Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)

Words: We use them to tell our story – God’s story – again and again. This month ECF Vital Practices continues its theme of “Communications: Tried, True, & New” with additional resources and tools to help us tell our stories effectively.

Our August content includes:

Mary Kay Thompson’s “When Less is Enough,” shares how Grace Episcopal Church in Bainbridge Island, Washington has re-imagined its award winning communications plan in response to a change in financial support, while maintaining its multichannel focus.

“Newsletter Makeover” by Susan Elliott invites congregations to take their ‘tried and true’ and perhaps somewhat worn-looking parish newsletter and give it a total makeover.

Mary Ann Patterson’s “How and Why of Press Releases” encourages congregations to get to know the staff at their local media and offers basic information on how to present your information and stories to the press.

“Lights, Camera. Action” by Terri Mathes uses the principle of ‘show don’t tell’ to share how congregations across are church are using video to tell their stories – without spending a dime.

As always, each of these articles includes a list of resources to help you with your communication plan and program. Additional resources may also be found elsewhere in ECF Vital Practices - visit our ‘Topics’ page to find a complete content listing organized by subject.

I invite you to add to this content by sharing your communications success stories, tips, and resources in the Your Turn section and by posting comments related to our articles, blog posts, or other content.

Faithfully,

Nancy Davidge
Editor, ECF Vital Practices

PS: To make it easier for congregational leaders to find the resources offered through ECF Vital Practices, please consider adding a link to ECF Vital Practices to your website. Here’s how: Using your websites ‘add a link’ tool, insert our full URL – http://www.ecfvp.org/