The video Meet Rocky and the Incredible Hunger-fighting Silk Worm was used in the Sunday School at Sand Creek for all classes through grade 6. It was shown to all classes, through grade 8. It held the attention of all including the teachers.

A meal is one of the most gracious gifts that can be given to a family in crisis; I know this from first-hand experience. When a family member is hospitalized or dies, mealtime is the first thing to be disrupted. There is either no time to cook or very little inclination to prepare a meal. When my wife Audrey was seriously ill, the meals prepared by members of The Church were vital. They took the pressure off thinking about cooking and allowed our family to focus where we needed to focus.

Are there members of your church in need of immediate support? Maybe a sudden illness has taken a family member into intensive care, other illness or emergency situation.

Our congregation has a large number of retired people who escape to the south every winter, for periods from one month to six. After we spent a winter up north in a building project and snowbirds returned feeling left out of the process, I decided to e-mail snowbirds each winter. Even though they may access the church website and receive the newsletter, my e-mails add a slice of daily (or weekly) congregational life. I send on prayer requests and follow-ups, tidbits of good news, and an occasional weather update or comments on community happenings.

This can be used as a tool to give to all members of the church for demographic purposes.

We live, however, as more than recipients. We are called to be involved in God's activity of love and care for humankind and all of God's creation. We are dignified by being asked by God to participate in God's purpose of love and care. When we do participate, we receive a new dimension of grace, for we actually meet our living Lord in the needs of others.

Your time and commitment to this outreach is vital to the strength of our congregation. The central goal of Mentoring New Members is to help them become active in and committed to the ministry and mission of Calvary. This goal can be reached through the following activities:

We have what we call our "Shepherding Program." When a person/family joins, they are assigned to one of the "shepherding groups." This immediately involves them with fellow members in helping with the ministry at Lakeside. Because of the variety of tasks, everyone is able to find something to do in their comfort zone.

We continue to work on our new member integration, but at present we do six weeks of classes, spiritual gifts inventory and interviews, new member Sundays with a sponsor who agrees to contact the new members once a month for three months and also to pray for them.

The first session of each new member classes (there were nine sessions) began with the sharing of four questions: Where did you live before the age of 12? What kind of fuel did you use in heating your (childhood) home? Which room in your house was the social center for your family? When did Jesus become more than a word to you?