| Sunday School: 9:00am Worship: 10:15am Christ Church United Church of Christ 301 N. Main St.; Orrville, Ohio 44667 Church Office (330) 683-0715  |
| Sunday School: 9:00am Worship: 10:15am Christ Church United Church of Christ 301 N. Main St.; Orrville, Ohio 44667 Church Office (330) 683-0715 |
April 13, 2018
Our group is currently focusing on these important areas and we would like to share that information with everyone.
· Sunday Morning Experience - From our facilities to our announcements, worship, and music. Lets make navigating our building and taking part in our worship service very clear and easy to follow so that our visitors feel comfortable and welcome to experience all that we have to offer.
· Technology- We are working on how we can best take advantage of social media for the benefit of our church and community. Our website was recently given an A+ rating !
· Governance- The goal here is to continue to optimize the time and talents of our people in the church organization.
If you have any questions or would like to get involved in any of these areas please contact a member of the Bridging Team: Lori Ayers, Katherine Blasingame, Kaylene Biddle, Mike Ferich, Margaret Maupin, Erik McGrew, Kay Wade or Lisa Yeagley.
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Have you noticed something different this morning? We are leaving the doors open during worship, not the outside doors, just the ones to the gathering area. The idea is that if you, or especially a visitor, should arrive a few minutes late, those closed doors do not look too inviting. You might just decide to go back home! So let's leave the doors open and welcome everyone in.
This will mean that those setting up for coffee hour will have to be very quiet while they do it, but the hospitality of the coffee hour will be enhanced by the openness of our sanctuary. It's all part of trying to see things as a newcomer might see them. Step right in those visitor shoes - what other ideas for welcoming do you have?
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Happy New Year from the Bridging Team! In this new year, we are turning our efforts to hospitality for visitors. We have such a warm and wonderful congregation. If others are to join us, we need to extend an extravagant welcome. Working toward that, we have some small changes you may notice.
Announcements have been a way that we connect with one another about important events. They do, however, make sense to regular attenders but can make a guest feel like an outsider. In the interest of hospitality, we are hoping to eliminate announcements from worship. The pastor will welcome all and pass along any imperative information. The bulletin will include other announcements. Please give announcements to the church office by Tuesday to make sure they get into the bulletin.
In addition, there have been some spaces designated for Visitor Parking. There may also be some renaming of committees and programs, new signage and other changes to the bulletin.
Please feel free to ask anyone on the Bridging Team if you have questions or suggestions. Members are Lori Ayers, Kaylene Biddle, Katherine Blasingame, Mike Ferich, Margaret Maupin, Eric McGrew, Kaye Wade, Lisa Yeagley.
We can all turn our focus to welcoming visitors and drawing them in. We no longer want to be the “best kept secret in town.” We have good news to share and lots of caring people to share it. Help us build that bridge!
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November 2017
“Increase our ability to experience and articulate our faith in order to both sustain and create positive growth within and outside of our Church Community,” – Christ UCC Bridging Team, Mission Statement
The Bridging Team developed the above mission statement, both to organize our goals and to help the congregation understand what we are hoping to accomplish. Our group was formed in April 2017. We came together to work with both Dr. William McKinney and the Center for Progressive Renewal, and we’ve continued to meet monthly with Rev. Dr. Claire Bamberg, via video conference.
Our meetings have served as the stepping stones to get us where we are today. Together, we’ve learned how to be better listeners, how to communicate within the community, both inside and outside these church walls. We developed the questions and structure for our small group gatherings that many of you were able to attend.
Going forward, the Bridging Team will be working on these areas: CUCC website, Sunday Morning Experience (especially for visitors), electronic means of giving, and outreach to potential members.
Thank you for all the interest shown at October’s potluck. The team is trying to get to some specifics and there will be many opportunities for all interested to be involved. Stay tuned.
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October 15, the Bridging Team gave a report/update on the information gathered at the small group meetings that were held in September. Four main "themes" that came from these meetings were identified (Economic Hardship, Local Missions, Beyond Our Comfort Zone, and Art & Music). Those in attendance were asked to break into groups by selecting the topic/theme they were most iterested in. From there, discussion on what Christ Church can do start implementing some of the ideas that were suggested took place.
Below are links to the handouts that were passed out at each table: