the times they are a changin'

Last week at ThirdPlace, we welcomed the incoming freshmen with Red Carpet Night, and we are happy to announce that extended summer hours begin next week for high school youth group.

For those that don’t know, the concept (and name) of ThirdPlace was born around this time two years ago, when Pastor Shad was leaving, and the Culton family had not yet arrived. Knowing that a leadership gap was imminent, the high school staff started exploring possibilites for the summer. We had fond memories of a tradition started years before by Mike Forrest called ‘Tuesday Night Sabbath’. Taking advantage of the longer hours available during the summer, Tuesday Night Sabbath would include dinner, extended hangout time, a message, and weekly communion. The focus was on recapturing what it really means to take a sabbath rest from our hectic lives, and students and staff have for years have enjoyed this wonderful way to fellowship together.

ThirdPlace has a similar mission. The term “third place” has been around for about 3 decades now:

The third place is a term used in the concept of community building to refer to social surroundings separate from the two usual social environments of home and the workplace. In his influential book The Great Good Place, Ray Oldenburg (1989, 1991) argues that third places are important for civil society, democracy, civic engagement, and establishing feelings of a sense of place.

Oldenburg calls one’s “first place” the home and those that one lives with. The “second place” is the workplace — where people may actually spend most of their time. Third places, then, are “anchors” of community life and facilitate and foster broader, more creative interaction. All societies already have informal meeting places; what is new in modern times is the intentionality of seeking them out as vital to current societal needs. Oldenburg suggests these hallmarks of a true “third place”: free or inexpensive; food and drink, while not essential, are important; highly accessible: proximate for many (walking distance); involve regulars – those who habitually congregate there; welcoming and comfortable; both new friends and old should be found there.

Thanks, Wikipedia!

During these next few months, we will have extended hours from 6 to 9. In addition to our usual message and worship time, we’ll have lots of extra time to hang out in big groups and small groups, in structured and spontaneous activities, and in one-on-one time with each other.

We will also be having dinner at ThirdPlace a few weeks this summer (dates TBD). If you are interested in helping to prepare or serve a meal, please let us know. If you and your family would like to join us for dinner, please feel free!

We look forward to getting to know all of the new teens and parents – and to building deeper relationships with the ones we already know and love. Hope to see you around this summer!