How We Serve

Dear Ones,

As Christians we are the Body of Christ. The Church is the visible symbol of that Body in the world. As the visible and material reality of that Body, we strive to make it as safe as we can for all who come to it for comfort and nourishment. The Church will only be safe if that is true for its most vulnerable members. This can include people of all ages, but it most especially relates to children and youth. Christ teaches us that the children among us are to be welcomed and cared for; they possess a crucial openness and trust which serves as an example for all of us-they model for us an entry into life in the kingdom (Matthew 18:3-4).

The unfortunate reality of our lives today is that we must be ever-vigilant and intentional in making our church communities safe for the most vulnerable among us. For this reason, the Diocese of Olympia recently instituted a requirement for both the Safeguarding God's Children (SDG) curriculum and background checks for all those who work with children, have responsibility for the preparation of children's ministries or are in proximity to children at the church at any time. While this new development will require time and attention, it has been enthusiastically accepted as a solid move toward the goal of making all people safe in our communities.

The online version is especially geared for vestries, bishop's committee members, parents who occasionally transport children, new hires (until the in-person training is available), retired clergy who are not on a regular rota, Diocesan House employees who do not work with children and any others who may be interested in this training.

The in-person training is still required for all active clergy, all paid employees, any persons (paid or unpaid) regularly working with youth, and Sunday school teachers and nursery attendants. Please contact the Bishop's Office for information on dates and times of these in-person workshops. I give thanks for you and your commitment in taking this course and, by so doing, moving us closer to our goal of a truly safe church for all.

Faithfully,

The Rt. Rev. Gregory Rickel, Bishop of Olympia

How to take the online course:

1. Go to http://www.safeguardingonline.org.
2. Click on the link at the bottom of the page.
3. Enter your login and password. (You must obtain a login and password from Blaire Notrica at bnotrica@ecww.org or 206.325.4200/800.488.4978)
4. Once you've logged in, click on the title of a course to begin that course.
5. Click on the orange arrows to advance through the course.