Mission Statement: To work hand-in-hand with parents, children, teachers, family members, and clergy to embrace the Body of Christ by providing educational worshipping opportunities for spiritual growth and development of the children in our community.
Goals
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Develop an extracurricular family catechism program to include religion classes for school age children. This training would be enhanced through the use of a media center in the new family life center to provide CD, DVD, and Internet-based education. Such a facility would also supplement training of Church School teachers.
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Establish a “parents as teachers” program with graduated learning that starts with teaching simple prayers and Bible stories and progresses through learning about the lives of the saints, the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, our sacraments, feast days, stewardship responsibilities, and missions of the church.
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Host social opportunities such as overnight retreats that include both social and religious elements for children as well as their parents.
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Develop a religious-based speaker series and Bible study program.
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Provide for professional youth and church school director.
Plan
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Underway now – Improve communication between teachers and parents through expansion of the email address list, and continue to encourage the successful early registration of children in Church School.
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Underway now – Emphasize other elements of parish life including its music through the Junior Choir, its outreach programs (e.g. “Souper” Bowl Sunday), and service to the parish community (preparation of the Pre-Sanctified meal).
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Expand educational opportunities with the construction of the new family life center.
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Redevelop and vitalize Vacation Bible School as spiritual learning should not be limited to 9-months of the year.
