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Children’s Ministries
E-Newsletter
The purpose of this report is to encourage and inform you about all the wonderful ways God is at work through each one of us and all of us together in Children’s Ministries.
The more informed and “on the same page” we are – the more effective and united as a TEAM we will be – shining His light & sharing His love. Please take time to read this report.
Children's Ministries Staff Changes are coming...
Please pray with us for God to bring His choice for these openings !
Melisa Mansfield has given notice she will not be returning as our IKP Coordinator next year. She is looking now for an Assistant to partner with her and "learn the ropes" and someone to take over her responsibilities next year. She and her husband, Chris have decided to begin the process of adopting one or more children. This is a very exciting decision for them and, although we hate to lose Melisa to this position, we support her 110% in her decision to extend her family. What a great Mom she will be !!
Lisa Bucholz has given Debe notice she no longer can serve in the paid position of CM Assistant. Changes that have occurred in our Youth Ministry are taking alot more of her limited time. Lisa is spending too much time away from her precious family and desires to cut back. The CM Assistant postiion is the logical choice for this cut. Lisa has agreed to stay on until the new person is trained. What an excellent job Lisa has done all these years in so many areas for our Church Family and Staff !
New Resource Room Coordinator !
The Lord has answered our prayers and we now have a new RR Coordinator. Please welcome Toni Terry to this position and be patient with her as she "learns the ropes" and sorts and puts away all our recent donations.
Journey of the Heart
is providing the funds needed for
VBS this year.
No fundraisers will be needed ! Thank you for your faithfulness in giving to the work of the Lord at Crossroads !!
Join the "most fun" ministry at
Crossroad's ! We are growing !!
Visiting families with children
keep pouring in !!
Our Nursery is currently understaffed and needs more Nursery Attendants. Dawn needs an Assistant.
Our "it's a Kid's place !" Preschool Sunday School Ministry has vacancies for Greeters and Classroom Assistants.
Our Elementary Ministries need Adult or Teen Team Members and Heavenbound needs another Teacher.
The Pre-Teen Teacher is praying for someone to partner with her to share the Teaching role.
To apply for any of these positions, please contact Debe Emerson at 692-1672 or
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Please Be Kind to Your Ministry Coordinators !
…by remembering they are just as busy as you are
(or more so)
…by returning their e-mails & phone calls promptly
…by arriving ON TIME (or early) prepared to serve,
every day you are scheduled
…by finding your own Sub and letting them know
about the trade
…by letting them know regularly you appreciate
their hard work and all their support
A Wonderful Children’s Ministries Team !
The Lord continues to bless us with new people serving and new families attending !
Praise Him for His faithfulness !!
Our Children’s Ministries Team experiences a constant influx and outflux of people; each with their own story and various reasons and seasons. Some of us serving don’t have children. Some, our children are still young and we serve where they are learning; some our children are grown or teens. Some of us on this team are Grandparents, some new parents, some are themselves, Teens.
New people join our team regularly. Body Life Journey Workshop brings in some new Team Members, our Parent Co-op brings in others, and some actually walk right up to me and ask if they can help ! (I love those !)
Thank God for our Hardworking CM Leadership Team !
Our wonderful Nursery Coordinator is Dawn White. Our "it's a Kid's place !" Preschool Ministry is led by capable Melisa Mansfield (for potty trained 3's thru Kindergarten). Doug McMicken skillfully leads our Elementary Ministry 1st Hour called "Promiseland" and 2nd Hour, Cindy Patti is our dedicated "Heavenbound" Coordinator. I am the Pre-Teens Teacher for 5th and 6th Graders. Carla Tomlinson directs our delightful Joy Choir. Jody and Kelley Shuffield are our VBS Coordinator and Asst. Coordinator. Many of these deldicated people put in many, many behind the scenes hours and hard work. Please take a moment to thank them personally for their sacrifices, their dedication, and all the small but important special things they do to make your Sunday mornings so much easier and more successful :)
Remember to Follow the 2 Adult Rule ! This is the number one most important thing you can do to keep our church family safe at Crossroad’s ! Please work together as a Team and don't hesitate to remind each other of our CM Policies.
Remember...We are not teaching lessons, we are teaching children!
Our curriculum provides many excellent ideas for lesson reinforcement, snacks, crafts, games, and more. Teachers are encouraged to pick and choose from the ideas offered and use what will best suit the children in each individual class. Consider learning styles and maturity, behavior challenges, the experience level of your classroom helpers, and attendance patterns when planning your lessons. Try to add new experiences you can try together and remember to praise effort and Godly character traits.
Curriculum is an Expensive Investment ! We need you to take very good care of the items we purchase and return them promptly to your Ministry Coordinator for return to our inventory. We re-use our curriculum for several years before investing in more.
An Awesome Resource Room !
Our RR is stocked floor to ceiling with everything you can possibly imagine for craft supplies, teaching aids, game supplies, books, DVDs, music CDs, classroom equipment, and more. These items are for YOU ! Please take the time to get familiar with what we have in our RR so you can put to work these excellent resources and enhance your teaching ! Please also remember to do your part and return items to their correct location promptly, so the next person can find what they need, too. This a self-serve Resource Room with an alphabetical list posted on the back of the door.
Remember our general storybooks and Videos are kept in the Church Library. Only children’s books with evangelistic themes, or those that would be used for Old or New Testament lessons and Holiday messages are kept in our Resource Room. We have a wonderful selection of Christian DVDs for children in the RR for your use, as well.
Training is the key to confidence !
Twice a year we have an ALL Children's Ministries Training Potluck (early Fall and in the Spring) that ALL CM Team Members are strongly encouraged to attend. The training at these potlucks are for your skill development and spiritual encouragement and childcare is provided. Please plan to take advantange of these opportunities to strengthen your skills and knowledge so you can grow as you serve Him and be the very best at what God has called you to do.
Those new to our CM Team are required
to attend 1st Year ORIENTATION.
This class is a thorough study of our CM Policies, Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Plan, Classroom Procedures, Discipline, Evacuation training, and more. Please do everything you can to attend this class as soon after you begin serving as possible. The class is offered 3 separate dates each year for your convenience but you need only attend once. An RSVP for this class is required and a light lunch is served.
2nd Year Team Members are required
to attend our 2nd Year ORIENTATION.
This 2nd class is a review of CM Policies and a look at what the Bible teaches about teamwork. It is also offered 3 separate dates during the year but you need only attend once. An RSVP for this class is required and a light lunch is served.
SCRIP Funding is important to Children's Ministries !
Our SCRIP funding took a hit when Albertson’s decided everyone enrolled with them had to re-register their card. An e-mail to all Albertson’s SCRIP participants was sent out, but only 2 persons that we are aware of completed the new registration required. We are no longer receiving your Albertson’s SCRIP funds if you did not re-register your card. Unfortunately, this requirement by Albertson’s has reduced the amount of SCRIP funds coming in for Children’s Ministries.
Please pray with me for a person to come forward to fill the position of SCRIP Coordinator. I do not have time to promote this well (and be your Director). Better promotion of SCRIP and more timely follow-up on the SCRIP registrations is needed.
SCRIP funds contributed $500 start-up funding for Joy Choir in September, 2008 and $300 in 2009. SCRIP provided $1,500 for VBS in 2008 and 2009. SCRIP also provides the funds for background checks and several CM Outreach events each year.
God Answers Prayer !
A lot of time, effort and resources go into promoting what we do in Children’s Ministries with the hope that new, unchurched children will be reached for Christ and families will be strengthened spiritually. Newspaper advertising is ridiculously expensive and not always even effective. The challenge is to reach families with children that are seeking – and do it with barely any funds. Ha !
Another long standing need in Children’s Ministries has been more paid staff hours. (My Assistant is paid for 9 hours a week and I am paid for 20). Ha !, again ! That is far from what is needed to keep up !
Well, I believe God moved to help with both these needs when Christina Rude approached me about partnering with her to publish a 3rd edition of the book, Great Adventures for Kitsap Peninsula. I am now Vice President of the non-profit “Building Kitsap Families,” Debi and Doug Crutchfield are Secretary and Treasurer and Christina Rude is our President.
The 3rd edition of this book was picked up from the printer April 7, 2009 and we were able to secure 4 Costco locations and several other businesses and bookstores desiring to sell our book, including Barnes & Nobles ! Christina and Cindy Lester co-authored this edition. Profits from the sale of this book will eventually, directly benefit Children’s Ministries at Crossroad’s. With this partnership, we will be able to pay for a ministry tool that will reduce the number of CM Staff hours spent sending reminders, mailings, and postcards and making phone calls. Plus - the book provides excellent, FREE publicity for 5 CM events !!
You may purchase a copy of this book for $2 less than retail and no shipping at our Welcome Desk in the Church lobby. And… did I mention ?...it’s a great book ! ! Thank you, Lord !
God is definitely at work in Children’s Ministries through each person serving !
I see it and hear about it regularly. I see it when team members allow themselves to be stretched; I hear it in their stories about connecting with the children or a creative idea that really worked. I see it in the spiritual growth of our families and in the hearts of the children. I hear about it from parents who are thrilled their children love to come to Sunday School and as they share a story of something their child learned and applied. I hear about it from visiting families who felt loved and welcomed. I see it in the delight of the children as they talk about their Teachers and show me their crafts and tell about the fun they had with their friends while learning about Jesus. I hear it throughout the building when the Joy Choir Children practice and as Sheila Dean plays her guitar while the Preschoolers sing their hearts out. I see it first hand in the Pre-Teens Class and also when previous students stop to visit and share. One child at a time we are making a difference and growing the Kingdom !
It is a pleasure to serve with you, “as unto the Lord” !
I sincerely hope you benefited from this report.
Because Jesus Loves Children (and so do we !)
Debe Emerson
Director of Children's Ministries
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Impact Ministries 
