Capital Stewardship Services
Dr. Jim Reimer, Director
3800 N. May Ave. s Oklahoma City, OK 73112 s 405.942.3800 ext. 4523 s
The First Steps for a
Capital Stewardship Campaign
For most churches a Capital Stewardship Campaign (CSC) is not a common occurrence. Because many churches have never experienced an effort of this type and might not know what to do or where to begin, we provide the following information to help you get started.
Step One - Decide on Project Specifics
Typically the need for a CSC is driven by the need for a major construction/renovation project, land acquisition or debt elimination. Assuming your church is considering just such a project, you must then decide how to fund the project. Do you borrow the money? If so, from whom? Do you conduct a CSC? Which approach to securing funds is best?
Step Two – Select a Team
To help you determine the best approach to secure funding for the project, a “fundraising team” should be enlisted. The purpose of this team is not to raise the funds, but to research and recommend to the church the most appropriate way to secure the funds.
Step Three – Evaluate the Approach
If the team decides that employing a professional campaign services consultant or company is the most responsible approach, they must effectively communicate that decision to the church.
There will always be some church members who feel that the church should not spend money on an outside consultant or firm. Those questions and concerns need to be appropriately addressed.
Step Four – Communicate the Approach
To help the congregation understand why using an outside consultant or firm is best, it is necessary to point out that self-led programs raise only 40 to 60 percent of what could be raised with outside assistance.
All should understand that without professional assistance ultimately someone within the church must take responsibility for the campaign. That person must invest a great deal of time to manage the campaign and they must:
Design the campaign
Develop the campaign manuals and materials
Recruit and train campaign leadership
Supervise and recruit team members
Conduct all training sessions
Oversee and facilitate all aspects of a campaign
Most churches don’t have members with the required time availability or expertise to do these things.
Step Five – Choose the Right Partner
In order to choose the right partner the Fund Raising Team must conduct a series of interviews with two or more campaign services consultants or companies.
The BGCO can provide you a list of these companies and guidelines to use for interviews.