10 April 2016 | Riga, Latvia [Victor Hulbert] Nothing is more inspiring for Karen Holford (TED Family Ministries Director) than seeing a strong interest in children and family ministries from local church leaders. That interest is exactly what she discovered during her first overseas trip since joining the Trans-European Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Karen attended a Children and Family Ministries Conference for the Baltic Region held in the Central church, Riga, Latvia 9-10 April 2016.
Karen joined veteran TED Children’s Ministries director, Clair Sanches-Schutte and Adventist World Church Children’s Ministries director, Linda Mei Lin Koh to run the programme. They were the leaders, but more significantly for a small Union of some 7,000 members covering three countries in the north of Europe, over 170 people attended, including lay leaders, pastors and all three Conference presidents. All were keen to learn how to lead children’s and family ministries; help children to have a healthy emotional balance; discover how to grow a family friendly church; and much, much more. Even some from other faith groups asked to join the training, taking new found skills back to their churches, and building bridges with the Adventist community.
Family and children’s ministries is often regarded as ‘women’s territory’, but Karen was delighted that many men joined in, discovering how they can make a difference. She says, “Participants left feeling joyful and inspired with practical ideas that they could use to nurture children’s spirituality and make their churches more family friendly.”
That was just as well, for in a tedNEWS video interview, she confessed to being nervous as she took the lead in the first training event of her new role. She also talked about the importance of developing resources – one of the major emphases for her strategic plan. That became clearer in a meeting she had at the Baltic Union office on 10 April as she listened to their hopes and passions, offered to assist them in translating her ‘100 ideas creative worship and prayer books’, and to make available more links and resources for their use.
Discover more of Karen’s mission and passion by watching the seven-minute video, ‘Introducing Karen Holford‘. [tedNEWS]
tedNEWS Staff: Victor Hulbert, director; Esti Pujic, editor
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