The Post-Easter To-Do List Every KidMin Leader Needs

Easter weekend is over. You did it! The volunteers showed up (mostly), the kids were energetic, the lesson landed, and you survived the holiday chaos with your sanity roughly intact. So now what? Here’s the thing nobody tells you: what you do in the week after Easter matters just as much as everything you did to prepare for it. So here is the post-Easter to-do list I think every kidmin leader needs.

1. Rest – I know, I know. You are already thinking about what’s next (VBS and summer programming anyone?). But listen: your body and your brain just ran a sprint, and they need a minute to catch up (plus, we’ll get to summer in a minute). Rest is not laziness. It is faithfulness to the calling you can’t sustain on empty. Take a real day off. Sleep in. Take a nap. Go for a walk in the sunshine. Read a book just for fun. Spend time with your people. Do the thing that fills you back up, whatever that is. Ministry will still be there, and you will lead it so much better when you are not running on fumes and leftover Easter candy.

2. Celebrate – Before you move on, stop and name what went well. Tell your volunteers something specific and genuine. Share it with your spouse and your staff. Write it down somewhere you will actually see it (a Sunday Celebrations Journal is the perfect option). Celebration is not about pride. It is about gratitude, and gratitude is a spiritual discipline. You did something meaningful last weekend. Own that for a minute before you start picking apart what you wish had gone differently.

3. Evaluate and make notes for next year – Future you is going to thank present you for this one. Before the details fade, sit down with a notes app or a piece of paper and brain-dump everything: what worked, what flopped, what you ordered too late, what resource saved the day, what you will do completely differently. DKM Subscribers have access to this special event evaluation template that helps you keep all these thoughts and notes organized. Your future self, staring down Easter planning next February, will not remember the details. But your notes will. Pro tip: keep one running Easter folder or doc and just keep adding to it. Next year’s planning meeting will feel completely different.

4. Follow up with new families – If new kids walked through your doors on Easter Sunday, the follow-up you do right now is one of the most important things you will do all year. A simple handwritten note, a personal text to a parent, even a quick email saying “We loved having your family with us” goes so far.  Don’t let Easter guests become a missed opportunity. They came once. You want to give them a reason to come back.

5. Dive into summer planning – Okay, once you’ve rested, celebrated, evaluated, and followed up, NOW you can think about what’s next. VBS, summer curriculum, big events, volunteer appreciation, all the things. Summer sneaks up faster than it should, and kidmin leaders who plan ahead in April and May have a completely different June than the ones who scramble. Pull out your calendar, your budget, and your wish list. What would make this summer impactful for your kids and famlies but still manageable for you and your team? Start there, but don’t start with a blank slate. Check out all of our summer resources to make planning a breeze here.

You did holy work last weekend, and this week is part of that work too. Pace yourself, reflect well, and keep going. You’re doing great, and we’re honored to serve you while you serve kids. 

Want a head start on summer? We’ve got ready-to-use VBS supplements, summer curriculum, special holiday add-ons, and volunteer resources made by kidmin leaders who have been right where you are. Find them all here.