Church challenge
In the past, volunteers and staff members at churches who wanted to work with children were eagerly welcomed. But in this era of increased awareness of child abuse, whether it’s physical or sexual, churches find themselves being a lot more cautious.
“It’s a whole new generation and a whole new day,” said the Rev. David Droegemueller of Christ Lutheran Church. “Years ago anyone who was a member of our group you would trust implicitly. You can’t do that anymore.”
It’s not as though there are floods of potential youth pastors. It takes a special kind of person to work with children, running everything from Bible study classes to pool parties.
The Lutheran Church has been focused on developing church pastors rather than specialized youth pastors in the past, Droegemueller said. “We are just beginning in our church to develop curriculum and tracks for people to become youth ministers. Traditionally, youth ministers have been poverty paid. They have been paid so far below what we would call a living wage.”
Christ Lutheran teamed up with two other Valley Lutheran Churches so they could pool their money and hire a youth minister at a living wage. That person recently left, and the churches have to start a new search.
“You’re looking for somebody with some passion, with some charisma, with some fire. They have to have some fire in their belly.”
Spokane Valley Nazarene recently hired a new youth director. He is someone known to Senior Pastor Ian Robertson, but the man still had to go through the process. There’s an extensive interview and references are checked. While most churches do Washington State Patrol background checks on all staff members and volunteers, Valley Nazarene is unusual in that it does a nationwide background check.
A WSP background check will list only convictions that occurred in Washington state, said WSP identification and criminal history section manager Toni Korneder. Reports also will list arrests that occurred only in the last year. If a person has just been arrested more than a year earlier or charged with a crime but not convicted, it won’t show up.
The WSP criminal database doesn’t include information on convictions from other states or the federal government, Korneder said. If a person is required to register as a sex offender, that will be listed in the report.
Droegemueller said his church formed a committee to choose its most recent youth pastor. In addition to the WSP background check there was a pointed interview. “Questions can be geared to ask about how they interact with kids,” he said. Potential hires are asked to explain what they would do in various hypothetical situations. And if something doesn’t quite sound right, Droegemueller won’t take any chances.
Pastors dislike having to be wary of potential employees and volunteers. “We live in a suspicious day and age,” said the Rev. Steve Wilson, Valley Nazarene’s executive pastor.
Guaranteeing the safety of children has permeated the very building that houses Valley Nazarene. When the church at 20th and Sullivan was built a few years ago, it was deliberately designed to have a window in the door of every office and classroom. And even though the church has a heavily used gym, there are no showers.
The church developed a written caregiver policy in 1995. It spells out the background check policy and who may or may not work with kids. Adults who work with children must work in teams of at least two so no adult is left alone with a child.
“You have to have a policy in place,” Wilson said. “We wanted to be proactive.
“We want to be engaging and loving to everyone in this Valley. There are proper and improper ways of doing that.”
Millwood Presbyterian Church currently hires interns studying at Whitworth College to run its youth ministry, but would like to hire a youth director next year. While the church does background checks, the Rev. Craig Goodwin puts a lot of weight on hiring people known to him. “It helps to have some personal connections,” he said. “I look for stability, maturity, education. There’s a lot of working with parents and families along with working with kids. It takes a special mix of gifts to do all those things.”
Goodwin is aware that background checks have their flaws. “That’s why history and background and references are so important. There are no guarantees.”
Despite all the pains churches go through to make sure children are safe, unsavory characters still slip through. All anyone can do is try their best to protect children with the policies in place, said Droegemueller.
“It’s not a perfect world. Now we’re all on guard and we have to be. Is it probable? Probably not. Is it possible? Yes it is.”