Looking Ahead

Ms. Jumana and a friend go get lunch ready.

A banner on the school building announces Immanuel's new ministry.

Hosting a National Conference One might think Director Wendy Pritchard and Pastor Dave Barber would have stopped to catch their breath after months of physical labor, paperwork, and marketing invested in opening the facility. Yet when leaders of the Open Arms Institute asked them to host their biannual three-day conference late last month for churches considering launching a childcare ministry, they said yes. Pastor Barber still shakes his head in disbelief when he thinks about it. “It was kind of crazy – here we were open only four months and the institute is having their national conference here!” he says. “We were really excited that they thought of us and asked us. They saw what we had done and wanted to share it with other churches.” “It makes me feel good that we were able to help, that they would want our help,” Pritchard says. “I see no greater joy than us being able to help other churches that were in the same situation that Immanuel was in work through this process.” The response of attendees and institute leaders was very encouraging. “They gave wonderful feedback about the facility, structure, and staff,” Pritchard says.

by Diane Strzelecki
May 2007

The Open Arms staff of Immanuel Lutheran, Glenview, Illinois, (see "New Ministry Brings New Life") plans to continue reaching out to the community through direct mail, Internet presence, participation in preschool/daycare fairs, Chamber of Commerce involvement—and building relationships.

“I could see how the last three families that came in really need us, need the ministry, need good solid appropriate care for children and spiritual care for themselves,” says Wendy Pritchard, the director. “It’s great to be here to serve them.”

Rev. David Barber, Immanuel's pastor, knows that his work will continue to keep the childcare ministry at the forefront of member’s minds. “I want to help the congregation understand that our work has just begun,” he says. “Now that people are coming to our facility, I want members to think about how we connect them to Jesus.” Barber notes the change from a “membership culture,” where getting people to join the church is the church’s number one mission.

“I’ve been working with leadership to explore intentional ways we can make ourselves available to people and minister to them,” he says. “It’s a process of redefining membership from rights and privileges to discipleship and spiritual growth.”

According to Barber, the potential for spiritual growth for the congregation over the next two years is enormous, as members come to see how their gifts mesh with God’s plan for the Open Arms ministry.

Coming from a very large parish, key volunteer Mike Dueber had never heard of a church going into decline. “I didn’t understand the dynamics of a church growing smaller,” he says. He saw the childcare ministry as a great idea.

“That’s how you grow, by bringing in youth. This was an answer to keeping the congregation viable,” he says. Although his parish has a preschool, he is not aware of any local Christian daycare facilities and understands the need in the community. “I can see the days when there will be a waiting list. What we did to get this going will be of value to the community.”

Pritchard is looking ahead, with a vision of the ministry reaching out to the community with family events, incorporating family ministry efforts such as parenting classes and support, and bridging the gap between the families and the school.

“90% of my job is building relationships with staff, children, and church members,” she says. “I’ll need to continue to do that as we grow.”

Parent Eleanor Pattie feels that Immanuel’s selection of an outreach ministry was critical to the community as well as the church. She appreciates being on the receiving end of the outreach.

“The church involves the childcare families, sending them monthly newsletters and communicating on a regular basis,” she says. Pattie notes that at the Easter service, every child in attendance received a basket, which included a tract on the story of Jesus and a brochure about the childcare facility.

“The way they operate is a huge testimony to the church,” she says.

Debra Zara, parent of two children enrolled in Open Arms and an Open Arms ministry member, is excited about what the ministry means to the congregation and the community.

“We’ve done this together as a congregation,” she says. “We’ve come a long way as far as getting more of our members involved and getting new people involved. We’ve built a good foundation for reaching out to families.”