Churches
We asked our FOCUS families about special programming in churches. Here are their responses. (We can't alphabetize them, sorry!! They are in the order we received them!) Please let us know additional programs and/or corrections.
First Baptist Church of Snellville, 2400 Main St., E., Snellville - 770-978-7000 My daughter attends a class for school-age children. The children attending are ages of 6-13. Next door, high school age and up attends class. The teachers are very good with the children. My child and her classmates attend Children's Church for the 1st hour, along with the typical classrooms. She attended Vacation Bible School for a week this summer and they had lots of art projects and went to the sanctuary with the other classes for singing,etc. There is a "Special Needs Ministry" section designated in the sanctuary, also. I guess a section is designated for emergency situations. The children can also attend church for Wednesday night bible study and the church offers "Parents Night Out." My family and I enjoy attending church at FBS.
Alpharetta Presbyterian Church, 180 Academy St., Alpharetta - 770-751-0033 Alpharetta Presbyterian Church does have a program, in addition to our FOCUS respite dates. We have a special needs Sunday School class, the Promise Class, that meets at 9:45 and 11:00 during the school year. Staffed by special ed teachers and volunteers; no age limits. They have music, some simple arts/crafts, and a story. Interested parents should call Polly Hyatt at 770-442-0824 or, at APC, Lisa McKemey 770-751-0033.
North Point Community Church, 4350 Northpoint Pkwy, Alpharetta - 678-892-5000 Special Needs Program for children up to 5th grade (11/12 yrs of age) ... and possibly beyond, just haven't looked into that yet. Very good care giver / child ratio. Children attend worship with typical children. Lots of contemporary music and movement in the kids worship. Best Special Needs program I've seen in a church.
Acworth United Methodist Church, 4340 Collins Circle, Acworth - 770-974-3312 Acworth United Methodist Church has (Special Needs) Angel Wings Sunday School available for the 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. services. We have two leaders for each session. Your child can stay in the class from 9:30 until the 11:00 a.m. service ends (12ish). The lesson and activities are adapted to meet each individual child's needs and abilities. Benjamin is currently the only child in the class and would love to have some friends join him! He was the inspiration for Angel Wings - and for Angel Watch Camp, a special needs summer camp that runs simultaneously with our regular summer camps for kids. This summer we had two groups for each session and served 10 special needs kids! Please call Michelle Arnold, Children's Director for more information and to let her know your child's specific needs before you come.
Grace Fellowship Church, 1400 Dogwood Rd., Snellville - 770-979-7000Special Needs Care is available on Sunday mornings 9:00 am and 1030 am or both !!
Coordinator: Kathy Whitmer 770.638.6128 We treasure children with special needs. We are blessed with many trained and/or certified teachers who lovingly care for special needs kids. We need to comply with ADA requirements in our facilities. Handicap parking with wheel chair accessibility is available in the back of the church. An information sheet is available for parents to complete so that you can be assured that your child's needs will be addressed. Pagers are issued to parents of Special Needs children in the event that we need to locate you during the church service
Peachtree Presbyterian Church, 3434 Roswell Rd., Atlanta - 404-842-5800 Contact Julie Stewart at the church. Julie has started a bi monthly meeting on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays (tomorrow there will be one) at the church as a support group. Doublecheck with Julie for time and location. The church is very interested in working with and supporting families with special And from another mom: My church welcomes any special needs children. They also have a program called the "Buddy Program" that will assign a church member (an adult volunteer) to each special needs child in Sunday School. This volunteer will meet with the parents and learn how to care for the child while the parents can attend church/adult sunday school by themselves. Of course, not every special needs child has to have a Buddy. This is just optional if the parents want this.
Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, 3180 Peachtree Rd.,Atlanta - 404-266-2373
First Baptist Church Woodstock, 777 Neese Road, Woodstock - 770-926-4428 We offer 8:10 Sunday School (daycare), 9:30 (Bible Study, Craft, Snack), and 11:00 Sunday School (daycare) for ages 5 and up to adult. Contact Claudia Gunselman at cgunselman@gbchfm.org; 770-514-8255, ext. 12.
Lawrenceville First United Methodist Church, 395 West Crogan St., 770-963-0386 I have a 7 yr. old with Fragile X Syndrome. We have been members of this church for 12 yrs. The church has been very supportive to our family. Many people have helped with our child so that we could attend Sunday School and worship. We have had people help with making special arrangements. There is one other special needs child that is also in a class with my son. Our church also has a Sunday School class for young adults with special needs (ages 16+). They also schedule regular outings outside of church. This fall, our church plans to begin a monthly program for special needs children (ages 10 and up.) It will be designed the same as our youth program. Lots of fun, games, and Bible study. We need people to help us begin this ministry! We also need to spread the word!
From a dad: We attend First United Methodist Church in Lawrenceville.. Our church has a special needs Sunday School class every week at 9:30 a.m. My wife and I appreciate this opportunity to go to church services together and know our daughter is in good hands. If you're interested, I'd strongly recommend that you call Erin Stroud, a member of the church staff, by phone or e-mail () to introduce yourself first to make sure that the class can accommodate your child's needs. At this point, there are only a couple of kids in the class. The church also has a special needs Vacation Bible School class for one week each spring, a week or two after the school year ends.
Community Bible Church, 2001 Jodeco Rd., Stockbridge - 770-914-0808 Our church has one special needs class for all ages and offers it for 2 of the 3 service times. They have really been sensitive to our needs and one of the reasons we have stayed at our church. I have just requested that they think of a curriculum.
Crossroads Community Church, 1625 Collins Hill Rd., Lawrenceville - 770-822-1121 My church (Crossroads Community Church) in Lawrenceville provides special needs (one on one "helper" for any child who needs them) at the 9:00AM service. They are then integrated as much as possible into their regular age group class.
Wildwood Baptist Church, 4801 Wade Green Rd., Acworth - 678-574-3125
Sugarloaf United Methodist Church, 1795 Old Peachtree Rd.. Duluth - 770-814-2050 This is not my church but I have heard about a ministry for special needs children at Sugarloaf United Methodist Church. It is supposed to be once a month on Friday nights from 5:30 to 9:30 & called "Nightlights". It is very new (just barely beginning) & from what I understand primarily aimed at middleschoolers for fellowship purposes. Contact Vicki LaRoche at 770-814-2050 for more information.
North Metro First Baptist Church, 1026 Old Peachtree Rd., NE, Lawrenceville - 770-995-9055 This is also not my church but very close by me here in Lawrenceville - North Metro First Baptist Church. They have specialized classes on Sunday mornings for special needs. I pretty sure that they also have special needs Vacation BIBLE School class(es).
Sugarloaf Community Church, 1401 Old Peachtree Rd., Suwanee - 770-476-1400 Contact: Pastor Reed, Pastor of Community Development
We offer special needs assistance (inclusion and self-contained) for families during Sunday Morning Worship, Celebrate Recovery – Monday, and Wednesday Night Bible Study including Awana.
St. Aidan's Episcopal Church, 13560 Cogburn Rd., Alpharetta - 770-52109297 My church, St. Aidan's Episcopal Church, Alpharetta, is very special needs friendly. However, we currently have no official programs in place. We did pilot program a "low sensory track" at Vacation Bible School and I'm on a committee now looking into spoecial needs ministry. I would love to talk with people you hear back from whose churches have established programs.
Christ Fellowship, 139 Hightower Pkwy. #100, Dawsonville - 706-216-3248 Christ Fellowship, Dawsonville GA has a class set up on an as needed basis for children with special needs ask for Rita Bruce, Childrens pastor
Perimeter Church, 9500 Medlock Bridge Rd., Duluth - 678-405-2000 Our church has a special needs Sunday School called Grace Kids. It is held during the 10:45 am service. For questions, please call Julie Nichols at 678-405-2248 or julieN@perimeter.org.
And from another mom: We go to Perimeter Church in Duluth where they have a class called Grace Kids. It's specifically for kids with special needs who don't function well in the typical Sunday School classroom. My daughter doesn't attend this class, but we know of kids her age (and younger) who do. It was started by an occupational therapist who is a member of the church. One of the biggest selling points is that they want to allow the parents to worship, so they don't ask them to volunteer in that classroom...it's a real honest to goodness break! I don't have any details about it, but you can go to the website and find out about it, or call the church. My daughter is in the jHi ministry which is middle schoolers. The pastor, David Franklin, has a real heart for kids with special needs, so he is totally into having her be a part of whatever she can be. He worked with special needs kids through college where he majored in education just so that he could have special needs kids mainstreamed in his classroom. Needless to say, God called him to ministry so he's not in the school system, but it's nice to have him at the church.
Church of the Apostles, 3585 Northside Pkwy. NW, Atlanta - 404-842-0200 Church of the Apostles has a program for children with special needs. They have a teacher who has a degree in special education. I'll forward their website to you.
St. Brigid Church,3400 Old Alabama Rd., Alpharetta - 678-393-0060 The Special Needs Program at St. Brigid Church is designed to welcome students to a safe, positive religious environment in which students can participate in our religious education classes with minimal or full support. These opportunities include the following: Parish School of Religion (inclusion with support), Self-contained Special Needs classes, The Edge (7th & 8th grade), and Life Teen (high school). If you would like to discuss placement and/or ways your child can benefit from support in our religious education programs, please contact Susan Dorner or call and leave a voice message at 678-393-0060 ext 709.
Victory World Church, 3905 Brook Hollow Pkwy., Norcross - 770-849-9400 Regarding churches, I attend Victory World Church and I wouldn't say there are special programs for special needs but they are very accommodating to my son in the children's ministry. They are very welcoming and friendly and many other churches I have attended have been uncomfortable with him.
Lakewood Baptist Church, 2235 Thompson Bridge Rd., Gainesville - 770-532-6307 The JOY ministry (special needs ministry) at Lakewood has accommodated individuals with special needs (spanning from newborn to age 26). We currently don't have any older individuals with disabilities but would be happy to accommodate any new friends. We provide buddies to be with our friends with special needs so that they may attend church services & activities on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. We try as much as possible to mainstream our friends with special needs into the typcial settings; however, we have rooms equipped with sensory items such as a platform/net swing and a ball pit to use if needed. We also offer the opportunity for our friends with special needs to attend vacation Bible school during the summer with a buddy. We have been offering a Saturday evening respite every other month (from 5-8pm) for our friends with special needs and their siblings. Additionally, we have provided a Christmas party for the whole family to enjoy each December.
The Temple, Peachtree Road, Atlanta 404-873-1731The Temple has a special education coordinator in their all-inclusive Sunday religious school. My son is assigned a teenage aide to assist him in the regular classes with his peers. (He loves the music and it’s good for both him and the other kids.) We are thrilled that my son has the opportunity to be with children his own age and, in his own way, learn what it means to be Jewish. In public school, he is in a self-contained class.
Hamilton Mill United Methodist Church - 770-271-8855 - 1450 Pine Rd., Dacual, GA 30019. www.hmumc.org Special Needs Sunday School and Support Group
