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Guest Post by Tory

One of our volunteers at The Landing was telling me about how she keeps in touch with her small group (even some who have moved on) through Facebook. She’s having great success and being very effective with this so I asked her to write a guest post. Here’s what she wrote:

Keeping connected through Facebook

So I was thinking of how I can keep connected with my Jr. High girl’s small group and make sure they can connect with each other through Facebook. Many of my girls have friended me and some that have only attended The Landing once have added me as well. In order to keep confidentiality with the girls, I created a closed and secret group on Facebook.

In the group I have all the girls who are in my group now and others who occasionally come. In the group, I posted a message that explains that:

  • They are a part of a closed group and no one can read the posts except whoever is in the group
  • The group can be used for sharing or prayer requests
  • At any time the girls can unsubscribe to the group

The really cool thing that happened once I created the group was that the girls started to connect with each other right away… even though some had only met one time. I also had a girl who attended the group and then was sent to live in Arizona; she was really excited to be a part of the group even though she could not attend the Landing.

This one tool has made it really convenient for me to communicate with everyone all at once. I make announcements about different events that are coming up or make specific requests.

I am sure many leaders are friends with their students on Facebook. One thing that I find very important is the confidentiality issue. I want to make sure that my girls know I am safe and that I am not going to take whatever I see on Facebook and judge or start pointing the finger. I view this privilege of being their friend as another way I can show them that they can have a safe place online when they are not at The Landing.

In addition, I try to add anyone who joins my small group if they are willing to friend me. I notice that if they never come back I can still keep them connected online and keep the option open for them to come back to the group. This is a great way to expand our ministry to reaching Jr. High and High school students who need a safe place. We all are busy and have many demands, but our connections to our students outside of The Landing can make all difference.

Be sure to “like” The Landing page on Facebook. We’re building a community of leaders from all over to share ideas.


Bio Hi, I’m Tory and I lead the Jr. High girls for The Landing. I started leading in January of this year at the launch of The Landing at Saddleback Church. I am so excited to be a part of this great ministry. Before becoming a leader I had been attending Celebrate Recovery for over a year and had just completed a step study. I think I was the only brave soul who wanted to lead the Jr. High girls! I can honestly say Jr. Highers are the best! It’s been a wonderful blessing to be a part of God’s plan in changing the lives of our students. God Bless.