A Visioning Small Group under the leadership of Jim Karpoff is currently reviewing our mission, values, goals and developing strategies for meeting those goals by 2010. Our Vision Embracing our community with the love of Christ. Our Values This is how we are committed to live; We care about people. We are committed to being a welcoming and accepting community of faith. We respect one another as equal members of the body of Christ, each with different skills and abilities, and different but equal contributions. We celebrate hospitality in our community, through which people may continue their search and deepen their sense of the Spirit. We honour contributions to the shared mission of God and to the life of the world. We are committed to affirming the gifts of every person. The ministries of our church will be carried out by each person according to their spiritual gifts. We celebrate that everything we have is a gift from God. In gratitude we generously give from our abundance. We respond to the call of God toward the world's well-being. We are committed to being a servant community. We have a desire to make a difference; this is rooted in a faithful foundation with God and in God's mission in and for the world. We accept responsibility to foster, renew, participate, and celebrate this partnership with the divine. We are all learners and teachers. We are committed to be a safe and supportive place to question and explore faith. We embrace the sense of belonging and share our experiences along our human journey. We proclaim to be followers of Christ, who gather together to experience the sacred through gospel based teachings and a refreshing fountain of spiritual nourishment. Our Goals To reach out to welcome and integrate newcomers into our community of faith. To use a variety of approaches that address the spirituality of contemporary Christians in our worship, Christian development, fellowship and pastoral care for all ages. To support and enhance a music program that varies from the traditional to the modern. To serve the community through building use and counselling, as well as providing programs of support for the poor and the hungry. To continue to build community in Northwood United Church.