Outreach

Generally speaking, I like to look at outreach from the perspective of the seeker.  Defined that way, “outreach” includes everything from the moment a person first finds out that Quakers exist to the time when that person is a fully integrated and experienced member of a meeting.  That also means that the work of outreach–or rather, some portion of the outreach journey–is the responsibility of every Friend.

I first talked about this approach in From Seeker to Quaker, and then I followed that with a series reflecting each of the six steps of the seeker.  This includes Being Visible, Helping Seekers Find Us, The Path to Visiting, Will They Come Back?, A Sense of Belonging, and Nurtured and Nurturing.

If you’re interested in asking me to come and do a workshop on the six steps of the seeker, please write to me here.

In addition, though I believe that the entire outreach journey is essential, there came a point when I realized that social media in particular–though far from being a cure-all–was something that many Friends shied away from.  That’s when I began some in-depth work on outreach though Facebook, including two phases of active experiments in partnership with local meetings.  You can read the detailed reports here.