Growing Families Alumni

 
 

Encouraging Parents

One of the great strengths of the Growing Families ministry is the every present and growing class alumni. As ministry leaders understand, the completion of the course may signal the end a class but not a relationship. While a leader’s class-time influence may come to an end, their relational influence continues, and often for years. There are a variety of ways to encourage alumni relationships. Here are a few of them:

Connecting Families / Class Alumni / Community Group Alumni / National Conferences

Connecting Families

Connecting with Individual Families during and/or after class helps you to get to know them better and form a relationship that will continue beyond their class for their continued encouragement. They will become more comfortable asking questions and continuing their parenting journey with you.

Some ideas:

  • Have the couple/family over for coffee, dinner or dessert so they can see you interacting with your children. This can be done just before a local class or at some other time that suits both families.

  • Go out for coffee or a meal with or without children to follow up on application of principles and to encourage and speak Life into them.

  • Go their place for a visit (coffee, or a meal) to meet their children. This can help you encourage them and understand what they are telling you or explaining in class.

  • Set up a separate Zoom time to meet with the parents one-on-one to get to know them better.

  • Create a Facebook group to allow questions to be asked between visits.

  • Continue meeting with the parents say every 2-4 months to continue to encourage them.

  • Tell them about future classes (the next step) and/or encourage them to repeat the class, where appropriate in a few years.

  • Encourage them to review the material annually.

Class Alumni

Keeping your class communicating together after class encourages them to support each other as their parenting journey continues.

Some ideas:

  • Have a class graduation dinner - you may like to use life-giving principles reminder cards as placements.

  • Meet together with their families for a potluck meal or picnic together.

  • Create a Facebook group to continue communication/questions encouragements and accountability after class ends.

  • Continue meeting with the class say every 2-4 months to continue to encourage them.

  • Encourage them to take the next class ie: after Parenting from the Tree of Life the next class is Life in the Middle Years.

  • Encourage them to review the material annually.

  • Start a Mom’s Group, or Dad’s Group and meet eg: monthly, quarterly to encourage them, share what they are applying/working on and to keep them accountable. These can be face-face or online groups ie: Zoom.

Community Group Alumni

If you have run many classes, keeping each class together may become cumbersome, so joining them together in a community group may be more practical.

Some ideas:

  • Have a Growing Families dinner for couples - make it a date night for couples - you can make it as casual or formal as you wish - maybe have a speaker for the evening (could be someone you invite or yourself) and share something parenting/marriage.

  • Organise a picnic in the park for all the families from your area.

  • Develop fun alumni family/couple theme nights - teaching, fellowship and fun nights

    • Jeopardy

    • Crossword puzzles

    • Bowling Parties

    • Ice/Roller skating

    • Mini-golf

    • Games night

    • Movie Night

    • or whatever you can think of…

  • Keep encouraging them to take the next class ie: after Parenting from the Tree of Life the next class is Life in the Middle Years.

  • Start a Mom’s Group, or Dad’s Group and meet eg: monthly, quarterly to encourage them, share what they are applying/working on and to keep them accountable. These can be face-face or online groups ie: zoom. Talk about:

    • Couch Time

    • Father’s Mandate

    • First Time Obedience

    • Family Time/Identity

    • or whatever topic you can think of…

  • Connect parents with a community Facebook group for their area.

  • Encourage them to review the material annually.

  • Organise a Father/Son event ie: canoeing trip or Mother/Daughter event ie: High Tea.

  • Encourage them to attend National Conferences.

National Conferences

Encourage families to attend National Conferences. With all the conflicting parenting “theories” and opinions that we are surrounded by on a daily basis, National Conferences are a great opportunity to get away for a while to focus and be encouraged to raise the next generation in His ways and for His glory. It is more than a big, fun family camp. It’s a time to come together with like minded people, sharing the passion of discipling our children to be lovers of Jesus and Kingdom builders. These Conferences have the added blessing of sharing life together, whether young or old with like minded families. The friendships and relationships that are built along the way are priceless!

National Conferences are held around the world. To see if one is happening near you click here.