A church anniversary flyer speaks to two groups at once: the members who will fill the pews for the anniversary service, and the former members, founding families and sister churches you want back for one weekend. It may be mailed or emailed as well as pinned to the bulletin board. Below are the details to include, anniversary themes with their verses, wording for church and pastor anniversaries, design and background ideas in formal gold, navy and burgundy, and card and print sizes. The church flyer ideas page covers every other event on the church calendar.
What to put on a church anniversary flyer
Settle the weekend's events first. Then build the flyer from these items, biggest first:
- The number of years, as a numeral. "100th Anniversary" or "50 Years" reads faster than words, and the number can be the main artwork.
- The church's full name. Use the name on the sign out front, including "Greater" or "Missionary" if it's part of it.
- The theme and one verse. "A Century of Faithfulness" with Lamentations 3:23. A KJV verse needs no copyright notice in the US, since that translation is in the public domain there.
- Each event with weekday, date and time. A Saturday banquet and a Sunday service get a line each.
- The guest preacher. Title, name and home church, spelled the way they write it.
- Banquet details. Ticket price, RSVP date, where to reply, and the dress code if there is one ("Attire: Sunday best").
- The address and the building. Say "fellowship hall" or name the banquet venue if it's off site.
- A welcome for former members. "Former members and friends, come home" invites back the people who moved away or changed churches.
- The founding year. A small "Serving the community since" line with the year, under the headline.
- The souvenir booklet deadline. If members buy greetings or ads in an anniversary booklet, give the price and the due date.
- Contact. Who answers ticket questions, by phone or email.
Church anniversary themes and verses
Pick the theme and verse first, because both go on every flyer, program and banner that weekend. These pairs use the KJV wording:
| Theme | Verse | Words to quote |
|---|---|---|
| A Century of Faithfulness | Lamentations 3:23 | "Great is thy faithfulness" |
| Hitherto the Lord Has Helped Us | 1 Samuel 7:12 | "Hitherto hath the Lord helped us" |
| Built on the Rock | Matthew 16:18 | "Upon this rock I will build my church" |
| Except the Lord Build the House | Psalm 127:1 | "Except the Lord build the house" |
| The Good Work Continues | Philippians 1:6 | "He which hath begun a good work in you" |
| Great Things He Has Done | Psalm 126:3 | "The Lord hath done great things for us" |
| To All Generations | Psalm 100:5 | "His truth endureth to all generations" |
| Stones of Remembrance | Joshua 4:6-7 | The reference alone, since the passage is long |
Put the theme in the second-largest type, under the number, and the verse in a single line near the bottom.
Church anniversary flyer ideas and wording
Each anniversary event needs its own wording. Here are headlines, supporting lines and calls to action with fictional details.
Anniversary worship service
- Headlines: "Celebrating 100 Years of God's Faithfulness", "50 Years on Chestnut Street", "Our 75th Church Anniversary"
- Supporting line: "Join us Sunday, November 15 at 10 AM with guest preacher Rev. Dr. Harold Whitcombe."
- Call to action: "Former members and friends, come home and worship with us."
Anniversary banquet
- Headlines: "Centennial Anniversary Banquet", "An Evening of Thanksgiving"
- Supporting line: "Saturday, November 14 at 6 PM. Dinner, a history slideshow and music by the Sanctuary Choir."
- Call to action: "Tickets $35. RSVP by November 1 to the church office."
Pastor's anniversary or appreciation service
- Headlines: "Celebrating 15 Years of Faithful Service", "Honoring Our Pastor and First Lady"
- Supporting line: "Pastor Samuel and First Lady Grace Whitfield. Sunday, October 25 at 3:30 PM, dinner to follow."
- Call to action: "A love offering will be received. Cards and gifts can be left at the welcome table."
Focus on the Family notes that Pastor Appreciation Month falls in October, so an October Sunday suits this service. Use the titles your congregation uses ("Pastor and First Lady", "Pastor and Mrs.", "Reverend and Mrs.") and ask the couple how they want their names printed.
Homecoming and dinner on the grounds
- Headlines: "Homecoming Sunday", "Welcome Home: Our 60th Anniversary"
- Supporting line: "Worship at 10:30 AM, dinner on the grounds at noon, hymn sing at 2 PM."
- Call to action: "Bring a covered dish and your family photos to share."
A homecoming can also run as a short revival, with evening services through the week; the revival flyer ideas page has wording for that.
Anniversary concert
- Headlines: "Anniversary Gospel Concert", "Songs of a Century"
- Supporting line: "The choir that sang at our founding, and the one that sings today. Saturday at 5 PM."
- Call to action: "No tickets needed. The offering goes to the building fund."
For choir lineups and ticket wording, see the gospel concert flyer ideas.
Church anniversary flyer design
An anniversary flyer gets read on a bulletin board, on a kitchen counter after it arrives in the mail, and on a phone. These choices keep it readable in all three places.
Let the number be the picture. A large "100" or "25" in gold, with a laurel wreath or a thin border, needs no photo and is readable from across the fellowship hall.
Name your two colors. Flyer Maker's "My brand colors" has no color picker, so write the pair into the description ("navy and gold", "burgundy and gold"), or add your church logo.
Keep script fonts to one word. A script "Anniversary" under a plain, bold church name looks formal. A whole flyer in script makes the date and time hard to read.
Draw the building from a description. Flyer Maker can't place your photo of the church, but you can describe it: "a clean line drawing of a red brick church with a square bell tower and three arched windows."
Make separate banquet and service flyers when the audiences differ. The banquet flyer goes to ticket buyers and needs the price and RSVP date. The service flyer goes to everyone and needs only the time and preacher.
Church anniversary flyer backgrounds
The background behind the number and dates sets the tone. These suit anniversaries and leave room for text:
- Gold number on navy. A formal look that suits any milestone; choose Dark colors and Minimal pictures.
- Stained glass pattern around the edges. Ask for the pattern in a border only, with a plain center for the details.
- Cream background with a thin gold frame. Uses far less ink than a dark background when you print a stack on the church office printer.
- Line drawing of your building. Describe the roof shape, tower and windows so it looks like your church, not a generic one.
- An old photo of the church building. This needs the photo itself, so use Smart Editor (Pro plan): upload the scan of the building and ask for the flyer text over a sepia version of it.
Pinterest boards for church anniversary flyers are full of these looks. Treat a pin as a note about colors and layout, and describe what you liked in your own words rather than copying someone's template.
Church anniversary flyer sizes and printing
Anniversary flyers get pinned up, tucked into bulletins and mailed. Print shops such as GotPrint sell both letter and 5 x 7 in flyers, and those two sizes cover most of it:
| Use | Printed size | Pixels for 300 DPI | Choose in Flyer Maker |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulletin board and lobby | 8.5 x 11 in | 2550 x 3300 | Tall, 4K quality |
| Card mailed to former members | 5 x 7 in | 1500 x 2100 | Tall, 2K quality |
| Facebook and the church email | Screen only | None | Portrait (4:5) or Wide (5:4) |
At 2K, Flyer Maker's Tall size is 1536 x 2048 px. That prints a 5 x 7 in card at about 290 pixels per inch once about 1/4 in is trimmed off the width. The 4K Tall file (2480 x 3312 px) covers a letter page at a similar density, leaving a slim edge to trim. For printing, choose 2K or 4K. For half-letter bulletin inserts, check the flyer size guide.
Keep the description as next year's template
A church anniversary flyer template is most useful when it's your own. Save the description you typed, with the theme, events, preacher and colors. Next year, change the number, the dates and the guest, and the new flyer keeps the same look. Two more descriptions to adapt:
Souvenir Anniversary Booklet: Send Your Greetings. Celebrate the 75th anniversary of Mount Carrow Chapel, 910 Hillcrest Avenue, with a greeting in our souvenir booklet. Full page $100, half page $60, quarter page $35, names in the patron list $10. Greetings and payment due Sunday, November 1 at the welcome table or by email to booklet@example.com. Navy and gold, clean layout with the four prices in a simple list.25th Church Anniversary of Alderwick Fellowship, 42 Meadowlark Lane. Sunday, November 22 at 10 AM. Anniversary service with founding pastor Rev. Dana Holloway, lunch after in the gym. Free, families and neighbors welcome. RSVP for lunch by November 15 at alderwick.example.com. Modern and bright, a large silver 25 with confetti, white background.Bilingual congregations can find wording help on the Spanish flyer page.
How to make a church anniversary flyer in Flyer Maker
- Type everything into "Describe your flyer" in Flyer Maker. The anniversary number, the church name, theme and verse, each event with weekday, date and time, the guest preacher, banquet price and RSVP, the address, and the welcome line.
- Name your colors in the same box, such as "navy and gold".
- Pick a Size: Tall for the bulletin board and mailed cards, Portrait for Facebook, Wide for the church email.
- Open More options. Choose 2K or 4K Quality if it will be printed, then set Style to Elegant or Luxury, Colors to Dark, and Pictures to Minimal so the number stays the main image. Type the church office phone or email in Contact info.
- Upload the church logo, if there is one, with "Add your logo".
- Tap "Create flyer"; the design takes about 30 seconds.
- Read the anniversary number, every weekday and date, the names and titles, the ticket price and the RSVP date aloud, and take out any slogan the design added. If the banquet date or a title comes out wrong, the box under the flyer, "Want to change something?", takes the correction (currently 60 credits, 70 for 2K, 90 for 4K). A larger change works better as a new flyer from an edited description.
- Show the proof to the anniversary committee, and to the pastor and spouse for a pastor's anniversary, before you print.