Tag Archive for: secretary

180 – April Showers: Office Worker Resources

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This week the WELSTech Podcast “April Shower” rains down all types of resources to make the church and school office run smoothly.

Our apologies for the audio quality during the last 10 minutes of today’s podcast.  We experienced technical difficulties with the recording.

Office Worker Resources

The discussion:

Raining resources for office workers – For this week’s “April Shower”, Martin and Sallie cover a long list of tools to assist the “nerve center” of the congregation and school, the office.

Ministry resources:

(35:55) Walther’s Law and Gospel is now available for Kindle

News in tech:

Contest winners:

(39:36) Concluding the Glo Bible giveaways on our personal blogs (martinspriggs.com and salliedraper.com), Martin and Sallie use random.org to pick winners.  Listen to find out if you are one of the newest Glo Bible owners.

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(47:41) FinalWeb Training in New Ulm, MN and Milwaukee, WI

  • FinalWeb for Teachers in New Ulm on June 27 and Milwaukee on August 1 – bit.ly/fw4teachers
  • FinalWeb for Dummies in New Ulm June 28-30 and Milwaukee August 2-4 – bit.ly/fw4dummies

Community feedback:

  • (48:11) A great list of links were shared via the WELSTech Diigo group:
  • WELSTech lives, but our redirects are misbehaving.  If you can’t reach WELSTech at our standard address – welstech.wels.net – find us at – blogs.wels.net/welstech.  We expect the redirect link will be working again very soon. Thanks for your patience!

Coming up on WELSTech:

(50:41) Episode 181 – The “April Showers” conclusion may turn into an April storm as Gail Potratz joins the discussion and we share a [gigantic] compilation list of teacher resources.  (Release date – 04/27/11)

The featured artist:

(51:30) We close the podcast with the music of  Branches Band (www.branchesband.com |Facebook) – Hosanna, Loud Hosanna from their “Sing, My Tongue” CD

 

Get involved:

175 – Office 2010

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This week on the WELSTech Podcast Microsoft Office and Staff Minister Dan Schoeffel share center stage.

The discussion:

Is your office a Microsoft Office? – Martin and Sallie discuss the “mature” Microsoft Office suite and share links to a robust list of support resources.

The interview:

Dan Schoeffel(16:08) Tech Solutions – Staff Minister Dan Schoeffel from St. Paul’s in Onalaska, WI talks with Martin and Sallie about the various hardware and software solutions that have been implemented in his congregation and school.  From scrolling announcements in the church narthex to innovative time keeping to wise stewardship of hardware, St. Paul’s has their tech bases covered.

Ministry resources:

(32:22) Free introductory online course from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary

News in tech:

(34:10) iPad 2 Reviews from Cnet

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(40:35) FinalWeb Training in New Ulm, MN and Milwaukee, WI

  • FinalWeb for Teachers in New Ulm on June 27 and Milwaukee on August 1 – bit.ly/fw4teachers
  • FinalWeb for Dummies in New Ulm June 28-30 and Milwaukee August 2-4 – bit.ly/fw4dummies

Community feedback:

  • (43:28) Judy Trunkel from St. John’s in Neilsville, WI asked for feedback on non-profit discount tech shopping site TechSoup.org.  Check out ShopWELS.net for discount tech pricing for WELS congregations, schools and individuals.
  • Adam Valleskey from Christ in Juneau, AK shared links to their online giving page powered by Vanco.  Adam also shared ideas for church sites on Facebook.
  • Via Twitter Jason Schmidt (Gethsemane in Omaha, NE) shared a link to his new classroom wiki page where 3rd and 4th grade students will be mapping Paul’s Missionary Journeys.
  • Over on the WELSTech Diigo Group Martin and Sallie shared links to …

Coming up on WELSTech:

(50:38) Episode 176 – Alan Nolte from Fox Valley Lutheran High School shares news of their upcoming STEM Academy, and we review techie aids for memorization. (Release date – 03/23/11)

The featured artist:

(51:21) We close the podcast with the instrumental music of In His Service (www.adagioconcepts.com) – I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say from their CD titled “In His Time”

Get involved:

167 – Files, Files, and more Files!

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On this episode of the WELSTech Podcast we explore many alternatives for file sharing in the church and school office.

The discussion:

NetworkManaging files in the Digital Age – Gone are the days of working solo on our pen and paper projects at the office. Now we want and need to be able to access our digital files from remote locations and easily share files with others for collaboration.  Martin and Sallie detail a variety of solutions for file sharing.

News in tech:

(16:23) iPhone coming to Verizon

Picks of the week:

  • (18:25) National Geographic Wallpapers for your Windows 7 (or any) desktop
  • Pogoplug

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(36:50) Episode 168 – Gail Potratz joins the conversation and shares an interview she recorded with Barry Britt from Soundzabound.com. (Release date 01/26/11)

The featured artist:

(37:15) We close the podcast with the music of  Branches Band (www.branchesband.com |Facebook) – Jerusalem the Golden from their “Light Eternal” CD

Get involved:

162 – GTD Meets the Church Office

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This week the WELSTech Podcast is all about Getting Things Done in the church and school office, and Staff Minister Jon Ruddat shares his productivity success story.

The discussion:

Office Productivity – Martin and Sallie share ideas for applying the personal Getting Things Done (GTD) productivity process to the church and school office using the 43 Folders technique and also ideas from Death by Meeting.

  • From the WELSTech Archives … The Art of Productivity

The interview:

Jon Ruddat(17:10) Star Student – Jon Ruddat, Staff Minister of Administration and Family Ministry at St. Matthew’s in Appleton, WI, was a past student in Martin’s Productivity Winterim session at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary.  He shares the highlights of implementing the GTD system and some of his “Mind Like Water” moments.

Click image to view larger

Before & After GTD – Click image to view larger

Ministry resources:

News in Tech:

(40:35) Google Chrome Web Store and Pilot Chrome OS Netbooks

  • Watch the Disposable Computer video

Picks of the week:

  • (43:55) Picnik for easy, creative image editor – Sample collage and slideshow
  • Cyberduck FTP – Now available for Windows

Christmas 2010 WELSTech Scavenger Hunt:

(49:38) Week 5 of our latest WELSTech contest is here, and we’ve hidden our “QR Code of the Week” somewhere on the WELSTech site.  Listen each week through December 15th as we reveal clues for finding 5 QR Codes which will point you to a mystery message. Following the December 15th show you can enter the mystery message for a chance to win a $25 Cafe Press gift certificate, where your WELSTech merchandise dreams can come true!  The winner will be selected from all correct entries and announced on our special Christmas week podcast airing December 22nd.

  • This week’s clue to the code location is … The Art of Productivity
  • Get the previous clues: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4
  • Remember, you can use your smartphone or an online decoder to decipher the message.  Have fun!

Solve the mystery message and enter the contest by 11:59 p.m. Monday, December 20, 2010 at

bit.ly/welstechcontest

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(1:07:50) Episode 163 – Christmas week arrives as we talk with Prof. Richard Gurgel about the WELS Continuing Education program, Grow in Grace, and we select our contest winner. (Release date 12/22/10)

The featured artist:

(1:08:55) We close the podcast with the music of Michael Schroeder (www.michaelschroeder.com and on Facebook) – The Reason for the Season from his CD also titled ”The Reason for the Season”

Get involved:

158 – Barcodes, Newsletters, and the NIV

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This week the WELSTech Podcast returns to the church and school office to look at newsletter production.

The discussion:

Those newsy newsletters – Martin and Sallie share tips and tricks related to church and school newsletters, covering everything from software and templates to imagery and e-news services with a bit of discussion of frequency, audience and content as well.

The interview:

(18:55) Publishing the Good News – Naomi Henkel from Mt. Calvary in Redding, CA recently talked with Sallie about the production of her congregation’s newsletter.  She also shared ideas for creating a motivating congregational time and talent survey.

Ministry resources:

Picks of the week:

WELSTech contest:

(50:05) Beginning today and continuing each week through December 15th we’ll release a series of 5 clues in the WELSTech “Christmas 2010 Scavenger Hunt“.  Use these 5 clues to locate a mystery message and enter it for a chance to win a $25 Cafe Press gift certificate, where your WELSTech merchandise dreams can come true!  The winner will be selected from all correct entries and announced on our special Christmas week podcast airing December 22nd.

This week we’ll make it easy and post the first clue image on this page.  You’ll have to find the future clue images somewhere on the WELSTech web site.

 Clue #1

clue1

Remember, you can use your smartphone or an online decoder to decipher the message.  Have fun!

Community feedback:

  • (52:19) Kevin Smith from Christ in Zumbrota, MN shared information on their church basement audio project.  Look for details and equipment links on the WELSTech Wiki > Audio Equipment page.

Coming up on WELSTech:

(54:19) Episode 159 – We’ll delve into the topic of web conferencing and talk to Vicar Donald Tilbury about using the web to connect with long-distance catechism students.  (Release date 11/24/10)

The featured artist:

(55:15) We close the podcast with the music of Kevin Loersch – Advent Medley from his CD titled ”O Holy Night”

Get involved:

154 – Getting and Keeping Volunteers

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This week the WELSTech Podcast is again focusing on the work of the church and school office, particularly the job of managing and motivating volunteers.

The discussion:

Happy to help – Continuing the focus on the church and school office, Martin and Sallie share ideas for recruiting volunteers and motivating them to come back for future service.

The interview:

Neil Hankwitz(17:33) Volunteering for missions – Imagine managing 3,000 volunteers per year. The staff of WELS Kingdom Workers (WKW) including Communication Manager, Neil Hankwitz, do just that. Neil joins Martin and Sallie to share stories from his 18+ years of experience coordinating home and world mission volunteers.  Hear how WKW is planning to “go social” on their updated web site, connecting like-mined volunteers with stories of service in missions.

  • WELSKingdomWorkers.org
  • Mission Information Center – request mission display materials

Ministry resources:

(30:24) Installment 1 of Martin’s “Facebook for Churches” journey

Picks of the week:

  • (32:34) The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd – Eight seasons of family friendly podcast available for free download
  • Maximizing productivity with multiple monitors
    • How-to Guide from Epinions
    • Use two of the same monitors or at least use the same screen size and resolution – Example HP 20″ Monitor
    • Laptops need …
      • VGA + DVI or PCMCIA
      • OR a Matrox box
    • Desktops need …
      • A graphics card with two VGA heads

WELS.net feature:

(43:02) Lectionary on Google Calendar

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(55:33) Episode 155 – Gail Potratz joins Martin and Sallie to discuss highlights from the Minnesota and Wisconsin teachers’ conferences.  (Release date 10/27/10)

The featured artist:

(56:35) This week we close with the beautiful piano music of Dawn Gehlhar – All through the Night from her CD titled ”Inspirations”

Get involved:

149 – Calling All Secretaries

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This week on the WELSTech podcast we begin a new series focusing on the technology used by church and school secretaries and administrators.

The discussion:

Something new on WELSTech – The new fall season of podcasting is in full swing and there’s a new topic to explore!  With this episode we kick off a series which will focus on the important role of office administrator or secretary for the church and/or school and the technology they use to do their jobs.  Martin and Sallie encourage listeners to share the podcast with office personnel and talk about ways to help them network and share ideas.

  • Listen to Sally Valleskey, secretary from Abiding Word in Houston, TX on WELSTech Podcast 142
  • Visit the WELSTech Wiki for all kinds of office technology knowledge sharing and let the secretary networking begin!
  • Church Secretary Study (PDF)
  • Church Secretary Essentials

The interview:

Joanne Nemmers(16:45) Managing the school office – Joanne Nemmers, school secretary for Calvary in Dallas, TX talks with Martin and Sallie about life in the school office.  Find out about her favorite piece of office equipment, the challenges of after-school-care accounting and more.

Ministry resources:

(35:36) KidBlog.org

News in tech:

(38:36) Google Instant Search – Introduction video & details

Picks of the week:

  • (41:53) MailChimp – mass e-mail
    • Podcast | MailChimp Academy
    • Listen to Bonus WELSTech Goodness:  MailChimp – Podcast 089
  • 3rd Generation Kindle

WELS.net feature:

(52:39) Visit the WELSTech Wiki for online worship links and add your congregation

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(1:04:20) Episode 150 – Next week we explore Flickr photo sharing for churches and schools plus we talk with designer Diahann Lohr from Adunate Word & Design. (Release date 09/22/10)

The featured artist:

(1:05:45) We close the podcast with the music of Michael Schroeder (www.michaelschroeder.com and on Facebook) – Forgiveness Is Grace from his CD titled “The Way”

Get involved:

142 – WELSTech Road Trip: Houston, TX

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This week the WELSTech Podcast Road Trip takes us to Houston, TX where we visit with Sally Valleskey about church management software.

Road trip:

roadtrip02c(4:30) Church management software – Martin and Sallie journey deep in the heart of Texas to Houston and catch up with Sally Valleskey from Abiding Word.  Sally shares her experience with their church management software, Shepherd’s Staff.

SallyValleskey

07-HoustonTX400
The WELSTech Road Trip Tracker

Picks of the week:

  • (21:21) Royalty-free images
  • 8BIT Network – Home to a variety of useful church technology sites
  • Google Calendar – Learn more on our archived podcast, 077 – BWTG: Google Calendar

Of interest:

(34:31) Job posting – WELS is looking for a .NET/SharePoint/C# Programmer.  Contact Martin for more details.

Community feedback:

    • (36:20) Gail Potratz from Emanuel in New London, WI commented on our recent road trip stop in Fond du Lac, WI with teacher Ryan Rosenthal
      • Ryan shared an image of our youngest WELSTech fan:

bibs

  • Jason Schmidt from Gethsemane in Omaha, NE shared three helpful links:
    • Sample ChristLight SMART Board lesson
    • Collaborate with classrooms from around the world – Global SchoolNet
    • Online course management – Schoology.com
  • Martin shared a link to an article from MEDIA SALT titled The Future of Church Websites

Coming up on WELSTech:

(44:22) Episode 143 – Tune in for a surprise road trip destination.  Our WELS districts tour would be complete with visits to the Dakota/Montana, Western Wisconsin, Pacific Northwest and Arizona/California districts.  (Release date 08/04/10)

The featured artist:

(45:20) This week we close with the music of Revelation, a music ministry of Wisconsin Lutheran College (www.revelationwlc.com) – Agnus Dei from their CD titled ”More Than Conquerors”

Get involved:

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