East Region Early Childhood Meeting

April Early Childhood Program of the Month: 
ABBA Christian Childcare/Family in Faith in Glendale Heights 
(serving infants (6 weeks) through preschool-age children)

Ministry Stories:

Pastor Kass shared a story of spending some time with an 18 year old boy named Jessie. He’d been a student at their childcare center. After wandering, Jessie confided that he wanted to get back to church and have Christ in his life again. You never know what seeds you are planting!

Upcoming Conferences:

·         Concordia Chicago Early Childhood Conference – August 4, 2017

·         NID Teachers Conference – October 6, 2017

Upcoming Special Events – all are invited!:

·       Wednesday, April 26^that 5:45 pm: Community Outreach Event – Live Vocal and Visual Artists with children’s artwork on display

o   Trinity Early Childhood Center, Naperville

·         Thursday, April 27, 2017: Early Childhood Learning Fair

o   St. Paul, Aurora

·         May 12^th at 6 pm: Art Show (children perform in the church prior to the show)

o    St. Andrew, Park Ridge

Topic: Building Bridges between Family and Church

·         It’s imperative that families feel important to your church

·         It’s ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS!

·         Include pastors when celebrating baptismal birthdays

·         Invite individual classes to church and pray for their class during church

·         Touchpoints – keep track of family involvement and encourage natural integrations into school or church life when connections are not happening