Serving at Riv: The Welcome Team

Each weekend, several thousand people walk through doors of Riverview’s venues. At every service, many first-time visitors are mixed in with the rest. In a very real sense, the Welcome Team members, also known as “those people with the bright orange nametags,” are the face of Riverview. They’re the first faces a new person sees when they walk in the door, and the last faces they see as they walk out.

“It’s about making people feel comfortable and welcome,” explains Bryan Bulock, Welcome Team Lead. “If we can help just one person feel comfortable it’s worth it.”

Bryan speaks from experience. Although he occasionally went to church growing up, he didn’t know Christ until he was an adult after he and his family started attending Riv. Despite it’s size, he felt welcomed at Riv, and the Welcome Team helped make it that way. So when his wife Laurie encouraged him to start serving at the church, the Welcome Team was an easy choice. “It was an opportunity to serve and it was a way to give back,” he said. “It seemed like a natural fit for me.”

What Does Serving On The Welcome Team Look Like?

The Welcome Team isn’t just a one-man operation, of course, or even just one team. Currently there are more than 200 volunteers across all four venues. It is a monthly commitment, and not nearly the overwhelming weekly commitment that some people imagine; it’s also not necessarily a long-term commitment.

One of the visions for the Welcome Team is for it to be a springboard into discovering other ministries at Riv. The Welcome Team is always evolving, Bryan says. People sometimes serve only a few months before they find their spiritual gifts are better suited for other places, such as RivKids. An advantage of this spring board mentality is that individual teams are in a constant state of flux, which means there’s always room for a new person to jump in and start serving. Not everyone switches out after a few months; there are some who have been serving on the Welcome Team for many years.

But why serve at all? In addition to it being part of Riv’s mission to proclaim the liberating power of the Gospel as we grow, serve, and go, Bryan points out that serving—whether within Riv on the Welcome Team, the Info Center Team, the Coffee team, or any number of other ways to serve in and out of Riv—is one of the ways we can show our obedience to God. “God calls us to serve and give back,” Bryan says. “It’s an act of worship.” And it’s a reflection of the sacrificial love of Christ, who “came not to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:28).

Getting Involved

If you think you might be interested in joining the Welcome Team but may be a little shy, don’t worry! Serving on the Welcome Team is not about being a specific personality type. “My wife’s an introvert,” explains extroverted Bryan, chuckling. “And she started serving on the Welcome Team before me!” In reality, he says, being a member of the Welcome Team is as simple as having a smile, a friendly handshake, and a desire to greet people. There aren’t even age restrictions: Welcome Team members range in age from 10 to over 70.

Are you open to greeting people, or even just holding the door for those coming to the weekend services? Then you’re qualified. Interested in serving on the Welcome Team? Just fill out a tear-off during one of the Weekend Services and drop it in a red bucket. You can also stop by the Info Center or go to rivchurch.com/serve.