Really Old-Time Family Photos
Set up a canopy and decorate the inside with colorful cloth, a low table, palm fronds, baskets, and rugs. This will be the backdrop for some really old-time family photos. Round up as many bathrobes and Bible-times costumes as you can. Charge families a few dollars and let them dress up as a family back in Jesus’ time. Snap a fun family photo, and deliver the photo a few weeks before your Jerusalem Marketplace opens.
Zany Zoo
This may sound too simple, but it really works because of the basic truth that kids love animals. Set up a petting zoo after church, filled with any animals you can find. Cats, dogs, turtles, birds, goats, mice, and fish will all work (OK, maybe not the fish). If you can find animals like goats or calves, even better! Ask one family member to be in charge of their family’s animal. Charge a small fee for kids to walk through and pet the animals.
Basket Toss
Talk about easy! Set up your Marketplace bakery in a high-traffic area of your church. In the center of the shop, place a large basket. Let families know you’d like to fill the basket with their loose change…but from a distance. As families come by to sample a bite of bread, or to sign up for Jerusalem Marketplace, let them try their hand at tossing coins into the basket from outside the shop.
Under Arrest!
There’s something intimidating about someone in a Roman guard’s costume…even if it’s only a 13-year-old boy! A week or so before this fundraiser, post a notice in the church bulletin that people can have a family member or friend “arrested” by a centurion. On the designated day, have a few hammy volunteers dress up in a Roman guard’s costume. The guards will pull people aside, “arrest” them, and walk them to a room you’ve set up as the jail. People who are arrested must pay (or raise) a small fee in order to be released. (Be sure to take photos of this fundraiser!)
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