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 What Exactly is Stephen Ministry? Stephen Ministry is a ministry in our congregation in which trained and supervised lay persons, called Stephen Ministers, provide one-to-one Christian care to individuals facing life challenges or difficulties. Who Is Involved? Stephen Leaders are the ones who oversee and direct our Stephen Ministry. They recruit, select, train, organize and supervise our Stephen Ministers, identify people in need of care, and match them with a Stephen Minister. We currently have two Stephen Leaders . . . Lee Anderson and Carla Archer. Stephen Ministers are the caregivers. They have been through 50 hours of training in Christian caregiving, including general topics such as listening, feelings, boundaries, assertiveness and using Christian resources in caregiving. In addition, their training covered specialized topics such as ministering to the divorced, hospitalized, bereaved and aging. We currently have 6 active Stephen Ministers. They are Dianne & Gates Fortier, Millie Jacobson, Daryl Faulkner, Kim Angus and Betty Pollock. Care Receivers are the recipients of Stephen Ministers' care. They are people from our church or community who are experienceing divorce, grief, loss of a job, loneliness, hospitalization, terminal illness or any of an endless number of other life difficulties. Stephen Ministers usually meet with their care receivers once a week for about an hour for as long as the care is needed. |