Awards are fun to get, but even more fun to give. If you’ve got some volunteers who are helping out in your ministry, why not get creative at your next volunteer appreciation dinner, or even between now and then. Here’s my top ten favorite volunteer appreciation awards.

10. The Extra-Mile Award. a gift certificate for a gas station and a can of beans, for the volunteer who quite literally drives the farthest.

9. The Candlelight Dinner Award. a $10 gift certificate for McDonald’s and a candle, for a volunteer husband and wife team.

8. The Spam Award. a big can of spam, for a volunteer who helps out in a variety of ways and is good with everything.

7. The Red Bull Award. a 6-pack of red bull for someone in your ministry who is working long hours in your ministry, and needs some wings.

6. The Melendowski Award. Name an award after an already awesome volunteer in your ministry. Go to the dollar store and buy a ceramic figurine and spray paint it gold. It could be a totally random item. Have fun with it. Write a poem about it. Have a grandiose presentation.

5. The On-Fire Award: a box of hot tomales, or red hots candies, for a volunteer who is burning it up in your ministry.

4. The Michael Jordan Award: get a basketball and have kids/volunteers sign it, it’s for someone who’s finished volunteering, but you want to encourage them to come back someday, just like MJ.

3. The Inspiration Award: get a picture of the person with the kids they work with, put it in a signature frame you can get at the store, and have kids sign notes of encouragement around the picture, this is great for a bible study teacher.

2. The Retirment Award: a diamond pin…it’s actually a dime with a small hole drilled in it and a button pin inserted, for someone who’s really finishing volunteering

1. The You Saved the Day Award: spray paint a plunger with gold paint, it’s for a volunteer(s) who saved the day with something they did.

BONUS: Buy 10-15 candy bars from the store and write a story about a volunteer in your ministry and use the name of each candy bar in it. Write it out on a big piece of white posterboard and tape the candy bars where those words go. For example: magic twix, they live on 5th avenue, they work with smarties, from new york, you can hear snickers when they arrive, from a family of nerds, they’re a real butterfinger, etc.