San Fernando Regional Congress this weekend!

I hope to see my friends and partners in ministry at the San Fernando Valley Regional Congress this weekend at Bishop Alemany High School. Stop by the ORE Booth for a freebie from your Elementary Division and stuff from other folks, too!

September already?

It just doesn't seem possible, but it's true! It's September and many of your programs will begin within the next four weeks. Stop by my blog on CathololicMom.com and enter to win free stuff to start off your year!

Check out our YouTube Channel!

Drop by and subscribe or sign up to be a friend:

http://www.youtube.com/user/elementaryre

NCCL Round table: Lighting the Fire

I received the electronic copies of this wonderful round table last week and have uploaded them to our Yahoo Group. The title, Lighting the Fire: Using Whole-Group Gatherings to Kick-off Weekly PSR Classes, says it all. Look for them under Files | NCCL | Pre-RE Lighting the Fire.

Enjoy!

Please send your thanks and questions/comments to:


Jenifer Truitt, CRE

St. Oliver Plunkett

reled@stolivers.com OR jtruitt.pflaum@gmail.com

Summer Post: Special Needs Religious Instruction

I am taking a break from posting over the summer-big change, right? Instead of posting weekly, I will be sending up one lonely post per month as I study for summer school and get ready for upcoming Specializations.

We are not, however, idle over the summer months. I have spent the last month and a half traveling across the San Pedro Region at Special Needs Discussion Sessions. The results of these sessions, the formation of five, regional Special Needs Commissions, is something we will report on in the months and years to come.

Please pray for this ministry that crosses all socio-economic and cultural lines. Here are links to two organizations, tirelessly championing the cause of our disabled Catholic brothers and sisters:

 National Catholic Partnership on Disability - www.ncpd.org
 National Catholic Office for the Deaf - www.ncod.org

In His Service.


**DON’T FORGET ABOUT ELEMENTARY SPECIALIZATIONS!! SIGN-UP TODAY OR WE MAY HAVE TO CANCEL IN YOUR REGION**

"For Love in a Time of Conflict" by John O'Donahue

As requested, here is the poem I read during Dr. Carol Epiers' General Session @ NCCL.

"For Love in a Time of Conflict" by John O'Donahue

When the gentleness between you hardens
And you fall out of your belonging with each other,
May the depths you have reached hold you still.

Now is the time for one of you to be gracious
To allow a kindness beyond thought and hurt,
Reach out with sure hands
To take the chalice of your love,
And carry it carefully through this echoless waste
Until this winter pilgrimage leads you
Toward the gateway to spring.

Summer in the Diocese

Hello! The publication, Summer in the Diocese for Kids and Families, has been e-mailed to DREs and posted to our Yahoo! Group. If you did not receive an e-mail, drop me a line. You can click on this link to download the file.

Here is my original e-mail:

Good evening, my brothers and sisters in Christ. I pray this finds you well. Attached please find Summer in the Diocese for Kids & Families. This one-page, tabloid-sized publication was put together based on your input from the “Summer in the Diocese” e-mail I sent last month.
If your program is not listed, I did not receive a response from you, and it is too late to be included. Don’t fret! There is always next year!

NOTE: If you MUST print this out (do you need to really??), you will need to adjust your settings in Adobe Acrobat Viewer to either “Fit to Printable Area” or “Shrink Page.” You will probably have to fiddle with your printer’s settings to get it right. You may also be able to print it over two pages. Again, you will need to work with your printer.

This publication is also available on the “Upcoming Events” (starting in July) and our Yahoo! Group (see link below).

If you have any questions regarding the programs, please contact the individual parishes. For those of you looking to host a VBS next year or sometime in the future, do yourself a favor and volunteer this year at a neighboring parish. You’ll be glad you did…and so will the VBS Coordinator where you volunteer!

**DON’T FORGET ABOUT ELEMENTARY SPECIALIZATIONS!! SIGN-UP TODAY OR WE MAY HAVE TO CANCEL IN YOUR REGION**

Connect, Awaken & Share: Practical Ways to Engage Parents in the Faith formation of Their Children

I have finally uploaded the handouts from Loyola’s Connect, Awaken & Share: Practical Ways to Engage Parents in the Faith formation of Their Children workshop from NCCL to our Yahoo! Group. Here is a description from the NCCL Program Guide:

Get ready for a whirlwind array of proven, practical ideas you can put to use immediately as you attract and involve parents in new and authentic ways to nurture the faith of their children. Everyone wonders how to get parents involved. There’s no magical answer, but you’ll come away from this workshop with concrete ideas that have worked for others and can work for you.

It was a fun, informative workshop, and I feel certain you’ll find at least one thing you can use in the handouts. Some of the items are specific to the Loyola program, but there is something here for every parish.

You can find out more about this workshop here: http://www.loyolapress.com/parent-workshop.htm.

Feel free to call or write me if you have any questions regarding the handouts or their proposed use. More stuff from NCCL coming!

Have a great weekend!

I love my computer. I love my computer.

OK. Most of the scans did not come out well because they are on color paper. We have a new scanner at the ORE; so, I am going to try again. Stay tuned.

May is National Mental Health Month

Go here for GREAT resources from the NCPD:  http://www.ncpd.org/views-policy/news/current

Scanning in progress

I am currently in the process of scanning the documents from the NCCL Roundtables I attended and the one session on communicating with parents. I will be back in the office on Friday and WILL, "as God is my witness," post more notes and links at that time.

Notes going up next week...

I absolutely promise to get those posts up next week. I was at my office and my notes were, of course, at home in the ONE BAG I didn't lug onto the train!! Oh, well.

NCCL Days Four and Five...up tomorrow

Until then...

Easter Blessings,

Dione

NCCL...Day Three

By Tuesday, I was actually tired. For those of you who do not know me, it is an anomaly! I guess the doctor was right about taking my iron, huh?

Anyway..I did not attend the General Session because my DH who lost his job (after almost 17 years) in February had an interview. It didn't pan out, but I think I'm okay with that. Vegas is nice to visit, right? Anyway, he did make a contact here in LA that may result in yet another interview. Please keep him in your prayers.

So...I mosied on in in time for my first session a little late:

• Media Mindfulness: Faith-based strategies for navigating media cultures with the NDC by Sr. Rose Pacatte

I enjoyed what I heard so much that I have decided to pursue her Advanced Certificate in Media Literacy which takes place July 6 - July 13 in Culver City.

Speaking of Sr. Rose's blog...I wish I had done a little more research-no offense to Google-but I would rather have had a WordPress blog.  Look for an address change in the coming months!

After lunch with some friends a made there, it was time for the Roundtables. Now, the way this works is you walk into the Platinum Ballroom and there are like 65 tables set-up around the room. During the Roundtables, 50 of these tables are occupied by individuals who lead a group discussion on their chosen topic. Normally, you participate in one session for each of the two time frames given- 1:00 and 1:40.

Of course...they don't know ME. I simply walked around and politely (I am from the South after all) asked if I could have a copy of the handouts. Here is what I was able to bring back (some speakers were gone by the time I made it to the table):

• A Morality Lock-in Retreat for 8th Grade Faith Formation Students by Ginger Marlin and Cheryl Dawley, St. Gregory the Great Parish, San Diego Diocese
• Pre-K and Special Needs by Christine Ramirez, St. Andrew the Apostle Sierra Vista Parish, Sierra Vista, AZ
• Mystagogy for Children by Dr. Marianne Slattery, St. Noel Parish, Diocese of Cleveland (Participated)
• Lighting the Fire: Using a Whole-Group Gathering to Kick-Off Weekly PSR Classes in a Fun, Energetic Way by Jennifer Truitt, St. Oliver Plunkett Parish, Archdiocese of Atlanta (Participated)
• Preschool Catechist Formation Course by Pamela Hoover, St. Catherine LaBoure Parish, Diocese of San Diego (this one was for Jan)

The day is not over! Following all of THAT, we attended a Joint Diocesan Director & Staff Form, The Spirituality of Administration, facilitated by the beautifully spiritual Ann Garrido. I bought her book later and she autographed it!

Even though she wasn't there, I also picked up Lisa Hendey's book, The Handbook for Catholic Moms.

We attended another meeting solely for Diocesan Staff where I picked up a few new ideas on Alternative RE Models.

After that, we ate, played, and danced at the Sadlier Event. Check out pictures on my Twitter.

NCCL...Day Two

Day Two began with a challenging Opening Keynote by Fr. Allan Figueroa Deck, SJ immediately followed by the OSV Brunch (yum!). After that, I FINALLY got to shop!!!

The Exhibit Hall provided a great opportunity to catch up on folks I hadn't seen (or missed) since Congress last month. I made a few new contacts, like Becky Eldredge. Check out her blog Everything Is Holy Now.

Somehow, I managed to get involved in the General Session that followed our time in the Exhibit Hall. I was honored to be asked to participate in Dr. Carole Eipers' WONDERFUL session, "Oasis or Mirage: Place Your Bets." (Sponsored by Sadlier) It was funny, lively, and very thought provoking. I will post a copy of the poem I read by John O'Donohue when I find the thing! I know I gave one copy to a lady I met there, but I thought I had another one...I'll check at home later today.

After a break and another jaunt into the Exhibit Hall (I shudder when I think of the bills in the pile of mail I am currently IGNORING), I attended the following Learning Session:

• Connect, Awaken, and Share:  Practical Ideas to Engage Parents in the Faith Formation of Their Children by Tom McGrath and Joellyn Ciciarelli (Loyola Press)
• This was a condensed version of their typically 3 hour long workshop.

I will be scanning and posting handouts (and you'll want them!!) to our Yahoo! Group by Tuesday, May 4, 2010.

And so ended my second day at NCCL. Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ.

Back in the office...new posts going up!

I returned to the office TODAY for the first time since NCCL (remember, I said I was part-time??). I will begin copying and pasting and scanning my notes and handouts asap. I hope to have everything available by Tuesday, May 4, 2010.

Our Sunday Visitor Reception

We ended Day One at NCCL with the Our Sunday Visitor (OSV) Reception. The food was great, the drinks were free (I had my usual Shirley Temple), and the people watching was fun! I will upload pictures when I get to a faster Internet connection.

Wait till you see the chocolate fountain...Yum!

NCPD & NCOD

After my pretzel lunch (not as good as my husband's homemade pretzels, of course), I avoided the slot machines and made my way to my next workshop. Sadly, I was THE ONLY PERSON for whom these three wonderful ladies presented their workshop. What does THAT SAY about the state of things, my brothers and sisters in Christ?

My thanks to: Susan Perrault (NCPD Board Member), Janice Benton (Executive Director of NCPD), and Mary O'Meara (Executive Director of the Archdiocese of Washington's Special Needs Ministries).

My greatly abbreviated notes. I had NO ADD problems in this one, btw, but there is simply too much to post here...

Jargon, Acronyms, and More...Oh, my!

1. The Deaf Person in the Life of the Church
2. NCPD & UCSSB
3. NICE
4. IREP (Individualized Religious Education Program)
5. "A Place to Call Home"
6. Role of the Archdiocesan Special Needs Contact (I asked for their assistance on this one)
7. Prenatal Diagnosis
8. What does a Special Needs friendly parish look like?
9. Vulnerable Populations
10. Universal Design in Ministry

NACMP "Using Media and Technology in Ministry"

My first workshop started at 9am on Sunday. I arrived at 9:15am, but I left my house at 4:45am; so, I think I made pretty good time overall.

Here are my notes and from that fabulous presentation by Eric Groth without all the fancy editing options of MS OneNote. I had to edit some stuff out; so, if something interests you, drop me a line. Please keep in mind that I am ADD and shiny things tend to distract me and my mind has a tendency to wander.. :-):

Where was I...oh, yeah:

1. Music, video, etc. are just tools
2. Most important thing is having a relation experience with the living God
3. What I think will have an impact vs. what actually makes an impact; Look to the guidance of the Holy Spirit
4. RESEARCH: Cultivation Ministries
5. INTEGRATE INTO MY WORKSHOPS: "You can't just sit there" (Larry Walters the "Lawnchair Man")
6. "Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary use words"
7. GOOGLE: Stooge4Christ
8. READ: JPII "The Rapid Development to Those Responsible for Communications"
9. FIND AND PILFER: "Theology after Google" (workshops are available for download for FREE)
10. Why integrate media into ministry experiences? a) Media is a cultural language; b) Use relevant tools; c) It's not really that difficult to do; d) If it goes viral, millions of people could be impacted by it; e) for the sake of the gospel and the salvation of our souls, people deserve our best efforts; f) Media can be created and utilized to draw people into church experiences.

NCCL Day One

My first day at NCCL was Sunday, April 18. I attended two workshops, met some great people, witnessed Fr. David as a Celebrant FOR THE FIRST TIME, and ate some really good food at the evening reception.

Oh, what a hard day it was!

Another resolution accomplished!

I did it! Mark this another New Year's Resolution that I actually completed. Check back weekly, or as I bug you, to see what's going on in the world of Elementary Religious Education in the Archdiocese of Los Angles.

Don't forget...I only work part-time; so, I probably won't blog more frequently than once per week...unless something comes up!

God's blessings to you all,

Dione

Dione L. Grillo
Elementary Consultant
Office of Religious Education
Archdiocese of Los Angeles