This project is shared by the Life Team at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Macomb, Michigan.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born, I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5).
Your Change Can Change a Life! A Baby Bottle Drive is an easy and fun way to involve members of your State Federation, Life Chapter, Life Team, congregation, and school families in supporting a Gospel-focused pregnancy resource center simply by filling a baby bottle with coins, cash, and checks. Every donation, large or small, is life-changing.
“The Life Team at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Macomb, Michigan, exists to educate, encourage, and empower the members of our congregation to be Gospel-motivated voices For Life. Our mission statement is applied to all the events and activities we do. We are truly blessed by the generosity of our congregation and school students who have faithfully supported us each year with their donations that support our three pregnancy resource centers.” Carol Poterek, Life Team Leader
St. Peter Lutheran Church has participated in the Baby Bottle Drive for nine years and raised a total of $38,188.53. Praise the Lord for His faithfulness! The 2023 Baby Bottle Drive raised $4,639. Of the funds collected, the Life Team donated 10% to LFL National, $500 to the Life Team budget, and the remaining funds were divided locally between Abigayle Ministries, Compassion Pregnancy Center, and The Luke Project 52 Clinic. The Life Team celebrates the success of the campaign and shows appreciation to the congregation by placing a thank you note in their weekly church bulletin and monthly newsletter.
Ruthann Bettcher has chaired the Baby Bottle Drive at St. Peter Lutheran Church for the past nine years. St. Peter’s Life Team holds their Baby Bottle Drive in the month of January. Compassion Pregnancy Center provides 300 bottles for the Baby Bottle Drive. For distribution, the Life Team places the baby bottles in four large boxes wrapped in baby-themed wrapping paper. The boxes are located around the narthex of the church for the month of January.
On Life Sunday, in addition to the Baby Bottle Drive, the Life Team displays their life banner, hosts a life information display table in the narthex, and distributes the LFL Life Sunday bulletin inserts. (The 2025 bulletin inserts and other Life Sunday resources will be available this fall on the Lutherans For Life website.) The Life Team displays a bulletin board in the back of the church highlighting the Baby Bottle Drive and the pregnancy resource centers that are supported. They advertise in the weekly bulletin, monthly church newsletter, and in the pre-service announcements.
Steps to Host a Baby Bottle Drive
Work with your pastor and check your church calendar to determine a date to start your Baby Bottle Drive. The campaign can be held in conjunction with Life Week, Life Month, Mother’s Day to Father’s Day, or any other time of the year. (It is suggested to distribute the baby bottles two to four weeks before the collection date.)
Recruit – Determine a volunteer to coordinate the Baby Bottle Drive campaign. The Baby Bottle Drive coordinator organizes the campaign by working with the pregnancy resource center, by arranging the details and logistics for the campaign at church, by recruiting volunteers to serve at the event, and by handling the publicity for the event.- Contact – Partner with a local pregnancy resource center to assist you with the campaign. Typically, they will provide baby bottles and publicity materials for the event. If you don’t have that option, you can purchase baby bottles at Heritage House ‘76 (www.pro.life). Watch for sales on baby bottles and order in quantities to reduce cost.
- Promote – Announce the Baby Bottle Drive in the church bulletin, newsletter, social media, and from the pulpit leading up to the collection period; distribute posters or flyers; or create a bulletin board. Note: Let the congregation know how the funds raised will be distributed.
- Distribute – Set up a display with the baby bottles. You can utilize a bassinet, pack ‘n play, or baskets to hold the baby bottles. Another option is to have volunteers at each entrance to the sanctuary to distribute the baby bottles as the guests leave worship.
- Collect – Determine a collection date and a designated location for the return of the bottles at the end of the collection period. Blessing the collected baby bottle during worship is a great way to send them on their way to those who will receive them. Determine if the church will be counting the funds or if the pregnancy resource center will handle the money.
- Celebrate – Rejoice at the impact For Life! Celebrate with the members how much was raised for women and their families in the area.
Other Options to Enhance the Baby Bottle Drive
- Life Display – Set up a display table with LFL print resources available from Concordia Publishing House and other visual items such as a large size baby bottle, fetal models, and baby feet pins which are available at Heritage House ’76.
- Baby Shower – Combine your Baby Bottle Drive with a baby shower and collect four or five requested items (baby clothing, baby board books, diapers, formula, wipes) to support the pregnancy resource center.
- Guest Speaker – Invite a staff member from the pregnancy resource center to speak for a few minutes during a worship service to inform the members about the center.
- Virtual Baby Bottle Drive – Work with your local pregnancy center to see if this is an option. Sometimes donations can be given online by this means.
Baby Bottle Drives are an important source of funds that allow pregnancy resource centers to provide necessary services to those in need. Dropping coins in a baby bottle is a wonderful example of sharing personal generosity and kindness by both adults and children. Your change can have a direct impact on a life!
This article is from Directions – September-October 2024.