How to Pick the Best Date for Your Women’s Ministry Event

Picking the best date for your women’s ministry event can be tricky.

While throwing a dart at a calendar may seem tempting, we can do better than that!

We’re aiming for the best date for the greatest number of women in your church.

But how do we figure that out?

We start by identifying the worst dates to hold your event. 

Yep, you heard me right!

We need to eliminate that dates that won’t work first.

When we eliminate the competition, we remove excuses.

Let’s take a look at events, groups, and activities you don’t want to compete with:

1. Vacation Bible School (VBS) – It probably goes without saying that VBS requires a LOT of volunteers. Don’t schedule any event during VBS (or during VBS training meetings) or immediately before or after VBS.

2. School holidays – Know when the school holidays are for the systems/schools your church members attend. Not every school, but the ones that will impact the most number of women.

• Watch out for Spring break
• Long weekends
• Fall break
• Christmas break
• Common holidays
• Open House nights

3. Senior Outings – You want all of your women to be able to attend and not have to choose. Check out the schedule for the Senior outings. It’s never a competition.

4. Choir –  Often a large number your women are involved in choir – or at your church it may be another ministry.

• Avoid scheduling events on the night they practice.
• Steer clear of any choir retreats and special productions.

5. Men’s Ministry – You do not want to be the cause of conflict in any marriage. Many men’s ministry meetings stick to the same night/week each month. If it can be avoided, don’t schedule your activity or event the night before or the night after any men’s ministry event.

6. Holidays – Take care in scheduling events too close to major holidays. Folks may be traveling, may not have the money if it’s an expensive event, or may feel that have too much to do to and can’t get away.

7. May – May is hard. If you have an annual Mother’s Day event and your women expect it, you’re probably okay. Otherwise preserve that weekend for families to celebrate with each other. That weekend and the weekend after are college graduation weekends. The closer you get to the end of the school year, the less likely women are to attend.

8. Special Church Events – You need to know what else is happening at your church on the days and nights near your preferred date. Many moms are going to be limited on the number of nights they feel they can be out – don’t expect them to come to church two extra nights in one week. If many women are volunteering to help with that event they maybe prepping for several days prior.

9. Sports Schedules – You may live in small community and everybody attends the high school football games on Friday night. Don’t try to compete! If you live in basketball country, like I do, you’d want to avoid the NCAA tournament. Scheduling a women’s ministry event during a home Panthers game, wouldn’t likely go over well either. Even if you think most of your women may not care, many of them will be relying on their husbands to watch the children while they attend your women’s ministry event. Many churches we’ve attended have canceled Sunday evening Bible study on Super Bowl Sunday and encourage their members to build relationships with their neighbors that night.

It’s not going to be possible to eliminate every potential conflict.

Women are busy and they will have to choose to come.

We can make that choice easier by scheduling our women’s ministry events when we know there will be fewer conflicts.

Final tips:

• If your church calendar isn’t available online, ask your church secretary to send you a copy prior to your women’s ministry meeting.
• Be sure to alternate days of the week (unless it’s a recurring event) for your events. If one of your women always works the Friday night shift at the hospital she’ll never be able to attend if you only hold events on Friday nights.

You may also want to read:
Don’t get caught up in the numbers!
Calendar Planning: 3 Critical Questions

One year ago: A Code of Conduct for Your Small Group
Two years ago: Your Mission Statement