May 24, 2018
Dothan Graduation
Wallace Community College and COT Dothan have a close relationship, and when Wallace held their spring commencement ceremony in May, COT Dothan was very well-represented. Congratulations, graduates! We cannot wait to see what is in store for you!
COT Dothan site coordinator Tara Sanders says, “Wallace graduation was so special for COT Dothan. It was a long but rewarding journey for our participants. They all worked so hard. We are honored to have shared this two year long journey with them. They are part of our family, we love every one of them and were so excited to attend their graduation ceremony.”
Christina Baxley shares that COT is her family and what church should be like. “No matter how hard the week has been, coming into COT is magic in that you can’t be sad, angry, frustrated once you are there. Everyone is always excited to see you and they genuinely want the best for you.”
SMART Goals
Setting goals is an integral part of the COT experience for both participants and volunteers. Our Awaken curriculum encourages the use of goals that are SMART—Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relalistic and Timely.
- A specific goal is clear and focused.
- When you set a measurable goal, you have a plan for how much or how often you will perform a specific action.
- An attainable goal is achieved one step at a time
- A realistic goal is challenging but achievable.
- A timely goal has a deadline with progress you can track.
Site coordinators, volunteers, participants, and even leadership teams have set SMART goals in meetings around the conference. COT Trainer Rosaland Harrison shares, “Goal setting is a tool participants can use to design a better life for themselves and their families. In the classroom, participants complete exercises to determine where they are right now and where they would like to be in the future. This is followed by discussions around the ‘why’ and the ‘how.’ Why is the goal important, and how can I reach my goal?” Rosaland emphasizes that a participant must have a strong sense of why a goal is important in order to achieve the goal, and she asks for up-front discussion about what a participant is willing to sacrifice to reach a goal.
Even the best plans have pitfalls, so Eufaula site coordinator Beverly Brown reached out to Melanie Little, a certified Life Coach with the Eufaula Housing Authority for help. Volunteers had shared that their matched groups felt “stuck” on achieving SMART goals so Ms. Little facilitated a discussion on “Why We Procrastinate.” Providing common language for identifying our reasons for being “stuck” was extremely helpful. Members were encouraged to ask themselves: Am I stuck because I am feeling overwhelmed? Dealing with an unpleasant task? Fearing failure? Lacking motivation? Lacking focus? By being able to share the why, matched groups felt they might be better at providing support. The life coach also facilitated deep, meaningful discussions among volunteers and participants. Everyone felt better able to meet their individual goals and offer support for others in their group. Ms. Little will return to COT Eufaula in June to speak with volunteers.
Missional Giving Recipient
We are so pleased Communities of Transformation has been selected as this year’s missional giving recipient by the AWFUMC annual conference planning team directed by Bishop David Graves.
Many churches will collect special offerings during your worship services leading up to conference. This offering will be collected at the opening worship service on Sunday, June 3, 2018, at Frazer Memorial United Methodist Church.
Click HERE to see the bulletin insert that all churches in the conference are invited to print to find out more about COT. Click HERE to see a video about COT.
We are grateful to Bishop Graves and the annual conference planning team for this opportunity to share about Communities of Transformation!
June 2018 Events
All meetings are 5:30 – 8:00 p. m. unless otherwise noted. Please check the website Events page for locations.
Brewton
Tuesday, June 5 NO Meeting
Tuesday, June 12 Financial Workshop
Tuesday, June 19 Financial Worskhop
Tuesday, June 26 Fun Night–Crafting!
Demopolis District at Pine Hill (meetings start at 6:00)
Thursday, June 7 Meeting
Thursday, June 14 Meeting
Thursday, June 21 Meeting
Thursday, June 28 Meeting
Dothan
Tuesday, June 5 Meeting
Tuesday, June 12 No Meeting
Tuesday, June 19 No Meeting
Tuesday, June 26 No Meeting
Meetings will resume July 10.
Eufaula
Monday, June 4 Meeting
Monday, June 11 Meeting
Monday, June 18 Meeting
Monday, June 25 Meeting
Evergreen
Thursday, June 7 Meeting
Thursday, June 14 Meeting at the Community Garden
Thursday, June 21 Meeting
Saturday, June 23 Work Day at the Community Garden
Thursday, June 28 Meeting
Mobile
Thursday, June 7 Meeting
Thursday, June 14 Meeting
Thursday, June 21 Meeting
Thursday, June 28 Meeting
Montgomery
Tuesday, June 5 Picnic
Tuesday, June 12 Meeting
Tuesday, June 19 Meeting
Tuesday, June 26 Meeting
Phenix City (all times Eastern)
Tuesday, June 5 Meeting
Tuesday, June 12 Meeting
Tuesday, June 19 Celebration!
Tuesday, June 26 Picnic
Selma
COT Selma will not meet in June
