Engaging the children of your congregation with the four churchwide Special Offerings has never been easier or more important. There are numerous ways children can connect with One Great Hour of Sharing, including the engagement placemat and fish coin banks that often arrive in your standing orders. However, were you aware there are numerous resources available online to engage young people with this Offering?
Curriculum author Becky D’Angelo-Veitch at the 2020 APCE annual event.
This year’s curriculum was written by Becky D’Angelo-Veitch, Certified Associate Christian Educator and Director of Faith Formation at Third Presbyterian Church, Rochester, New York. This includes:
- Lesson Plans
- Activities
- Children’s Message
Through these lessons and activities, children will understand the connection between sharing what we have with others and living into God’s call to care for those in need as well as be able to place themselves in the wider community of faith in the PC(USA) and beyond as participants in One Great Hour of Sharing.
Since 2006, we have celebrated OGHS with a story about our giving fish, Gracie, and her friends. In this year’s Gracie story, written by Dr. Kathy Dawson, Benton Family Associate Professor of Christian Education at Columbia Theological Seminary, Gracie and her friends help Herman the hermit crab find a new home. The story is followed by thought-provoking questions for younger and older children.
We are excited to be partnering with Illustrated Ministry LLC in 2020. Illustrated Ministry LLC will be creating stained glass art for the second bulletin insert for each of the four Special Offerings. The illustration is also available to download as a coloring sheet. We invite you to use this coloring sheet in the lead up to One Great Hour of Sharing, and talk with your youth about what the stories behind the illustrations.
Finally, we also have our Jerry Can Curriculum, a resource from the Presbyterian Giving Catalog, which is available in 1 and 5 sessions. This includes lessons on disaster response and activities that show how children can be involved with prayer and generosity to make a difference in the lives of people in need. While this curriculum can be used year-round, your congregation might find Lent a meaningful time to talk about the one common denominator in all disasters around the world: the need for clean water to survive.
If you use any of our materials in promoting the 2020 One Great Hour of Sharing, we invite you to share feedback on how it was received. We are also available to answer any questions you might have about these or any other Special Offerings resource. Feel free to reach out to us at 800-728-7228 ext. 5047 or specialofferings@pcusa.org.
If we all do a little, it adds up to a lot!
PS – If you don’t have many youth under 18 in your congregation, you can get creative and engage your more seasoned members in any of the activities above! Fun and learning are for Christians of every age!