Support Raising 101: Ideas Concerning Thank-Yous

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Ideas Concerning Thank-Yous

Here's something from one of the blogs I review frequently...it is obviously not pertaining directly to those of us who have the privilege of being "on support," but it is just another prod from me to send thank you notes regularly to your people: (by the way, we have yet to get a firm "closing date" here in NY, nor do we have approved appraisal/financing on the other end...and I leave Thursday morning to drive to St Jo to attend Saturday's quizzing and then begin a week in a church in Troy, Ks Sunday...appreciate any prayers you can lift!)

rom Daily Writing Tips by Ali

Sending a thank you note is always a lovely gesture – and often an expected one. I'm sure that when you were a child, your parents encouraged (or forced) you to write thank you notes for birthday and Christmas presents. As an adult, you should still make a point of writing a thank you note to express gratitude in a number of situations. These come in both personal and business contexts:

Personal

It's appropriate to send a thank you note:

When you receive a gift (especially important for wedding gifts).
When you've been a houseguest in someone's home (this is sometimes called a "bread-and-butter letter").
When someone has done a particular favor for you.

Business

It's appropriate to send a thank you note:

After attending a job interview.
After receiving a promotion or payrise.
After a business lunch, dinner or party.
When an acquaintance has given you their time and advice.
When a manager or professor has supplied you with a reference letter.
To co-workers who've given you a gift (this last one may fall into the "personal" category, depending on how well you know your colleagues).

Obviously, the types of thank you notes you write in a personal context (to your grandma, for instance) will differ considerably from the types you write in a business context (to an interviewer who you barely know). I'll cover the "personal" and "business" notes separately, outlining the general structure and giving you some examples.

Writing a Personal Thank You Note

If merely expressing your gratitude doesn't seem like a good enough reason to write a thank you note, you might like to read these words of advice from Leslie Harpold.

I will also grudgingly tell you the hidden secret of thank you notes: They improve the frequency and quality of the gifts you receive. People like being appreciated, and if they feel you actually notice the nice things they do for you, they're more likely to give an encore performance.
- How to Write a Thank you Note

Ideally, your letter should be on paper rather than emailed. If you are emailing, you must send individual thank you notes rather than mass-emailing everyone who gave you a gift.
In most cases for a personal note, it's not appropriate to set it out as a formal business letter. Instead, use good-quality notepaper or a nice greetings card.
Structuring a Personal Thank You Note

You should put your address at the top (or, if you know the recipient will already have your address, simply put the name of your town and state). Add the date.
Address the recipient as "Dear [[name]]", then open the letter by thanking them for the gift, hospitality or kindness offered.
Your second sentence or paragraph should give some indication of your enjoyment or use of the gift.
Some people like to go on to share a little news, especially if they have been out of touch with the recipient for a while. Some etiquette experts, though, suggest that the thank you note should purely be about the recipient's kindness, not about your own life. I believe that in a personal context, it's fine to share your news.
A good closing sentence or paragraph is one which looks forward to seeing or speaking to the recipient – especially if a reunion or holiday is coming up. Mentioning "thank you " again is a good idea, to emphasise the point of the letter.
You should not end with "yours sincerely" but with a less formal phrase; "love" or "love from" is often appropriate for relatives, or "best wishes", "warmest wishes" or even "thanks again".

Example of a Personal Thank You Note
Here's an example, from the Etiquette Grrls' book More Things You Need to Be Told (p56):

September 1, 2005
Dear Katherine,
Thank you so much for the wonderful book about nineteenth-century architecture of Long Island that you sent me. Not only was it the perfect present (I haven't been able to put it down!) but it will certainly come in handy for my studies. You always pick the perfect thing!
Again, thanks so much, and I'll talk to you soon.
Love,
Bitsy

As you can see, a thank you note needn't be long to be friendly, polite and effective.

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My Support Journey

My formal schooling was crawling to a halt. I was chomping at the proverbial bit to get into ministry. Though scared spitless in some ways, I was confident the Lord had called me to vocational ministry, and I was weeks away from finishing the schooling that, at the time, I thought prepared me for the transition from student to “minister of the Gospel.”
Several “parachurch” (how I hate that term!) ministries had expressed an interest in me serving with them. Yet all had one minor quirk…they wanted me to raise my own salary…to subsist on deputation…to raise support.
Yuck! I had only been a follower of Christ for a few years, and all but one of those years had been spent incarcerated. I was, prior to Jesus invading my life, a thief! I had stolen from friends, enemies, companies, stores…I could not now go out are mooch money from other people!
But, gladly, the Spirit of God kept me from being hasty; I prayed, I sought counsel from the Word, I asked advice from others; and got to the point where I recognized, realized, and resolved that support raising was Biblical and was for me.
That was early summer, 1978. I have subsisted on deputation/support since that time. The early years were, well, not exactly overwhelming successes as far as support went. But I was single…for a couple years I preached three or four times a week all over the Kansas City area…without a car. I lived in a succession of small apartments and houses with lots of roommates. I ate a lot of macaroni and cheese.
As time evolved I connected with more and more people that seemed genuinely interested in my ministry and my life; and more and more became financial partners.
In 1982 I married Jane, and the Lord has blessed us with four children. We’ve not had to worry too much about what to do with extra income, but neither have we starved. Any financial struggles have been self-induced rather than consequences of being “on support.”
I am confident the Lord called me to Himself. I am equally certain the Lord called me into vocational ministry (though I’ve no idea why…but if He can use a donkey I shouldn’t marvel that He can use me!). And I am absolutely convinced the “Giver of all good gifts” has called others alongside us to “support us in the work” to which the Lord has called us.
Even after all these years I am still amazed with every gift given to our support account. I marvel at how many of these folks have been with me since those early days, and how the Lord uses a relatively small number of people, and portions of their resources, to allow me to serve full-time and thus impact thousands upon thousands of lives over the years.
I am also amazed at the confusion, attitude, and general misconception of support held by most Christians…both those that are trying to “raise” support and those who are current or potential supporters.
Thus I set off to put my thoughts, experiences, and ideas on paper, with a fervent prayer the Lord would be pleased to use these efforts to, in part, provide more workers for the ever-whitening fields.