Resources for Churches

Opportunity for Rural/Small City Churches

In a rural/small town church and wanting to learn how to more effectively minister? Mark your calendar for Oct. 11th for a one-day conference on Christian community development (CCD) in rural contexts. Location: Nashville, IN.

"Finding Grants for Church Building Campaigns"- by Joy Skjegstad

In this blog post, Skjegstad explains the qualifications churches need to seek corporate or foundational grants for church building campaigns. Knowing the possible scenarios in which capital grants are awarded, as well as what must be clearly demonstrated from the building plan, will help churches seeking funding know if they are eligible for grants. 

New in Resources

BookShelf
Check out FASTEN's new BookShelf section, with reviews of key books of interest to community ministry practitioners. 

New Resource for Congregations

This online book is an excellent guide on community organizing -- check it out for advice, tools and ideas your church can use to get involved in your community.

Tutoring Toolkit Upgrades

Check out the new additions to our Tutoring Toolkit. 

Find Free Stuff

The FASTEN team has gathered information about free and low-cost items that faith-based nonprofits may be able to access through a variety of organizations and associations.

Download Toolkits
FASTEN offers several practical "how-to" toolkits to assist practitioners in designing, implementing and evaluating new programs. Get Training
Click this link to connect to FASTEN's Conferences/Events calendar to learn about training opportunities in your locality.

Fast Research Facts
Writing a grant proposal to support your youth program? Click here to emphasize why what you are doing is so needed.

Best Practices Checklists
Use these checklists to assess whether your programs are incorporating promising practices.

New in Networking

Designing your Community Ministry Program: Seven Creative Models
October 11, 7:00 pm

Join Joy Skjegstad, author of Winning Grants to Strengthen Your Ministry (Alban Institute 2007) and Starting A Nonprofit At Your Church (Alban Institute 2002), at these upcoming events. Joy is a national speaker and consultant on nonprofit management and ministry development and experienced webinar leader.

A focus on community ministry and outreach is vital for the future
success of any church, and this focus can take many different forms.
Learn about creative models for community ministry, from mobilizing
volunteers to developing a full-fledged program or nonprofit on-site at
your church (and a number of options in-between).

Out of the Pew, Into the Community: Getting Church Members Engaged in Community Ministry
October 25, 7:00 pm
Your church claims that community ministry is a top priority, but it’s
hard to get church members involved. Sound familiar? Help is on the
way!

This webinar features practical steps to getting your church members
out of the building and down the street, based on the unique needs and
interests of your congregation. We will cover assessing interests and
skills of your church members, developing partnerships and volunteer
opportunities, and recruiting and training church members.

Download this flyer for more information. 

What's Working: Program Snapshots

Faith leaders considering launching new initiatives can check out plausible models of ministry, gaining inspiration and creative ideas.

Find Others Doing This Work

Follow this link to find other FBOs and intermediary organizations as well as private philanthropies and public agencies collaborating with FBOs around the country.

Exchange Ideas

Visit the FASTEN Forum to share your lessons learned--and to learn from others' great ideas.

FASTEN Newsletter Archives

Did you miss a newsletter?  Now is your chance to view them all.  Click here to review all of FASTEN's newsletters for 2005.