Mission Yearbook: Daring to say — and play — the ‘G’ word

APCE Annual Event workshop participants play “Reverse Pyramid Build.”
From left are the Rev. Dr. Susan Sharp Campbell, associate for Educational
Ministry, Presbytery of West Virginia; Brittany Porch, director of Mission
and Education, Broad Street Presbyterian Church, Columbus, Ohio; the Rev.
Cassie Waits, associate pastor of Discipleship, First Presbyterian Church,
Marietta, Georgia; and the Rev. Julie Erkel Hagee, pastor, First Presbyterian
Church, Cedar Falls, Iowa. (Photo by Emily Enders Odom)

As attendees at the Association of Partners in Christian Education (APCE) 2025 Annual Event entered the meeting room and observed with mounting curiosity the unusual props that surrounded them — decks of cards, mini drinking cups, LEGO® bricks, and even a nickel or two — many wondered what on earth they had signed up for.

Joel Winchip, executive director of the Presbyterian Church Camp and Conference Association (PCCCA)/Campfire Collective, quickly explained.

Winship’s workshop, titled “There is No ‘I’ in Team,” was centered on activities designed to help adult groups develop effective communication and problem-solving skills.

“We’re going to talk and play games,” he said, "but when introducing team building-activities to adults, don’t ever call them 'games.'”

“Don’t use the ‘G’ word,” he cautioned. “You might as well just yell, ‘Fire,’ or say, ‘We’re playing name games,’ and everyone will be gone. Just launch into the instructions for what you want to do with your adult group.”

Joel Winchip (standing at right) teaches a group how to play Up Jenkins during
a workshop at the APCE Annual Event. (photo by Emily Enders Odom)

Winchip, who also serves on the adjunct faculty of Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia, where he teaches camp/conference ministry and recreation courses, said that in his experience, games using tangible things help adults wrap their heads around what they are doing.

“I’m a big fan of props,” he said.

And, if the workshop participants were ever under the impression that they’d be staying seated and taking notes, out came the props.

Winchip then called everyone to their feet as a succession of games with such names as Up Jenkins, Octopus Draw, Flip Flop Tower, and LEGO® Re-Creation — and hearty laughter ensued.

An hour or so later, Winchip led the exhilarated participants through a debriefing on what they had experienced.

“Through games, you can find out the true dynamics of your group,” he said. “For example, some people like to touch everything and show off what they know. You can tell things like who the introverts are versus the extroverts. Normally, people in recreation cannot hide who they are.”

Because leadership teams, committee members, and ministry staff are all groups that need to work together, game play can help group members broaden their abilities and work together.

“I like incorporating games in adult education,” said the Rev. Cassie Waits, associate pastor of Discipleship at the First Presbyterian Church of Marietta, Georgia. “And since I’ve never played any of these games before, the workshop was even better than I expected!”

Emily Enders Odom, Associate Director of Mission Communications, Interim Unified Agency (Click here to read original PNS story)

Let us join in prayer for:

• Todd Ingves, Vice President, Health & Well Being, Board of Pensions 
• Jose Irizarry, Vice President, Education, Church Engagement, Board of Pensions  

Let us pray:

Our loving Lord, we humbly return a portion of the bounty you have so generously given, so that, through your Holy Spirit, these gifts may be multiplied and creatively used among our neighbors as you see fit. Amen.