Most people who come to a workday came because someone they know asked them. Below are messages written for a text, a group chat, an announcement, and an email to a team. Copy one, change whatever you want, and send it.
Sign yourself up firstSent to one specific person rather than to a group, this is the version that works most often.
Hey, I'm volunteering on a Habitat for Humanity build in Birmingham on Saturday, October 10. You don't need experience or tools, they give you a job when you get there. It runs 8 to 3 with a lunch break. Want to come with me? immanuelvolunteers.com/oct10Copied
For a small group, a run club, coworkers, or family. Asking for a reply gets you a headcount.
Is anybody free Saturday, October 10? I'm going to a Habitat for Humanity build in Birmingham. No experience needed and no tools, they hand you a job when you show up, and it runs 8 to 3. I'd rather not be the only one of us there. Sign up here if you want in: immanuelvolunteers.com/oct10Copied
Written to be read out loud once, with the link printed underneath.
On Saturday, October 10, Immanuel Volunteers is taking a crew of ten to a Habitat for Humanity Greater Birmingham build. No experience or tools are required, every job is taught on site, and the day runs 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. There is no cost and anyone is welcome. You can sign up at immanuelvolunteers.com/oct10.Copied
Written for a manager forwarding it on, so it answers the questions people ask first.
Subject: Habitat for Humanity build in Birmingham, Saturday October 10Copied
Immanuel Volunteers is taking a crew of ten to a Habitat for Humanity Greater
Birmingham build on Saturday, October 10. They organize one-day volunteer projects
for Birmingham charities, and this is one of them.
No experience is needed and there are no tools to bring. Every job is taught on site
and Habitat provides tools, materials, and water. The day runs 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM
with a break at 11:30. There is no cost and nobody is asked for money.
Sign up here: immanuelvolunteers.com/oct10
If several of us want to go together, the signup form asks how many you are bringing.
A workday is an easy thing to invite someone to. It asks for one morning and nothing else, which makes it low pressure for a friend from work or school who has drifted out of the habit of church. It also beats dinner as a first date, since you spend the morning working beside each other instead of sitting across a table.
People do ask, and the answer is straightforward. It is a Christian mission, and bringing churches together across congregations is the point of it. Nobody prays at you, nobody pitches you, and plenty of the people who come are not churchgoers. You show up, you work, and you go home. The FAQ answers it the same way if someone wants the longer version.
Two other questions come up often. On tools, you need closed-toe shoes and clothes you do not mind ruining, and everything else is provided. On timing, workdays run the morning into the early afternoon, and leaving early is fine as long as you tell the team leader when you arrive.
Put the headcount in the signup form and we will scope enough work for everyone. If you are bringing more than about six people, or you want a workday built around your own team, a sponsored day lets you pick the date.