Western Plains District

Western Plains District Church of the Brethren

Opportunities to participate . . . to be part of our planning

Focus group conversations about the future of our district

Through May and early June, we are holding conversations in churches around the district led by members of a team we’ve called the “DnA Team.” That somewhat mysterious name stands for Discovery ‘n Action, signaling an effort to gather information from members of our district, feedback which will be transformed into —

• A renewed purpose statement
• A statement of core values that are at the foundation of our life together as the Body of Christ
• Exploration of a vision for the district
• Reformulation of a mission statement for the district
• Action plans for carrying out a mission of reflecting/modeling Jesus in the neighborhood.

The DnA Team consists of six members – three women and three men — plus the Interim District Executive and the Leadership Team chair, members residing from Colorado to the Missouri border. These members were carefully called to give as broad a representation as possible of the demographic, generational, theological, and geographic variations in our district. The Team has been meeting regularly since November, and has developed the planning process that is now being introduced on a wider basis through these congregational/member meetings.

What can I do to get involved? Attend and contribute in a focus group discussion!

Distributed with this description is a schedule of congregational meetings being held from April 30 to June 4. We have tried to create clusters of congregations that are close enough to allow relatively convenient driving distance for a majority of our members. For members of congregations that are at greater distances that didn’t cluster so well, several of the groups will be streamed on Zoom for people who cannot attend in person. We will also create additional and reconfigured groups later in the summer for congregations not expressly included in a cluster at this time or persons who can’t participate now.

Look over the list and identify the session that includes your congregation, or if we couldn’t create a convenient grouping for your location, check out a Zoom option. To attend by Zoom, please e-mail your intent to floryl@sbcglobal.net so a Zoom link can be sent to you.

What will the format be at these meetings?

The DnA Team has formulated six key questions that will be asked at all meetings, intended to solicit your feedback on significant aspects of our faith, community, and witness life together as a district. A recorder will log participants’ observations and suggestions which will then be the basis of a series of reports and plans, the first of which will be shared at District Conference this summer, July 29-31.

Come and be part of the future of Brethren in the Plains!

Click here for Focus Group Schedule