Jesus said to his disciples, “Let the little children come to me.” We love little children, actually, children of all ages, here at Second Presbyterian Church. Our staff and members cherish their presence and ministry in our midst, whether it is during worship, in a Sunday School class, hunting Easter Eggs at the annual egg hunt, or in our church nursery.
Second Presbyterian Church Childcare Philosophy
Children are God’s gift to us, given for our care and love. We take seriously the vows we make when every child is baptized. We believe the foundations of faith are laid for our children, even as infants, as they learn about trust from loving and consistent caregivers. We strive to provide a healthy, safe, clean, and loving place in which children can thrive.
- Childcare for infants and toddlers is provided for all worship services (with the exception of the 11:00 p.m. service on Christmas Eve) and Sunday School. No reservations are needed for childcare during worship and church school. Infants and toddlers are cared for by trained, competent childcare workers who genuinely love children and focus on helping them, and their parents, feel secure while in the church’s care. A silent paging system is used to notify parents if they are needed for any reason.
- During the 11:00 a.m. worship service on Sunday mornings, the preschool children (2 – 5 years old) are cared for in their Sunday School classrooms by volunteers who share their love and their time with our children. This ministry helps the children get acquainted with adults in the church other than their parents and to learn that the church is a place of love and care.
- Childcare is also provided for other activities and meetings at the church. For these events we usually ask that parents make reservations with the Childcare Coordinator at least 24 hours prior to the event.
For further information or to make childcare reservations, please contact our Childcare Coordinator, Karin Howze at karinhowze@secondpreslr.org.
Second Presbyterian Church Childcare Policy
The church will provide childcare for all worship services. Childcare will also be provided for other church-sponsored events at the request of staff or authorized leaders of these events. An event planning/childcare request form must be submitted.
A minimum of two caregivers (at least one 18 or older) will be provided for all church events where childcare has been requested. One caregiver may be provided when five or fewer children over the age of 4 years have reservations. This is the only exception to the minimum of two policy.
Paid caregivers must be at least 18 years of age, unless an exception has been made and approved by the Childcare Coordinator. Those under 18 must be under the direct supervision of an approved adult caregiver.
Volunteer caregivers under the age of 18 must have special permission from the Childcare Coordinator. They must be under the direct supervision of an approved adult caregiver.
Reservations are required for all childcare except worship services. Caregivers are authorized not to accept children without reservations if safe adult/child ratios would be exceeded.
Our acceptable adult/child ratios are as follows:
- One adult caregiver to four children if any child is younger than twelve months.
- One adult caregiver to six children for ages twelve to thirty-six months.
- One adult caregiver to eight children for all children three years of age and older.
*Again, a minimum of two caregivers will be present except as noted above.
Care for children with special needs will be determined according to the individual needs of the child.
Caregivers are authorized not to accept sick children. Children should be fever-free for 24 hours, not actively sneezing/coughing, not having diarrhea, etc. We hope parents will be considerate of other families.