WSR Family Services
August 19, 2003
Attendance:
His Harmony: 4 (Rich, Sherri, Angela, Annette)
Central: 11 (Allan Bass, Karon Carroll, etc.)
Cascade: 1 (Pastor Burkholder)
Sponsor: Bob Jordan
WSR: Darin Goff
Inmates: 1 inmate, his wife and their daughter.
The service began at 2:40 versus the regularly scheduled 2:00. There was a computer issue at the check-in area and this caused length delays for visitors. Darin believes some visitors who would have been in our service left to come back later that evening when they would have a longer visit time. There were nine inmates signed up.
His Harmony opened the service with a John 3:16 song and then “This is the Day” complete with interaction that the inmate family enjoyed (as did the rest of us). Central performed a very entertaining and instructive skit on Jonah, complete with Bible reading and props and more athletics from one of the younger volunteers (this gave Rich the day off from gymnastics). His Harmony did another sing-a-long about the word STOP. Using the letters as an acronym they made a good case for prayer and Bible understanding. Very well done! For the third month Rich did a skit on Professor Dr. Heinnee Himmell von Logbottom. This is always good and it was again this day!
His Harmony closed the service and we enjoyed refreshments. We were exiting the meeting room at 3:25.
For the September 21 Service:
Allen Bass will be the group leader trainee and ultimate group leader for the Central WSR ministry team. Bob will contact Allen regarding some particulars of leadership with teams in the prison.
Drivers licenses should be given to the front desk in alphabetical order to expedite the badging process.
Only the group leader should be at the desk. Other volunteers should stand back to allow other visitors access to the counter.
The TRU services that Cascade will run will be on a Thursday yet-to-be-determined (3rd or 4th) from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. Depending on the attendance at the TRU services, the WSR services may switch to a weeknight. This is something to discuss at a later time. For now and the foreseeable future the WSR services will be on Sunday afternoons.
Karon suggested having the refreshments at the beginning of the service. This would accommodate the late-comers and provide more ministry time once we got started. Comments, anyone?
Dave and June made it known to me that if any of the inmate’s families are having a hard time getting to the services, that they could pick them up. This was an outstanding offer and bespeaks again of the servant attitude of the ministry volunteers. Darin, would this be helpful? Please advise, thanks.
Cascade’s team, led by John Burkholder, will begin in October at TRU. His Harmony will be able to accommodate the mid-week service time. Plan would be for HH to do the complete service for the first month, do some of it the second month with Cascade doing some of it, and on the third month watching Cascade do the entire service.
For September Central will do the entire service at WSR with HH observing and Bob Jordan training Allen Bass on the roles of the group leader.
Action Items:
John Burkholder email to Bob Jordan the list of names of the Cascade volunteers. Bob route those to Cathy S. at PFC. Cathy prepare list and add to PFC database and send list to Darin at WSR.
Equipment list from Central (and His Harmony if any) to be sent to only Bob Jordan September 3. Bob will send it to the PFC office and Cathy S. will arrange it on PFC letterhead and direct it to Darin at WSR. This is the only official list of equipment and food stuffs that we want to go to WSR. This allows one source going to Cathy and one source going to WSR. Please do not mass email equipment lists to everyone, only to Bob.
John Burkholder and Darin Goff meet August 20 to discuss TRU services, orientation for the Cascade team, and establish (if possible) the service times for the TRU family services. Darin to provide WSR applications to John for his team.
John Burkholder advise his team of the PFC-University Basic Adult Training parts 1 and 2. See http://www.bobjordan9.com/PFCU.htm for further information.
Allen Bass and Karon Carroll coordinate with their teams to attend PFC-University for Basic Adult Training parts 1 and 2 (if some have already taken this, fine, but if they haven’t taken one or both, they need to). PFCU date is September 27 at Cedar Park Assembly in Bothell. See http://www.bobjordan9.com/PFCU.htm for further information.
Note: Basic Adult Training Part 1 is required (by policy) of all PFC volunteers within their first year of being a volunteer. Part 2 is recommended for all PFC volunteers but required for all PFC group leaders. Because the family services are new with many new people participating, it is my STRONG recommendation that everyone on the Central and Cascade teams attend BOTH Part 1 and Part 2 on September 27 (some have take these and they do not need to repeat them). Please stress the importance of this with your teams (Allen and John).
All reports associated with the Monroe services and the preparation leading up to these services may be viewed at http://www.bobjordan9.com/monroe.htm.
Ending Note:
From the group leader’s viewpoint, I’m very pleased with the progress of the Family Services. Every time the inmates and their families have been blessed. Central always has an excellent turn-out of volunteers and they have a clear heart for this ministry. His Harmony has been faithful and professional in all they have done, driving great distances to facilitate the launching of this brand new ministry format. John Burkholder of Cascade has been at every one of the Family Services at WSR and will be a strong leader at TRU. He has immersed himself in prison ministry, not only at his church but with PFC, Bro Prison Ministries of Monroe, and Bill Glass’s Weekend of Champions (two tours – Washington and Oregon) all in a few months.
Both Central and Cascade will develop their own ministry style and be effective. His Harmony has been a tremendous example of what a seasoned, veteran, highly polished and versatile ministry can be. They have been a blessing to everyone and without them it’s hard to imaging how this special family services ministry would have been launched. Central and Cascade must not feel that they have to be at the level of His Harmony – God will bless the ministry of Central and Cascade as he has His Harmony (I’m sure!).