Objective Planning Workshop

The Lay Leadership Program Council (LLPC) would like to invite you to participate in our Objective Planning Workshop on August 23rd, 2014 from 9 A.M. to 12 P.M. in the Chapel at First Unitarian to help us solidify our brainstormed tasks into action plans and prepare for the year ahead.

Light refreshments will be served and our agenda is as follows:

Opening and Introductions 

Invocation 

Review areas of concern

Regroup- own your category and form a group to brainstorm ways to address the area of concern.

Small Group: Brainstorm

Share your plan

Develop a timeline and action plan and way to communicate your objective to reach the goals and encourage participation of others.

Discuss Stewardship Fair October 5th, 2014

Below is a summary of the Goal Setting Workshop on June 7th, 2014. Please review as we prepare for our time together.

A dedicated and talented group of about 25 lay leaders met on June 7th, 2014 to focus attention on our congregation's hospitality efforts. We completed a self-assessment provided by the UUA to uncover our strengths and weaknesses with regard to hospitality based on 5 categories:

·        The newcomer’s initial experience

·        The membership process

·        The worship and faith development experience

·        Connecting and growing deeper relationships

·        Our image and visibility

The assessment revealed many strengths including:

·        Worship, Music and Faith Development well integrated and uniformly excellent

·        Strong Youth Group

·        GA participation is high and we are becoming more connected to UUA

·        Strong professional staff (Minister, Faith Development Director and administrative support) involvement in the membership process

·        Administrative follow-up with new comers

·        A structure and procedure for a greeter program that includes greeter station, welcome table and sign-up process, including a newly formed family greeter program which is highly effective.

·        Newly incorporated announcements into the worship service

·        Public recognition of new members in the worship service

·        Caring Circles

·        Managing our time of transition and change

The assessment and subsequent discussions highlighted our growing edges including:

Improving our Greeting and Welcoming Practices:

·        Greeter training

·        Identify and grow Super Greeters who will take a more personal approach to welcoming and recruitment

·        congregational members take on a collective commitment to promote greeting and hospitality

·        More consistency in identifying newcomers

·        Greeting→ Welcoming→ Membership→ Recognition:  This is a multistep process that should focus on opportunities for bonding

·        Change all “Membership Table” references to the “Welcome Table”

·        Help new members connect into our community

Extending our Adult Faith Development Programming

·        More consistent delivery of a New UU orientation program.  Offer this multiple times each church year.  

·        Identify mentors for newcomers

·        Increase spiritual practices in our meetings and work of the church

·        Honor the presence of new people in this spiritual place

Improving our Social Justice Programming/Faith In Action

·        Connecting with programs and social action in the community (Gay Pride, Jericho Road, etc.)

Review and Revise our Mission

·        Re-imagine and promote our Mission.  

·        Be mission-driven, internally and externally

Continue to improve our outward image

·        The physical appearance of our church is indistinguishable from the now vacant courthouse

·        More external signage that is attractive, informative and inviting

·        Develop or contract for Public Relations expertise

The conversation was rich and constructive and led us to 5 areas of concern all centered on the goal of increasing our hospitality efforts and led us to the goal below.

During the 2014-2015 church year, the members our congregation at The First Unitarian Church of Worcester will increase our individual and collective involvement in hospitality by developing and implementing action plans focused on the 5 growing edges: Greeting and Welcoming Practices, Adult Faith Development Programming, Social Justice Programming/Faith In Action, the mission, and our outward image. To accomplish this goal, 70% of our active members within the congregation will take part in at least 1 hospitality related activity during the year.

This goal is a good one, but taking the next steps to organize action plans around each of these growing edges requires all of our support and assistance. After all, hospitality is more than just a committee, it is a spiritual practice that can help us all live our principals in a very real and meaningful way. As we open next year we will be welcoming a new minister, new members and newcomers to our church, come be a part of this historic new beginning.

Save the date:

Stewardship Fair on October 5th, 2014.

See you Saturday August 23rd at 9 A.M.

Kinds regards,

Laura Kirshenbaum