Greetings Families!

It is time to start thinking about the 2020-2021 Faith Formation year at St. John's! Things are going to look a little different this year, but we are going to do our best to provide a meaningful faith formation experience during this time of uncertainty. We are striving to mimic the structure that the Annandale School District will be following throughout the school year. However, we are still working through what is possible for our church based on our numbers of students and volunteers, in addition to our building size.  

Please complete one form for each student in your household who wishes to participate in Faith Formation at St. John's this year. Registration forms are due by September 1st, 2020 so we can make sure we explore all possibilities based on the number of students who would like to participate in person. If you do not feel comfortable attending in person Faith Formation, we will be providing materials for distance learning. For Sunday School, packets will go home with craft/activities to complete from home with occasional videos. There is a question below where you will be able to make your preference clear.

A few things we can tell you about any potential in-person or hybrid experience this year, in case it helps you make a decision on preferred format. These are some very basic details, as we are still very much in the planning and brainstorming stage of this year:
- Masks will be required for volunteers and students in grades K-9th grade until the mask mandate is no longer in place, but potentially longer.
- We will not be serving a meal before D-Way this year. Sunday School will not be consuming any food.
- The church will not be open/accessible until D-Way or Sunday School starts to maintain all areas being clean and sanitized prior to students entering their designated meeting spaces.
- Sunday School will not be doing the Rotation Sunday School model. Students will meet with one teacher and the same group of students throughout the whole year. We hope this limits the spread of germs, makes any necessary contact tracing less complicated, and creates an opportunity for students to form a deeper relationship with one teacher.
- Each child will have their own supplies for Sunday School that will not be touched by other students.
- The nursery will remain closed for the foreseeable future.

D-Way will start on Wednesday, September 23rd and will meet on Wednesdays from 6:15pm-7:15pm.
Sunday School will start on Sunday, September 13th and will meet on Sundays from 10:15am-11:00am.

Your help throughout this year is encouraged and needed! When your child was baptized, you made promises as a family and we made promises as a congregation of faith to support the faith formation of your child. St. John's will provide learning and faith development opportunities for your child, but it would not be possible without your help. We are currently in high need of D-Way Guides and Sunday School Teachers! For more information and/or to sign up click here: https://forms.gle/bHLPxB2oXtz8WSYf6

We are looking forward to another year of learning and growing together as Disciples of Jesus! It is our joy to partner with you in helping fulfill the promises you made at their baptism and to help your child grow in their relationship with Jesus.

God's Blessings,
Pastor Dave Nelson
Pastor Alex Becker
Jolene Davidson (5th - 12th Grade Coordinator)
Emily Combs (Birth-4th Grade Coordinator and Sunday School Director)