Little Treasures and Mainly Music have been running at KingsGate in Kingston, for nearly 4 years, now, and we recently started another toddler music group in Ham, with KingsGate.
I think people see parent/carer – toddler groups as a part of the early years of parenting, and that when they send their children off to nursery or school, it’s not something that they need to go to any more. In theory, with my children being off at school and nursery, I could go back to working as a nurse. But I don’t want to.
When I left nursing, my daughter was 18 months old. I wanted to be with her more, and nursing and young children is not an easy mix to juggle. I felt a bit bereft, when I walked away from the job I loved, and was good at and had felt called to. When we started the toddler group, as a tiny group, meeting in a hired hall, it seemed like a fun thing to do, and gave me something to keep myself busy with.
Over the years, my passion has grown for this little ministry, reaching out to parents, families and carers of small children. I remember feeling very lonely, in the days when my babies were small, and sometimes local parent/playgroups could be very unwelcoming or not very pleasant to visit. When the church moved to Kingston, I realised how little there was locally, for families, other than the overstretched children’s centres, or very expensive soft play areas, and because my passion is for families, and working with them, I felt that this might be a new calling for me. A way to interact with families, and provide a community and support.
It’s not a glamorous job. You are on your feet, running around, serving people, making tea, coffee, cleaning up mess (I have cleaned up unmentionable mess on many occasions) counting out rice cakes we serve as snacks to the children, prancing around waving hand puppets and singing nursery songs, dealing with issues and problems that arise, cleaning toys that frankly, can get very dirty and grubby, and picking raisins up off the floor. You are dealing with a lot of people, and small children, and it’s busy and demanding. Our team works very hard to provide a safe, welcoming and warm place for people. We want to show our love, and God’s love, in what we do. We don’t judge, or exclude people, and we smile and greet, most of us, with our own children in tow. Sometimes serving the public can be very tiring and a bit disheartening, if someone is difficult or unpleasant, but it happens rarely, and we support each other in those moments.
But it’s a calling. I am not an evangelist, or street preacher. The very thought terrifies me. But, I can talk to people, and I have a good memory for details, which helps me to serve and relate to them. Remembering the details of people’s lives helps to build trust and relationship. Being able to ask how someone’s mum is, during their treatment for cancer, chat about pregnancy details then celebrate with a proud but tired Dad, arriving with his toddler at the group, to share details of the new-born baby who’s pregnancy we have followed, asking about jobs, how kids are doing at new schools. It’s all small stuff, but it opens doors, and hearts.
When you chat to a mum, who has a child with special needs that means his behaviour is challenging, and she tells you that your group is the only group she can come to, because she doesn’t feel judged or unwelcome, and we help her with her son, and that she can talk to us, or families that have been coming regularly decide to come and visit the church service on Sunday, and like it so much they come back, or when a tired mum hands you her baby so she can sit down, and accepts a cup of tea, and your offer of prayer, and takes your number, you know it’s what you are meant to be doing and it is worth it. I believe God is opening hearts and providing a way of reaching out to families, with what we do, and we are seeing the fruit. As someone once told me, “you are not just another toddler group”, I believe that, and it spurs me on to serve and work to grow what we do.
________________________________________________________________
If you would like to contact Karen about getting involved with Little Treasures and Mainly Music, please email karen@kingsgatechurch.org.uk
