Lithia Springs Methodist Church · Lithia Springs, Georgia
A small church with a big HVAC problem
Keep Lithia Cool is the denominational outreach and campaign infrastructure behind a million-dollar church building project — the volunteer-built complement to a professional fundraising effort, extending the campaign's reach to 500 GMC sister churches in the region.
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The Backstory
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The situation
The HVAC system at Lithia Springs Methodist Church is original to the building — 1960s-era boiler infrastructure, end of life, with asbestos in the mix. It can't be repaired. It can't be phased. It has to be replaced entirely, and the estimated cost is approximately one million dollars.
This is a small Global Methodist Church in a working-class community west of Atlanta. The congregation is faithful but not wealthy. There's no deep bench of major donors. There's no endowment. There's no development office. But what there is: a building full of people who love their church, a board that took the problem seriously, and a pastor willing to lead the conversation.
The church engaged a professional fundraising firm to run the local campaign — the congregation, the surrounding community, and local businesses. Their angle is community impact: keeping the missions going that serve Lithia Springs. That's the heart of the effort and the hardest relational work. But a million-dollar goal also needs a second track: denominational outreach, grant applications, and campaign infrastructure that a small church typically can't afford to hire out. That's the track I built.
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The denominational track
The professional firm handles the local campaign — congregation, community, and area businesses — making the case that the church's missions to Lithia Springs are worth sustaining. My role as Board Secretary put me in a position to build the other half: the outreach infrastructure that takes the story to GMC sister churches across the region. The website, the grant applications, the mailing list, the physical materials — all built from a home office between train dispatching shifts.
Campaign Website
keep-lithia-cool.org — a long-form narrative telling the church's story from 1885 to the present need, anchored in the Nehemiah parallel, with congregational testimonials, scripture, and a tiered response: pray, give, or connect.
Campaign Binder
A 37-page document covering the building history, the HVAC assessment, the fundraising strategy, projected scenarios, implementation roles, and financial governance. The board's single source of truth.
Grant Applications
National Fund for Sacred Places, Norfolk Southern Thriving Communities, and denominational grant programs. Each application researched, written, and submitted by the same person who built the website.
Challenge Coin
A two-inch soft enamel coin in blue and gold — the sanctuary window on one side, the GMC cross and James 1:17 on the other. Mailed to sister churches alongside a letter asking for prayer. Designed to sit on a pastor's desk and start a conversation.
Denominational Outreach
A direct mail campaign targeting roughly 500 GMC congregations within a 175-mile radius. The letter asks for prayer. It doesn't ask for money. It includes the website for anyone led to help beyond prayer.
Mailing List
Roughly 500 GMC churches identified within a 175-mile radius of Lithia Springs — compiled from conference directories and denominational records. Regional, not national. Close enough to feel like neighbors.
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Why a coin
Two inches across, soft enamel in blue and gold. One side bears the diamond-paned sanctuary window and Established 1885. The other carries the cross and interlocking circles of the Global Methodist Church and the words of James 1:17.
The campaign has two complementary tracks with two complementary voices. The professional firm runs the local campaign under the banner Faith, Fellowship & Fresh Air — a community-impact message aimed at the congregation, local businesses, and Lithia Springs neighbors who know the church by the missions it runs. My track — the denominational outreach — leads with theology: Every Good and Perfect Gift Is from Above. James 1:17. The theology angle would be lost on a local business. The community-impact angle would be lost on a sister church in Tennessee. Different audience, different language, same goal.
A challenge coin drops into an envelope, lands on a desk, and stays there. An email gets deleted. A letter gets filed. A coin gets picked up, turned over, and talked about.
"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."
James 1:17 — the denominational outreach anchor
The coin carries the James 1:17 framing. It's designed to arrive in a padded envelope at a sister church's office, sit on a pastor's desk, and prompt a question. The letter that accompanies it asks for prayer — not money. If a congregation feels led to contribute, the path is there. But the posture is theological, not transactional.
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The numbers
~500
GMC Churches
in Region
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Asking for prayer, not money
The denominational outreach letter doesn't ask sister churches for donations. It asks them to pray. That's deliberate.
A cold ask for money from a church you've never met is a fundraising letter. A request for prayer from a sister congregation facing a real need is fellowship. The letter tells the story, includes the coin, and directs people to the website. If a church feels led to contribute, the path is there. But the ask is prayer, and the posture is humility.
The mailing is timed to go out after the local campaign — the firm's track — is already underway and the congregation and community have demonstrated commitment. When a sister church visits the website, the story should already include evidence that the home church put its own resources on the line first. "We have begun" is a more compelling message than "we are about to begin."
The local campaign goes first. The denominational outreach follows. Two tracks, one goal.
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How it came together
Late 2025
The assessment
The HVAC system is confirmed end-of-life. No parts available, no labor pool for the old technology, asbestos complicates any partial work. Full replacement is the only option. The board begins discussing how to fund it.
December 2025 – January 2026
The infrastructure build
Campaign website goes live at keep-lithia-cool.org. The 37-page binder takes shape — building history, HVAC assessment, fundraising scenarios, governance structure. Grant research begins for Sacred Places and Norfolk Southern programs.
January – February 2026
Building the mailing list
Roughly 500 GMC churches identified within a 175-mile radius — compiled from conference directories and denominational records. Close enough to be regional neighbors, broad enough to make a real impact.
February – March 2026
The materials
Challenge coin designed. Campaign letter drafted around James 1:17 — "Every Good and Perfect Gift." Reply envelopes ordered. The package is built to land on a pastor's desk and start a conversation, not get filed with the junk mail.
Ongoing
Two tracks, one campaign
The professional firm runs the local campaign — congregation, community, and area businesses. The denominational outreach, grant applications, and external infrastructure run in parallel. The campaign website ties both tracks together for anyone looking from the outside in.
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This is what volunteering looks like
The congregation is pledging. The pastor is leading. The professional firm is working the local community. The board is governing. My piece is the infrastructure that extends the campaign's reach to GMC churches across the region — the website, the grants, the mailings, the mailing list. It's one track of a multi-track effort, built by a volunteer Board Secretary who happens to dispatch trains for a living and run web servers as a hobby.
Keep Lithia Cool isn't a product. It's not a startup. It's what happens when a church needs help and the people in the pews decide to be the help.
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