Four page newsletter: East King County Chapter| Four page newsletter: East King County Chapter | | |
| East King County Chapter, Summer 2006 |
| Golf Tournament and Auction A Thrivent Success! |
On Monday, May 15 golfers and volunteers gathered under near perfect conditions for a day of fun and fund-raising to benefit Thrivent Builds!, the partnership between Habitat for Humanity and Thrivent Financial. Nearly 130 golfers from over 21 area churches (and not all Lutheran!) spent a gorgeous day on the course playing a scramble format, then joining together with friends and spouses for an evening of food and fun.
The goal of the event was to join together to raise money for Habitat for Humanity in the East King County chapter. As reported in the last newsletter, Thrivent Builds! has donated 70% of the costs of two houses in the area, and the East King County churches needed to come up with the remaining $20,000. East King County church Holy Trinity Lutheran Church (ELCA) of Mercer Island sponsored the golf tournament. It was their 40th annual golf tournament, and most notably the largest one they had undertaken. In the past the tournament has been a fun way for the church members to “hang out” with one another. This year they decided to expand their tournament and invite people from the entire chapter to participate with the result of a 150% increase in golfers!
The East King County Chapter of Thrivent Financial decided to sponsor the banquet after the golf tournament. Held at the Bear Creek Country Club, it was nearly standing room only for a wonderful Seattle meal that included salmon and garlic roasted potatoes. Golfers were tired as they came in, but not too tired to up the ante for the silent auction and bidding frenzy that were part of the evening activities.
Between the two activities, golf tournament and auctions, enough money was raised for the East King county churches to meet their financial commitment to Thrivent Builds! The second part of the commitment is … volunteers! Out of 38 possible Saturdays for churches to choose from as a group activity, only three dates remain uncommitted! We hope to report by next newsletter that all Saturdays are filled.
All in all, the Golf Tournament and Banquet were an amazing success. It was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. Not only were funds raised, but awareness was raised too. There was definitely a sense of wanting to be more involved, especially when it is realized that the Thrivent Builds! program is not a hand-out program, but a hands-on one!
Will we do it again next year? We will have to wait and see!
| Practical Steps to Volunteering |
We have had a great start to our Thrivent Builds! project. Lots of Lutheran volunteers are showing up and it has been fun to meet the Habitat families and do some worthwhile work. Here are a few things we have learned from our first couple of Saturdays on the site:
1) Please be at the work site by 8:45 AM so we can get your group signed in and briefed about the days work
2) Lunch! If you have volunteers who don’t want to pound nails, ask them to prepare and serve lunch to all the volunteers (Lutherans are good at this). Lots of people show up at the work site: Habitat families, Habitat staff and always a few drop-ins. A nice little lunch brings everyone together and creates conversation and community. And the time spent preparing and serving also count toward our hours!
3) Coffee, snacks, water, sodas are all nice additions and give folks a chance to relax and recover.
Thanks for all your work and energy on behalf of the Habitat families. Our Lutheran theology fits well here because it reminds us that whatever work we do, when it is done with integrity and love, it gives glory to god. Thanks for being good Christian examples.
And remember: we have three Saturdays left to fill (November 4, 11, and 25). Finally, volunteers can show up during the week as well!
This year the EKCC sponsored a Join Hands Day event to benefit the Habitat for Humanity project in Redmond at Patterson Park. Youth Director for the East King County Chapter of Thrivent, Rebecca Beard, organized a fun day of landscaping opportunities for the young and the young-at-heart to participate in at Patterson Park in Redmond. Patterson Park is the place where we have been working to help several Habitat families turn their houses into homes. The landscaping helped with that feeling of pride. Also, several “welcome home” baskets were lovingly prepared by the members of Pilgrim Lutheran Church. Though the skies were cloudy (what a surprise in Seattle!) the warm feelings of doing good kept everyone motivated.
| Project and Deadline Information |
The East King County Chapter of Thrivent reminds you to get your project requests in as soon as your activity is on your calendar. Money is limited, and when it’s gone, it’s gone. Even if your event is happening in November, you can apply for it in July! This helps us plan for equitable distribution of funds.
This year’s cut-off date for approval of projects is Wednesday, November 8. The EKCC board meets at noon, so your project request (Form #1 on our website) needs to be received by November 7. All projects need to be finished, paperwork and monies turned in by November 30, 2006.
Many of you have done projects in December in the past and we hope that you continue them! But we will not be receiving applications for projects in December. If you want money for projects that have taken place in December, you might want to reschedule it for November. For example, food baskets for Christmas can have the funds raised in November.
We want to get our paperwork done on time and be good stewards of our time, so remember the following deadlines: projects must be received by November 7 to be approved November 8 and all projects and paperwork must be complete by November 30.
The East King County Chapter of Thrivent is beginning now to plan for next year’s elections. If you are interested in being a part of a great group of people giving away lots of money for wonderful causes, consider joining the EKCC board. We meet once a month to approve projects, but our work involves a bit more time than that. As a volunteer on the EKCC, you can expect to invest about 10-25 hours a month in activities that range from building houses to golfing! You should be computer literate, or have access to a computer that has an internet connection. If you would rather get your feet wet first, consider being a Thrivent Coordinator for your church. Each church needs 3 coordinators. The coordinators are the contact between church and the EKCC to request the money distributed. E-mail current chapter leaders at eastkingcochapter@yahoo.com for more information. We hope to hear from you!
| Project Complete? Not til the Paperwork is Done! |
The East King County Chapter wants to remind you, that approving a project is only the first part in getting your funds supplemented. Once projects are approved, the church or sponsoring group has thirty days to assemble receipts, and fill out the necessary paperwork, as well as send in any needed checks to be supplemented by Thrivent before the project is actually "complete."
Please remember to add this part of the detail work to your project plan so you don't end up without your approved money.
WANTED: A person with a caring heart to determine how best to distribute funds to needy people and nonprofit organizations in our community, or to help your congregation. For details about the following volunteer opportunities with Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, call (chapter leader).
CONGREGATIONAL COORDINATOR position. Through the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Care in Congregations® program, your church has monies available for Thrivent Financial members to conduct activities to benefit your church and/or its ministry to the community. Three congregational coordinators are required to help administer the program and initiate funding requests for the activities. If you are interested in serving as a congregational coordinator in your church, contact one of your chapter leaders.
CHAPTER LEADER position. Through its Care Abounds for Communities® program, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans provides funding for members who, through volunteer activities, want to aid people and nonprofit organizations needing help in the community. The chapter leadership board is responsible for reviewing funding requests and deciding on the amount of funds to provide for each request. New people are now being sought for chapter leader positions to help continue the fraternal benefit tradition of helping others.
REQUIREMENTS for volunteer positions: A Thrivent Financial member, a desire to help others, and five to 12 hours per month of volunteer time.
BENEFITS: A smile on the faces of others you've helped and a good feeling in knowing you've made a difference in someone's life.
| How to Help Your Congregation |
Did you know that Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has a program called Care in Congregations® where funding is provided to Thrivent Financial members to conduct fund-raising and/or hands-on service activities to benefit your congregation or its related Lutheran institutions? In fact, Thrivent Financial members are encouraged to use the funds to help the congregation in its ministry to the community.
If you see a need in your congregation that could be helped through this funding, please contact a Thrivent Financial congregational coordinator in your congregation. If you don't know who your three congregational coordinators are, please contact a member of our chapter leadership board, and he/she will help you get in touch with a coordinator.
| More Info about Being a Congregational Coordinator or Chapter Leader |
Your role as congregational coordinator is focused on helping the congregation. As a coordinator, you have a special Thrivent Financial program, Care in Congregations, that enables you to engage members in activities that will help your congregation or its related institutions.
Chapter leaders manage the chapter; the legal entity required by law for all fraternal benefit societies, including Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Chapter leaders are elected and may appoint additional optional advisory positions. They are responsible for providing strategic direction, leadership planning and administration support to the chapter and its congregational and community service teams. Chapter leaders approve funding for activities that benefit the community through the Care Abounds in Communities program.
All Thrivent Financial for Lutherans members have the option to be involved at both the congregational and the chapter level by volunteering with a variety of service teams formed to meet pressing congregational or community needs.
For Members, by Members:
This newsletter was written and edited by volunteer leaders of your local Thrivent Financial for Lutherans chapter to keep you informed of chapter news. If you have any questions and/or comments about the content of this newsletter or would like to learn more about chapter activities being planned in your area, please contact one of your chapter leaders. To access you chapter leader contact information, go to www.thrivent.com; Members/Chapters; Information About My Chapter; View Leadership/Activities/Website; Chapter Leadership Board.
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