How to Plan a Church Homecoming or Reunion

01 / WHAT IT IS

What Is a Church Homecoming?

A homecoming is a yearly or milestone service when former members, family and friends return to a congregation. It usually pairs worship with a shared meal and remembers the church’s history. Names differ by tradition: homecoming, church anniversary, Family and Friends Day or Heritage Sunday. Use your church’s name for it.

The African American Lectionary traces homecoming to Southern rural Black churches, where it grew as members left in the Great Migration. Fred Anderson of the Virginia Baptist Historical Society, in Baptist News Global, describes country homecomings in late summer, after crops were laid by. The United Methodist General Commission on Archives and History (GCAH) promotes Heritage Sunday each May. Ask the pastor how your church has kept the day, and keep what people expect.

02 / THE COMMITTEE

Who Should Be on a Church Homecoming Committee?

Start with the pastor and the trustees or other officers who approve use of the building and the money. Add the treasurer, the church clerk or historian, the kitchen or hospitality lead, the music director, and a younger member for social media. Give each person one job and one deadline.

GCAH suggests starting three or four years ahead for a major anniversary and at least six months ahead for a yearly observance. At the first meeting, decide in writing who signs off on spending and whose account receives payments. For the general steps, see how to plan a reunion.

03 / FINDING MEMBERS

How Do You Find Former Church Members?

Build the list from the church’s own paper first: old directories, bulletins, membership rolls, wedding and baptism records, and past homecoming sign-in sheets. Then ask the oldest members who has moved where. Post in community and alumni groups online, and ask every person you reach for three more names.

Keep one master list with name, household, city, phone and email. Obituaries that name a home church are good leads. For more methods, see how to find lost classmates.

04 / THE WEEKEND

What Happens During a Church Homecoming Weekend?

The center is the Sunday worship service, followed by a fellowship meal. Around those two, you can add a history display, a recognition of elders and longtime members, and a reading of the names of members who have passed. A two- or three-day weekend can add a Friday welcome and a Saturday banquet.

In the Upland South, Western Carolina University ties dinner on the ground to Decoration Day, when families decorate church cemeteries. The schedule below is an example; adapt it with your pastor.

Take the group photo before the meal, while everyone is in one place. For more ideas, see these reunion event ideas.

05 / THE MEAL

Should the Homecoming Meal Be Covered Dish or Catered?

A covered-dish meal is the tradition and costs the church little, but it depends on members cooking and on careful food handling. Catering costs more and needs a headcount, but it frees the kitchen team to visit. You can also combine them: a catered main dish with members’ sides and desserts.

NCpedia defines dinner on the grounds as a covered-dish meal after Sunday worship on the church grounds.

For a covered dish, follow the USDA rule: hold hot food at 140°F or above and cold food at 40°F or below. Throw out perishable dishes left out more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F. Keep food in the kitchen until the service ends.

06 / MONEY

How Do You Collect a Registration Fee or Love Offering Openly?

Keep the two apart. A registration fee pays for a meal or banquet, so publish the price by age and what it covers. An offering is a gift and goes through the church’s normal giving. Have the treasurer approve the plan, have two people count cash, and report totals afterward.

The IRS says that when someone pays a charity more than $75, partly as a gift and partly for goods or services such as a banquet meal, the charity must give a written disclosure statement. Any giving statements come from the church treasurer, not the reunion site.

On AmazingReunion, you set prices by age group, and guests see an estimate of their total as they RSVP. They can pay in full or in parts. Payouts go to the organizer’s own Stripe account, so agree with the trustees whose account that is before you open payments. Guests pay card processing and a $2.50 handling fee on top, so the account receives the full price: a $75 banquet ticket costs the guest $80.38. The site also accepts donations. See how to collect reunion fees and how to set reunion dues.

07 / GUEST PREACHER

How Do You Invite a Guest Preacher for Homecoming?

Let the pastor make the invitation, often to a son or daughter of the church or a former pastor. Confirm in writing the date, service time, sermon length, travel, lodging and honorarium. Send the theme early, and tell the preacher who will meet them and where to park.

Take any love offering for the preacher through the church. Church Law & Tax notes that love gifts to visiting ministers are taxable and may need to be reported on Form 1099-NEC, so the treasurer needs to know the amount.

08 / ACCESSIBILITY

How Do You Make a Homecoming Easy for Elders to Attend?

Reserve seats near the front and near the restrooms, print programs in large type, and arrange rides for members who no longer drive. Put chairs in the shade for the meal outdoors, and have someone serve plates to elders so they don’t stand in line.

The ADA National Network explains that religious organizations are exempt from Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. So walk the route from the parking lot to the pew and the fellowship hall yourself. For an outside banquet hall, ask about step-free access before you sign.

09 / THE ANNOUNCEMENT

What Should a Church Homecoming Invitation Say?

Give the church name and anniversary, the dates, the service time, the guest preacher, the meal, any fee by age and what it covers, the RSVP deadline and one contact. Mail and email it, and read it from the pulpit.

For reminders and a large-type letter, adapt the reunion invitation templates.

10 / RECORDS

How Do You Keep the Church’s Records From a Homecoming?

Treat the homecoming as part of the church’s history. Afterward, give the clerk or historian the guest list with current addresses, the program, the memorial roll, the financial report and the best photos. Label each photo with names and the date, so the next committee can start from this file.

On AmazingReunion, the host can export the guest list to Excel (it is emailed to the host), and members can add photos and documents to a shared gallery. See what belongs on a reunion planning website.