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Initial Returns Reveal Strong M2K Impact
by Robert Docter –
The MISSION2000 Expansion Council heard reports from Commis-sioner David Edwards, territorial commander, concerning the initial territory wide returns from the survey of corps attendees taken on a Sunday morning in March. Edwards also reported on the status of recommendations made during an earlier Council meeting last fall. Additionally, Lt. Colonel Raymond Peacock and Major Donna Ames reported on the progress of the territory toward MISSION2000 qualitative and quantitative goals.
Augmented by TERLOC (Territorial Laymen’s and Officers’ Council), the group’s committees deliberated on matters pertaining spiritual life and worship, personnel, youth programs, identity and mission and corps development.
In commenting on the survey results, Edwards noted that the final report will be delivered by the external survey director, J. David Schmidt, and shared with the Territorial Executive Council in June. Edwards expressed strong satisfaction with the number of surveys turned in with the expectation that well over 8,000 individuals responded. His initial report was generated from a sample of 5,616 surveys from 216 corps. Of this amount, 51 percent were from soldiers, 8 percent adherents, 11 percent from officers and 26 percent from those who identified themselves as “attendees.”
“This 26 percent is rather significant and represents a challenge,” Edwards said. “We want commitment. Here is a pool in which we ought to be fishing for people to become soldiers or adherents. That ought to be valuable information for corps and divisions as they look beyond the year 2000.
The median age of the respondents was 43 and over half of them came to the Army within the last five years. From this information Edward concluded that our population tends to be mature, with college age children, possibly owning their own homes and fairly new to the Army. “This should tell us something about the impact of MISSION2000,” Edwards said.
Survey results indicated that most of the respondents had either attended another church or did not attend church very often anywhere prior to coming to the Army. Edwards repeated: “This should tell us something about MISSION2000.”
Survey results also indicated strong spiritual programming and commitment on the part of the respondents in terms of Bible study and prayer.
Significant numbers of respondents indicated a lack of awareness of both the MISSION2000 and the People Count! campaigns.
In examining the territory’s response to the recommendations made at the fall meeting of the Council, Edwards noted that the list had been combined into 18 specific recommendations. Approxi-mately one-third of them were recommendations that could be dealt with immediately, a second third required short term research prior to response, and the last third demanded a long term study.
Most of the first third involved personnel matters pertaining to officers in such areas as personal development, longer appointments, officer allowances, standards for admission to officership and the development of preventive measures to assure optimum emotional and physical health of officers. Other recommendations in this area included changes in lay training paradigms and the establishment of a task force to monitor the progress toward MISSION2000 goals.
The Territorial leadership is currently examining the specifics within these recommendations and moving toward initiation of policy and procedure change which will facilitate their resolution.
Lt. Colonel Raymond Peacock, territorial program secretary, addressed the council on the visioning process and, along with Captain Donna Ames, territorial evangelism, cross cultural and adult programs secretary, presented the qualitative accomplishments of the MISSION2000 campaign.
