Serving within Incarnation Below is a list of ongoing volunteer opportunities available at Incarnation. Volunteer opportunities In Our Local Community and Current Mission Opportunities can be found on their respective pages. Whether you are a member of the Incarnation faith community, an active participant, or new guest, you are invited to participate in any of the below ministries. We invite you to join us as we Serve God and all people in the model of Jesus Christ. First Impressions and Worship Service Ministries Contact: Becky Benson Worship Teams Worship Teams are comprised of Greeters, Ushers, Information Center Hosts, Communion Servers, and Worship Assistants. Twelve Worship Teams are responsible for each week of the month, at each of the morning worship services. Under this model, lay Worship Team Leaders create schedules for their teams each month, based on team member availability, and communicate the schedules to the team. Being on a Worship Team is a low commitment more important opportunity, with the goal of having everyone serve an average of once every other month. Under the Worship Team model, you can serve one way one month, and another way the next month. The more people who join Worship Teams, the easier it is to spread the service opportunities evenly. Worship Teams gather prior to worship each Sunday, check in with the leader, and are a part of a pastor-led prayer before serving. Greeter Do you like to connect with people and make them feel warmly welcomed? Consider serving as a Greeter on a Worship Team! Greeters serve before and after morning worship services, and are an important part of creating wonderful first and ongoing impressions. Warmly greet morning worshipers from one of the building entrances and in large gathering spaces, answer questions, and assist people to various places in the building as needed. Orientation provided. Usher Assist worshipers so that they may have a meaningful worship experience, and help to minimize distractions within worship. Seat worshipers, distribute worship bulletins, collect offering, lead worshipers to communion stations, answer questions, and generally be attentive to worshipers’ needs. Orientation provided. Information Center Host Welcome and provide information to people visiting the Information Center before and after 8:45 a.m. and 10:05 a.m. worship. Being an Information Center Host is an important part of creating wonderful first and ongoing impressions, however you don’t need to know everything about Incarnation to be effective! A warm smile, and willingness to accompany the person to the Incarnation Office or the Children’s Resource Center to talk to the attendant, is frequently the best way to help a person with a question. Orientation provided. Communion Server Serve wafers or bread (at 6:00 p.m.), or wine and grape juice to worshipers as a part of the celebration of the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Communion is celebrated every 1st and 3rd Sundays at 8:45 a.m. and 10:05 a.m. worship, the 2nd and last Sundays at 10:45 a.m., and every Sunday at 6:00 p.m. worship. This is an important way to be actively involved in worship, allowing you to be share with others, the elements of Communion. Orientation provided. Worship Assistant Worship Assistants share in the leadership of worship during 8:45 a.m. and 10:05 a.m. worship, as they read the designated lesson(s) for the day. A strong voice and comfort in reading scripture lessons (one or two, depending on the week) before a large congregation using a lectern microphone, is necessary for those who wish to serve as Worship Assistants. Orientation provided. Baptismal Hosts Contact
the family of the child or adult who is scheduled to be baptized the
week prior to baptism, and introduce yourself as the person who will
meet with them prior to service when the baptism will take place.
Provide guidance and instruction on what will happen at the baptism as a
supplement to the Baptism Stepping Stone. The day of the baptism, meet
the family, photograph them, and answer any last minute questions. Baptismal Napkin Hemming and Embroidery Baptismal
napkins are a gift Incarnation gives to the family of the baptized one
as a special keepsake and a reminder of this special day. The napkin is
also during the baptism to wipe the head of the baptized one. The
napkins are easy to hem and embroider and there are instructions given
to those who wish to serve in this way. It's also a great way to serve
another, by praying for the recipient while creating this gift.
Contact: Shelly Maesse Knit Prayer Squares Are you a knitter? Help supply Prayer Squares for Prayer Ministry by knitting 4 inch squares from scraps of yarn or yarn provided by Incarnation. It’s a great project for beginning knitters! Prayer Squares are made available for people outside the Chapel. Contact Pastor Jeanne Hartfield for more information. Evening/Special Events Greeter Warmly greet participants coming to Incarnation for evening or weekend events, and help people locate the rooms where events will be meeting. On occasion, locate a custodian for special needs a guest might have. Care Team MinistryAssist those entering the Incarnation property, helping to provide a pleasant and safe experience in the parking lot for those coming to or departing from morning worship services, between 9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. This is an easy but high impact way to serve. Attend worship at 8:45 a.m. and leave a bit early to go to the parking lot, or attend worship 5 minute late, as a 10:05 a.m. worshiper. 10:45 a.m. worshipers can drink coffee and connect with others until worship begins. Contact: Bill Conlin Warmly greet new Incarnation members before worship on the day they are to be received formally into the congregation, providing them with name tags and corsages, and taking household photographs. Answer questions that come up, or accompany the new members to the Incarnation Office to obtain the answer. Prepare the Sanctuary and Incarnation Hall with all necessary elements and accessories required for a particular worship service. This includes setting up Communion wafers, bread (for 6:00 p.m.), wine/grape juice for those worship services when Holy Communion is celebrated, and water for the baptismal font, when baptisms are scheduled. Altar Guild members also ensure that pew accessories are adequately stocked in time for each worship opportunity. Contact: Joan Volkmann Operate the media board to coordinate sound, visual projection, and lighting for worship services according to the instructions provided by the preaching pastor and the desktop publisher, each week. Contact: Joan Volkmann Decorate the Sanctuary, Incarnation Hall, and gathering spaces for each season according to the Church calendar, or other planned special events. Contact: Joan Volkmann Set up band equipment Saturday afternoon or early Sunday morning, to be ready for Sunday worship in Incarnation Hall. Contact: Sean Turner 10:45 Worship Band Vocalists The 10:45 Worship Band is looking for vocalists who are interested in participating in worship leadership by singing with the 10:45 Worship Band. For more information contact Sean Turner. Contact: Jeanne Hartfield Care Team Ministry responds, free of charge, to the non-medical “quality of life” needs of individuals and families of all ages not routinely fulfilled by existing social service programs. This program offers supportive services to those within the Incarnation faith community and provides an opportunity for people of all ages to live their faith by serving others. Learn more Food Service Ministries Contact: Sue Bernlohr Lenten Soup Supper Coordinator and Volunteers Serving soup for a couple hundred people seven consecutive Wednesday nights requires the leadership of a few to ensure all runs smoothly and accomplishes the goal of providing a great time of connecting over a timely, tasty meal during the Lenten season. This role requires coordinating the activities of the Food Coordinator and volunteers who set up, serve the meal, and clean up each Wednesday night, about four hours each week. If you are interested in being a server, there are 2-shifts each Soup Supper Wednesday during Lent. The shifts are from 4:30 - 6:00 p.m. and 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. Ideally, there should be 10-12 people at each shift. If you are interested in signing up a confirmation group, there must be at least 4-adults who serve along side the confirmation students. Contact Bill Conlin if interested. Assist the food coordinator with table setting, food preparation, serving food, and clean up before and after special events. (Thanksgiving Eve, Lenten Soup Suppers, etc.) Note: Dishwashing is handled by the Kitchen Team. Funeral Refreshment Preparation and Serving Hosting funerals is an important way Incarnation serves the community. Assisting with refreshment preparation and serving is an easy way to support this ministry. Consider joining a calling list of those who are contacted when funerals and other special events occur. Contact Sue Bernlohr at for more information. With a team of individuals, provide dishwashing services for large events, including Lenten Soup Suppers and funerals. Prepare treat table before worship, pour beverages, and clean up following worship. Serve refreshments between morning worship services during summer months. (Note: During the fall, winter, and spring months, this is a Confirmation service project for students and their families. SPARK Children’s Ministries Contact: Shawna Berg Assist in the nursery caring for children newborn - 3 years during worship, weekdays, or weeknights as needed. SPARK Sunday or SPARK Wednesday Teacher/Assistant Provide/assist with faith learning for children 3 years - 5th grade, September - May. Vacation Bible School Teacher/Assistant Provide/assist with VBS learning, crafts, music, or food preparation for children preschool - 5th grade during the summer. SPARK Kids Club (1st - 5th grade program) Assistant Assist with food preparation, large motor activities, crafts, Bible study, or be a Table Parent during the mealtime. Substitute Teachers Needed SPARK Wednesday and IGNITE 5/6 are in need of adults or high school students willing to serve as substitutes on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. for our classes as the needs arise. If you would be willing to serve in this capacity please contact Shawna berg at sberg@incarnationmn.org When: Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. as needed SPARK Kids’ Club Table Leaders Needed SPARK Kids’ Club is Incarnation’s Tuesday after school program for 1st - 5th graders. Incarnation needs Table Leaders who will engage in meaningful conversation, encourage proper table manners, foster relationships with all children, support children in building relationships with one another, and supervise their group table clean-up. SPARK Hospitality Provide hospitality for special events that happen throughout the year in Children's Ministry. SPARK Special Family Events Assist with the planning, set-up, clean-up or actual events for families. Contact: Shawna Berg IGNITE & FLAME Breakfast Leaders Incarnation will be serving breakfast for it’s 6th - 12th grade students on Thursday mornings from 6:15 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. in the Gathering Space. Incarnation is looking for adults of all ages interested in making smoothies, taking money and hanging out in Incarnation Hall playing basketball. We also need adults who are simply willing to help build relationships with youth during this time! Wednesday Youth Room Assistant Many of our students IGNITE students like to come to Incarnation after school to hang out and do homework until IGNITE begins – however, this requires us to staff the youthroom with some supervision. We need adults to help supervise from 4-5:30 p.m. every Wednesday that IGNITE is in session. *IGNITE Middle School Ministry Leader/Assistant Assist with Middle School programming, including leading an IGNITE 7/8 group or IGNITE 5/6 small group, assisting with fellowship activities, and other supervision on Wednesday nights during IGNITE acti. Substitute Teachers Needed SPARK Wednesday and IGNITE 5/6 are in need of adults or high school students willing to serve as substitutes on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. for our classes as the needs arise. If you would be willing to serve in this capacity please contact Shawna berg at sberg@incarnationmn.org When: Wednesday evenings from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. as needed. Confirmation Prayer Partner Support a young person with your prayers and notes of encouragement in the last months prior to his/her Confirmation, and attend the fall Celebration of Passage service. Confirmation Robe Repair Incarnation reuses confirmation robes each year, and they do take some abuse. People who have sewing experience are needed to repair some zippers, which still work but have pulled away from the robe. 35-40 robes need repair over this winter. Contact Debbie Morse at 651-484-7213 or via email to assist. Contact: Kristin Bloxham The Story Bible Study This is a new ministry opportunity that will meet on the second and forth Sunday of each month at 9:45 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. During The Story student will walk through 21 ‘chapters’ of the Bible talking about how God was active then and is still active in our lives today. Main responsibilities Help create a safe space for open conversation about student lives and how God is present, get to know each student and some of their interests, and add to the conversation- you will be a part of this ever changing group! Incarnation Fan Club* Do you love watching high school sports, speech, dance or musical performances? If you answered yes, then the Incarnation Fan Club is for you!! Main responsibilities Cheer and support Incarnation’s youth on during their many extracurricular activities, greet youth after the event and let them know how wonderful they were, wear your Incarnation Fan Club t-shirt that you will be given during a brief orientation - date to be determined. IGNITE & FLAME Breakfast Incarnation will be serving breakfast for it’s 6th-12th grade students on Thursday mornings from 6:15 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. in the Gathering Space. Incarnation is looking for adults of all ages interested in making smoothies, taking money, hang out in Incarnation Hall playing basketball, or just simply getting to know some of Incarnation’s youth. Main responsibilities Engage in intentional intergenerational conversations, serve breakfast to middle and high school youth with a smile, and participate in morning devotions offered at 6:30 a.m. and 7: 30 a.m. FLAME Youth Group High school students have the opportunity to gather on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. to participate in a rotation of activities, worship, service, media Bible study, and fellowship. Adults are needed to simply participate, to walk alongside our high school youth as they experience these different ways of living out ones faith. Main Responsibilities Help create a safe space for open and honest conversations, help bridge the gap between different ‘groups’ to interact together as one community, pray for students throughout the week. *For volunteer opportunities that involve working directly with youth 18 years and younger, the policy for Protecting Children and Youth is applied. This policy exists for the safety of the children involved in the ministries as well as the protection of the adults serving. Contact: Joan Volkmann Sunday Morning Kairos Setup/Convener Set up refreshments for Kairos adult Sunday morning learning opportunity and introduce the speaker. Meet as a team every 2nd Thursday of the month at noon to determine which resources will reside in the Incarnation library and maintain the collection. Lead table discussions during fall or winter Bible Keys study Contact: Joan Volkmann Lifetimes & Bulletin Collating With a team of individuals, collate the Lifetimes newsletter on Tuesday afternoons every other week and worship bulletins on Thursday afternoons every week. Assist with the grounds maintenance of Incarnation’s cemetery on County Road J in Shoreview. Assist with the landscaping and maintenance of growing plants and lawn mowing on Incarnation’s property. Spring Clean Up Incarnation needs volunteers to clean and spruce up the landscape around Incarnation. Volunteers will help spread wood chips and focus on areas hit hard by this past winter. All are welcome, bring a rake and garden gloves. For questions, please contact Bill Conlin via email or 651-484-7213 ext. 216. When: Saturday, May 11, 9:00 a.m. The Calling Squad Invite people into various ministries by phone from the comfort of your home. Just In Time Be a part of a list of people who can be called upon "just in time," via email, for last minute volunteer opportunities. Email Shelly Maesse to be added to the list. |
Incarnation Lutheran Church * 4880 Hodgson Road, Shoreview, MN 55126 * Office Phone: 651-484-7213
