Welcome to the newest ministry of Mt. Tam Church—TLC Ministries! While our pastor and other staff members tend to many of the needs of our congregational members, it is vital for lay members to provide care and service to one another. TLC Ministries, a new way of providing care, consists of a team of trained church members, your friends in Christ, who will reach out, primarily by phone, to other lay members in times of need or concern, to housebound members and to new visitors to worship. The ministry will be coordinated by Sue Ernst and Winnie Konopath, in partnership with our Pastor, Kim Smith, and Children, Youth and Family Minister, Tricia Wiig. Assignments for the volunteers on the team, our “call-un-teers”, will be given based on the best fit for both the care of the individual and resources available.
What areas of ministry will TLC address?
As we begin, we envision three areas of outreach.
- “Relational” care contacts—this is for people who are housebound, in a care facility or otherwise not able to be with others in the congregation (especially after the shelter in place ends). In this case, the call-un-teer will have an on-going care relationship with the person until that person no longer wishes to participate in the ministry.
- “How are you doing?” care contacts—this is for folks who need a care outreach immediately. Examples might be someone who becomes ill, has a death in the family or just needs a little extra TLC. This will be the primary area of outreach for TLC.
- New folks and first-time visitors: when we return to in-person worship, a member of the TLC team will give a welcome call to each new visitor.
How does it work?
TLC Ministries is here for you! Any member of the church can request a TLC Ministries contact, for themselves or another church member. All requests are kept confidential by the TLC Ministries team. A member of the team will volunteer to be the “call-un-teer” in response to the request. Requests may also come from Pastor Kim and Tricia. The call-un-teer will make contact primarily by phone and follow-up by phone, email or regular mail. All conversations will also be kept confidential.
If you would like to learn more about TLC Ministries or request a TLC Contact for yourself or someone else in the church, call or email the church office at 415.388.4456 / office@mtumc.org.