Carneval Nights
Carroling
Casino Night
Challenge Events
Christmas Tree Lot
Computer Assistance Days
Costume Ball
Crafts Fair
Crazy Bowl Night
Decathlon Contest (7)
Disaster Kit Building
Disaster Response Activities
Duplicate Bridge
Duplicate Cribbage
Educational Programs
Family Movie Night
Family Retreat
Fantasy Sports Competition
Father Son Banquet
Fireworks Party
Fish Fry
Fishing Party/Tournament
Float Trips
Food Stand Activities
Garage Sale
Get out of Jail Fees
Gift Wrapping Service
Go as You Come Party (4)
Golf Tournament
Group Attendance @ School/College Events
Hiking Parties
Horse Team Contest (Basketball)
Host a Scouting Activity/Entity
Ice Cream Social
Karaoke Night
Lego Nights
Lenten/Advent Breakfasts
Methodist Day @ the Ballpark – Kansas City
Methodist Day @ the Ballpark – St. Louis (3)
Miniature Golf Challenge
Mission Road Trips
Model Railroading Event
Mom’s Night Out (1)
Mother Daughter Banquet
Packaging Party
Pancake Breakfast
Photography Show
Physical Fitness Events
Pickleball Party
Picnic in the Park
Pool Party
Recycling Activity
Road Trips
Scavenger Hunts
Six Flags Day
Skating Event
Skill/Interest Potluck Dinner
Skill Development Sessions
Softball Place Hitting Competition
Soup Buffet
Soup Off (6)
Sports Team Sponsorship
Square Dance
State/County Fair Attendance
Sweetheart Banquet
Talent Show
Team Challenge Night (New Marrieds)
Tennis Mixer
Treasure Hunt
Trivia Night
Unmatched Singles Nights by Invitation (5)
Wild Game Dinner
Youth Auction
Youth Mentoring Events
Zoom Bible Study
- Mom’s Night Out is a quarterly event designed around a hot dog type meal and a movie night, game night, Lego night or similar activity for Dad-child bonding. A free will offering can be used to defray expenses. The moms will control their side of the event for timing, cost, transportation and facilities. For maximum effectiveness, each member mom should invite a non-member mom to join her. Non-members are encouraged to attend. Single moms are encouraged to adopt a grampa to stand in as a dad for her kids. Child care for very young children is recommended. This is an event with an under age 40 focus.
- A Build a “PET” Road Trip is a trip to Columbia for a volunteer work day at the Mobility Worldwide facility. Check out their web site for particulars and let them know how many will come and hours of work.
- Methodist Day @ the Ballpark is a scheduled conference event on June 22nd at 1:15 pm at Busch Stadium where the Cardinals host the San Francisco Giants. Tickets cost $30 for admission. This event can be used as a fund raiser by committing to a number of tickets by April 1 which reduces the cost of tickets to $25. Anyone is welcome to join us, thus small groups can sell tickets throughout there community. Manchester UMC often provides bus service from their parking lot. This event includes both Illinois and Missouri churches. Special scoreboard recognition is possible with sufficient notice. Special privileges like singing the National Anthem, on field for batting practice, or throwing out a “first pitch” are available with adequate volume of tickets.
- A “Go as you Come Party” is an evening of entertainment paid for by purchase of a ticket. One individual will ultimately be declared the “winner” of two all-expense paid cruise tickets to a specified resort for a week or similar time period. All potential winners must have their travel bags packed and with them, as they will be whisked away with their companion of choice in a limousine. During the evening, announcements of ticket numbers that didn’t win will be announced along with the award of selected lesser prizes. Are you serious about attracting younger folks? This is a significant fundraiser.
- Unmatched Singles Nights by Invitation are programmed activities of equal numbers of unpaired men and women that attend an event as a group. The activity is designed for allowing singles to get to know each other without dating pressures. Potential participants are registered by an endorsement from a member of the opposite sex and can then request attendance at any scheduled event. Applicants are accepted as sufficient offsetting applicants are realized. Some degree of age appropriateness is also a factor.
- A Soup Off can be a fund raiser where men provide their specialty soup and attendees purchase an empty bowl and spoon for sampling. A ticket is provided for scoring 1-10. Recipe copies are provided as a handout. This activity can be attached to a subsequent activity to encourage attendance and is enhanced if some ladies do their dessert thing.
- A decathlon contest involves competition over 10 specially selected and scored events. The events may have some physical activity involved or they may be a Sudoku puzzle or a trivia set. A “Crazy Bowl” mentality adds interest. The competitive parameters make the event special.