During March through the end of May, Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) volunteers provided care centers for children in what has become the most active tornado season in the United States since 2017.
A complimentary set of Bible activity cards has just been shipped to congregations that use the Shine: Living in God’s Light curriculum. The “Follow the Peace Path” cards are a signature part of a new initiative of Brethren Press and MennoMedia, which co-publish Shine.
J. Michael Lausch has been appointed executive director of COBYS Family Services, a non-profit organization based in Lancaster County, Pa., that is related to the Church of the Brethren’s Atlantic Northeast District. Mark Cunningham retired from COBYS in Dec. 2023 after serving as executive director for the last 14 years of his 26-year tenure.
Registration is now open for the Spring 2024 Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) Volunteer Training Workshops. If you have a heart for serving children and families in need following a disaster, find the schedule, cost, and a registration link at www.brethren.org/cds/training/dates.
The Shine curriculum of Brethren Press and MennoMedia is introducing a new initiative called Shine Everywhere. Shine Everywhere will provide new avenues of communication between those who create Shine curriculum and the congregations and families who use it. The purpose of the new initiative is to listen attentively to congregations and families and then incorporate their input into new Shine resources.
We did it! We have named our new initiative “Shine Everywhere.” We love the fact that it builds on Shine and extends the light metaphor of living in God’s light!
Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) deployed a team of three volunteers to Oak Park, Ill., to aid children and families among asylum seekers who have been sent to Chicago from the southern border of Texas. The team served from Monday, Nov. 6, to Thursday, Nov. 9, caring for 51 children.
A total of 13 service trips are planned for FaithX 2024, the Church of the Brethren’s program of short-term service opportunities for youth, young adults, and adults. New opportunities include more options for combined junior and senior high youth groups, a family camp with childcare provided, an older adult trip in February, and both international and domestic trips for adults.
On Oct. 28, Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) deployed a team of five Critical Response Childcare volunteers to Lewiston, Maine, in partnership with the Red Cross. This deployment was made in response to the mass shootings at two locations in Lewiston in which 18 people were killed and 13 others were injured.
We have EXCITING news! Lilly Endowment Inc., through the Strengthening Youth Programs Initiative, has awarded Camp Mack a three-year $620,926 grant to use the outdoor education program in support of local school districts and to offer a day camp during extended school breaks. Camp Alexander Mack, a ministry of the Northern Indiana and South Central Indiana Districts of the Church of the Brethren, is located near Milford, Ind.