****Note: We are home from our fantastic vacation to Disney World....While we were there we spent some time exploring and learning about hospitality. Our observations ended up being the newsletter article for the month of May....Here is part 1.
Welcome Home!!!!!
At this very moment, Pastor Dave and I are enjoying time
away for rest, renewal, and study. But before we can let go completely and
enjoy our time away at Walt Disney World, we must finish our newsletter article!
So here it is.
At our Cross Roads Leadership Retreat in February, as we
talked as a group three priorities emerged for us to work on. The first one was
hospitality and welcoming, the second was how we communicate (website, written
materials such as newsletters, bulletins, brochures, and branding), and the
third will be having more joint parish opportunities. This month’s newsletter article
will focus on Hospitality and Welcoming though “4 Keys”.
St Luke has already started working on some ideas of how to
be more welcoming and soon will be inviting the other congregations to join
them in some joint trainings on hospitality, and serving as greeters or ushers.
Jesus was clear about welcoming the stranger and taking care
of others. Jesus told special stories called parables to demonstrate how
important it is. Take for example the story of the “Good Samaritan”. Three
people passed by the man laying along the side of the road. The third person to
pass by was the Samarian. The Jews hated the people of Samaria. And it was this
person who stopped to help and make sure that the man was taken care of. As the
priesthood of all believers, we are called to serve those who we like and even
those who we consider our enemies.
Pastor Dave and I are in the perfect place to talk about
hospitality. After all this place is all about hospitality. They have even
written books, have seminars and classes, and they have a university to teach
it. But even more importantly Walt Disney World practices it everyday and
through out their organization. In the day to day functions of the Church, we
can learn from the Disney organization.
First of all, when we arrived we were greeted with a
friendly smile and a sincere “Welcome Home”. These words communicated there is
a place here for you and we want you here! Disney does details well. From the
dedicated parking lot for check in, to providing extra towels for the pool.
They go out of their way to ensure your needs are met. Everywhere we looked
there was something to see, hear, or do. From the signs that explained things
to the carvings on the sides of buildings.
Secondly, there are plenty of people to direct you to where
you want to go. Disney provides ample training to their cast members. But they
also have trained guests to share information with other guests. We have
learned so much by talking with others.
Disney trains every cast-member in the “Four Keys”
1.
Safety
2.
Courtesy
3.
Cleanliness
4.
Efficiency
Safety- is always first key. Examples that we do in our
congregations are things like making sure that the ice is removed from
sidewalks in the winter and wet spots are cleaned up. We also want to make sure
that our SAFE policies are up to date and we ensure that our children are safe
in the building.
The second key, Courtesy-refers to how we treat each
other and our guests. Making sure they are attended to and questions are
answered. When a cast-member enters any guest area, they are ready to serve.
They are in costume, they are trained for their area, and Gossip is never
tolerated. For us, we want to make sure that we are equipping and empowering
the people of Cross Roads to share the Good News Monday through Sunday to all
they encounter.
When at Disney or in our congregations, issues arise on a
regular basis. Issues are inevitable when there are thousands of employees and
millions of guests from all over the world. With that many people there will be
messes. Disney has a huge “mousekeeping” staff, but ALL employees are expected
to clean up and to help each other out as needed.
Which brings us to Key #3 Cleanliness. Disney strives
to keep things clean and updated. While we don’t have the budget that Disney
does. There are things we can do. We can make sure that our public spaces are
welcoming and cheerful.
And the finally Key is Efficiency- As a parish we
have the opportunity to do things together. If we choose, we can coordinate the
ordering of supplies to be able to take advantage of discounts. We can save
staff time by offering the same Bible Study one time rather than the same thing
four times. Same goes for some of the other programs of the church.
Disney World prioritizes these things so the most important
is Safety. When there are two things that are equally important, Disney looks
to the highest ranking thing. All of these things contribute to a positive
experience.
We would propose that for us as a parish, we add a Key Ring,
the ring to hold us together….Our “key ring” is God and the Good News that we
are called to proclaim. Walt Disney once said….”Whatever you do, do it well”.
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