Happy Summer Foundry Families!

We hope you are staying cool during these hot summer days and finding yourselves near some form of water. Whether that’s the local pool, the beach, a lake/pond or an extra shower, water is vital within and without the body during temperatures like these, so take care and stay cool!

August is here, which means Back-to-School season is upon us. And while many emotions come with Back-to-school preparation, we can’t help but be excited for the upcoming start up of Sunday School, Children’s Worship and Youth @ Night which kicks off September 10, 2023!

Before September 10 is upon us, there are a few updates that we want to inform you about and ask for some participation on your part to help us get organized and ready for fun!
 

Church Center
Church Center is the database that we at Foundry use to store contact information of all our members and program attendees. Church Center helps us all at Foundry stay organized and efficient when sending out communication, registering and planning events, gathering emergency contact information and more!

If you have not created or updated your Church Center profile. Please use the church center link HERE to do so.

Please note: We are removing the current grade levels for all of our Children and Youth (due to some past mix ups) and will be resetting and updating all grade levels to the correct grade as we restart programming in September/Fall 2023.

Foundry Family Camp:
Family Camp is September 1-3, 2023, and is a great way to close out the summer with your Foundry family and friends during Labor Day Weekend! If you have questions about Foundry Family Camp, you can visit us online at foundryumc.org/family-camp, you can email your specific questions to familyministries@foundryumc.org, and Kristy Maddux will be stationed at a table in the Community Commons during the 10:10 a.m. coffee hour (July 30 & Aug. 6), to answer any questions or concerns about family camp. We are expecting a good time to be had by all!

Camper Instructions for Family Camp 2023 can be found by visiting foundryumc.org/family-camp-info. This includes your packing list, schedule and instructions for getting to West River Camp.

Family Camp is made possible and fun by a host of Foundry volunteers. Interested in Volunteering to lead an activity or offer a skill set (have a campfire story, play music, fire building, waterfront lookout)? Please contact Natalie at nharvey@foundryumc.org.

Coming Up…

Sunday School Open House/Orientation - Aug. 26 & Sept. 9

Interested in Meeting our Sunday School teachers & Child Care Staff?

Want a preview to the new Children’s Worship format?

Want to learn how to use Church Center and register your family and MORE?

Foundry Open House and Orientation is a family event for you to preview all things Family Ministries and MORE! We are so excited for all of the upcoming programming in September, and we hope to provide you with as much information as you need before the launch this coming September.

More info to come!

An opportunity of Parents:
Building a strong community for our Children and Youth also means building a strong community of parents.

Please fill out this SHORT survey about an opportunity to continue to build Foundry’s community of Parents.

Vision for Children’s Worship:
It is our hope, here at Foundry, that our children and youth are learning the essential patterns of worship and are engaging with some of the core concepts for Christian Formation and development. We want to create a safe, fun and unique space for the youth of our community while providing an opportunity to learn, practice and live out the concepts and spiritual beliefs that form the Christian Faith.

Children’s Worship

In the upcoming season, we will be following a simplified version of the standard United Methodist format for worship that mimics the same format used during the 9 a.m. & 11:15 a.m. worship gatherings in the sanctuary.

⁃ Gathering in (with music and praise)

⁃ Engaging with the Scriptures (with a lesson & activity)

⁃ Thanksgiving & Prayer (a chance for response and application)

⁃ Sending out (Closing and Blessing)

This will be the standard format for Children’s Worship, and it is an expectation that the curriculum chosen will help teach and guide Foundry’s children through learning and participating in worship.
 

Youth @ Night (Middle School & High School Gathering)
Here at Foundry, we want to continue to build a solid community for the youth here at our church. Community is place were people feel a strong sense of belonging, have ownership, experience character and leadership development, build relationships and connect through common interest, shared beliefs and can show up as their authentic self. We want the community for our youth to be safe. We want the community to be fun!

We hope that our youth entering middle school and high school will join us for the relaunching of Youth @ Night starting Sept. 10!