Nursery

Welcome To Our Nursery

We would like to welcome you to our church nursery. Our mission is to provide a safe, loving, and learning environment for your child so that you may have peace of mind while you worship and attend Sunday School. We have put certain policies in place to make your child's stay safe and happy. If you have any suggestions, please inform Laura Gingrich, Director of Children and Adult Ministries. Your input is valued.

Staff

Our nursery is staffed by several paid care givers and by volunteers. Parents are invited to participate in the caring and teaching of our children. Please contact Laura Gingrich to volunteer.

Schedule

Nursery services are available every Sunday morning from 7:30 a.m. until noon. For weekly worship services and other events, please click here for the current nursery schedule. 

Pictures of Infant Nursery (click on thumbnail for larger size)

Pictures of Pre-School Nursery (click on thumbnail for larger size)

Nursery And Pre-School Classes

During the Sunday School hour (9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m.), the nursery is divided into two groups:

• infants and toddlers

• 2-4 year old class

During the third worship service (11 a.m. until noon), the nursery is divided into two groups:

• infants and crawlers

• toddlers through preschoolers

Signing In

When bringing children to the nursery, the adult responsible for each child is asked to complete a 3-part sticker name tag. All children must have name tags on. These name tags provide us with very important information such as food allergies, location of parents and special needs. We also request that all parents remain in the reception area when picking up children. Nursery caregivers and the nursery charge person will be available to assist you. The back of the tag must be turned into the caregiver upon pick up, your child will then be released to you, by the caregiver, through the exit door.  In addition, only parents may pick-up the child unless otherwise stated at the time of drop off, and stickers still must be presented by the person picking up. Older siblings picking up must be at least age 12.

Please utilize the closet in the reception area for the children's’ coats. Please make sure all personal items such as diaper bags, bottles, and cups, are labeled with the child's name.

The safety and security of your children is paramount. Thank you for helping us make the nursery a fun and safe place for your children!

Vibrating Pagers

Pagers are available for your use, Please ask a nursery attendant.

Our Church is a Safe Sanctuary for Children

When Jesus told the masses to Let the children come to me, he set the standard for including children in our faith, our worship and our church.

Over the last few years, our church has adopted and implemented a Safe Sanctuary Program that takes large strides to make certain that our children are revered in the way Jesus intended, that coming to church is a happy occasion, and that the tragedies that have befallen children in other places of worship do not happen here. Under our new policy, which protects both children and vulnerable adults from abusive situations, we have taken steps to make certain that opportunities for such situations are minimized and that we have effective means in place for reporting and addressing suspected abuse, whether it should happen at church or during a church activity, or elsewhere.

Under our policy, there are heightened screening procedures for new and existing employees, as well as for volunteers who have regular contact with our children. These procedures include criminal background checks, child abuse history clearances and reference checks. Further, our standard practice for activities including children is that two adults are present at all times. Remember, the more volunteers we have serving the church, the easier it is to meet this standard! On those occasions where two adults cannot be present all the time, a second adult will be available and checking in on the group periodically.

If a volunteer or church employee receives a good faith report of abuse of a child, we have reporting processes in place that insure that the information gets reported to the pastors and to the authorities in a prompt manner that maintains the confidentiality of the child and the person accused while an investigation is completed. We are training our employees and volunteers about our Safe Sanctuary Program and trust that the result of our efforts will be an environment that helps our church and its many valued and trusted employees and volunteers to serve children in the manner Christ intended. Children are welcome at FUMC-Hershey!