At Light Street Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland, reaching out to people who aren’t members of the church to ask for a one-time gift brings annual donations up to $10,000.

The approach differs from most Presbyterian churches because it intentionally identifies people with an arms-length relationship with Light Street Church, people who aren’t included in other stewardship efforts.

In a large metro area such as Baltimore, especially for an urban church such as Light Street, the added gifts amount to an important part of the annual budget.

The Friends of Light Street appeal is a completely distinct list of people than church members and regular attendees. Anyone who regularly attends worship at the church – at least once or twice in the past year — doesn’t get this letter, because this is a one-time ask. Those people get the stewardship appeal, said Rev. Tim Hughes Williams, pastor at Light Street.

Light Street Presbyterian Church was founded in 1855 as a Sunday School for the children of local factory workers.

“It has always been a working-class downtown church that has relied upon missional support from the larger community to survive. Having a mission that is focused on social justice and direct action has often inspired individuals who often belong to other churches to consider us ‘friends’ who they support with a one-time gift,” Hughes Williams said.

People on their list, which is tracked and updated annually, include:

• Former members and attendees who now pledge elsewhere;
• Members of other church communities in the area who are friends and believe in the Light Street mission;
• People who have been married or received care at Light Street in the past but have never participated regularly;
• Friends and family of current membership who have the means to do a certain amount of annual philanthropic giving;
• Anyone who has ever given a one-time donation in the past.

Each year, the church mails out letters to about 50 households, and that effort typically results in $5,000 – $10,000 in gifts, Rev. Hughes Williams said.

If this sounds like something that might work for your church, here are a few things to consider:

• Track people who show an interest in your church’s particular efforts, from sheltering the homeless to area/regional/international mission work – emails, mailing address and phone numbers whenever possible;
• Ask your congregation’s largest donors to invite their friends to visit a worship service, or to learn more about the church and its needs. This can extend your reach into the community and beyond your membership;
• Whenever possible, link a specific need or mission to your ask – is it to help with feeding the local hungry? Will it expand after-school childcare? Is it for a facility need at the church? Many external donors are more likely to give when they know how their gift will be used, as opposed to it “disappearing” into a general fund.