Recruiting (Part 2): Why People Really Volunteer in Kids Ministry
- Tony Kensinger
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
When leaders talk about recruiting volunteers, the conversation usually sounds something like this:
“We just need people who love kids.” “We’re looking for passionate volunteers.”n“We need someone who feels called.”
Those things sound right. They even feel spiritual. But they’re also the reason many kids ministries stay perpetually understaffed.
Early in my ministry, I would’ve agreed with all of that. In fact, I avoided kids ministry altogether for years. My first full-time role was as a youth pastor, and when someone asked if I’d help with kids ministry, my honest response was, “Kids really aren’t my thing.”
I was a youth guy. That’s where I thought I belonged.
Life has a funny way of reshaping what we think we know. After stepping out of ministry for a season and working in corporate America, my family and I landed in a mega-church. I joined the worship team, and every weekend as I walked off the stage, I passed by the elementary ministry area.
Something started to stir.
I couldn’t explain it at first. I just knew I was drawn to what was happening in those rooms. Long story short, I spent the next two decades in kids and family ministry -and loved it.
Why do I share that?
Because it taught me something critical about recruiting: You never know what God is already stirring in someone’s heart.
That’s why recruiting based solely on “passion” is so limiting.
I once consulted with a church where the kids director told me she only wanted volunteers who were passionate about kids, experienced in teaching, and fully prepared every weekend. She couldn’t understand why she was constantly short-staffed.
The answer was simple: she was recruiting for an ideal, not for real people.
Here’s what I’ve learned over the years, most people don’t volunteer because they wake up one morning excited about kids ministry. They volunteer because something connects.
Sometimes it’s relational. Sometimes it’s practical. Sometimes it’s deeply personal.
At FRESH Ministries, we talk about five core values that shape healthy kids and family ministry: Family, Relationships, Experience, Safety, and Hope. Those values don’t just explain why kids ministry matters, they explain why people say yes.
Parents volunteer because they want to be involved in their child’s world and connect with other families. Relational people volunteer because kids ministry creates instant community. Creative people volunteer because it gives them a place to use gifts they don’t get to use during the week. Some people volunteer because safety matters deeply to them -especially dads who want to know their kids are protected. Others volunteer because, whether they realize it or not, serving is part of their own discipleship journey.
More than we need people to serve, people need a place to serve.
That’s why kids ministry is such fertile ground for recruiting if leaders stop looking for the perfect volunteer and start looking at the whole church.
I’ve seen incredible impact from groups many leaders overlook:
Middle school students who crave belonging
High school students ready to own their faith
Young adults with time, energy, and a need for purpose
Parents who want to invest beyond their own kids
Older adults and grandparents who bring stability and presence
Some of my favorite volunteers weren’t serving anywhere else. They weren’t overextended. They were just waiting to be invited.
Recruiting starts to change when leaders stop asking, “Who is passionate enough?” and start asking, “Who might God already be nudging?”
Here’s the mindset shift that makes all the difference:Serving in kids ministry should be easy to step into and fun to experience.
That doesn’t mean lowering standards. It does mean removing unnecessary barriers. Background checks matter. Commitment matters. Team culture matters. But recruiting shouldn’t feel like applying for a second job.
When leaders understand why people volunteer, recruiting stops being awkward and starts being invitational.
In the next post, we’ll talk about how to actually move people from interest to action, and why announcements alone rarely work.
And if you’re realizing that recruiting hasn’t been hard—it’s just been unclear—the Recruiting Lab was created to walk you through this entire process step by step, helping you build teams that are healthy, sustainable, and full of purpose.
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