Children and Youth

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Youth at Saint Margaret’s are integrated and complete members of the broader parish community. They participate in our worship, service, and learning alongside other generations in the community. Youth reach “up” to their elders as well as reach “downward” towards their younger peers as mentors and examples.

Partnership with Ministry Architects

St Margaret's has partnered with Ministry Architects – an organization that specializes in helping churches of all shapes and sizes to understand their unique contexts and then to build thriving, sustainable formation programs across the generations. Together, we fully renovated our children and youth ministry here at St Margaret's that was launched in 2021. Our consultant is the Rev. Monica Lewis.

Ministry Architects has completed their assessment of our programs and offered the following report. Please read this to learn more about the opportunities and challenges we are embracing in serving the needs of our young people and families. The report can be found by clicking HERE.

Children & Youth Ministry Monthly Events

Our Children's Ministry Team host a monthly family friendly youth event that allows the whole family to enjoy faith and fellowship. The events are themed with the season and have a corresponding lesson to what is being studied in Sunday services at the time. For more information on the events visit our events page or email secretary@saintmargarets.com

St Margaret's Young Families Group

St. Margaret’s has created a space open to everyone, but with activities conducive to families with young children. We host monthly activities such a First Sunday Playground Meet Up following the 10 AM Eucharist at 11:30 AM and themed gatherings around celebrations such as Shamrocks and Pearls, Christmas and Easter fun. We are hoping to have monthly get-togethers where everyone feels welcome, kids can play, and adults can enjoy their time together.

Children's Liturgy of the Word

Our children enjoy Children’s Liturgy of the Word, an opportunity for our school-aged children to engage with the Gospel reading of the day in a way that is meaningful for them and their context. They are lead by devoted teachers utilizing Weaving God’s Promises which is a digital three-year formation curriculum for children ages 3 to 11 and youth ages 12 to 14. Fully revised and updated, the curriculum features class sessions structured around the Holy Eucharist and includes special sessions for the church seasons of the church year. For more information or to be a volunteer teacher please contact Brittany Zimmerman at brittzimm1@gmail.com. All Sunday school teacher's have completed a background check in addition to completing the Safeguarding God's Children course.

Children can also offer the Prayers of the People with a parent on Sunday's during the liturgy.

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Acolytes

Acolytes are young people in 3rd grade and up who assist in various ways at the altar with the celebration of the Eucharist.

For more details email the Verger Les Mut at lesandjoe@att.net .

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Safeguarding God's Children

As a community of faith, we are committed to keeping our children safe. Safeguarding God's Children is a national child-safety program developed by The Episcopal Church for the prevention of sexual abuse of children and youth. The program satisfies a Diocese of Louisiana requirement pertaining to the prevention of sexual misconduct and sexual abuse of children and youth within church settings.

The program includes a review of the current diocesan sexual conduct policies, discussion of basic dynamics surrounding abuse, and the secrecy that often prevents detection. The focus is on implementing safe practices and on detecting and addressing boundary violations. Our Diocesan contact is the Rev Canon John Kellogg at the Diocesan Office.

Safeguarding God's Children is required for all adults (employees and volunteers) who regularly work with the children and youth of our church in any ministry setting. This satisfies requirements for training in sexual abuse and misconduct prevention throughout The Episcopal Church.

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