Multi-Generational June 2, 2011

What I do, my passion, is to advocate for and support young adults. I see this as a pretty broad area, sometimes supporting the teenagers is a part of it, and creating alternative services that appeal to many ages is a part of it. In my post a couple weeks ago I talked about validation and everyone EVERYONE having something of value to share.

And I mean it.

So, I want to talk about the ‘maturing’ generations. (gasp!)

Here at the Unity Worldwide Ministries home office we have really gotten into talking about multi-generational ministry instead of kids, teen, young adult or senior ministry. I just read an article on volunteering and the growing 55+ population. It was interesting because when I read it, if it hadn’t had the age references it wouldn’t be much different than something I might say in this blog. Things like:

a desire for meaningful service

coming together in community

resourceful and knowledgeable

I know I’m always talking about ways to reach out and support the young adults in our communities,  I am completely committed to that cause. In addition, I believe that to be a truly thriving community it takes all ages being engaged, supported, and challenged.

Our seniors have so much to offer (and I’m not calling 55+ seniors, that’s just the language the article used). There is a lady who is in her 90’s who volunteers almost every day here at the home office. She keeps everyone in line and gets a whole lot things done, but she isn’t just blessing us with person-power. She has the assurance of faith that comes from someone who has been around for 9 decades. She’s already seen it all. She is the calm in the sometimes chaos that knows that this too will pass and everything will be alright.

And then, when the copier misbehaves, I help her figure it out. Because we all have our own perspective and talents and it is a blessing. I think that, especially those over early 70’s, are another important ‘missing’ generation from our communities, and that there is much potential for support and growth in this area.

My homiletics teacher told us we should always end a talk with a call to action, and I don’t really have anything specific to call you to today, except for this reminder to look to ALL generations for the blessings and talents of each person.

Truly, truly, we are strongest when we have all of us.

namaste

Millennials and Priorities May 18, 2011

“52% of Millennials say being a good parent is one of the most important things in their life”

This was a twitter post I saw today from Pew Research. As you might imagine that got my attention.

Thirty percent of Millennials (those 18-29 in 2010) list having a successful marriage as an important thing. There is an interesting shift from the same age group surveyed in 1997. Thirty five percent of Gen Xers (18-29 in 1997) said having a successful marriage was one of the most important things, while being a good parent was a priority for 42%.

While the percentage of births to unwed mothers rose from Xers to Millennials (39% to 51%), the rate of parenthood lowered in young adults (in 1998 41% of women 18-29 had ever had children, in 2010 it was 36%)

While a majority of young adults still want to have children and/or get married, there is a significant portion that isn’t sure. If you go check out the research you will see the numbers are trending towards marriage being less important and more diversity in what families look like.

Are you saying “Ok sure, this is all very interesting but what does it mean?!” yet?

Well if we are in the business of creating spiritual communities where all ages belong, then it’s time to look at some basic assumptions.

If 30% of Millennials who aren’t already married don’t want to or aren’t sure if they want to get married, what does this mean for how you approach small groups, social events and addressing mail? Some young adults are happily single and others are in committed relationships that don’t involve legalities such as marriage, and of course there are still plenty who can’t have a legal marriage just yet. It’s something to think about, is the language and culture of our community inclusive of these folks?

Back to the parenthood conversation. Being a good parent is increasingly important to the generation coming up and many moms are unwed. Now what the statistics don’t tell us is how many of those moms are in a committed relationship with the father (or the other mother for that matter). Still, for a young adult with a child whether there is a partner or not, it’s a big deal to get away and attend a weeknight class or event at the church. Are you offering and advertising the availability of qualified childcare for your events? Are new families in your community getting the info they need to feel comfortable leaving the children for an hour on Sunday? Are you open to finding flexible ways for people who want to serve to do so that is in integrity with their other life commitments?

There are always more questions, keep asking and stay open.

Rachel

My stats are from these two Pew Research articles, both using the same research data.

http://pewsocialtrends.org/2011/03/09/for-millennials-parenthood-trumps-marriage/

http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/?NumberID=1237