Midweek at Synod School 2010

By now, the attendees of Synod of School are learning everyone's names and feeling a sense of community. Both within their classes and every day activities like worship, meal time, the Art Share Tent, the Coffee House, the Game Room, the movie theatre, etc.
We are staying in the double dorm rooms of White this year at Buena Vista University. Which has lended to our family meeting several new friends. We normally stay in the studio suites with a personal shower and bathroom. My daughter even got to room with a young girl from Colorado, who is here with her Grandmother and mom.
The food dining service is good for a college. Choices include a salad bar, grilled items, a main course and dessert each day. Having gone to Purdue last week with the Presbytery's Triennium delegation, we found a little more variety. But the food at Buena Vista is fresh and hot. Though the lunch room is a tade noisy, there are good feelings of fellowship with the ocassional break to join in song for a friends birthday.
The evening worship is centered around the theme of "Grace Notes." Leaders the Rev. Mark Davis and the Rev. Barbara Nish have been instructing and guiding us to hear our worship with different tones and building upon a component with several layers of sound or worship elements.
On Wednesday evening, we organize a Tweet-up for those peeps that are logging their Synod School experiences on the social network Twitter.com. Six people showed up to learn more about getting the 140 character submission to come into our phones automatically and to meet face-to-face with our fellow Tweets.
Obviously, there are many ways to connect with our Synod's various church and presbytery members across the six states and beyond.
Kim Coulter,
director of communications
Presbytery of Des Moines

Monday at Synod School 2010

School is normally not a place you want to spend much time at. Once you've learned you are accomplished and can make your way in the world. However, here at Synod School, I find I want to make it last forever. the wealth of learning opportunities is unlimited. And the Monday is the start of classes... each person can take as many as four 1-hour classes during the week. Each day you go to these same four classes, hopefully finding an education or something that makes your heart sing (as one of my teachers said).

My classes this year at Synod School 2010 are: China and the Church, Aging Well, Memoir Writing and Emerging Church. I'm not teaching this year, which is an interesting feeling to sit back and watch more of the interaction between the 600 attendees from the different states in the Synod of Lakes and Prairies.

Each morning we begin the day with a 30 minute worship time, then our convocation speaker Rev. Dr. Roger Nishioka, professor at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Ga., gives his presentation discussing reformed theology. As I head to my first class, I say "Hi," to many friends that I've met through out the 5 years I've been attending this event at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa.

My first class on China and the Church, is lead by Rev. Heidi Vardeman, pastor at Macalester Plymouth United Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Today we had a treat from the Rev. Calvin Hsu (Guthrie Center, First) who gave us a short lesson on speaking Chinese.

After that I went to my Aging Well class lead by the Rev. Richard and Jean Ann Buller (Golden Valley, MN). It is probably the most well attended of my classes. Each seat is full and everyone is energetic to get there and experiment with the different activities each day. All are meant to help keep your brain active. Today's games were stacking cups and juggling - both increase your mind's capacity and agility.

My afternoon classes are Memoir Writing and Emerging Church. The instructors are Tamara Cox Burnett, CLP, (Merrill, WI) and the Rev. Susan Phillips (Shawano, WI). These are great teachers and wonderful classes too, unfortunately, I've not been as faithful in my personal writing and journaling as in my blogging and tweeting for the Presbytery. But maybe that just means I'm living my faith in a different way right now.

Kim Coulter
director of communications
Presbytery of Des Moines