Who does the REAL Work at Serge?

Last week we were asked to spend a day at the Serving Center, aka Sending Center, aka Home Office, so that we could interact with the Board.  Our Board time was scheduled later in the afternoon, so we had most of the day to greet and meet with the nerve center of our organization.  Since I rarely see them, I thought there might be others out there who would like to put faces to names and get a glimpse of the work that keeps us all alive and well.

First, we met with Meredith, the Member Care leader, and Sandi, at their home.  Many of those who work in the SC live nearby, and Meredith was kind enough to meet with us in spite of being about to leave for a family funeral.  He has help from Sarah, Debbie, Dianne, and Elizabeth, but not ENOUGH help to be the one keeping his finger on the pulse of the well-being of so many workers.  We are a team-based structure, so the primary member care comes from the interactions on the team, as our friendships lend each other support.  But we're grateful that Meredith lends his wisdom and attention particularly in areas of great struggle and need.  I forgot to snap a photo . . . until we went to the office.

This is the entrance to our building:  professional with a floral touch.

 Up to the third floor, and down a hall . . .

  . . and into the door, where Ginny is the face of Serge.  Welcoming, charming, warm, gracious, and probably the person who most knows what in the world is going on.

 Karen and Clare (below left), along with Caitlyn (below right), are the women behind-the-scenes.  They juggle schedules and communication for Bob, Josiah, and Marc, the executive leadership team.  Everything we take for granted, they actually DO.

Anita is the face of Human Resources, meaning she handles all the health care benefits, answers questions, looks over documents, and that particular day was letting her office be a playroom for a visiting kid.  She has been our hero this week getting kids' surgical bills paid.

Patric leads GRN, our publishing and discipling arm, creating resources for discipleship and managing a team that gets the Gospel into people's hands. I caught sightings of Lindsey, Stu, and Jeff but wasn't quick enough with my camera to capture much of this team.

But we did catch Lynnette, who is the newest team member, and will be key in making the GRN resources available as she works to administer this department.



With our goal of nearly doubling in size by 2020, it is not surprising that Mobilization buzzes with activity, taking up most of one of the three corridors.  Matt, pictured below left with Stephanie, exudes creativity and wisdom and the kind of confidence and flexibility (notice him holding a meeting from on top of a filing cabinet) that makes one believe this COULD actually happen.  Stephanie is also one of the newer hires, yet another competent woman who is serving all of us well.

 

Chrissy is a supervisor in the Mobilization department, but was once on the Bundi team, and our area had also contributed Phil and Joanna (who are not pictured as they work from home) to Mobilization. 

Recruitment, growth, Board meetings, health care, communication . . . none of that would happen without Dwight and Jerry, the finance department.  Here they are sorting out some sticky situations with students and tuition that we have thrown their way too many times.  These guys have our back, literally, and they are so cheerful about all the work we cause them.   I missed seeing Charlotte, who spends countless hours on expense reports too.

Now for the three you probably THINK of in the Serving Center.  Josiah, Marc, and Bob were all pretty busy with the Board's visit.  They are the executive leadership who pray and pursue the mission and vision of our organization, and draw us all along.

And because it was the Board meeting day, let me also encourage us to thank our Board.  These men and women take their own time and energy to travel, to listen, to pore over reports, to hold us accountable.  The relationship between Bob and the Board is one of our greatest strengths.  It was our privilege to present the Africa Area report to them, representing our field.