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Who needs a Safe Haven?
There is a child in Mountlake Terrace who needs a Safe Haven.
- The child who walks in the shadow of your church at three o'clock in the
afternoon
on the way from school to an empty home.
- The toddler whose stomach is growling.
- The child who lives with taunts and threats of racism.
- The child who fears the shouts and hitting that may happen that night.
- The child who worries that there will be violence in his/her school or
neighborhood
that day.
- The child who does not know Jesus.
Is Bethesda Lutheran Church a Safe Haven for Children? Imagine . . .
- a child knowing that he can come into your congregation and find safety.
- a child knowing that adults in your congregation can call her by name.
- your congregation becoming acutely aware of the needs of the children
and their
families in your community.
- your congregation taking risks and making sacrifices to "assure the
youngest and
most vulnerable members of our world that they have a future."
- learning from children.
- the mess and the fun and the laughter and the chaos that being a Safe
Haven for
Children will bring to the life of your congregation.
What does this mean?
When a congregation chooses to make the commitment to be a
Safe Haven for a children and
their families and caregivers, what does this mean? What will the children be
safe from? What
will they be safe for? What will our congregation look like if it is a Safe
Haven for Children?
What’s Next?
Set up teams through the Education Ministry for the Education
of teachers,
church leadership, parents and the entire worshiping community of Bethesda
- Create an awareness by implementing "Safe Haven for
Children" by
- Create and implement supervision Guidelines
- Create and implement Congregational Policies
Marks of a Safe Haven
- What does a Safe Haven for Children look like?
- What does it give to a child?
- What does it feel like to the congregation?
- What does it say to the community?
| Children are safe from: |
Marks of a Safe Haven: |
Children won't need to say: |
|---|
| Physical abuse | Zero toleration of physical violence |
Please don't hit me again! |
| Sexual abuse | Zero toleration of sexual abuse |
Don't touch me there! Stay away! |
| Emotional abuse | Zero toleration of emotional abuse |
I'm not stupid! |
| Stifling stereotypes | Zero toleration of racism, sexism, ageism |
Don't call me dumb! |
| Hunger | Immediate assistance in times of crisis
Understands the causes of poverty | I'm hungry! |
| Homelessness | Advocates on behalf of children locally and politically |
Where will we sleep tonight? |
| Isolation | Allocates resources to create Safe Havens |
Why can't I come in? |
| Rejection | Links with other Safe Havens in the community |
Don't leave me--come back! |
| | | |
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| Children are safe to: | Marks of a Safe Haven: |
Children who will say: |
|---|
| Grow in faith | Welcoming every child in God's name |
God loves me! |
| Love God | Child-friendly worship |
I love Jesus! |
| Love their neighbors | Strong relationships between generations |
I love you! |
| Give | Commitment to teach and learn from children |
Thanks for teaching me. |
| Feel empathy | Time is taken to talk with and listen to children |
I'm sorry you feel sad. |
| Serve | Children challenged to grow in faith and service |
Let me help you. |
| Discover | High standards for quality care and education |
Why? |
| Create | Joy and fun, rather than boredom |
I've got an idea! |
| Hope | Encouragement and enthusiasm |
I'm going to be a . . . when I grow up! |
| Be aware of their community | Strong connections both locally and globally |
What about my friend from school? |
| Be aware of the world | Seeing life through the eyes of a child |
It's God's world! |
Congregational Resources
WHEREAS the social upheavals of our time and the growing gap between rich and
poor have been especially damaging to the lives of children and families; and
WHEREAS, as we are in a new millennium, we must assure the youngest and most
vulnerable members of our world that they have a future; and
WHEREAS we long for children to be free from fear and to live in faith;
BE IT RESOLVED THAT this congregation, Bethesda Lutheran Church of Mountlake
Terrace, Washington on this day of the Lord May 18th 2008 commits itself to be a
Safe Haven for all children and their families and caregivers, by:
- Building Christ-centered, positive, trusting relationships that nurture the
healthy growth of children and strengthen families.
- Using our resources to provide a sanctuary for children.
- Creating a Gospel-centered, faith-based teaching and learning environment
of
hospitality that welcomes all children with their families and caregivers.
- Developing programs and places that help children to flourish.
- Collaborating with other faith communities, agencies, and service
organizations
that work for the well-being of children in our community.
- Working with the government for more public measures that support the
well-being of children.
- Supporting the efforts of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to
meet the
basic needs of children through Lutheran social ministry organizations, as they
provide caring services for children, and through the ELCA World Hunger Program,
which carries our concerns for children throughout the world.
Congregational Covenant
We, the members of
Bethesda Lutheran Church
living out our faith at
23406 56th Ave West
Mountlake Terrace, Washington, 98043
in the Northwest Washington synod of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America,
affirm our commitment to be a Safe Haven for Children.
Knowing that living into this covenant is a lifelong process of
learning and caring, and
knowing that we work with others in our immediate community,
the wider church and the world to develop programs and places
where children can flourish,
we ask God to help us.
May 18th, 2008
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