| Facing Our
Future Forum Bears Fruit |
|
Strengthening Families....How YOU can help !! |
|
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| The goal coming out of the Forum
was to identify one or two ways our congregation could be united in an
effort to address identified needs in our community in a very hands on
manner. With that in mind, the group’s focus soon turned towards the needs
of youth and eventually to preventative measures to support them. |
| Council
approved the recommendations of the group and committed the congregation to
working with TOGETHER! to implement a comprehensive parenting education
program for our local community. TOGETHER! is a local non-profit agency
that deals with youth violence and substance abuse prevention. This agency
has two parenting education program, Strengthening Families and Parenting
Wisely, funded through a federal grant. Both are identified as a “Best
Practice” and are programs designed to improve family skills. But the
programs need people to facilitate them, facilities to hold them,
transportation to connect participants to the program, meals to be provided
and shared during the sessions, and a commitment to sustain this promising
and critical work in our community. That’s where The United Churches comes
in! |
| This opportunity provides for wide
range of our membership participation. We always need youth and seniors for
facilitation roles, cooks to prepare and serve meals, drivers to get
families to and from our church, and behind-the-scene helpers to prepare our
facility to host the programs. Some roles will require training others will
just require a willing heart. |
| Through our Discernment process we
were called to find a way for the entire congregation to unite behind a
local, hands-on opportunity to address pressing needs in our community. Our
faithfulness has now brought us to this point of response. Let us respond
to God’s calling with open hearts and willing hands. |
| Joyfully submitted by, |
| Mike Segawa, Lee Johnson, Bunny
Hooper, Pat Dickason, Ryan Clark, Harriett Hunter, Mark Dowdy, Libby Penney,
Ruth Shearer, Dusti Demarest, and Mary Segawa |
| Special thanks to those who have
contributed to this work: David and Susan Hanson, Jacky Crow, John Bowden,
Kirstin Batchelor, Pat Sonnenstuhl, and Linda Neff |
| 2004 |
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(Table)
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