Present: Barbara Dethlefson, Anne Scott, Caroline Close, Stella Rous, Nick Strobel, Jean Ann Lansche, Pastor Pam Fine
Sunday School is doing well. There is some frustration with the Christmas
Play practices not everyone arrives on time. Sherry Setser will have
knee surgery the last week of January so will not be able to teach Sunday School
as she recovers.
Nick's class is on hiatus while Pastor Pam is leading an Advent Study. Nick's
class will resume in January and end by February 10th. The class and
an unknown leader will then follow a Lenten Study. Anne is looking for
material to use in the jr/sr high class. She noted that Bob Mears and
Pam Hall enjoy attending this class and work well with the class. The
youth enjoy hands on projects so she is looking for things that will
fulfill this desire.
Adult Education's Thursday Morning class has completed their session and will resume in January. The Wednesday Night Class will finish up on December 5th. Both groups have agreed to be part of the Chruch BookGroups as the Church searches for new ideas in directions the Church might tkae in the future. Each group will be given a book to read and discuss within their group. The sessions will end right after Easter (the first of April). Each group will choose a scribe to put together their opinions of the books. There will be one big group meeting of all the sub groups at the begining and the ending of the readings. The Book Groups will read some ideas that are out of their personal comfort zones but will need to recognize that and that ideas are up for discussion and maybe there will be at least one idea that we can take from the readings. Barbara Dethlefson will lead the Thursday Morning group with the exception of February 21st when Pastor Pam will fill in for her.
Youth Goup still wants more of a Social Time gathering because they say they already have a Sunday School class but it is noted that ost of them do not attend Sunday School. It is agreed by the committee that this is a church sponsored group and should have a focus on Christian development. Pastor Pam suggested that she use the Youth Group time for a Confirmation Class as the one hour that SundaySchool allots is not enough time to cover the matter. This will still include a social time for the youth but they will devote part of their time on confirmation. This class will include those that have been confirmed already and those that are to be confirmed. Confirmation Classes will take 10 weeks and they will be confirmed on Pentecost. They will start Holy Week and end in May. The Bishop's Confirmation Retreat is still in the plans as well as the time spent in San Francisco. The Retreat is more focused on jr. high age but high schoolers are welcommed.
Pastor Pam has brought attention to the finance committee that the church will need to see about including money in the Education Committee budget for the hiring of a Youth Director as some point in 2009. Education Committee unamiously agreed to have this item included in the Education budget.
Godly Play was presented by Pastor Pam as an idea worth looking into for our children. It is based on the Montessori theory of 'hand's on' to promote learning and become more aware of Bible stories. Each session is based on a Bible story and using manipulatives, the stories are acted out with open questions and discussion followed by drawing, playng or reading as it all depends on the creativity of the teacher. The class is based on a Worship Service as the children come into a Sacred Space. There is a Desert Box (sand box) for stories that take place in the desert, an ark for the stories of the ark. It is set up for ages 2 - 12. Pastor Pam has a minister friend who would be willing to come and demonstrate for us how it works. It was decided that April 20th following the Chruch luncheon (sponsored by Membership and Evanelism) would be a good time for the demonstration. The cost might be several hundred dollars for the training plus materials. Godly Play could be used as an after school time, during Sunday School, Children's Activities or as a once a month event.
Pastor Pam also presented the "Completion Project" which is based on cleaning out your closet or finishing a project, etc. Those that sign up fo rit would meet as a group and choose a buddy to account to your progress and keep you on track and real in your goals. There is a workbook that is divided into various sections such as finance, etc. It will start January 8th and end on Fat Tuesday, February 5th, when the group would meet as a whole once again. The time would be 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Pastor Pam is also interested in a quarterly or three times a year meetings where people come together to discuss a topic of interest. An example would be whether we would be committed to using inclusive language such as "He/She" for God. There could be a suggestion box for idea topics.
Pastor Pam wil have an Open House on January 1st from noon to 5 pm. Anne will be calling us about helping to provide refreshments for the open house.
Also the committee members present agreed to help bake cookies for the Caroling to Shut-Ins this coming Sunday.