Welcome to the NC Synod

Youth and Family Ministry E-news.

May 2016

Events and news...

* NEW - TODAY at Noon Eastern.

Crafting a Confirmation Program with Erik Ullestad.

What does confirmation ministry look like at your church? How can confirmations serve as an essential faith formation experience in the lives of your students? Which resources are best for my context? Grab a cup of coffee and let's chat about confirmation ministry!

* NEW - ELCA Youth Leadership Summit - In November, the NC Synod is hosting this summit along with our partners at Lutheridge. We need your help. If you have a church van and would be willing to provide a driver for pickups from the Charlotte airport to Lutheridge, please let Tammy know. Pickups would happen Thursday, November 3 and then the return trip on Sunday, November 6.

* NEW - Ever-Reforming: A Reformation 500 Cross-Generational Study As you plan for parish education programs in 2016 and 2017, please consider a new resource called, Ever-Reforming: A Reformation 500 Cross-Generational Study. The parish education curriculum is written by a variety of people representing the North Carolina Synod-bishops, professors, pastors, and lay people-and covers a wide spectrum of foundational Lutheran themes. Prepared as a central part of the North Carolina Synod's commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, Ever-Reforming addresses topics including church history, Reformation history, Luther, worship, music, Lutheran theology, ethics, and contemporary issues. Ever-Reforming is intended to be a useful, informative, engaging, and accessible resource for all ages ranging from middle school to seasoned church members. The curriculum spans 44 sessions, organized topically by month. While congregations may begin the study any time in September 2016, churches are encouraged to begin the lesson on Sunday, September 18, following the "God's Work Our Hands" service day on September 11. Each lesson is one page-front and back-and can be taught (or rather facilitated) by rostered leaders or lay people. Generally speaking, each lesson contains five parts: Content Summary, Key Words, Bible Connections, Where Does Luther Stand?, and Discussion Starters. Ever-Reforming will be available for download at no charge at nclutheran.org beginning August 1, 2016. For more information, please contact the study editors, Mindy Makant (mindy.makant@lr.edu) or Eric Childers (stjohnspastor@bellsouth.net).

*NEW - 2018 ELCA Youth Gathering Announcement - "The Gathering is primarily planned and led by amazing volunteers who serve on 15 planning teams. Starting April 1, we will be accepting applications from individuals who would like to participate in the planning process.

Applications will be accepted until July 1, 2016."

* Plans are underway for our 2017 Stay-at-home mission trip. If you would like to consider being a host site, please fill out this form. What does this mean? To be a host site, you arrange work projects, find a cook, determine the space you would have open for other congregations to join you, and whether you'd be open to middle & high schoolers or just one or the other. We'll handle curriculum, publicity, registration, funding, shirts, etc. Our hope is to invite congregations from around the ELCA to join us while we work in our own communities.

* If you are attending the 2016 NC Synod Assembly and would like to reserve a breakfast table for conversation around a specific topic, please sign up here. For example, Confirmation, Milestone Ministries or Young Adult Ministries. Voting members will be able to see the list of Breakfast Discussions and plan their meal around that topic. We need your help to have a wide variety of topics.

* The Fall Youth & Family Ministry Network meetings are on the calendar. Anyone who works with those in the first third of life are invited. We gather at 10am and go to lunch together. Each time we gather around a specific topic but we also have time to share concerns, joys and challenges. There's great wisdom in the room. We're also going to be trying out our new conference call system so you can join via Go To Meeting.

August 30 - Planning for 2017

September - no meeting (Fall Convo)

October 18 - ELCA Youth Gathering

November 15 - Child safety policies

* The 2016 NC Synod Assembly registration is open and ready to have youth and young adults from your congregation. Every congregation may send an additional voting member who is a youth (confirmed - 17) or a young adult (18-30). 13% of the voting members in 2015 were under 30 years of age. Let's see if we can beat that this year! Registration ends May 15. Register now.

* Mark your calendars. Pre-Assembly Event

Thursday, June 2 from 9am - 4pm

AM Session for all participants 9am - noon
Rev. David Hansen
Digital Tools for Creating Community

Participants will consider how new and old tools can work together to help us build community in our churches and beyond. We will look at the changing media landscape of our culture, get hands-on experience with some of the most popular tools, and walk away with concrete tips and strategies to make the most of the opportunities they present to us.

PM Session - Breakout sessions (choose 1) 1:30-4pm
Digital Tools Part II - Rev. David Hansen
A Walk through the New Testament - Rev. Dr. Mary Shore
Renewing Congregations - Renewal Team
Goldilocks Stewardship - One size doesn't fit all - Stewardship Team

2016 Calendar of Events

May 12 - FREE Practice Discipleship Webinar - Wondering with Children and Youth with Jeremy Myers 2pm eastern.

June 2 - Pre-Assembly Event - Social Media
June 3-4 - Synod Assembly - Charlotte Renaissance

June 20-23 - LYO Board Retreat - Lake Lure, NC

June 21-25 - Bishop's School - Luther Springs, Florida
August 30 - Youth & Family Network meeting - Synod office
September 8 - FREE Practice Discipleship Webinar

- Wondering about Confirmation with Terri Elton. 2pm eastern.

September 9-10 - Synod Council

September 26-28 - Fall Convo - Lutheridge
October 13 - FREE Practice Discipleship Webinar - Wondering at Creation with Brian Peterson
October 18 - Youth & Family Network meeting - Synod office
October 22 - YouthQuake - Mt. Pisgah, Hickory
November 3-6 - ELCA Youth Leadership Summit - Lutheridge

November 10 - FREE Practice Discipleship Webinar - Wondering in Prayer with Mindy Makant. 2pm eastern.

November 12 - YouthQuake - Holy Trinity, Raleigh

November 15 - Youth & Family Network meeting - Synod office

November 28-30 - Youth Ministry Retreat - Camp Agape (anyone who works with youth.)

December 2-3 - Synod Council meeting

2017

January 14 - LYO Board Planning retreat

January 20-23 - ELCA YM Extravaganza - Louisville, KY

February 24-26 - LYO Assembly

June 18-24 - Bishop's School - South Carolina

2018

June 27 - July 1 - ELCA Youth Gathering - Houston, TX

2019

June 23 - 29 - Bishop's School - North Carolina

2020

July 5 - 11 - Bishop's School - Southeastern Synod

App of the Month - oVote

oVote is the fastest way in the world to answer a question remotely. oVote lets you send questions to smartphones, which your people can answer with just two touches.

Resource of the Month - Mother's Day

ELCA Good Gifts for Mother's Day.
Tell mom she's BEEautiful this Mother's Day with an ELCA Good Gift of honeybees ($20). Invite families in your congregation to join in and donate to make a difference for a family around the world. Download the coloring page to let kids in on the fun! Learn more at ELCA.org/goodgifts.

Download FREE coloring sheet

Video of the Month - Kid President

Check out this video for all those graduating from Kid President.

Outdoor Ministries of the NC Synod

Below you will find wonderful offerings from our outdoor ministry sites. If you have specific questions, please check out their websites.

Agape-Kure Beach Ministries

Novus Way (Lutheridge, Lutherock, Luther Springs & Luther Ranch)

May 14

Hey Everybody! Get ready for Agap�-Ganza, a fun-filled day of camp activities: canoeing, archery, rockets, zip-line, etc. PLUS a double elimination GaGa ball tournament, and a pie competition! Fun for the whole family, church group or youth group. Get your teams and recipes ready! The Agap�-Ganza promises to be loads of fun for everyone! If you are interested in entering a team in the gaga ball tournament or entering a pie in the pie competition, contact the main office at 919.552.9421 or via email at agape@agapekurebeach.org.

Day Camp for ages 10-90!

People of all ages and religious affiliation from all over the southeastern United States visit Lutheridge Camp and Conference Center and other NovusWay sites to take part in diverse programs offered throughout the year, but Lutheridge's ministry extends beyond its grounds. Every week of summer camp, two to three teams of summer staff travel to different churches and facilities across the southeast to organize day camps for elementary-aged children. Even though "Lutheroad" is not a new concept, the idea of holding a day camp in a retirement home was unheard of until Lutheridge and Lutheran Services Carolinas joined forces to conduct a pilot day camp at Trinity Village Lutheran Home in Hickory, NC!