Hamline Church

Student Ministries

Hamline Church is a congregation where children & youth engage in awe, wonder, and service to their neighbors.  Children are guided in faith formation through Sunday School and Confirmation, and have ample service opportunities both within Hamline Church and outside our walls.  We recognize that children need their own space to learn and grow, but also seek to provide intergenerational opportunities for our kids to grow in relationship with their elders.

Select Child / Youth tab below to learn about our student ministry programs!

Hamline Church Kids

infant - 5th grade

Student Ministries Mission Statement: We nurture and equip children, youth, and families to grow as disciples of Christ through love, service, and inclusion, in order to deepen connection to God, self, and others, and positively impact the world. 

Sunday Mornings

Worship begins at 10:00am! We welcome children in worship every week – in the sanctuary, we have worship materials available for all those who like to doodle while they listen. Childcare is available during worship with our nursery staff for children 5 and under.

Spiritual Formation

Sacred Studio Sacred Studio is our spiritual formation time for children, prek-5th grade during the school year On Sundays (except for the 1st Sunday of each month) after the children’s moment in worship, children can go with staff and volunteers to explore a bible story through art, music, and games. This time is focused on making space for children to know God’s love!

  • Godly Play: Prek-K children will explore bible stories by building a practice of listening, wondering, and responding through art with this Montessori-based curriculum. Families can decide with their 3 and 4 year-olds when you would like to transition from the Frolic room childcare into Sacred Studio.
  • Mini Revolutions: 1st-3rd graders will use Illustrated Ministry’s “Mini
    Revolutions” to explore bible stories through discussion, connections to
    the world, activities, and mini spiritual practices. This group will meet as one class of 1st graders, and one class of 2nd-3rd graders
  • 4th and 5th Grade:  This group will sit together in the worship service 
    along with adult leaders, then gather after the sermon in the youth  
    room to connect and reflect on worship together. 
  • Childcare: Frolic Room Childcare is available during worship for children 5 and under in the Frolic Room with our amazing childcare specialists. This is a time for free play, stories, and building connections with church friends! Contact the church office if you have questions about childcare at Hamline Church.

 

Seeking Adult Leaders!
Nurturing children in their faith journeys and helping to share with them the stories of God’s love are both part of our baptismal promises that we make as a community. We are always looking for caring adults (and youth!) to be part of our Sacred Studio team – contact Heather Grantham (hrgrantham@hamlinechurch.org) if you would like to learn more.

Whole Family of God Service: First Sundays

The first Sunday of each month, we celebrate communion in our worship service. This is a special sacrament that we share together as a church, and we want children to be part of it! Children are always welcome to stay in the worship service with families, and on first Sundays we will not have Sacred Studio time together to allow time for this special worship.

Student Ministry's Summer Plans

Summer at Hamline Church 2025
As we are looking toward this summer of 2025, Hamline Church Student Ministries is trying out some new ways of being together. Instead of our VBS being a traditional weeklong summer camp, we are shifting to us gathering throughout the summer for fun, fellowship, and service. We will be gathering the 2nd/4th Sundays after church at the playground for a picnic and themed fun, as well as some midweek evenings.
2nd and 4th Sundays for special play date picnics after church at the playground:
  • 6/8 – playground, picnic, and bubbles
  • 6/22 – Drag Queen Story Hour
  • 7/13 – playground, picnic, and special art
  • 7/27 – picnic and water play on front lawn
  • 8/10 – playground, picnic, and karaoke
  • 8/24 – playground, picnic, and service project
Summer in Sprout Garden Starting Sunday June 15
Annual Family Camping Weekend at Afton State Park in July (watch for more details)
Brick Oven Fun: bread baking for our SPROUT Garden deliverys one week in August
Summer Camp at Northern Pines
Hamline Church is bring 2 groups up to Northern Pines this year:
    • Ages 6-9 y/o will be attending the Mini Tree House camp on July 13th – 15th
    • Ages 9-13 y/o’s will be attending the Discovery Camp 2 on July 6th – 11th
Camperships are available by contacting Pastor Mariah (mftollgaard@hamlinechurch.org). We will plan on carpooling, so let Mariah and/or Heather (hgrantham@hamlinechurch.org) know if you are planning on signing up!
For more information and to register: https://www.campminnesota.org/campsessions

 

Student Ministries Visioning
Student Ministries Visioning Team

Learn more about our Student Ministers Visioning Team and the work they are doing based on recommendations from Ministry Architects. You can find the Ministry Architects report with their recommendations here.  

 

Wednesday Connection

Join us for fellowship, music, and connection on Wednesday evenings! Find more info here.

 

Milestones

At Hamline Church, one of the ways we walk alongside our children and their families is through our Faith Milestone Program. Every year, we take a moment to celebrate a milestone in each child’s life. Just as throughout the Bible, God’s people mark the places where they encounter God with a stone, we present each child with a smooth, cross-embossed stone to mark the occasion. We usually recognize the milestone in the Sunday worship service, where we have a chance to share more about it!

Some milestones include a milestone exploration time, where the child and a parent/guardian can explore the topic together! You'll find links to exploration packets for some of the milestones, feel free to download to use at home. Contact Katie Morris if you have questions, and see the schedule for 2023-2024 below:

Baptism

This is a beautiful expression of being born into God’s love. Contact Pastor Mariah (mftollgaard@hamlinechurch.org) if you are interested in having your infant or child baptized at Hamline Church.

Christmas Pageant

Each year, Hamline kids have the opportunity to tell the incredible story of Jesus coming into the world on a special Sunday in December. We practice our songs during Sacred Studio for several weeks, and children can choose other ways to participate below. This year’s pageant is Sunday, December 15, we hope you can join! Questions to Heather Grantham (hgrantham@hamlinechurch.org).

Winter Family Retreat

Each January, we head up to Park Rapids to Northern Pines Camp for a weekend of outdoor winter fun and cozy indoor time. This fellowship weekend is open to families of all shapes and sizes! This year’s retreat is January 17-20, 2025. Look out for registration details in late fall!

Wonderfully Made

Every few years, we offer a workshop on faith and sexuality for 5th and 6th graders in our community. We use a curriculum called Wonderfully Made, a resource designed specifically for 10-12 year-olds to help them understand their bodies, the changes they’re going through, and that God loves them now and always. Look for more information about this retreat workshop to come! Contact the church office with questions, humc@hamlinechurch.org.

Summer in the SPROUT GardenSummer in Sprout Garden

On Sunday mornings during the summer, we partner with our Hamline University SPROUT garden interns to work in the garden growing produce for our Hamline Midway Elder neighbors. We also explore what it means to be part of God’s creation and to care for it! Children prek-6th grade are welcome to join.

Safety Policies

As part of our commitment to keeping children and youth safe, Hamline Church follows a Safe Sanctuaries policy(PDF).  All staff, child-care workers, Spiritual Formation leaders, and other adults who work with children and youth have completed training and a background check through Safe Gatherings.

We also ask that you register your child each year, so that we have up-to-date emergency contact information.

Register Here!

Connect with Children's Ministry
  • Monthly Email Update
    To receive monthly email updates with information about upcoming events and spiritual formation resources, please click here to sign up
  • Check out the church calendar!

Questions? Contact the church office, humc@hamlinechurch.org