STARTING AN OLDER ADULT MINISTRY

SOAM #2    FROM SCRATCH

When considering some kind of older adult ministry or program, keep in mind that no matter how spectacular the “main event” may be, it is the opportunity to socialize, to contribute in some way, to see one’s friends, to be greeted warmly by a younger family in your church for instance, that will keep most of us coming back to events that take place in church.

 Socializing.

As I interviewed a set of empowering leaders several year ago, one pastor, Jack, explained the added value of a Bible study in this way,

        (From Jack) Of course, the people were glad for a Bible study.  The doctrine sessions were sort of an overview perspective of their faith.  But what was really important was that these participants knew we noticed them and cared about them. [emphasis mine]

When I asked Jack how he knew these people felt cared for, he replied,

          "It was during the socializing time before or after the meetings, when we engage each other in personal ways.  Some of this conversation was evangelistic, but mostly it was simply supportive listening to each other.  And that's what made the difference."

Asking for parishioner’s interests, experiences and meaningful questions is a key starting point for beginning new ministries or projects,  Without asking people about their interests before actually planning a program, there is seldom opportunity to find out what people like to do and what their experiences, talents or passions might be.  Without this knowledge, any attempt to invite a particular person to help out in an important way is a guessing game as to whether it will be meaningful to them – it might work, but it might not and thus discourage you both.

From Scratch:

I have had an ongoing conversation with Jane Schott as she started from scratch to develop a Senior Ministry in her church.  Jane writes:

         I find that it is important to set up an advisory committee consisting of seniors to make suggestions for future activities. 

         We then developed a survey of interests of the Seniors in our church.

I have found that it is very important to develop some type of transportation network of people who are willing to drive and those who need rides. One thing for sure, the Seniors do want programs held during the day.  They do not want to drive at night.

Another issue is that our church budget is stretched to the limit now, so we need to come up with some free or inexpensive activities that are still interesting and fun enough to make seniors eager to attend.

          Our next Inreach/Outreach Committee meeting for Seniors is coming soon, and I was planning to send the survey results to the committee members prior to the meeting so they would have time to read them and be better prepared to brainstorm at the meeting.

   The results from Jane’s surveys are summarized:

Our age group prefers:

Day-time events

Bible Studies

Our age group does not prefer

Hard physical events – though there were votes for walking/exercise – more moderate physical exercise

Long events  -- presumably an event of more that 3 hrs +/-???
After-dark events 

Special needs include:

Transportation  (this seems to be a critical need for some people)

Free or inexpensive events (this would seem to be an important criteria that can really change the make-up of who attends)

Special observations:

We need to base forthcoming activities on senior interests

Consider activities that are interesting and fun!

In the next message from Jane she said:

        During our recent planning session, we brainstormed some possible day trips, speakers, and service projects for this year. The day trips were by far the most popular, and a number of people made comments such as, "We've needed to do something like this for a long time." After our meeting, we enjoyed a delicious traditional Lutheran potluck.

         It took about 6 months to get to this point, but I think the planning, survey, data collection, and correspondence with you are being rewarded. I'll try to keep you updated on our group's progress. And please keep encouraging other churches in this ministry.

Jane’s approach draws heavily on the results of the survey of (all) the older adults in her congregation.  This is a very important step.  All to often churches seem to reach out to survey the same people who are already active.

And in a subsequent message from Jane in 2012:

         Just wanted to let you know that we had our second meeting of the Seniors Group at St. Paul.   This month 30 people showed up--as compared to 20 in January, so we are growing! The program was an interesting presentation on Medicare services, and people had lots of questions. Then we had refreshments, a short business meeting, and some fun games that a member presented. Everyone seemed to have a great time, and attendees included people from age 60 to one lady who is 91.

          I've now begun to get people interested in planning activities for coming months, although I did have to do March myself. I think it will take some time to get people used to the idea of being more involved than just showing up for a meeting. All of the recent widows (5) were there although the 2 recent widowers were not--they both still work full time. However, our March meeting is a restaurant outing on St. Patrick's Day that falls on Saturday, so maybe we will be able to attract some of the seniors who still work.

There are several points in this last email from Jane that are helpful for those of us that want to start some kind of older adult ministry.  First, growth happens over time.  As the word spreads, more will come.  Second, it isn’t easy to build a new culture in an organization, in this case, a culture of shared responsibility for developing programs.  It is easy for all people, let alone older adults, to expect that other people will do the planning and organizing for us.  But, even if we understand the importance to our health (emotional health, especially) of being personally more involved in the development of an activity, it generally takes time to move toward a congregational culture of “what we do around here is to help out.”

The next chapter of Jane’s saga of starting an Older Adult Ministry in her church:  (September 30, 2012)

         Jane writes:  "We've enjoyed many trips together this summer, and the group remains very enthusiastic. We get different (and some new) people every month depending on their individual schedules. We'll have a planning meeting this month for 2013, and I'm hoping to have someone sign up to be the meeting planner for every month of the coming year.”

And this too:

         [This ministry has already] enabled a lot of our seniors to get out and go places, meet new people, make friends, and enjoy companionship that they would otherwise probably not have done. 

This last sentence from Jane is a very important validation of her older adult ministry efforts.  It is exactly what one would hope for happens as programs are developed for and by older adults at church.

And on March 2, 2013  Jane wrote:

                  We are well into our second year now for the St. Paul Seniors Group. Last year we enjoyed many trips to interesting places in our area. We also held a number of gatherings at the church to attract members who are not able to do much walking. Our November meeting was extremely popular. We held a German potluck with lots of sauerkraut, sausage, potatoes, and apple dishes. Afterward we showed the movie “Luther.” Everyone agreed it was a great way to celebrate the Reformation.

                 I am encouraged that more members are taking on the responsibility of planning the monthly activities this year, although I’m still available to help whenever needed. The attendance varies from month to month for a number of reasons, but there are quite a few people who have become “regulars.” I’m looking forward to lots of “fun, food, and fellowship” with this group in 2013.

I for one am looking forward to future posts from Jane as her new ministry for older adults continues to develop.  It seems, from Jane’s most recent comments, that she has been reasonably successful in encouraging the members themselves to take over responsibility for planning.  I am a firm believer in the importance for Jane to continue to be available for help whenever she is needed – just as she now reports is her position.  No matter how competent we older adults are at planning and putting-on a program, there is nothing like having a resource to help us when needed, to give us the confidence that we can do it!

Bruce