Steve Bowen: You've just been kissed! New Strategic Plan.

This weekend we will be launching Kiss Dayton, an outreach to our educators, teachers, principals, and other professional people who care for our kids in the education arena.

We as a church are shifting our resources to begin to reach out to the kids in need in our school systems. Last week, during a staff outreach, one team went to Fairborn Elementary and Fairborn Wright. When they asked the principals, 'What is the greatest need?' both schools mentioned kids who are in families that are breaking down and breaking up. We then found out that there are 15 families who are homeless who are sending kids to the schools.

So we are developing strategy to reach the kids at risk within our school systems.

Level 1.

We will continue to serve the schools in practical ways. This includes, teacher appreciation gifts and kindness, backpacks, shoes and socks, cleaning the school grounds, painting, providing school supplies and Adopt A Family and Christmas Free Store at Christmas. We will also be seeking to develop a traveling free clothing store. At the current time we are helping 100 kids each week with take home weekend meal backpacks.

This spring we will focus on the school systems with Big Spring Clean helping the schools take care of needed upgrades, cleaning, painting and general landscape projects.

Good deeds creates good will, that opens hearts to the good news. Rusaw.

Level 2.

We will develop consistent relational help for teachers, coaches and kids. We will be hosting a Vineyard Educators meeting, for all educators who attend the Vineyard, Tuesday, February 21 7pm in the Lodge. We will be seeking to find people who have a passion for building relationships with teachers and kids, who will commit to taking steps to be a consistent source of help and encouragement to a specific school. Relationship is key to step into long term assistance and care for the children in our schools. We will be developing programs to best serve kids at risk. We already have key people who have developed educational seminars and talks on the issue of Bullying.The Dayton Campus has opened a Computer Lab to help kids with their homework and to help develop computer skills. The kids who come are from various schools in the area.

Level 3.

We will be seeking to develop and to partner with other agencies toward long term help for families at risk. The needs are great. At the current time we are committed to long term short term help by providing meals, food, clothing and encouragement.

However, in the future we will be seeking to step in to help family units... in order to help the family unit step out of poverty. (Poverty is more then dollars and cents, it includes poor relationship within the family unit, educational needs, resource location allocation needs etc..)

This is why we are going to be kissing Dayton the week of February 11th - 17th.

We want to encourage every person who attends the Vineyard to write a personal,

kind note to encourage an educator within their area of Dayton.

Your note of encouragement means more than you know.

Our Family Life Team is already encouraging kids and parents to write a note to their teachers.

We will also be delivering cupcakes to the schools Tuesday 14th, Valentines Day, at 10:30am. If you'd like to help deliver the cupcakes, please contact Elom at edossa@daytonvineyard.com. We'll provide the map and instructions.