Easy Enrichment Ideas: Thinking Outside The Green Gelatin Box

Walk To Zion program

2006-06-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

A great idea from Beverly Qualheim:
A few weeks ago while I was walking with a friend, she told me of a program they once did in their ward to get the sisters walking.I loved the sounds of it and would like to start something similar onthis list since this year marks the 150th anniversary of the Handcartcompanies crossing the plains to get to 'Zion'. They called it 'WALK TO ZION' and they literally walked near theirhomes or in their homes, the equivalent of how many miles the handcartcompanies walked, keeping track of their personal miles.

I looked up some info on the Mormon Handcart companies and found thefollowing stats:"Across Iowa they followed an existing road about 275 miles (443 km)to Council Bluffs following a route that is close to current U.S.Route 6. After crossing the Missouri River, they paused for a few daysat a Mormon outpost in Florence, Nebraska (modern-day Omaha) forrepairs, before beginning the remaining 1,030-mile (1,658 km) journeyalong the Mormon Trail to Salt Lake City."So they walked 1305 miles total.That's a lot of miles!

GOALS
I figure we can choose from 2 goals...
1) 'walk from Iowa' = 1305 miles'
2) 'walk from Florence Nebraska' = 1,030 miles

We are blessed, we can walk it at our leisure in better weatherconditions, we can go home after each walk, we can walk with goodclothing, sturdy shoes, water, food, A/C if we have a treadmill...We also have no time constraints like the pioneers did-- they had tomake it to SLC before the winter cold weathers set in. And yes, weare starting out even later than the Martin and Willie Handcartcompanies. They were the worst off of all the handcart companies. Many died along the way, from all the companies. We are not going todie... we are going to take better care of these wonderful bodies wehave been given.

Book Club ideas

2006-05-29T21:07:00.000-07:00

Here is a list of books that have been read by other Relief Society groups:

A Woman of Independent Means,, Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
All Over But the Shoutin’, Rick Bragg
American Girl series
As I Have Loved You, Kitty de Ruyter
At Home in Mitford, Jan Karon
Awakening, The, Kate Chopin
Bean Trees, The, Barbara Kingsolver
Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The, Barbara Robinson
Chosen, The, Chaim Potok
Christ Commission, The, Og Mandino
Christmas Box, The, Richard Paul Evans
Christy, Catherine Marshall
Civil Action, A., Jonathan Harr
Cold Mountain, Charles Frazier
Cold Sassy Tree, Olive Ann Burns
Count of Monte Cristo, The, Alexandre Dumas
Dandelion Wine, Ray Bradbury
Death of Ivan Llyich, Leo Tolstoy
Education of Little Tree, The, Forest Carter
Egg and I, The, Betty McDonald
Ella Enchanted, Gail Carson Levine
Enemy Women, Paulette Jiles
Ethan Frome, Edith Wharton
Follow the River, James Alexander Thom
Gap Creek, Robert Morgon
Girl with a Pearl Earring, Tracy Chevalier
Girl in Hyacinth Blue, Susan Vreeland
Giver, The, Lois Lowry
Good Earth, Pearl S. Buck
Hiding Place, The, Corrie Ten Boom
Holes, Louis Sachar
How Green Was My Valley, Richard Llewellyn
I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
Importance of Being Ernest, The, Oscar Wilde
Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte
Joy Luck Club, The, Amy Tan
Julie, Catherine Marshall
Lantern in Her Hand, A, Bess Streeter Aldrich
Life of Our Lord, The, Charles Dickens
Life and Death in Shanghai, Nien Cheng
Life of Pi, Yann Martel
Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The, C. S. Lewis
Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
Lost Horizon, James Hilton
Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl
Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare
Mutant Message from Down Under, Marlo Morgan
My Antonia, Willa Cather
Night, Elie Wiesel
O Pioneers!, Willa Cather
Optimist’s Daughter, The, Eudora Welty
Other Side of Heaven, The, John H. Groberg
Our Town, Thornton Wilder
Pearl, The, John Steinbeck
Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Prophecy Checklist: From the Apostasy to the Final Judgment, Norma Pyper Mitchell
Room with a View, A, E. M. Forrster
Running Out of Time, Margaret Peterson Haddix
Saint Maybe, Anne Tyler
Screwtape Letters, The, C. S. Lewis
Secret Life of Bees, The, Sue Monk Kidd
Shepherds Abiding, Jan Karon
Silas Marner, George Eliot
Story of the Other Wise Man, The, Henry Van Dyke
Tess of the d’Ubervilles, Thomas Hardy
Thousand Pieces of Gold, A, Ruthanne Lum McCunn
Timepiece, Richard Paul Evans
Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, The, Malcom Gladwell
Tisha, Robert Specht
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
Town Like Alice, A, Nevell Shute
Tree Grows in Brooklyn, A, Betty Smith
Trees, The, Conrad Richter
Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbitt
Tuesdays With Morrie, Mitch Albom
Turn of the Screw, The, Henry James
Two From Galilee, Marjorie Holmes
Watership Down, Richard Adams
Winter Wheat, Mildred Walker
Woman in White, Wilkie Collins
Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte
"Yellow Wallpaper" a short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
"Neighbor Rosicky," a short story by Willa Cather

Mother's Day

2006-04-27T11:34:00.000-07:00

This could be for a Sunday lesson, Enrichment Night or mid-week activity:
Our Relief Society went around and took pictures of every sister in the ward, serving in some way in their ordinary lives such as being a teacher, or in the nursery or being a mom, in their jobs etc. Then someone did a power point on a computer and put it to music. It was really neat and showed how we all serve in one way or another. They didn't tell us before hand what the pictures were for.

This year we're planning to have all the sisters from every auxiliary attend Relief Society on Mother's Day. We have a special lesson given by a member of our presidency and serve a light breakfast which the sister's absolutely love! The Bishopric and Elder's Quorum will help with the Primary and Young Women.
Last year about one month in advance we passed out a survey (See below if you are interested) and read the stunning and funny results as the sisters ate. It was light-hearted but pertinent to the sisters. The survey reflected all that they have done throughout their collective lifetimes---so fun for them.
This year we aren't quite sure what we should do for the first 10-15 minutes as they eat. Something casual and fun yet not to detract from the Spirit that we come to expect from Relief Society. Guessing game, mystery box, old photos etc. Just anything like that. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated and could be used by several sisters.

Survey:
Just for Fun
How many nieces and nephews do you have?
How many children do you have?
How many diapers have you changed? (Give yourself an extra pat on the back for changing cloth diapers)!!!
How many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches have you made?
How many children in your family have been baptized?
How many family members have served a mission?
List one or more reason(s) you are thankful to be a "daughter" of Heavenly Father.

Activity Group ideas

2006-04-23T18:44:00.000-07:00

Here are some ideas for Activity Groups that might meet weekly or monthly:

Pamper night: nails, feet, massage
Burn baby burn: computers and cd's
Angels among us: working closely with DI on projects
Sweet as Pie: making pies, pastries, etc
Celestial sisters: attend temple once a month
Eat your Wheaties: Food storage, recipes, organization, etc
It's Dirty work but someone's gotta do it: Housecleaning, tips, organization
Articles of Faith: memorize, tips to help children memorize, learn songs that go with them
Beach party/Spring Break: volleyball and light foods
Hooked on Reading: Book club- read and discussion
Share n' tear: Scrapbooking Blooming bulbs: gardening and yard work
Munch and Mingle: get together for lunch either at church, someone's home, or progressive dinner
Unfinished projects corner: self explanatory!
Blanket Brigade: making quilts...bring your own or come help others
One Dish Wonders: crock pot cooking
Ensign to the Nation: read and discuss current Ensign
Knead to Know Basics: bread making, rolls, specialty breads, etc
Tatt-a-tatt-tatt: crochet handkerchief
Cultural Night: productions at local theaters like symphony, plays, etc
Girls night out: go to a movie, dinner, sports, whatever with just the girls
American Idol: work on a talent or learn a new one
Tic Toc: Time management
Beyond the Pedigree Chart: writing your life history
Beauty shop Quartet: learn to sing or play an instrument
"me" time: What are my needs and how to make time for them
Quilting Bee
Park Pals - meet at parks with little ones to play while moms visit
Stroller stride - walk together while pushing the stroller

New Enrichment changes

2006-01-09T09:35:00.000-08:00

Hi girls!
With all of the new changes in the Enrichment guidelines, sisters are now more confused than ever. Be sure to check out the book "Easy Enrichment Ideas: Thinking Outside the Green Gelatin Box" for ideas and guidelines. You can also take a peek at www.boicebox.com

Survey the Sisters

2005-12-06T16:58:00.000-08:00

The Church has a great survey that is available through the Distribution Center. The catalog number is 33812000 and the cost is great - FREE.

Enrichment Stickers on calendar

2005-11-09T07:34:00.000-08:00

Provide stickers of the Relief Society logo for the sisters to put on their calendars. Include this poem to remind sisters Enrichment Night is only 4 times a year (starting 2006).

ENRICHMENT STICKERS
Dear sisters of Relief Society a message comes out to you
Make the most of Enrichment now there are so very few,
They will be full of laughter, learning and maybe a song,
To be too busy to miss them would be so very wrong,
So here are four stickers to remind you well ahead in time
To attend these meetings they will help you to ever climb
Heavenward as love and learning you may surely gain,
So place the stickers in view to remind you again and again.

(Millicent) Ann Margetson 8 November 2005

Limited Projects

2005-10-15T15:55:00.000-07:00

With the new changes in Enrichment Night, Relief Societies will now be able to do some things they previously were unable to. For example, if you'd like to have a parenting class you could invite only the sisters who have children without being worried that single sisters would feel uncomfortable in such a class.

How about having gatherings for sisters who want to complete a particular project, such as a Quiet book? It would be impossible to complete a Quiet Book in just one Enrichment Night setting, however, now you could get together once a week until the books were completed (or whatever schedule works best for the sisters). The group could then go on to make other projects or simply dissolve when the project is complete.

You could hold project meetings for limited times in order to complete any of the following ideas:
* Temple clothes for the ward & stake
* Family Home Evening packets
* Quiet books
* Quilts for new college students
* Humanitarian packets for a particular disaster (Katrina, Rita, Guatemala floods, etc)
* Doll clothing
* Matching t-shirts for family reunions
* Christmas decorations or gifts
* Sew clothing for adults or children
* Gardening
* Building food storage shelving
and more! The list is endless!

Monthly activities

2005-10-14T13:50:00.000-07:00

“Lunch Bunch”
Once a month sisters could meet for lunch at a local restaurant that is on the less
expensive side of dining. You could also gather for lunch in a different sister’s
home for a monthly potluck lunch. Sisters might find it fun to bring a brown
bag lunch and meet at different parks around town to get to know the area better.

”Park Pals”
Sisters with young children meet at the park weekly or even just once a month.
You could turn the gathering into a breakfast or lunchtime meal or just meet for
fun for an hour.

“Sweatin Sisters”
Sisters can meet at the church or someone’s house to exercise together. They
can bring different exercise videos or teach one another different routines.
During summer months they could meet at someone’s pool for water aerobics!

“Walk and Talk Club”
Sisters who are interesting in walking for exercise could meet at a designated
location and do it together.

“Your Neck Of The Woods”
Sisters and their children could plan field trips together to learn more about the
sites and history in their area. They could even get group discount tickets if
they want to go to a fun place that charges for admission.

“Culture Club”
This group of sisters could attend movies, theatre, museum lectures, etc. They
could receive group discounts and share carpools and babysitting.

“Family Home Evening Packets”
Sisters who want to share efforts in creating visual aids and fun ideas for family
home evening could meet together to work on their projects or have a luncheon
where they exchange packets they’ve already worked on for each other.

Relief Society birthday commemoration ideas

2005-10-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

History of Relief Society
Have someone give a special presentation about the history of the Relief Society
in the Church or just in your specific area. Memorabilia and old photos could be
displayed.

Relief Society Yearbook
Begin a Relief Society scrapbook for your ward. Begin taking pictures at each
month’s meeting that demonstrate what activities and lessons were presented.
Take pictures of each of the sisters in your ward and have them write their
testimony about Relief Society on a separate page. Each month there could be a
scrapbook table set out so sisters could create pages from last month’s photos and
momentos.

Relief Society Presidents
Learn about all of the former General Relief Society Presidents. Have your
ward’s Relief Society presidency share a little about themselves to get to know
them better. You could also share the history of Relief Society leaders in your
ward over the years.

Relief Society blessings
Invite a panel of speakers to share how their lives have been blessed by Relief
Society. Panel members could include brethren and children, as well as sisters in
your ward.

Dinner
Have the young men dress up as waitress, complete with folded towel over their
arms, and serve the sisters a special dinner. Brethren from the ward could baby-
sit children and provide entertainment while the sisters eat. If you have some
really talented musicians in your ward it would be fun to have a strolling violinist
or Barbershop Quartet perform from table to table.

Celebrate Sisterhood
Play a lot of icebreaker games where the sisters can really get to know each
other. A fun game is when each sister writes on a slip of paper something she has
done in her life that is unique. All of the papers are gathered and then read aloud
while the group tries to guess who did that thing. The same type of information
could be gathered ahead of time and written down on one sheet of paper that each
sister is given. She has to write down the name of the person she thinks did that
thing and the sister who can guess the most correct answers wins a little prize.

Get To Know You
Have sisters bring 3 items that describe themselves, their talents, or hobbies. Items could be set out on a table and sisters would have to guess who brought them and then each woman would take a couple of minutes to identify her objects and talk a little bit about herself. You could also play “The Bean Game”:
Everyone sits in a circle and is given a certain number of beans (or whatever
item you want to use). Each sister takes a turn telling the group something she
has never done in her life that she thinks everyone else in the group has done.
Examples could include: I have never said a bad word, I have never watched the
movie ET, I have never been to SLC, etc. The sisters who HAVE done that
thing then have to throw one of their beans into the center pot. If they have NOT
done that thing then they get to keep their beans untouched. The winner is
the sister who has the most beans at the end of the game.

Quiz Show
Turn any popular TV Game show into a Relief Society version. Use questions
and answers about Church history, former General and local Relief Society
Presidents, ward trivia, scripture characters, and interesting tidbits about your
own sisters. Tape record the music from TV to play so everyone really gets into
the spirit of the game. Fun TV game shows that work really well are Jeopardy,
Hollywood Squares, Wheel of Fortune and Who Wants to Be A Millionaire,
$10,000 Pyramid.

“Mormon Bar”
Here is a bar the sisters can actually go in to…For refreshments set out a long table with all kinds of toppings for a Taco Bar, Potato Bar, or Ice Cream Sundae Bar.

Pajama Party
Have sisters wear modest pajamas and lounge wear and enjoy a fun evening of girl talk, makeup tips, doing each other’s hair, bedroom decorating tips, junk food munchies, and even a few innocent games where you wrap each other in toilet paper like mummies or freeze a token bra for old times sake.

“Relief Society is Priceless”
Each table has a decorated jar full of pennies. Sisters take turns picking a penny
and then they have to tell something about themselves that happened during that
year. If the date is before she was born she has to pick another penny.

Jelly Beans
This is a cute theme to use if Easter occurs near your birthday party. Each sister
picks a jellybean when she enters the room. The color of her jellybean
determines which table she will sit at. Tables should be decorated with color-
coordinated tablecloths or centerpieces.

“Garden Party”
Decorate with flowers, baskets, garden tools, picket fences, clay pots and more
flowers! You could serve different kinds of salads or do a big Salad Bar. You
could offer a service project by saying “Dig In. There’s Work to do!” Have
Primary children sing “Little Purple Pansies”.

Carnival
Have booths where sisters have to complete tasks or games to earn prizes. Fun
and simple tasks might include answering a Relief Society history quiz,
remembering past Enrichment Night activities, Name that Face game using
pictures of sisters in your ward, matching temples with locations, or you could
even have the sisters come up with clever missionary door approaches to earn
prizes. Use gospel twists to traditional carnival games like Ring Toss, Bowling,
Bean Bag toss, fishing for a prize. Sisters are given tickets to spend at booths
and “buy” refreshments.

Day of service
Get back to the basics when Relief Society was first organized by the Prophet
Joseph and sisters were called to serve and meet the needs of the poor. Have
sisters spend as many hours as they can during a designated day to work on
designated service projects.

“A Lamp Unto Your Feet”
Do a special presentation about the parable of the Ten Virgins. Decorate with
small clay lamps. Talk about what sisters need to be and do to join the five wise
virgins in being prepared for the Bridegroom’s second coming.

“Leading Families To Christ”
Center your theme around Sherri L. Dew’s statement “We no longer have the
luxury of spending our energy on anything that does not lead us and our
families to Christ.” Discuss ways sisters can focus more on Christ in their
homes with their families.

Valiant Sisters
Share stories and examples of good LDS women in history as well as in the scriptures.

Christmas Enrichment ideas

2005-10-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

Gift Swap
A few weeks before Enrichment Night pass out brown lunch sacks to all of the
sisters to decorate at home. Sisters will then fill their bag with whatever gifts she
would like to give. At Enrichment Night every sister who brings a filled,
decorated bag then gets to select another bag to take home. Every bag will be
different so its contents will be a fun surprise. The giver remains anonymous
unless you want each sister to include a little note inside with a special Christmas
message that identifies who she is. You might want to suggest a maximum
budget to be spent on the contents.

“Secret Sisters”
One month before the Christmas Relief Society Enrichment party have the
sisters pick each other’s names out of a hat to determine who will be a “Secret
Sister” for whom. During the next few weeks the sisters can do all kinds of
anonymous service and make little gifts for the sister whose name she picked out
of the hat. You may want to establish certain guidelines that limit the dollar
amount of spending to encourage sisters to be more creative and so it won’t be a
financial burden. At the Christmas party all of the Secret Sisters will reveal
themselves to each other. Often times there will be sisters who go all out while
other sisters don’t do very much. Be sure that it is a voluntary experience so that
only the sisters who really get excited about this idea will participate, while
others who don’t want to do it can gracefully slip out.

“Calendar Creator”
Give each sister a collection of 12 Relief Society stickers for her to put on her
calendars for the new year to remind them what dates Enrichment Night
will be held.

“Keeping Christ in Christmas”
In all your preparations for the holidays, help sisters focus on the birth of Christ and the reason for the season. Share ideas on how to help children focus on Christ and center Christmas Eve and Christmas Day activities around the Savior. Make costumes for families to recreate the Nativity story in the scriptures.

Christmas Cards
Share ideas on great Christmas cards the sisters can make that center on the Savior and their families. Collect old Christmas cards and mail the front to St. Jude’s Ranch. They remake them, and use the profits to help sick children. This can also be a great project to start in January.

Bookmarks
Distribute appealing bookmarks for the sisters’ Relief Society manual. The
bookmark could have the Relief Society statement on it or the dates and themes
for next year’s Enrichment Nights or even a list of next year’s Sundays with
which lesson will be taught that day.

Progressive dinner
If your ward boundaries include your church building you could either begin or
end at the building. Hopefully you’ll get lucky and find some sisters who live
within walking distance to one another so you can have sisters walk to each house
after each course. You can have separate houses for hors‘deourves, soup, salad,
entrée, and dessert. You may want to limit house visits to just three homes if
they’re located farther away. If none of the sisters live close enough to each other
to make it practical you could host a traveling dinner by using and decorating
different rooms in your church building.

Ornament exchange
Find out ahead of time how many sisters would like to participate in this project.
Everyone makes the same number of home-made ornaments and then exchanges
them with the others in the group. Have sisters share favorite Christmas
memories or talk about any sentimental value they have with certain ornaments.

“Christmas Around the World”
Focus on international décor, food, music and learning. Have returned missionaries
tell about the foreign country where they served, and display items. Don’t forget to
include the United States!

Caroling
Choose several homes or neighborhoods your sisters could visit together and sing a selection of Christmas carols. Bring plates of cookies to give away and have everyone wear Christmas colored clothing and Santa hats. Give copies of music selections so the sisters can take them home and plan a caroling evening with their families in their own neighborhoods.

“It’s The Thought That Counts”
Offer a fun workshop full of min-classes on how to make attractive gift baskets, cookie bouquets, inexpensive gift ideas, gifts from the kitchen, card making, gifts children can make, how to ship presents so they don’t break in the mail, home-made wrapping paper ideas, how to teach children gratitude, and thank you card ideas. Be sure to offer a lesson that all sisters attend that encourages them to focus their holiday efforts on Christ.

More web site resources

2005-10-14T13:47:00.000-07:00

www.deseretbook.com/mormon-life

www.bevscountrycottage.com

www.twopeasinabucket.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&thread_id=770075

www.primaryetc.com/Rslink.html

www.nauvoo.com /ubb/forum/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=10;t=000034

www.suite101.com/links.cfm/15768

www.ldsteach.com

Yahoo groups:
sister-share
ldsmomsonline
Latter_Day_Saint_Women
Relief Society

Web site resources

2005-10-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

Be sure to use the Internet if you have access to it! Invite the sisters in your ward to share their e-mail addresses with you so you can send out monthly invitations and reminders. You could also provide links for them to go to learn more about topics that will be covered before or after Enrichment Night classes take place, as well as recipes for refreshments that were served. The following are some web site addresses where you can go to get some great ideas for your next Enrichment Night!

www.lds.org

www.homemakingcottage.com

www.mormonchic.com

www.womenfolk.com

www.of-worth.com/ea/homemaking.htm

www.promoms.org/activitease.htm

www.ldsfiles.com

www.geocities.com/perudol1/hm.htm

www.geocities.com/karielt/

http://members.tripod.com/laugh_lines/activitease/year.htm

http://organizedhome.com

www.meridianmagazine.com

www.bellaonline.com

www.lds-living.com

www.mormon.org

www.providentliving.com

www.homeandholidays.com

http://lds.about.com/library

www.dramashare.org/scripts/

http://wiwi.essortment.com/homefamilyper_rlvf.htm

www.ineedmoretime.com

www.michaels.com

www.joann.com

www.hometime.com

www.tightwad.com

www.fractured.net/

www.mothersandmore.org

www.mcphie.org/enrichment

www.americanmothers.org

www.powerhomebiz.com/leadership/personal.htm

www.momscape.com

www.lds.npl.com

www.mormon.org

www.ldstoday.com

www.lds-index.org

www.ldsworld.com

www.ldsliving.com

www.ldsfriends.com

www.ldssplash.com

www.christysclipart.com

www.mormonmomma.com

More monthly traditions

2005-10-14T13:45:00.000-07:00

Get To Know You Table
Invite all of the new sisters to bring a few items to put on a table that describe
themselves and their interests so that all of the other sisters can get to know them
a little better.

Visiting Teaching Interviews
Have the Relief Society presidency and Visiting Teaching Supervisors meet with
sisters to discuss needs in the ward and any changes in Visiting Teaching
companionships.

Carpool Award
Everyone who drives to Enrichment Night with other sisters gets a little prize.
Carpooling encourages sisters to bond, invite and remind each other every
month, in addition to saving gas money and the environment!

“Lunch Bunch”
Once a month sisters could meet for lunch at a local restaurant that is on the less
expensive side of dining. You could also gather for lunch in a different sister’s
home for a monthly potluck lunch. Sisters might find it fun to bring a brown
bag lunch and meet at different parks around town to get to know the area better.

”Park Pals”
Sisters with young children meet at the park weekly or even just once a month.
You could turn the gathering into a breakfast or lunchtime meal or just meet for
fun for an hour.

“Sweatin Sisters”
Sisters can meet at the church or someone’s house to exercise together. They
can bring different exercise videos or teach one another different routines.
During summer months they could meet at someone’s pool for water aerobics!

“Walk and Talk Club”
Sisters who are interesting in walking for exercise could meet at a designated
location and do it together.

“Your Neck Of The Woods”
Sisters and their children could plan field trips together to learn more about the
sites and history in their area. They could even get group discount tickets if
they want to go to a fun place that charges for admission.

“We Are Daughters”
Offer prizes to sisters who can recite from memory the Relief Society Statement.
Practice saying it aloud either every Sunday or once a month at Enrichment
Night.

“Culture Club”
This group of sisters could attend movies, theatre, museum lectures, etc. They
could receive group discounts and share carpools and babysitting.

“Family Home Evening Packets”
Sisters who want to share efforts in creating visual aids and fun ideas for family
home evening could meet together to work on their projects or have a luncheon
where they exchange packets they’ve already worked on for each other.

Monthly traditions

2005-10-14T13:44:00.000-07:00

New To You Table
Set out a table where sisters can bring any of their unwanted items from home and anyone is free to take whatever they want. Whatever items still remain at the end of the night can be delivered to Goodwill or Deseret Industries or any other donation organization of your choosing. You could also deliver items to your local Spanish or Vietnamese branch (or whatever special needs branch you have in your area). You can have sisters bring random items each month or designate a different theme each month such as kitchen items, toiletries, children’s items, clothing, etc.

“S.O.S Table”
S.O.S stands for Seek Out Service. Each month one or two organizations are
spotlighted so sisters can get ideas for service projects they can get involved in
with their families or individually. This is an opportunity to introduce the sisters
to ways they can become more involved in their community and reach out to
others. You can leave pamphlets or flyers on the table that provide more
information with a contact phone number so the sisters can follow through with
their interest. You could have one sister make a short presentation each month or
simply provide the information on the table so sisters can pick it up some time
during Enrichment Night. Organizations you might want to introduce to sisters
could include: American Kidney Foundation, Second Harvest, American Cancer
Society, local nursing homes they can visit or perform in, local hospitals they can
volunteer in, etc.

FHE packet
It would be great to provide a complete Family Home Evening lesson for sisters
who are interested in help with ideas. A packet could be offered for a small cost
or sisters could take turns providing copies for each other if the Relief Society
budget doesn’t allow for copying expenses. A packet could include visual aids, a
recipe, songs that coordinate with the selected theme, and even a refrigerator
magnet with the scripture for the week!

“Quilting Corner”
It would be fun to have a quilt set up somewhere each month that the sisters could
work on while they visit with one another. Quilts could be ongoing projects, made
as gifts from the Relief Society for new babies, graduating seniors, new brides or
sisters in need. Sisters could be encouraged to work for a few minutes each month
on the quilt or the Quilt Corner could be an ongoing class offered each month to
sisters who might not be interested in the other classes but still want to attend
Enrichment Night and enjoy the sisterhood.

“Unfinished Projects Corner”
Some sisters just aren’t interested in attending classes but love to sit and chat
with their friends during Enrichment Night. The Unfinished Projects Corner
allows them that opportunity while keeping their fingers busy. Sisters could be
encouraged to bring old craft projects from home that they never finished from
previous Enrichment Nights or even miscellaneous mending they never get
around to doing. Craft and sewing supplies are provided and sisters can work
while they visit with one another.

Relief Society Scrapbook
A sister could be assigned to take pictures each month during Enrichment Night that highlights the classes and activities that are offered. A table could be set up where the sisters could help create scrapbook pages using the photos from previous months. Supplies could be set out on the table and sisters could be encouraged to spend a few minutes working on the pages. This could also be a class offered each month or every few months. Sisters can enjoy each others’ company while they use their imagination to create a memorable scrapbook for the Relief Society to enjoy.

Relief Society Photo Directory
Someone could be assigned to take pictures of any new sisters who have moved in during the last month. Digital cameras make putting together a photo directory a snap! An updated directory could be printed every six months or so. The directory could include phone numbers and addresses of the sisters as well as hours for the closest temple and Family History Center.

Door Prizes
Door prizes are fun to use to help solve any problems you might be having with Enrichment Night and to reward positive behavior. For example, if your sisters have a tendency to straggle in late every month you could award door prizes to all the sisters who are there on time. If you want to encourage missionary work with your Relief Society you could offer a little prize to each sister who brings a friend each month. Door prizes could also be offered randomly to add a little excitement for the evening. Prizes don’t have to cost much and can even be donated by local vendors. All you have to do is ask!

The Babysitter’s Club
A wonderful tradition is to have the brethren in your ward take turns helping out with the babysitting during Enrichment Night. You could award each brother that serves a little button or certificate that makes him an honorary member of the Babysitter’s Club. Some time during the year you could even host a little party in honor of all the men who have become members of this prestigious club.

Book of Mormon Challenge
Each month the sisters could be challenged to share a Book of Mormon with a non-member friend. One sister could be selected to give a short report on her experience at the next Enrichment Night.

Sister Spotlight
Each month a different sister is spotlighted and given a little gift. She stands in front of the group while someone tells all about her favorite things, her accomplishments and talents, and why she is so special in the Relief Society. You could also tell the group all about her and have the sisters guess who they think it is and then present her to the group.

Friendship Basket
A friendship basket could be filled and presented each month to a sister whose name has been drawn out of a hat. The recipient then brings the basket filled with new items for the next month’s Enrichment Night. The basket could contain random gift items or things that are selected according to a theme such as coordinating with that month’s Enrichment Night Theme, Relief Society items, or things that describe the giver and her interests so that the sisters can get to know each other a little better. The basket should not be a financial burden, but an opportunity to simply express friendship and sisterhood.

Birthday Cake
Enrichment Night refreshments each month might include a token birthday cake to be shared by those who are celebrating their birthday during that month.

Missionary Messages
A table could be set out each month with stationery, note cards, markers, etc. so
that the sisters could write letters of encouragement to the missionaries who are
serving from the ward. All of the letters could then be mailed either together in a
special care package from the Relief Society. Similar packages of cards and
letters could be mailed to any ward members serving in the military away from
home or college students away for the school year.

Recipe Book
Each month the recipes for the refreshments served that night could be given to
the sisters to add to their collection. A special binder or box could be given to all
of the sisters where they can keep all of the recipes together to remember each
Enrichment Night.

Walking Club
Sisters could be encouraged to exercise each month before Enrichment Night by
walking from a certain location to the chapel before the meeting begins.
Participation awards could be given in addition to lots of applause for their
healthy choices.

The Lighter Side
Refreshments that are served each month could include something terribly
decadent and then a “lighter” version of the same thing could be prepared to help
teach sisters how to cook with less fat and calories.

Tasters Table
Smaller portions of food could be presented so that sisters could taste a variety
of things without having to eat an entire piece. Food choices could go along
with the theme that is being presented that night.

Big Ideas

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These ideas are more for big events, perfect for a Stake function or for an Enrichment Board who isn't afraid of a little work (ok, a lot!)

* Women's Conference. Invite guest speakers to present short classes and workshops that the sisters in the stake can choose to attend. It can be modeled after the wonderful BYU Women's Conference held every spring. Choose a theme, offer decadent refreshments or provide a lunch or dinner. I have lived in Stakes where an entire Saturday is reserved for this kind of an event. The decorations and food were "knock your socks off" and each sister left feeling really special.

* "Salute to Sisters." Hold a special awards-type event where certain women are honored in your stake for the good they do in their community. You could even mix up the event by giving serious awards as well as some humorous/goofy ones.

* "Estrogen Extravaganza." This could be a fair with booths that provide all kinds of information about women's health, safety, aging, make-up, etc. Invite community health providers to participate in the expo by offering free cholesterol screenings, massages, spa treatments, etc. Throw in a fashion show, free babysitting, and some chocolate and you'll have the sisters running to this Enrichment activity!

* "Concerted Effort." Throw a concert with your ward or stake musicians. No talent? Then invite all the sisters to attend a concert. Most communities have free concerts in parks during the summer months or you could get discount tickets for large groups.