NEWCOMERS

Led by Susan Herrmann and Newland Crocker

Many of you have noticed that the permanent sign in front of St. Andrews was a victim of an accident.  The new one is in place as a reminder of our ministry to those passing by.  A banner has also been placed on our front lawn with a bit more detail about the times of our services.  Perhaps most importantly, it clearly states that summer visitors are welcome at St. Andrews.  This portion of the message will change with the seasons, but it will always remind those passing by that St. Andrews welcomes them to join us.

The Newcomers Committee responsibility within St. Andrews is to enable the parish to incorporate a ministry of welcome throughout all facets of church life.  We believe that every parish member has an obligation to reach out to the community and provide an atmosphere of encouragement to join in our worship.  As we touch more potential members, so we will grow.

Our committee has four subcommittees that lead our ministry of welcome:

Pilgrims  - Identifies ways of promoting St. Andrews to the public including marketing, public awareness and a referral/recruiting program.

Sojourners  - Incorporates the newcomer mission into existing programs such as greeters, ushers and welcoming materials like the Join In cards.

Mentors  - Develops and manages a mentoring program to help visitors and new members become more knowledgeable and comfortable with St. Andrews.

Lay Education  - Develops an education program to train our members on how to become better ministers of our faith.

There are many events that are sponsored by the committee.  Some of these are the semi-annual Newcomers Dinner and the ongoing member education.  The committee interfaces with other parish committees to assure consistency of message and theme.

Parish growth is essential to enable the ministry to both conduct and support the various community and church programs.  The Newcomers Committee is very aware of this and encourages all to actively engage is this activity.