WEBVTT

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Now that you have a plan,

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it's time to invite others in.

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This is an exciting time, but

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it can also be frustrating.

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You get to cast your vision

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with leaders and members of your

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church, but it's also possible they

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won't have the same passion or

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motivation that you do, or they

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may feel intimidated or anxious about

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the changes you're proposing.

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That's why it's so important to

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keep yourself grounded in prayer for

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yourself, for those you're sharing with,

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and for all the decisions that

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will be made as you prepare

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and share with others.

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We recommend bringing leadership into the

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conversation as early as possible, ideally

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even having a leadership representative

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involved

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in this workshop and planning.

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If, however, you've yet to involve

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your church leadership, schedule a time

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to share your purpose, statement, goals,

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and plans, including any resources or

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volunteers you'll need for success.

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And here's a few tips for

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meeting with your pastor.

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First, plan a specific time to

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discuss your proposal.

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Sundays and church events can be

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very busy times for pastors and

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leaders.

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So instead of confronting your leadership

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on a Sunday morning, ask them

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to meet you in person at

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a time that's more convenient.

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Most pastors love hearing what God

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is doing in the hearts of

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those in their congregation.

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Choosing to discuss these things at

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an appropriate time will help your

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pastor better receive your vision for

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disability ministry at church.

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Also, remember that disability ministry may

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not be on their radar.

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They may need to process and

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think about what you've shared before

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they're able to respond.

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Number two, present disability ministry as

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an opportunity to improve existing ministries.

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Disability ministry may not be on

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your pastor or leader's radar.

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It's likely that your church is

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already doing a bunch of other

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ministries that require time and people

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and money and prayer and tons

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of resources.

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Asking to start another ministry means

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increasing the need for more of

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those already limited resources.

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Present discipline ministry as an opportunity

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that your church currently isn't a

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part of, but one that links

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with your church's overall aims, using

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the purpose statement you worked on

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earlier.

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Number three, affirm your commitment.

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A key factor to the success

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of disability ministry is having a

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small group of people who are

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committed to stewarding this work.

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Share with your pastor the names

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of those who are interested in

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stewarding the work with you, and

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talk about your level of commitment

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to seeing those with disabilities belonging

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to a body of believers.

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Affirm that disability inclusion is not

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something you expect the pastor to

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take on single-handedly, but that you

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are seeking leadership support for your

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core team to carry out this

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work.

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Also, allow time for your pastor

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to catch the vision.

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Invite them to listen to podcasts

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on disability and view some of

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our recommended theology of disability

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resources,

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to connect with another pastor or

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ministry leader who's passionate about

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disability,

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and reach out to us if

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there's any way we can help

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with this.

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After meeting with them, allow some

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time for them to process the

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conversation, and in the meantime, continue

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to pray for the direction of

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your church and your leadership.

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Also, be flexible based on other

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church priorities and needs.

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Your church leaders will have greater

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insight into what else is going

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on inside your church.

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Remember that disability inclusion doesn't all

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have to start at once.

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If you've made some goals that

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seem to conflict with other church

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priorities, discuss what alternative goals will

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be possible.

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If your leader thinks there isn't

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enough budget to host sensory-friendly outreach

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events, could you invite church members

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to volunteer off-site with a disability

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organization instead?

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If your church leader is concerned

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that better safeguarding policies are needed

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in the church before the environment

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can be safe for children with

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disabilities, can you make a plan

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to start training greeters and Sunday

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school teachers on a theology of

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disability and behavioral management

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strategies in

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the meantime?

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If your church leader is afraid

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that recruiting volunteers for a buddy

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program will reduce the number of

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volunteers needed for the children's ministry,

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could you train existing children's ministry

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volunteers in disability inclusion strategies

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so

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they could better integrate children into

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the classroom?

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After you have leadership buy-in on

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a finalized plan, it's time to

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bring your congregation in.

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Our favorite way of doing this

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is a Disability Awareness Sunday.

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This can look many different ways.

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We have a few sample liturgies

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in the resource section below.

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But in general, this involves a

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Sunday worship service centered around helping

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the congregation to catch the vision

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for disability inclusion in your church.

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prepare them for what to expect,

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and even motivate some of them

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to join you as volunteers.

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It's ideal if you can follow

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this worship service with a volunteer

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recruitment meeting to invite people interested

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in volunteering to find out more

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about plans and roles of volunteers.

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If you can't get an entire

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worship service dedicated to disability

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awareness,

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you could also just announce this

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recruitment informational meeting for people

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interested

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to find out more.

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In advance of this meeting, prepare

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a list of volunteer expectations and

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roles based on the plans you've

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made.

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Also make sure you've got a

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solid safeguarding plan for anyone who

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will be in contact with this

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vulnerable population.

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Your church most likely already has

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a safeguarding procedure in place for

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volunteers in other areas such as

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children's ministry.

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We really recommend making sure your

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whole congregation is aware of your

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new emphasis on disability inclusion, what

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they can expect, and how they

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can support it.

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Because a welcoming congregation can make

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all the difference in a family

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or individual feeling included.

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And conversely, it can take just

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one bad interaction for a visitor

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to feel unwelcome.

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Take another look back at the

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five stages of attitude handout for

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more ideas about how to help

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your congregation move from one stage

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to the next.

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Once you've recruited volunteers, any training

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will likely depend on what customized

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plan you've come up with.

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If you're planning to start by

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volunteering with another organization, they

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may

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have a training already that you

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can attend.

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If you're starting a buddy program,

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you'll want to go through basic

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disability etiquette and spend some time

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walking each buddy through the specific

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needs, preferences, and communication habits of

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their buddy.

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If you're simply making some structural

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changes to your worship service to

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make sure it is universally designed,

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you may want to train greeters

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in your security team on basic

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disability etiquette and safety protocol.

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We have some resources below that

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can help with this step.

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If you need anything else, feel

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free to reach out to us

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using the coaching request form on

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this page.

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Now take some time to make

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a list of people that you

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need to meet with and what

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you need to discuss with them.

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Again, feel free to use the

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resources below to help you plan

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your meetings and introductory events.