Spiritual Exploration
From the Director, Tatum Barnes
Tatum Barnes
April 2025
As we move through spring and toward the end of the church year, I’m feeling truly encouraged by the energy and participation in our Spiritual Exploration program. We continue to grow in numbers and depth.
Attendance and Community: We now have a core group of 9 to 10 children and youth who attend Sunday School regularly, with another 6 to 8 who join more occasionally. I’m very pleased with these numbers and the consistency of engagement. The community that’s forming among the kids—and between kids and adult volunteers—is one of curiosity, care, and shared joy.
Program Updates: Our Parents as Sexuality Educators workshop series is currently on pause, but I’m hopeful we’ll resume in May. This offering continues to be of interest to many caregivers, and I’m excited to keep building out this important piece of our family ministry.
Youth-Led Service: The highlight of this month was undoubtedly the Youth Service. What a success! Kids shared their talents as musicians, artists, and comedians—much to the delight of the entire congregation. It was a big moment for them to stay upstairs and lead in such a visible way, and they rose to the occasion beautifully. The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive.
It was a joy for me personally to offer a reflection that resonated with folks across the age spectrum. Many adults shared afterward that it felt especially meaningful to witness our young people contributing so authentically to worship.
Given the energy and connection this service created, I strongly recommend we move toward three intergenerational services a year, plus Christmas Eve. These services are fun, powerful, and a natural expression of our values—bringing all generations together in shared spiritual experience.
Looking Ahead: As we wrap up the program/school year, I’m excited to maintain our momentum while preparing for summer and next fall. With our growing group of children, we’ll also be continuing work on strengthening our volunteer systems to ensure sustainability and shared leadership.
Thank you for your continued support of this vibrant and growing ministry.
March 2025
1. Returning to Routine After Winter Disruptions
After a February filled with snowstorms and interruptions, it has been refreshing to get back into a steady rhythm of instruction. The consistency has been beneficial for both the kids and the overall program, allowing us to regain momentum and build on our progress.
2. Classroom Enhancements & Engagement
The addition of new room materials—including wiggle stools, fidgets, and a whiteboard—has made a noticeable impact on the engagement levels of our youth. These tools help accommodate different learning styles, increase participation, and create a more interactive environment for both students and teachers.
3. Steady Growth in Attendance
Our youth program continues to see strong and consistent attendance. It is now rare to have a class with fewer than six children, a positive indication of the program’s growing appeal and importance to families.
4. Preparing for the April 6th Youth Service
Looking ahead, our biggest focus is preparing for the April 6th youth-led service. The goal is to feature contributions from our youth in the form of music, poetry, and other creative expressions. This service will be an opportunity for them to share their voices and talents with the wider congregation. We are encouraging participation and supporting the kids as they develop their ideas.
5. Strengthening Our Community of Families
With these developments, our youth program is in a strong and promising place. The combination of new resources, rising engagement, and meaningful opportunities for youth leadership is helping to deepen connections and create an enriching environment for all.
I look forward to the continued growth of our program and the exciting work ahead!
September 2024
Dear Families, What a joy it has been to serve as the Director of Spiritual Exploration over the last year! I’ve been privileged to build upon the strong foundation of previous teachers at North Chapel, and I’m proud to witness a thriving, authentic community of young people.
A brief introduction for the friends I’ve not yet met: I’m Tatum Barnes - a New Yorker by birth and New Englander by temperament. I live in Pomfret with my wife Taylor and son Rafael, and can often be found bird-watching. skiing, performing improv comedy, and playing dungeons & dragons.
I graduated from Williams College with a bachelor's degree in psychology, and from Teacher's College with a Master's degree in the psychology of education. My master’s program was formally called the Spirituality Mind Body Institute - dedicated to the study of the intersection of science and spirituality - and I focused my research on mindfulness in schools.
I’ve been a life-long youth worker, working as a camp counselor, tutor, mentor, classroom teacher, and meditation facilitator. My full-time work is with the Hartford Parks and Recreation Department, where I run their afterschool programming as well as vacation camps. I affirm a holistic education that honors breath, body, and heart - one that focuses on social justice, social emotional learning, and character development.
SE class with me features a time to check-in, stretch our bodies, focus our minds, and maybe share a story. We skip stones, plant seeds, and play silly games. We welcome all children, young and old, sleepy and rambunctious. If you have questions about Spiritual Exploration, or want to connect further, please don’t hesitate to reach out at Tatumali1030@gmail.com, or 646-675-9232.
I hope to see you soon,
Tatum Barnes
Sign-up to be a Classroom Helper on Sundays
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4DACAF22A0FFC61-51458884-upcoming#/
This is a new calendar for 2025.
September 2023
Spiritual Exploration Leadership Changes
The Board was happy to announce that they have hired Tatum Barnes as the new Director of Spiritual Exploration.
He will bring the children to the SE classroom on Sundays during the service.
We all thank Monica for filling in over the last months.
She wrote:
Dear North Chapel Community,
Thank you so much for welcoming me as a part of your community and giving me the opportunity to work with, play with and laugh with our youngest friends here. It has been an honor to serve the North Chapel youth!
Lots of love, Monica
September 8, 2022
A Letter from Chloe Powell, Director of Spiritual Education
Dear Families,
It has been a pleasure to get to know the children and families of the North Chapel over the past year. This summer, many were away, but we had a lot of fun, mostly outdoors, learning and growing together-- growing our gardens! We had some competition to eat our food from the resident groundhogs on the property, but we have happy cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, zinnias, and even maple trees (ask Elliot about them) . When I was away a couple weeks, we had guest leader Adrian Tans, who many of the kids know from the Woodstock Library, who has been a great resource to me in finding books for our lessons.
This fall we’ll celebrate bounty and do some cooking projects together. We’ll do a focus on my favorite folktale “Stone Soup” in preparation for a play and stone soup celebration later in the season. This story teaches us the valuable lesson of sharing the little we have-- It is also story of improvising, and thinking outside the box.
If your kids are new to the program, or haven’t been in a long time, please come say hi before the service, so that we can make them more comfortable leaving with me. If you want to be in touch with me about attendance, my email is clovermont@gmail.com, and my cell number is 802-999-3391. It can be helpful to know who to expect for my planning purposes, however drop-ins and new friends are always a welcome surprise.
We hope to see you soon,
Chloe
OWL (Our Whole Lives) Grades 4-6 & 7-9
Our Whole Lives (OWL) is an age appropriate sexuality education curriculum that helps participants of all ages make informed and responsible decisions about their sexual health and behavior.
We hope to be offering OWL at North Chapel soon. Stay tuned.
