RS Service Activity

We had such a fun service night for the Relief Society birthday celebration.

I have the best committee and here's the key:

When we meet we figure out the jobs (decorations, food, invitations, paper goods etc.)

and then everyone chooses a responsibility they feel good about.

Someone called it delegating. But it's not. I don't have to tell people what to do.

They choose what they'd prefer. It's so great.

We've got a couple people who are super confident with decorations. 

And some of us who dread decorations assignments.

A couple who are happy to cook.

One who says she's a horrible cook (and her sister on the committee confirms).

Most of us are happy to walk the neighborhood delivering invites,

and one who knows herself well enough that she'll never get around to it.

A few of us don't have young children so are happy to come early and stay late.

We tell those with littles whose husbands are traveling or working late to go home,

we've got clean-up covered.

As the committee chair, I'm the organizer, which is perfect for me.

And as someone without littles at home, I'm happy to take extra jobs to pull everything together. 

The RS Presidency member over the committee is darling but has three young children,

so I try to not let her do anything extra because she has so many other responsibilities.

(She always takes one of the assignments, which is much appreciated.)

BUT she's very organized and I can always bounce ideas off of her to help 

ease my mind when I start to stress about final details!

I've got wonderful feedback about the activities, 

but honestly it's the committee working together and the epitome of many hands make light work.

The Relief Society Presidency wanted us to do a service project,

which quite frankly, I wasn't that excited about at first because, you know, extra work.

But within minutes, I knew it was the right thing to do.

For starters, we'd have more people come because an evening together in the church 

is more enjoyable doing something for someone else.

(And we already have the summer party in someone's backyard 

and the Christmas party at someone's home which we just gather and visit.)

And, once I started researching projects, I got excited about the opportunities to serve.

My rule was no quilts, no sandwiches and no hygiene kits.

We needed something new.

We made journals and quilted felt hearts for Hearts Knit Together,

an organization that donates kits to families arriving in shelters, escaping either abuse or violence or refugees. They support all the shelters in Utah.

I thought this was a wonderful opportunity, perfect for the "Relief Society"

to ease the burdens of our unknown sisters.

The projects were simple, so could be done easily (even the sewing) while visiting with 

the people working around you.

Hearts Knit Together gives out 7,000 hearts and journals a year.

(This was the project I blogged about a few Sundays ago that I cut hundreds pieces of scrapbook paper down to size to cover the composition books.

We made 30 hearts and 100 journals.

I volunteered to bring the birthday cakes.

Last Christmas at our neighborhood ladies party, someone brought an olive oil cake 

from Tulie Bakery and though the name is off-putting, it was the 2nd best cake I've ever had.

(Still remembering the one in Los Angeles at Margie's baby shower.)

I really wanted an excuse to have another piece of that cake!

Good thing I saved myself a slice because by the end of the activity they'd been devoured.

At 8:00 I snuck away to join Camille's Instagram Live for her mission call opening.

I nearly fell off my chair when she got called to Hermosillo, Mexico!

We're getting together for Sunday dinner and Chris is going to tell her

everything she needs to know!