Diaconal Ministries Canada

POST #8 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' 🌄 contest!

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did she take this selfie? (Be as exact as you can!!!)

But wait! Did you like/follow our page first?! (if you don't already) ✅
Ok, NOW you can share your answer below! ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday (Sept 9th) to find out if you won! (We’ll also DM you!)

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

And thanks for playing! 😊

We are currently accepting applications for the part-time position of Development Coordinator (18 hours/week).

This position is responsible for new revenue generation through the development, maintenance, and management of all aspects of Diaconal Ministries Canada’s fundraising efforts. View the complete job description on our website: https://bit.ly/4dP1RBk or find LINK IN BIO.

Three (3) years work experience in the not-for-profit sector development/fundraising field is an asset, along with a related post-secondary education and a basic understanding of Canadian fundraising laws.

Start date is immediate. Resumes are due by September 30, 2024.

POST #7 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' 🌄 contest! (Better late than never!!!)

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did she take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday to find out if you won! (We’ll also DM you!)

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

Congratulations to Anita Colyn Prange for winning our 📸 Capture the Coach 🌄 Contest last Thursday. While it took a few guesses(!!), she captured Coach Erick Schuringa at the abandoned locks of the 3rd Welland Canal, in St. Catharines, ON.

Let’s find out more about Coach Erick:
"I grew up in Niagara and have now returned to Niagara after 30 years away. As an empty-nester I am more free to pursue my hobbies like model trains, cycling, and hockey. My next planned project is to make a working lock as a water feature in my backyard. Having lived my previous Niagara time in Port Colborne, Welland, and St. Catharines, and always within walking distance of the Welland Canal, I have researched its history and given a few cycling tours showing the key sites of all 4 iterations of this wonderful by-pass of Niagara Falls."
"I love being a coach because I love meeting people and helping them grow, improve and thereby more fully enjoy their role. Coaching is a big part of my role on many levels and so the opportunity to be a coach among my fellow deacons is part of my happy place."

If you are a church in Classis Niagara, Coach Erick is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact him today! [email protected]

Thanks again to all who have played! Stay tuned for our next post tomorrow afternoon...

Congratulations to Ms. Lia Alkema for winning our 📸 Capture the Coach 🌄 Contest last Tuesday. She captured Coach René Wall at the Confederation Bridge on the PEI side.

Let’s find out more about Coach René:
René and her husband live near Truro, NS, on a small hobby farm. At work she is a Technical Coordinator for the Province of NS and at home she loves to read and craft. She has been part of a women’s choral group for many years and loves to make harmony! She loves helping deacons and churches find the tools and resources that they need to be effective in the situations they find themselves in. She also loves bringing deacons together to share stories and unique ideas for ministry.

Psst! René is also a major driving force behind the Spark! event (Day of Encouragement) that happens in the Maritimes every other year!!

If you are a church in Classis Eastern Canada/the Maritimes, Coach René is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact her today!

"Be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble." [1 Peter 3:8 NIV]

Remember those among you who are suffering; this is love in action ❤️

Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 1 Peter 3:8

Deacons!
"Be prophetic critics of the waste, injustice, and selfishness in our society, and be sensitive counselors to the victims of such evils. Let your lives be above reproach; live as examples of Christ Jesus; look to the interests of others."
[taken from the Charge to the Deacons, Form for the Ordination of Elders & Deacons (2016)]

It's that time again! POST #6 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did he take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday at 5pm ET to find out if you won! (We’ll also DM you!)

Remember: Current Staff, Diaconal Coaches, and Board Members are ineligible to play; sorry! 😊 But you can share this with your friends and family and give them a hint if you think you know the answer!

View full contest rules on our site: https://diaconalministries.com/capture-the-coach-contest/

[*RE-POST]
Congratulations to Hendrich Bos Bosch for winning our Capture the Coach Contest last Thursday. He captured Regional Ministry Developer, Rachel Vroege, in Sidney, Vancouver Island, BC. She is sitting beside the "Old Man by the Sea", one of the Bench People statues created by artist Nathan Scott. Wanna know why he's holding flowers? Read more here: https://www.peninsulanewsreview.com/news/whos-leaving-flowers-at-sidney-statue-339592

Let’s find out more about Rachel!

"I'm the Regional Ministry Developer for Western Canada. I'm married to Russ and we have 4 children - one going in to his second year of studies at Kings University, one graduating Grade 12 in 2025 and two middle schoolers. As a family we love music and outdoor activities like camping, swimming, hiking and biking - at any given time sounds from a trumpet, flute, violin, piano, or drums will be coming from our house. The best part about coaching churches and deacons is equipping teams for a diverse range of ministry opportunities - everything from creation care to benevolence to refugee support to Indigenous reconciliation."

If you are a church in Western Canada, Rachel is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact her today: [email protected].

POST #5 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄 Are you having fun yet?!

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did she take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday to find out if you won! (We’ll also DM you!)

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

Congratulations to Hendrich Bos Bosch for winning our Capture the Coach Contest last Thursday. He captured Regional Ministry Developer, Rachel Vroege, in Sidney, Vancouver Island, BC. She is sitting beside the "Old Man by the Sea", one of the Bench People statues created by artist Nathan Scott. Wanna know why he's holding flowers? Read more here: https://www.peninsulanewsreview.com/news/whos-leaving-flowers-at-sidney-statue-339592

Let’s find out more about Rachel!

"I'm the Regional Ministry Developer for Western Canada. I'm married to Russ and we have 4 children - one going in to his second year of studies at Kings University, one graduating Grade 12 in 2025 and two middle schoolers. As a family we love music and outdoor activities like camping, swimming, hiking and biking - at any given time sounds from a trumpet, flute, violin, piano, or drums will be coming from our house. The best part about coaching churches and deacons is equipping teams for a diverse range of ministry opportunities - everything from creation care to benevolence to refugee support to Indigenous reconciliation."

If you are a church in Western Canada, Rachel is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact her today: [email protected].

Congratulations to Michael Werkman for winning our Capture the Coach Contest last Tuesday. He captured Coach Terry Vanderhorst at the Spirit Catcher in Barrie, ON.

Let’s find out more about Diaconal Coach Terry, one of our newer coaches!!

Terry lives in Barrie, ON with her husband John. They have two grown daughters. She is in her 3rd year as a deacon at First CRC in Barrie. She loves being a deacon and serving wherever she can, including with VBS, Serve, and the local Mission Thrift Store. She enjoys reading novels, visiting friends, meeting people, and running! Terry loves the outdoors and this beautiful Spirit Catcher monument! (You can find out more about it HERE: https://maclarenart.com/the-spirit-catcher/!) Terry says that being a diaconal coach is super exciting. She has loved watching deacons take courses, lead their churches, and encourage and support their local communities.

If you are a church in the northern part of Classis Toronto, Coach Terry is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact her today!

POST #4 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄

Who is this and where was she 'captured'?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday to find out if you won! (We'll also DM you, don't worry!)

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

POST #3 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did she take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday at 5pm ET to find out if you won! (We'll also DM you!)

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

Congratulations to TIN LIZZY for winning our Capture the Coach Contest last Thursday. Tin captured Coach Erika Repka at the Lego Store in West Edmonton Mall.

Let’s find out more about Coach Erika:

"I live in the small lake hamlet of Wabamun, AB, with my husband, Bill, and our two cats. I love to read, learn, be in nature (especially tending to our first garden!), and travel. I work at Costco doing all kinds of things, but most recently work early mornings unloading trucks with a forklift. When not at Costco, I attend my church's weekly sermon discussion group, bi-weekly hymn sing, participate in a biennial silent retreat, and enjoy cooking & and baking at home. I am passionate for Jesus! Lately I've been learning more about the effects of trauma and how it is often a root cause in addiction, mental illness, and the breakdown of relationships -- which is why I have a heart for diaconal work and serving the most vulnerable with compassionate care.

"My time as a deacon (and now a coach) continually shapes me and how I see God's people. I am (pleasantly) surprised by how these roles have been humbling and introspective, and it excites me to experience this journey with others. God is constantly at work and we get to join in what He is already doing. This is why I love being a Diaconal Coach with Diaconal Ministries Canada!"

If you are a church in Classis Alberta North, Coach Erika is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact her today! (https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/ )

Congratulations to RICHARD BODINI for winning our Capture the Coach Contest last Tuesday. Richard captured Coach Winston Visser at the Little Blue Church in Prescott, ON (along County Road 2) .

Let’s find out more about Coach Winston:

"I am a Christian rediscovering daily his First love. Spouse of a Master Gardener and commercial flower grower. Parent of four independent adults. A full-time employee with 3-part time vocations: Outreach Mission Developer (Classis & Resonate) Diaconal Coach & contracted Preaching and Pastoral Care. A writer who loves playing with words, on paper or screen. a builder of rock walls. A reader of books. A listener to an eclectic variety of music. And a collector of the original 52 Hardy Boys - 1920's to 60’s.

"Forming mutually beneficial relationships and partnerships that serve God and encourage one another in faith is why I love being a Diaconal Coach with Diaconal Ministries Canada!"

If you are a church in Classis Eastern Canada, Winston is here to serve you and your deacons! Contact him today! (https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/ )

Thank you to all who submitted answers for our Capture the Coach contest! We can't wait to announce the winners on Monday at 5:00 p.m. Eastern. So stay tuned!

And don't forget to look for post #3 next Tuesday 📸😁

POST #2 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did she take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday to find out if you won!

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

POST #1 of our 📸 'Capture the Coach' contest! 🌄

Which Diaconal Coach is this? And where did he take this selfie?

FIRST, like/follow our page (if you don't already). ✅
THEN, share your answer below; be as specific as you can. ✅

The first person to comment with the full correct answer before tomorrow at midnight will win! Check back next Monday to find out if you won!

Remember: if you don't know the coach, check out our website: https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/. You can also view full contest rules on our site as well.

📸 'CAPTURE THE COACH' STARTS TOMORROW!!! 🌄

Every Tuesday & Thursday starting TOMORROW (August 13, 2024), a “Capture the Coach” post will appear on our Facebook and Instagram pages between 12-2pm noon (EDT). Users who have liked and follow our page can then comment on WHO the Coach is and WHERE they are!

The person to give the full correct answer first will win! Answers must include the Coach's full name and the exact spot the Coach was captured (eg. street address). If you don't know the coach's name, find them on our website! (https://diaconalministries.com/diaconal-coaches/)

Guesses will be accepted until the following day at midnight (12am ET). The winners for each day will be revealed on the following Monday at 5pm ET. Winners will need to confirm their identity, answer a skill testing question, and provide their mailing address to claim their prize.

Each winner will receive a Diaconal Ministries Canada tumbler! (See photo, straw included!)

Visit our website for FULL rules and exclusions:
https://diaconalministries.com/capture-the-coach-contest/

Who's ready to play?! 🖐🏽😁

What deacons do - every single day! 💙

🌟 CONTEST ALERT! 🌟
Let's have some fun this summer getting to know our Diaconal Coaches and Regional Ministry Developers and where they do their awesome work!

Starting next week, we will post a pic of one of our Coaches or RMD's somewhere in Canada. Tell us where they are and you win!

Check our website for more details! https://diaconalministries.com/capture-the-coach-contest/

"It is very easy to be hard on the Jonah of the Bible. It seems so obvious to us what he ought to do. However, I believe that each of us has a Nineveh we brush aside as quickly as Jonah does...In the early days of missions, the CRCNA ran away from God when there was a call to go to Africa. According to the Synod of 1920 the people of Sudan (now modern day Nigeria) were unworthy and unsuited for the gospel. That synod reads: “the people in the Sudan are the type of people of whom one can not expect the most in the kingdom of God"." 💔

Deacons, who is your Nineveh? (place or people group) Where have you felt God calling and leading you and how have you resisted, like Jonah?

The CRCNA’s Nineveh It is very easy to be hard on the Jonah of the Bible. It seems so obvious to us what he ought to do. However, I believe that each of us has a Nineveh we brush aside as quickly as Jonah does. When God calls Jonah eastward, Jonah goes as far as humanly possible westward. Of all things he goes on a boa...

"Olthuis grew up in a 'typical conservative, Christian Reformed family' in Western Canada. His dad, he remembers, always stressed how at the core of Christianity was the mandate to love your neighbour. 'There are many different ways to love your neighbour, and justice is one of those ways.'"

We couldn't agree more!

Read the full article on lawyer and Indigenous rights advocate, John Olthuis who received the Order of Canada in December 2023!
https://www.christiancourier.ca/a-high-honour-a-just-mission/

A high honour, a just mission “‘You will probably die at this table.’ That’s what my wife said.” Those are the words of John Olthuis, now in his 80s – former law firm partner who continues serving as senior counsel for treaty negotiations in Newfoundland and Labrador in a case that was started more than 30 years ago....

"Though research shows that home care programs and interventions are more cost-saving and as effective as institutional care, finding information about medical assistance in dying [MAiD] – and applying for it – is often easier than applying for care supports in the home... Home care makes financial sense, but it shouldn’t have to cost a person’s dignity." 😢

Deacons, how could your church be an advocate for parents and families supporting their loved ones?

Read the full story here:

Costly care Back in May of this year, journalist Meagan Gillmore wrote the article “What one man needed for a second chance at life.” The story features an update on Michal Kaliszan, an individual born with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Michal first caught public attention through his GoFundMe campaign in ...

Once churches have identified new ministry opportunities in their community and discerned ways to partner and collaborate with others, a NewGround partnership is a great next step!

Find out more on our website (LINK IN BIO) - Community Ministry Grant applications are due August 15.
https://diaconalministries.com/newground/ministry-grants-support/

NewGround Applications Due in August!

Does your church have a new idea for ministry or a growing initiative in your community you'd love to partner with?

Do you know that NewGround offers churches grant money and coaching to help launch a successful ministry? Or, if your church is just starting to explore it's local neighbourhood/region, our Community Opportunity Scan might be the right thing for you!

Find out more about NewGround (formerly Operation Manna) or reach out to the program coordinator, Karla - [email protected]!

https://diaconalministries.com/newground/ or LINK IN BIO!

Deacons: We see you! ❤️

A shout out to our Regional Ministry Developer for Eastern Canada, Mark Vanderwees, talking all things deacon on the DoJustice podcast!

Take a listen!!

Mark Vanderwees from Diaconal Ministries Canada joins us to talk about his journey to becoming a deacon and suggestions for best practices for deacons. This episode discusses the evolving role of deacons, community engagement, and practical support for church benevolence and justice initiatives.

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/do-justice/episodes/Persistent-Pursuit-Marks-Journey-from-Haiti-to-Deaconship-e2lq0dm

Connecting with deacons at Synod has been a highlight for our organization for a number of years.

Hear about this year's deacon dinner, covered by our friends at Banner Magazine

https://www.thebanner.org/news/2024/07/deacons-share-stories-of-service-at-synod-dinner?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2NPy0V-4X_CLSyihaOcJEArYtBcNPng0n_59fXXJDjajMo3GVKUrEhvmo_aem_B7quU0MrVAZtL84VcGtjGg

Deacons Share Stories of Service at Synod Dinner The Official Magazine of the Christian Reformed Church