Got Questions? We Have Answers.
Give Blessings Bags FAQs
What if I don’t know anyone to help me? We’ve learned that all it takes is a heart to say YES. People are looking for ways to give back and support the community. If you take the leap of faith, God will bless it. Take baby steps in your serving and watch God send the right people.
How do I supply the bags with a logo on it? When starting out, you do not need to invest dollars you do not have into bags that will possibly be thrown away. Grab bags from the grocery store. Next time you go shopping save the bags. It’s more about the blessings that are inside the bags then the beautification of what’s on the outside. The need is great. Let’s go serve.
How do I secure in a location? I don’t know anyone? Think outside the box, find a community park and call the city for find out if there’s a fee. Many times local parks can be as little as $50-$80 to reserve. You can also choose to set up at a community center, drive way, church parking lot, etc. When you start asking around you will be shocked to find out how easy it is to secure a place to serve. Many business owners would love a way to give back in return for you bringing in traffic to their establishment. Just ask around.
Do I need to be a nonprofit? How do I take funds, cash, financial donations? Give Blessing Bags is an outreach arm of Stolen Lunches Ministry in Charlotte, NC. Stolen Lunches is a 501c3, therefore you become connected to a 501c3. Upon sign up and launch of your city, Stolen Lunches IT will create a specific web page for you so people can donate to your city specifically through Stolen Lunches. Stolen Lunches will handle all tax deductible write offs at the end of the year. All you have to do is tell people to go to GiveBlessingsBags.org.
How do I raise funds from major corporations to support my city’s Give Blessings Bag movement? For the first year of serving and launching your own city’s Give Blessing Bag movement, we encourage you to start small. This means turn your focus toward your fellow neighbors meeting together, packing and serving the community. Start with 25 bags and grow toward 50, 100, 200 bags. You can do this with the team structure we teach in our on-boarding classes. After one full year commitment to Give Blessing Bags, Stolen Lunches Inc. will release pertinent information if leadership is raising funds for their city and need proof of EIN.
Why do I have to provide a background check? We serve in excellence. While it is a necessity to have a background check, we understand people change for the better and will provide grace on a case-by-case basis.
How many people do I need at a packing event? It is all up to you. Packing 25 bags can be done with 2 people, if need be. We will provide the guideline for best practices, but you ultimately get to make your own rules and establish your own processes.
Do I have to pray and know Jesus to be a leader for Give Blessing Bags? Yes, this is a ministry led service project. We stand firmly on the foundation of prayer and faith in Jesus Christ. We require an atmosphere that is welcoming to all people with the grounding principle of serving our heavenly Father.
What’s the best way to hand out the bags? You know your city best. It’s fair to say there’s a serious need wherever you live. The way you serve your community will differ from city to city. If you and/or most people take public transportation, we encourage only taking one GBB in your book-bag or laptop bag per day. If you do not live in poverty stricken areas, you can plan a time to drive into these areas to drop off bags in a neighborhood that is in need. If you drive a car, we encourage leaving the bags in your car to safely provide GBB when you see someone on a street corner.
What if I can’t serve every month or get sick? Great question! One of the biggest ways to grow and serve more people in your community is to be consistent in everything you do. Never miss a day and if you can, stay at one location to grow traction. If you need to miss a pack, it’s quite okay, simply enlist one of your leaders to step up in your absence. We highly recommend dividing your leaders into teams. For us in Charlotte, NC we rotate a Team A and a Team B. Therefore, you are only serving 6 times a year which allows for vacations and time off.