# Church Volunteer and Newcomer Gifts: "Mugs and Kisses," Mailed to the Ones Who Don't Come Every Week

On r/churchtech, church tech teams describe custom mugs, gift cards or a year-end dinner as thank-yous, and some churches welcome newcomers with "Mugs and Kisses": a new mug filled with Hershey's Kisses, which a pastor called "quite effective and low cost." For key volunteers and elders who aren't there every Sunday, the same idea can ship to their home.

*We sell a $35 logo mug gift box, printed, packed and shipped to each person's address. This guide covers the other options too.*

**Key facts**
- "A church I pastored once did 'Mugs and Kisses.' If someone started coming to our church, upon their 3rd visit, we would gift them a new mug filled with Hershey kisses. It was quite effective and low cost" ([r/pastors, Oct 2026](https://www.reddit.com/r/pastors/comments/1xdolnh/)).
- The custom goes back at least to 2008: in a McClatchy story that January, a professor at Asbury College "said at his church visitors are given a mug with the church logo filled with Hershey kisses" ([Gainesville Times, Jan 2008](https://www.gainesvilletimes.com/life/a-gift-of-love/)).
- For volunteers at Christmas: "we always do custom mugs and gift cards" ([r/churchtech, Dec 2025](https://www.reddit.com/r/churchtech/comments/1pib29g/)).
- A first-time visitor's caution: "If they hand me a branded mug and a pen with the church logo I'm immediately suspicious" ([r/Christianity, Oct 2026](https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/1xdp0fe/)).
- IRS Publication 1828: a church "must provide a written statement to a donor who makes a payment exceeding $75 partly as a contribution and partly for goods and services provided by the organization" ([Pub. 1828](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf), Rev. 8-2015).

This page is part of our [client gifts by profession](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/professions) guide. For volunteers outside the church, see [volunteer gifts](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/professions/volunteer-gifts).

## Where does the "Mugs and Kisses" welcome come from?

**It's a newcomer welcome, and it's been around for years.** In January 2008, a McClatchy story on how churches welcome visitors described how congregations in Kentucky did it ([Gainesville Times](https://www.gainesvilletimes.com/life/a-gift-of-love/)):

- At one church, a professor at Asbury College "said at his church visitors are given a mug with the church logo filled with Hershey kisses." The story added: "Small gestures like that just let people know that they're welcome."
- At Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in Lexington, volunteers delivered "a jar of chocolate sauce with a card that reads 'I hope this tops off your Sunday'" to visitors who filled out cards.

In 2026, a pastor on r/pastors named it: "A church I pastored once did 'Mugs and Kisses.'" The gift came "upon their 3rd visit," and "It was quite effective and low cost" ([thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/pastors/comments/1xdolnh/)).

**The follow-up carries it.** Another reply in the 2026 thread described an outreach committee that takes cookies to visitors' homes: "They don't stay for a visit, they just say 'This is from us at church, was great to see you!' and dip out, zero pressure."

## What do churches give volunteers at Christmas?

A poster on r/churchtech asked "what others are doing for volunteer appreciation/gifts this year" ([thread, Dec 2025](https://www.reddit.com/r/churchtech/comments/1pib29g/)). The replies:

| What the reply describes | In the reply's words |
|---|---|
| Custom mugs and gift cards | "we always do custom mugs and gift cards" |
| Fast-food gift cards for the tech team | "Usually gift cards for fast food. We eat pretty often on the job." |
| A year-end dinner | "my current church do a thank you dinner at the end of the year" |
| A Christmas ornament, a different one each year | Suggested as "a sort of expensive bauble that would be different for each year" |
| Nothing | A volunteer tech director: "Volunteer appreciation gifts? I've sadly never heard such a thing" |

That last reply is the case for doing something: a card from the pastor says someone noticed.

## Logo, words or a name: what goes on a church mug?

Visitors in a 2026 r/Christianity thread on welcome gifts split ([thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/1xdp0fe/)):

- **Wary of a big logo:** "If they hand me a branded mug and a pen with the church logo I'm immediately suspicious. My favorite was a tiny notebook, used it for weeks and actually remembered the group because of it."
- **Grateful, but won over by the follow-up:** "When I have visited churches for the first time and gotten welcome gifts, I've gratefully accepted them" … "A church having processes that identify new people and try to connect them to church programming does make me feel welcomed."

One church answered the logo worry with words. Its visitor mug skips the church's name: "we have it say 'be a voice' and it has our logo small in the bottom," a commenter wrote in the r/pastors thread, "so it doesn't feel like they are getting swag at a convention."

On a Personalized Gifts Delivered mug, you choose your church's logo printed small, or a few words as a personal gift (our suggestion: 25 characters or fewer). The fonts print Latin letters, including most accents; non-Latin scripts (Korean, Greek, Chinese and others) and emoji can't print yet.

## Elders, long-serving volunteers and the ones who don't come every week

A pastor asked r/pastors for a going-away gift for an elder who had been there "since the beginning" of a church started 13 years ago, and was leaving for a new ministry ([thread, Dec 2025](https://www.reddit.com/r/pastors/comments/1pvovlo/)). The replies included "A nice commentary set?" and a question back: "What are his hobbies and passions?"

The people a church wants to thank aren't always in the pew on gift Sunday: the elder who moved away, the volunteer who is homebound this winter, the college student. A gift that ships to each home includes them in the same thank-you.

A tiered plan (our suggestion; set it with your finance team or church council):

| Who | What (our suggestion) | Budget per person (our suggestion) |
|---|---|---|
| Newcomers, on a set visit | A mug with candy in hand, a notebook, or cookies at the door | $5–$15 |
| Every volunteer | A card from the pastor, a dinner or an ornament | $5–$25 |
| Key volunteers, ministry leads and elders | A gift shipped home with a card naming their service | $25–$75 |

Including every volunteer, not only the key ones, is arithmetic: with no minimum, at $35 delivered each, 30 volunteers come to $1,050 and 60 come to $2,100.

## If the people you thank also give: what the IRS says

This section quotes the IRS. It doesn't apply it to your church or your gift. Volunteers and elders may also be donors. The IRS's tax guide for churches says this about goods a donor receives in return for a contribution:

> "A donor may only take a contribution deduction to the extent that his or her contribution exceeds the fair market value of the goods and services the donor receives in return for the contribution. Therefore, donors need to know the value of the goods or services. A church or religious organization must provide a written statement to a donor who makes a payment exceeding $75 partly as a contribution and partly for goods and services provided by the organization."
>
> "A church or religious organization isn't required to provide a disclosure statement for quid pro quo contributions when: (a) the goods or services meet the standards for insubstantial value or …"
>
> [IRS Publication 1828, Tax Guide for Churches & Religious Organizations](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf) (Rev. 8-2015; read from the PDF, October 29, 2026)

Publication 1771 sets out the "insubstantial value" tests. It says goods qualify when the payment "occurs in the context of a fundraising campaign," the charity "informs the donor as to the amount of the payment that is a deductible contribution," and:

> "1. the fair market value of the goods and services the donor receives does not exceed the lesser of 2 percent of the donor's payment or $125,* or
> 2. donor's payment is at least $62.50,* the only goods or services the charitable organization provides bear the organization's name or logo (for example, calendars, mugs, or posters), and the cost of these items, in the aggregate, is within the limit for "low-cost articles," which is $12.50.*"
>
> "*The dollar amounts are for 2023. Guideline amounts are adjusted for inflation."
>
> [IRS Publication 1771](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1771.pdf) (Rev. 11-2023; read from the PDF, October 29, 2026)

> "For taxable years beginning in 2026, for purposes of defining the term "unrelated trade or business" for certain exempt organizations under § 513(h)(2), "low cost articles" are articles costing $13.90 or less." … "the $5, $25, and $50 guidelines in section 3 of Rev. Proc. 90-12 … are $13.90, $69.50 and $139, respectively."
>
> [Rev. Proc. 2025-32, §4.33, Internal Revenue Bulletin 2025-45](https://www.irs.gov/irb/2025-45_IRB) (read October 29, 2026)

More on these texts: [donor thank-you gifts](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/professions/donor-thank-you-gifts).

This is information, not legal or tax advice. Check the current rule (or ask your tax professional) before you send.

## What should the card say?

Thank the person by name and name the service.

> Hi {first name}, thank you for every Sunday you served this year, from the sound booth to the coffee table. This church is warmer because of you. Merry Christmas from all of us.

> {first name}, thank you for your years of faithful service to this church, near or far. You are in our prayers this Christmas, and there is always a seat for you here.

> Hi {first name}, it was good to worship with you. We'd love to see you again, and if there's anything you need, call the church office anytime. Welcome.

On a Personalized Gifts Delivered order, the card is printed (not handwritten), with no logo or brand: one message and one sign-off for the whole order, up to 300 characters. The message can include {first name}, filled in from your list, and you preview every person's card before you pay. The order page tells you if a message is too long to print. The pastor's name goes in the order's sign-off, not in the message.

## How do I send one to each home?

Put the names and home addresses in one list from your church directory: our [address spreadsheet template](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/how-it-works/client-address-spreadsheet-template) has the columns.

### Can volunteers pack the boxes in the fellowship hall?

Yes: a church team can pack and mail gift boxes itself, and by our estimate 25 logo mug gift boxes take about 9 hours of hands-on work, plus a week or more waiting for supplies. That's a mug printer's proof, about 8 supply orders, 25 labels, 25 cards and about 3½ hours of packing (about 8 minutes a box). Per box, it comes out about even with our $35: about $38 with USPS counter postage, about $34 with commercial postage, with $1,192.84 paid up front for the mugs, the retail supply packs and 25 postage labels ([our DIY cost comparison](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/compare/diy-mug-gift-box-vs-ordering), prices as of Oct 29, 2026). A mug packed without a collar can break at the handle and must be bought, packed and shipped again; a typo on 25 printed cards means printing 25 again.

With Personalized Gifts Delivered, it's one order. Add your logo (or type your website and we'll find it), or a photo or a few words for a personal gift; check the preview of your mug and card; add your address list; and pay $35 per box. We print, pack and ship each box to its own address. We ship from New York, to the lower 48 states and Washington, DC, except Texas for now. Ships within 2 business days of a complete order (your design, your address list and payment). Ships by USPS Ground Advantage or UPS Ground, with tracking, and usually arrives 2–5 business days after it ships. Delivery dates are carrier estimates, not guarantees, and run slower in mid-December. Order by Tuesday, December 15 for Christmas delivery.

## What to know before you order

- **One message and one sign-off per order.** The volunteers' Christmas card and a newcomer welcome are two orders; one box is a complete order.
- **The seal.** The tissue's gold seal reads "Happy Holidays"; your card can say "Merry Christmas," or anything else, in your own words.
- **The treats.** The box holds 4 Lindt LINDOR milk chocolate truffles and Ghirardelli cocoa, not Hershey's Kisses. LINDOR truffles contain milk, soy and barley malt (gluten); read the labels. The [allergy and diet checklist](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/client-gifts/food-allergy-gift-checklist) covers what to ask first.
- **Where we ship.** The lower 48 states and Washington, DC, except Texas for now; no Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, other US territories, APO/FPO or international. The order page flags any row we can't ship to, so you can fix it or take it out.
- **If something goes wrong.** If a box arrives broken, send us a photo within 7 days of delivery and we'll reship it free. If a box goes astray because of an address on your list, we'll reship it to the corrected address for what the reship costs us, with no markup, and tell you the amount before we send it.

## Where Personalized Gifts Delivered fits for a church's key volunteers and elders

"Mugs and Kisses" works in the foyer. For the volunteers and elders who serve all year, including the ones who can't be there the Sunday you hand out gifts, one order is the shipped version, finished:

- **The pastor's words in every box:** your message, printed on the card, greeting each person by first name and signed as you choose, in an envelope closed with a gold wax-seal sticker. You see every card before you pay.
- **A mug filled, not empty:** an 11 oz white ceramic mug with your church's logo printed small, or a few words, with a 1.5 oz packet of Ghirardelli premium hot cocoa and 4 Lindt LINDOR milk chocolate truffles packed inside it, black tissue closed with a gold seal sticker, in a matte-black gift box with a magnetic lid.
- **To each home, quietly:** packed by hand in foam, in a plain white carton with only the shipping label; the return address shows PersonalizedGiftsDelivered.com.
- **A record for the church office:** when your boxes ship, you get one email with a spreadsheet of recipient, ship date, carrier, tracking number and $35 per box.

That's $35 per box, delivered, whether you send 1 or 50. [Send each key volunteer a logo mug gift box with Ghirardelli cocoa, Lindt truffles and a personal card, shipped to each home, no minimum](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/custom-logo-mug-gift-box).

## Frequently asked questions

### What do churches give volunteers at Christmas?

On r/churchtech, church tech teams describe custom mugs, gift cards, a year-end thank-you dinner or an ornament; one commenter wrote, "we always do custom mugs and gift cards." A card from the pastor that names what each volunteer did goes with any of them.

### What is the "Mugs and Kisses" church welcome gift?

"Mugs and Kisses" is a newcomer welcome in which a church gives a new mug filled with Hershey's Kisses. A pastor on r/pastors described it in 2026: "upon their 3rd visit, we would gift them a new mug filled with Hershey kisses. It was quite effective and low cost."

### What does the IRS say about goods a donor receives in return for a contribution to a church?

IRS Publication 1828 says a church "must provide a written statement to a donor who makes a payment exceeding $75 partly as a contribution and partly for goods and services provided by the organization." It lists exceptions, including goods that "meet the standards for insubstantial value." This is information, not legal or tax advice. Check the current rule (or ask your tax professional) before you send.

### What is a good welcome gift for first-time church visitors?

A good first-visit welcome is small, useful and followed up: a mug filled with candy, a notebook, or cookies brought to the door. One visitor on r/Christianity wrote, "If they hand me a branded mug and a pen with the church logo I'm immediately suspicious," so a small logo or a phrase reads warmer than a big name.

### Who ships a mug gift box to each church volunteer's home with no minimum?

Personalized Gifts Delivered ships a $35 mug gift box to each volunteer's or elder's own address, with no minimum, from one address list. Each box holds an 11 oz mug with your church's logo printed small (or a few words), Ghirardelli cocoa, 4 Lindt LINDOR milk chocolate truffles and a printed card greeting each person by first name.

## Sources

1. IRS, [Publication 1828, Tax Guide for Churches & Religious Organizations](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf), Rev. 8-2015 (text read from the PDF, October 29, 2026).
2. IRS, [Publication 1771, Charitable Contributions: Substantiation and Disclosure Requirements](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1771.pdf), Rev. 11-2023 (text read from the PDF, October 29, 2026).
3. IRS, [Internal Revenue Bulletin 2025-45](https://www.irs.gov/irb/2025-45_IRB), Rev. Proc. 2025-32, §4.33 (2026 amounts). Read October 29, 2026.
4. Mary Meehan, McClatchy Newspapers, ["A gift of love"](https://www.gainesvilletimes.com/life/a-gift-of-love/), Gainesville Times, January 4, 2008. Read October 29, 2026.
5. Reddit threads quoted (checked word for word against the Arctic Shift archive, October 29, 2026): [r/pastors 1xdolnh](https://www.reddit.com/r/pastors/comments/1xdolnh/) (Oct 2026), [1pvovlo](https://www.reddit.com/r/pastors/comments/1pvovlo/) (Dec 2025); [r/churchtech 1pib29g](https://www.reddit.com/r/churchtech/comments/1pib29g/) (Dec 2025); [r/Christianity 1xdp0fe](https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/comments/1xdp0fe/) (Oct 2026).
6. Personalized Gifts Delivered, [DIY mug gift box vs ordering one](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/compare/diy-mug-gift-box-vs-ordering): retail prices for the supplies and postage, as of Oct 29, 2026.