The Deacons
for
First Universalist
Helen Jacoby
Gretchen Westphal
Senior Deacons
Liz Duff
Kara McGarigal
Joyce Prior
|
|
Our Deacons and Care Core...
Deacons
The deacons are involved with the care of the church community and worship details. Together they manage lay led services, serve communion on communion Sundays, and handle the particles of worship throughout the year and for holiday services. Each deacon participates in Sunday worship during the chalice lightings.
Every month a deacon participates in the managing of Care Core and any concerns involved with it.
Why Was Care Core Created?
Care Core was started by the Deacons of this church a few years ago to assist our Minister in caring for our members. With this program, we are working to strengthen our ability as a congregation to minister to each other and support one another. In a church our size, it is impossible for the minister to provide continuing and personal care for each congregant in need. Furthermore, the ministry of the church is not reserved to the minister but is the responsibility of the entire church. While the minister is usually available in a crisis, other church members serve well in non-crisis situations.
As a result, we have created a Care Core to help meet needs when they come up and to lend a supportive hand. Care Core is a system connecting people in our caring church community to those in need. We are a church abundant in talented, caring people who enjoy helping each other out.
How Can This Program Be Important to a Church Member?
Lending a hand and reaching out is a mutual experience. When one gives, one receives--when one receives, one gives. Care Core volunteers are asked to commit a small amount of their time, anywhere from one hour a week or one hour a month to one hour a year. This way, many people can be helped and our resources won’t be exhausted. This program is really the best kind of donation; you give, and through that act alone, you receive. Everyone needs help at some point in their life. Help us to help you.
This program has been operating for a few years now. Our church has seen firsthand the benefits. The recipients have been grateful and have felt loved and cared for; the givers have felt the warm feeling we get when we go out
of our way to do something for someone else.
How Does Care Core Work?
Basically, it works like this... One of us has gotten ill and is hospitalized ; perhaps we are alone and need help once we return home. The Deacons then go to the Care Core Directory and find out who has volunteered for "Visiting Someone in the Hospital;" we then call upon that volunteer and ask them to go the hospital for a brief visit. The Deacons may call upon a volunteer to "Send Cards or Flowers." When the person who is ill returns home, a "Meal Prepared" for them and/or their family may be needed or perhaps some "Shopping and Errands" .
Then, a few days later, they may love to have a "Friendly Phone Call" following up to see how they’re recuperating
As you can see, caring for each other can be a big job. But we have the resources needed to do all that and more. The services above would not be accomplished by just one or two Care Core volunteers, but would be carried out by 5 or 6 of our church members who are very happy and willing to participate. Care Core is not designed to take care of every need we may have, but to be a support.
How Can I Get More Information?
Some people would like to find out more about this program. Any of the Deacons (listed in the sidebar above) would love to talk to you, to answer your questions and to hear your ideas. We are all familiar with the program and have seen how important it is to our church.
Who Can Be A Care Core Volunteer?
Anyone who wishes to help out and can afford to donate some of their time--as little or as much as you choose. They really make a difference to many of us who found ourselves in need.
|
|
