New Connections 09-10 planning - responses appreciated

New Connections Friends,

Attached (& below) are some preliminary information and questions  for you, regarding the direction of New Connections for the next program year.  Please take some time to look over it and offer any feedback you may have.

Also, I know there may be a few email addresses that could be added to this list.  If you know of any, please let me know.  If you would like your name removed from this list (which we hope you don't) please let me nkow that as well.

Thank you all for your thoughts,

Julie

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New Connections Tentative 2009-10 Activities

Early Sept – Pleasant Hill O. C. Labor Day Family Camp – Gregg

Late Sept – Grill-Off @ Prairie Lane Lake Park – Millers

Oct – *Ramseyer Farms – Tricia

Nov – Bad Wine Party & Cards – Usternuls

Dec – **Christmas Theme..?? – Andria? & Tricia?

Jan – *Not-So-Newlywed Game – Megan & Steve (w/Re-Connections?)

Feb – Bowling @ COW – Gwen ?

Mar – Oscar Costume Party – need host

Apr – Putt-n-Stuff – need coordinator

May – **Amazing Race on Foot – Downtown Woo – Ann & Mary?

Jun? – Cedar Point or Coco Key – need coordinator

Other event ideas – apple picking; Mansfield Carrousel Park

*Bible study ideas – Festival of the Harvest from Old Testament, Couples/Relationships in the Bible

**Mission ideas – Kids make Christmas cards & deliver to __?__; include a mission component to one of the amazing race stops (Hospice’s Friendtiques store?).  We’ll need some good ideas!

Coordinator for each event should be sure that each of these items gets done, which might mean asking someone else to do it.

·        Write Newsletter/Bulletin articles & send to church office – due 15^th of preceding month

·        Send email notices – 1 month ahead of event, more if needed

·        Plan the actual event

·        Take RSVPs

·        Childcare – hire caregivers, make list of children, provide snack, plan kids’ activity (if any) collect money, pay caregivers (Julie can do this, unless someone else has a particular interest.)

·        Pictures – take during event & post to Snapfish page

1.    Do you like having events on 3^rd Fridays (or 3^rd weekends)?

2.    Can you plan one event next year?

3.    Which events were your family’s favorites?  What do you think of the tentative schedule?

4.    Do you like the childcare arrangements?  Do you have any suggestion to improve it? As our children are growing older, should we consider allowing older children (jr. high & up) to assist with the childcare, rather than their parents having to pay for care for them?  If they accept the responsibility of helping, perhaps they could receive a gift card at the end of the year worth $5 x the number of times they helped, or some other similar type of reward.

5.    Would you like to expand the purpose of our group to include theme-related mission activities and/or Bible study with some of our events, perhaps about 4 times during the year?  For example, during our fall visit to Ramseyer Farms, we could learn about the Festival of the Harvest from the Old Testamant; or we could include a study of couples/relationships in the Bible with a "Not-so-Newlywed" Game party.  If we want to do some mission things, we need some good ideas!

6.    Do you like the idea of all-church events, such as the steak fry, Thanksgiving dinner, and/or progressive dinner, taking the place of the New Connections event for the given month(s)?  The hope there would be that NC folks would be more strongly represented at those events.

Judy is now our representative on the church staff to help with planning, handling of money, etc.  She & I met in May, and I am grateful to her for offering many of these ideas.  It is exciting to think of the new directions this well established group can now take.  Please offer any input you may have!  You can share comments with Judy or myself.

Thanks,

Julie Miller