To support and care for those engaging in ministry with children, youth, and families

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Congratulations to the local churches with the top numbers of surveys completed AND

churches with the top percentage rates based on membership totals!!

Mitten Project funding is reimbursing $1345.00 in Annual Meeting Registration Fees

for clergy and delegates. We are absolutely thrilled with the way local churches showed up for the Michigan Conference as we embark on this work together!!

The 2025 Worship Engagement Survey closed on October 31, 2025. We are excited to share initial data from our Applied Research Consultants, APPRECOTS. This data is provisional and subject to revision pending comprehensive analysis. It is also important to note that each population had a different number of respondents. When respondent counts are smaller, each individual’s change has a greater impact on the overall results.

We are learning:

• children need more support to feel a connection between church and their daily lives
• children and youth want to help more at church
• youth and families could use help to pray together
• clergy are excited to learn more about engaging children in church

We appreciate your participation in the survey and look forward to sharing more with you about the Michigan Conference Mitten Project: knitting together children and adults in worship and prayer. A full data report from the 2025 Worship Engagement Survey will be available in January 2026. The application for 2026 Cohort churches closed on November 14. Cohorts/Grantees will be announced in the December 2, 2025 Monthly Newsletter.



You can find out more about the Mitten Project and upcoming events HERE

https://michucc.org/children-youth-and-families/

The Michigan Conference received a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. for $1,250,000.00 for the Michigan Conference Mitten Project: Knitting together children and adults in worship and prayer. The Michigan Conference Mitten Project is a 5-year program that invites congregations to engage children in worship, so that all of us, in each generation, can leave church more deeply connected with the spiritual and ready to find the sacred in our everyday lives.

We already have a dozen folks registered!!

Youth in grades 6-12 will gather along with chaperones from their local churches for the opportunity to connect with one another and the wider church on January 31 - February 1, 2026 at Haslett Community Church in the Lansing Area. Cost is $30.00 per person.

Meals, snacks, programming, recreation, sleeping space, and worship will be provided.

"Peacemakers" Retreat starts at 10:00am on Saturday and ends after worship on Sunday

Includes: service learning with Sleep in Heavenly Peace, exploration of the local area, dinner, programming, Bible study, 'midnight' Communion, overnight lodging at Haslett Community Church, continental breakfast, worship, and boxed lunch to go.

The National Setting is building up a supportive network to sustain the work of children's ministry leaders and to support them with continued learning and resources to more effectively serve their children and families.

Read the November Newsletter HERE

You can find out more about their work and shared resources HERE

Networking Zoom Meetings for Children, Youth, and Family Ministry Leaders in the Great Lakes Region

1st and 3rd Thursday of each month at 11:00 am ET click here

Upcoming Meetings:

December 4

December 18