Host a Dinner

Are you or your group interested in hosting a dinner? Please, fill out the form below and a deacon will be in touch with you to help with all the details. Check out our dinner host role description and guidelines for more details on being a dinner host.

Role: Dinner Host Description

Ministry: SCCEFC Dinners

Contact: Glenna Fung, Caring Deacon

Time Commitment: 4-5 hours once or twice a year

Length of Commitment: 1 year

Purpose

By hosting a dinner, you join a network of people at SCCEFC who extend hospitality to others in our community over a meal. These informal gatherings at SCCEFC will offer space for people to connect more directly than Sundays sometimes allow, all while enjoying a meal together. 

Responsibilities

  • Be willing to gather people from SCCEFC for a meal once or twice a year

  • Work closely with Caring Deacon on the details for your dinner

  • Use Planning Center to communicate with people who sign up

Qualifications

  • Enjoy hosting people and conversations

  • Passionate about creating opportunities for people to connect, especially those new to SCCEFC

SCCEFC Dinners Guidelines 2024/25

Why we host Dinners

We’re thrilled that you’ve expressed interest in hosting a SCCEFC dinner.

By hosting a dinner, you join a network of people at SCCEFC who extend hospitality to others in our community over a meal. Thess informal gatherings at SCCEFC will make a little more space for people to connect more directly than Sundays sometimes allow, all while enjoying a meal together. Here are a few pointers on how dinners and what it should look like for you to become a host.

Logistics

When you decide to host a dinner, a SCCEFC deacon will work with you on the logistics and the format of the event before we put your dinner details up on the website.

This is the information we will need from you:

  • Date and time

  • Number of guests

  • Format of the meal
    You can invite people to bring items (potluck style), order in or you can cook. You can request guest to bring an item to share (e.g. dessert, salad, drinks). Dinners can be in and out. You can reserve a table at dimsum! Are you can go with a theme like - Taco Tuesday, Hot Pot or Games Night.

  • Dietary accommodations
    Let us know if you are open to accommodate any dietary restrictions, e.g gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian

  • Any other relevant details, e.g. there’s a cat or a dog in the house.

Hosting notes

  • No need for an agenda other than to get people together for connection. Good food, good conversation, and new relationships is the priority! Don't feel any pressure to structure or formalize the gathering. However, it will be lovely to have a conversation starter, something as simple as: “What’s your story with the SCCEFC community?”

  • One of the things we encourage hosts to consider is inviting a couple of people to your dinner who aren’t on the guest list. That way, if there are some no-shows, there will still be lots of energy in the room for you and your other guests.

  • Someone might be shy or socially awkward in your home. We believe that dinner parties are a place where anyone in our community can feel welcome...so thank you for considering this as you host!

Using Planning Center

  • When we get all the details for your dinner, we create a registration on our website so people can sign up.

  • As a host, you will receive email notifications from our registration software, “Planning Center,” as people sign up. You will also be given access to guest contact info, which we ask that you use with care/discretion.

  • One of the keys to a successful gathering is starting to host your guests even before they show up on your doorsteps. Please send out a welcome email (using Planning Center) to everyone 6-7 days before the dinner: including the address, parking info and any other final instructions.

  • To do that, please login here https://registrations.planningcenteronline.com using your email address. (You might be asked to set up your password).

  • When in your signup, go to the “registrations” tab (should be the first tab open when you log in), click on “Actions” on the top right, and choose “General email.” That will open a pop-up window from which you can generate an email to everyone in your event registration.

  • If you have any questions about Planning Center or this process, please contact calvin.sun@sccefc.ca