SAFE GATHERINGS



Jesus said, “whoever welcomes a child welcomes me.” (Matthew 18:5). Children are our present and our future, our hope, our teachers, and our inspiration. They are full participants in the life of the church and the realm of God.” It is our duty as the body of Christ to protect our children and those who are vulnerable in our community.

At the 2017 session of the Rio Texas Annual Conference, a policy was adopted and we were directed to begin the process of bringing our Child and Vulnerable Adult policies up-to-date. Effective June 9, 2018, our new policy will be officially implemented and it will be our task to ensure LWMUMC Meets the minimum requirements of the passed legislation. Within that legislation is a three step process.
  1. A Background Check with Pastoral and Lay references.
  2. Completion of an Online Child and Vulnerable Adult Safety Course, which includes abuse recognition and reporting protocols.
  3. Completion of a Live Seminar OR Live Webinar safety course entitled “Trusted Con Confianza,” which is maintained by the Rio Texas Annual Conference.
Within this policy, all adults (over the age of 18) who work with Children and/or vulnerable adults must be certified through this process.

Here is the three Step Process:
Step 1. Register With Safe Gatherings
  • Go to safegatherings.com. 
  • Click the “Get Started” button at the top of the page.
  • Fill out the online application.
    • Select your language preference.
    • Choose “Church or Faith-Based Organization”
    • Choose “Methodist” from the drop-down menu.
    • Choose “United States”
    • Choose “Texas”
    • Type “LLANO” and “Lutie Watkins Memorial UMC will appear. Click.
    • Continue filling out the rest of the form, and read carefully the instructions.
  • Safe Gatherings will go to work processing the background check and reaching out to the applicants’ designated references.
Step 2. Complete the “Safe Gatherings” training Course.
When you complete registration, you will be able to see your “Application Status.” As you look down the list, you will see whether or not a particular part of your application has been completed. On the “Safe Gatherings Training Course,” there will be a link that says “Not Completed.” Click that link to begin the training course. You may leave and return to the course. It will pick up where you left off.
At the end of the course, there will be an exam. The course in its entirety will be approximately one hour long. Once you have completed the exam, you will be given a certificate of completion. Please submit a copy of that certificate to Kathryn Stephenson at lwmumc@verizon.net.

Step 3. Attend a Trusted Seminar.
Go to the Safe Trainings website and locate a training that fits into your schedule. Be on the look out for possible training seminars hosted by LWMUMC .

For any questions or help regarding this process, please feel free to contact Pastor Bryan and/or Kathryn Stephenson at the church office.