Akron Ohio Stake News

Communication is the Key!

by LeAnn Snyder, Ward Communication Specialist

It was a problem for the Medina Ward members to know what was going on in the ward on a weekly basis. Many members received multiple emails, depending on their membership in various organizations. For example, one person could receive up to four different emails in a week – one from Primary, one from Relief Society, one from Elders Quorum and one from Sunday School or the Young Men/Young Women. To streamline communications and to enable all members to have the details in a single location, a ward newsletter was started.  The program kicked off in January by calling a communication specialist. A central email address was created (medinawardcc@gmail.com), so all organization leaders have a single place to send information for the inclusion in the newsletter and for members to have a single email address to act as the sender. Using email contact information from LDS Tools, a list was created, and the process began. For consistency, a simple header was created with the months and pictures changing, but the emails have a consistent feel and look. The use of headers makes it easy to jump right to the proper section, making it easier for members to find information on the various organization quickly.

The newsletter allows visibility to all members on the ward activities and allows all members to see what is happening in all of the organizations. For example, the Relief Society has a weekly Wednesday meeting to review and discuss talks from General Conference. It is called the Conference Group, and topics are listed and posted so everyone can attend. The Primary is visiting a nursing home facility to sing songs and play games with the residents on an upcoming Saturday. As an additional item, all those we have been called to new positions are also listed in the newsletter. Links are also provided or attachments are included for other important information.

By using the weekly newsletter, all members are now able to receive information even if they missed the announcements at church or did not receive the Sacrament program. The email is sent to all members weekly early Tuesday morning. So far, the feedback from members has been positive and the email also allows the ward leadership to receive tracking statistics so outreach is able to be reviewed and analyzed.