Are all of the members and friends of your church aware of all of the outreach ministries of your church? Is the wider community aware of who you are serving and how? Churches need to tell their stories, advises a recent article in the Christian Century. Author George Mitrovich explains

When my liberal friends dismiss church and people of faith, I realize that part of what is going on is that they are just ignorant about all that churches do. They are ignorant in part because churches are silent about what they are doing.

Here are some tips and examples of how to share your good works with your members, friends and community.

• Have a page on your website that mentions your outreach efforts. Include items such as:
  • A list of "Share the Plate" recipients and amounts donated
  • Community affiliations (NAACP, Interfaith Groups, Social Services, Community Organizing groups, legislative groups, LGBTQ groups
  • Donated/discounted space for other groups (12-step, scouts, homeschoolers, concerts, plays)
  • Participation in community events (CROP Walk, arts events, county fairs, farmers markets)
• Regularly send press releases to your local news outlets sharing your stories. (See the Public Relations Resource page on uua.org)
• Write stories about your members' experiences with your outreach ministries and publish them in your newsletter and on a blog linked to your website, Facebook page and Twitter account.
• Post stories on your Facebook page and encourage your members to share the stories on their own pages