Rooted Operating Plan

Purpose: To establish the vision, governance, operating procedures and responsibilities for Rooted, a young adults Christian community initiative created and supported by volunteers from the Praying Mothers ministry.

1. Overview and vision

Our vision

Rooted is a Christ-centered community that creates opportunities for young adults to grow in faith, build meaningful friendships, enjoy fellowship, and form intentional connections that may develop into lifelong relationships and marriage.

Our mission

Rooted exists to provide a welcoming and supportive environment where Christian young adults can meet naturally, participate in meaningful activities, strengthen their relationship with God, and get to know one another without the pressure or expectation of entering a romantic relationship.

The initiative is supported by volunteer members of the Praying Mothers ministry, who desire to create positive opportunities for the next generation of Christian adults.

Our guiding principle

Build community first. Allow relationships to develop naturally. Keep Christ at the center.

Marriage may be a desired outcome for some members, but it is not a requirement for participation or a measure of success.

2. Purpose and objectives

Rooted aims to:

1. Create opportunities for Christian young adults to meet people beyond their existing social circles.
2. Encourage spiritual growth through Scripture, prayer, fellowship, and faith-centered resources.
3. Foster genuine friendships and a healthy sense of belonging.
4. Provide opportunities for members to explore intentional romantic relationships when mutually desired.
5. Create a safe, respectful environment that values maturity, consent, and personal boundaries.
6. Help young adults build relationships grounded in shared values, communication, and mutual respect.
7. Equip volunteer coordinators to manage the initiative responsibly and sustainably.

3. Who Rooted serves

Rooted is intended for young adults who are interested in Christian fellowship and meaningful connections.

Before launch, the volunteer leadership team will agree on:

• The minimum and maximum age range, if applicable.
• Whether membership is open to single young adults only or whether broader community participation is welcome.
• The geographic area the initiative will serve.
• The faith expectations for participation.
• Whether members from different churches and Christian traditions are welcome.
• Whether members may invite guests to selected events.
• How the initiative will accommodate members with different levels of church involvement or familiarity with Christianity.

If Rooted includes romantic introductions, members must be adults and must explicitly opt into that feature. Membership in the community should not automatically imply interest in dating or marriage.

4. Governance and volunteer structure

Rooted will be coordinated by volunteers from the Praying Mothers ministry. The initiative should have clear responsibilities, defined decision-making authority, and appropriate oversight from the sponsoring ministry.

Suggested roles

Ministry Sponsor or Praying Mothers Liaison

• Provides oversight and helps maintain alignment with the sponsoring ministry's values.
• Advises on significant ministry, safeguarding, and organizational matters.
• Helps clarify which decisions require approval from Praying Mothers leadership.
• Supports accountability and continuity.

Rooted Lead Coordinator

• Oversees the initiative's day-to-day operations.
• Leads coordinator meetings and sets priorities.
• Coordinates volunteer responsibilities and resolves routine operational issues.
• Reports progress and significant concerns to the appropriate ministry leadership.

Membership Coordinator

• Manages applications and onboarding, where applicable.
• Reviews submissions according to agreed criteria.
• Welcomes new members and explains community expectations.
• Maintains accurate membership records with appropriate privacy controls.

Events and Fellowship Coordinator

• Plans social gatherings, group activities, workshops, and other events.
• Manages registration, logistics, attendance, and follow-up.
• Encourages a balance of structured activities and relaxed opportunities for members to interact.

Faith and Resources Coordinator

• Organizes devotionals, prayer opportunities, and Christian resources.
• Coordinates review of faith-related content.
• Helps ensure that spiritual activities are welcoming and consistent with Rooted's stated purpose.

Community and Member Care Coordinator

• Receives feedback, questions, and member concerns.
• Helps resolve routine issues and refers sensitive matters to the designated lead.
• Encourages an environment of respect and belonging.

Platform Administrator

• Manages the Rooted website or app, administrator access, and technical settings.
• Maintains appropriate permissions and coordinates technical support.
• Ensures that sensitive member information is only accessible to authorized people.

One volunteer may hold multiple roles during the early stages. Sensitive responsibilities, especially safeguarding and access to private member information, should still have clear ownership and oversight.

Decision-making

Routine decisions may be made by the coordinator responsible for the relevant area within the approved plan and budget.

Major decisions, including changes to membership criteria, safeguarding procedures, spending commitments, or the initiative's relationship with Praying Mothers, should be referred to the Rooted Lead Coordinator and the designated ministry sponsor.

The team should document important decisions, action items, assigned owners, and deadlines.

5. Membership and onboarding

Proposed membership process

1. A prospective member learns about Rooted through an approved invitation or announcement.
2. The individual reviews the initiative's purpose, membership criteria, and community guidelines.
3. The individual submits an application if required.
4. An authorized coordinator reviews the application against the agreed criteria.
5. The coordinator may request clarification or offer an introductory conversation if appropriate.
6. The applicant receives a decision and next steps.
7. Approved members receive a welcome message and information about upcoming activities.
8. Members are encouraged to attend an introductory event or participate in a community activity.

The application process should be proportionate, respectful, and consistent. Interviews should not be required unless the team has a clear purpose for them.

Member expectations

Members are expected to:

• Treat others with kindness, respect, and dignity.
• Respect personal boundaries and individual choices.
• Understand that friendship does not imply romantic interest.
• Respect a person's decision to decline an introduction or end a conversation.
• Avoid harassment, pressure, gossip, discrimination, and inappropriate solicitation.
• Respect the privacy of information shared by other members.
• Use the platform and event spaces appropriately.
• Follow the community guidelines and any reasonable event-specific requirements.

Members should not be promised a romantic match, a future spouse, or a particular relationship outcome.

6. Events and community building

Events are the primary way Rooted will help young adults get to know one another in a natural and comfortable setting.

Suggested activities

• Social mixers and icebreaker events.
• Game nights and group dinners.
• Christian discussions and Bible study gatherings.
• Group prayer and worship opportunities.
• Community service projects.
• Workshops on relationships, communication, faith, and personal growth.
• Outdoor activities and group outings.
• Career, purpose, and life-stage discussions.
• Seasonal celebrations and larger fellowship events.

The initial program should prioritize accessible, group-based activities that encourage interaction without forcing members to disclose personal information or participate in romantic exercises.

Event planning process

1. The Events Coordinator proposes an activity and estimated budget.
2. The appropriate coordinator or ministry sponsor approves it when required.
3. The event is published with its purpose, date, location, cost, capacity, and registration details.
4. Members register or express interest through the approved process.
5. Coordinators send confirmations, reminders, and any relevant updates.
6. Attendance is recorded where appropriate.
7. Members are invited to provide feedback.
8. The team reviews the event's outcomes and identifies improvements.

Events should be planned with attention to safety, accessibility, transportation, affordability, and the comfort of attendees.

7. Intentional connections and optional introductions

Rooted may offer an optional process for members who would like help meeting someone with the potential for a romantic relationship. This should remain separate from ordinary community participation.

Guiding principles

• Participation in introductions is voluntary.
• Members decide whether to opt in and may withdraw at any time.
• Members provide only the preferences and information they choose to share.
• Coordinators handle introductions discreetly and only within the agreed process.
• Both individuals must consent before private contact information is shared.
• Neither person is obligated to continue communication after an introduction.
• Coordinators do not guarantee compatibility, marriage, or relationship success.
• A person's interest in dating should not be disclosed to the wider membership.

Proposed introduction process

1. A member voluntarily indicates interest in facilitated introductions.
2. The member reviews how the process works and what information will be shared.
3. The member provides the minimum necessary information about their preferences and intentions.
4. An authorized coordinator reviews potential introductions according to agreed criteria.
5. The coordinator asks both individuals whether they are open to the proposed introduction without prematurely disclosing private information.
6. If both consent, the coordinator facilitates the introduction through an agreed method.
7. Both individuals decide independently whether they wish to continue communicating.
8. The coordinator may offer a voluntary follow-up without requesting unnecessary intimate details.
9. Members may pause or withdraw from the process at any time.

The team should avoid making introductions based solely on assumptions, family pressure, or a coordinator's personal preference.

8. Community guidelines and safeguarding

Rooted must provide a safe environment for social interaction, both online and in person.

Expected conduct

Members and volunteers must:

• Communicate respectfully.
• Honor consent and personal boundaries.
• Avoid unwanted romantic attention or repeated contact after a refusal.
• Avoid sharing private messages, photos, or personal stories without permission.
• Refrain from using Rooted to solicit money, promote unrelated businesses, or engage in deceptive conduct.
• Report concerning behavior through an established channel.

Handling concerns

The initiative will establish a documented process for receiving, reviewing, and responding to concerns. The process should include:

• A designated person or team responsible for safeguarding.
• A confidential reporting channel with restricted access.
• Clear steps for reviewing allegations fairly.
• Appropriate responses, which may include warnings, restrictions, suspension, or removal.
• A process for appealing decisions where appropriate.
• Procedures for urgent safety concerns and appropriate external referrals.

Serious concerns should not be handled informally by a single volunteer without appropriate oversight. The team should consult the sponsoring organization and qualified advisers about safeguarding and reporting obligations.

For in-person activities, the team should establish venue safety procedures, emergency contacts, incident documentation, and appropriate photography consent practices.

9. Faith, prayer and resources

Rooted will provide opportunities for spiritual growth without making participation in every devotional or prayer activity a condition of belonging.

Possible offerings include:

• Scripture-based devotionals.
• Group prayer opportunities.
• Resources on Christian friendship and relationships.
• Discussions about purpose, calling, and personal growth.
• Guidance on healthy communication and boundaries.
• Reflections on preparing for marriage and building healthy relationships.
• Recommendations for books, speakers, and other relevant resources.

Content should be reviewed by an assigned coordinator or designated ministry reviewer before publication.

Prayer requests and personal faith disclosures must be treated with care. The team should define who can access requests, whether they can be shared with a group, how consent is obtained, and when information should be deleted.

Spiritual encouragement should not be presented as a substitute for qualified professional advice where medical, mental health, legal, or other specialized support is needed.

10. Communications and member feedback

The team will use approved channels to communicate event announcements, community updates, resources, and other relevant information.

Communication standards

• Keep communication clear, respectful, and relevant.
• Use member contact details only for authorized ministry purposes.
• Respect preferences for optional communications.
• Avoid sharing private information in group emails or public spaces.
• Maintain a clear process for member questions, feedback, and concerns.

Feedback process

1. Receive the feedback.
2. Categorize it as a question, suggestion, complaint, or safeguarding concern.
3. Assign it to an appropriate coordinator.
4. Acknowledge and respond within an agreed timeframe.
5. Record the resolution where appropriate.
6. Review recurring themes at coordinator meetings without unnecessarily exposing personal information.

Safeguarding reports must follow a separate, restricted process.

11. Rooted digital platform and administration

The Rooted platform will support membership, events, resources, communication, and coordination.

Proposed member features

• Member profiles and privacy preferences.
• Membership applications and onboarding.
• Events, registrations, and reminders.
• Christian resources and announcements.
• Feedback and support requests.
• Optional facilitated introductions.
• Account settings and membership controls.

Proposed admin features

• Dashboard showing pending applications, upcoming events, and open tasks.
• Membership review and member directory.
• Event creation, registration, and attendance management.
• Resource creation and publishing.
• Announcements and feedback management.
• Optional-introduction workflow with restricted permissions.
• Administrator invitations and role-based access.
• Audit history and aggregate analytics.

Administrative access

Administrators should only have access to the information necessary for their assigned duties. Interview notes, relationship preferences, private communications, and safeguarding reports require particularly careful access controls.

The team should maintain an accurate list of administrators, review permissions periodically, and promptly revoke access when a volunteer leaves the role.

12. Privacy and data management

Rooted will collect only the information needed to support membership and community operations.

Before launch, the team will establish:

• What information is collected and why.
• Which information is visible to other members.
• Who can access private records.
• How consent is obtained for optional introductions and communications.
• How applications, attendance records, and other data are retained and deleted.
• How members can update their details or leave the platform.
• How privacy or security incidents are handled.
• Which technology providers process member information.

The privacy policy, terms of use, and community guidelines should accurately reflect the implemented platform and be reviewed against applicable legal requirements before launch.

13. Budget and financial oversight

The team should establish an initial budget and a clear process for approving expenses.

Potential costs include:

• Website hosting and software subscriptions.
• Email delivery and authentication services.
• Event venues, refreshments, and supplies.
• Marketing and outreach materials.
• Guest speakers and activity costs.
• Insurance or other organizational expenses where applicable.

The ministry sponsor and Rooted leadership should agree on spending limits, expense approval, reimbursement procedures, recordkeeping, and financial reporting.

If Rooted operates under Praying Mothers or another organization, financial ownership and accountability should follow that organization's policies.

14. Analytics and measuring progress

Rooted will evaluate whether it is creating meaningful opportunities for connection and operating sustainably.

Suggested measures

Membership

• New applications and approved members.
• Application review time.
• New-member onboarding and first-event participation.

Events

• Registrations, attendance, cancellations, and repeat participation.
• Feedback about event quality and inclusiveness.
• Demand for different event formats.

Community engagement

• Participation across events and resources.
• Member feedback about belonging and connection.
• Suggestions for future activities.

Operations

• Open feedback items and response times.
• Coordinator workload and task completion.
• Event costs and use of the approved budget.
• Technical issues and email delivery failures.

The team should not use these metrics to rank members' faith, personal worth, romantic desirability, or likelihood of marriage. Reports should be aggregated wherever possible and should protect private member information.

15. Coordinator meetings and accountability

The coordinator team should meet regularly, with the frequency adjusted to the initiative's size and activity level.

Suggested meeting agenda

1. Opening prayer.
2. Review of previous action items.
3. Membership and onboarding updates.
4. Upcoming events and activity planning.
5. Resource and communication updates.
6. Member feedback and community needs.
7. Operational, safeguarding, or platform concerns, discussed privately where appropriate.
8. Decisions, assigned responsibilities, and deadlines.
9. Closing prayer.

The team should document decisions and action items. Sensitive member details should be excluded from general meeting notes unless genuinely necessary and appropriately restricted.

16. Launch plan

Phase 1: Agree on the foundation

• Confirm the vision and membership criteria.
• Agree on the relationship between Rooted and Praying Mothers.
• Appoint volunteer coordinators and backups.
• Approve community guidelines and safeguarding procedures.
• Define the optional-introduction process.
• Establish privacy and financial oversight.

Phase 2: Prepare the platform and activities

• Set up secure administrator access and permissions.
• Configure membership, events, resources, and communications.
• Prepare initial faith and relationship resources.
• Test application review and onboarding.
• Test privacy controls, reporting, and optional-introduction workflows.

Phase 3: Conduct a pilot

• Invite a limited initial group of eligible young adults.
• Host a small number of events.
• Test the member experience and coordinator workflows.
• Collect feedback from members and volunteers.
• Address significant safety, usability, and operational issues.

Phase 4: Launch and improve

• Open membership through agreed outreach channels.
• Publish the event calendar and resource library.
• Communicate the purpose and expectations of Rooted clearly.
• Review engagement and operational measures.
• Refine the program based on member and coordinator feedback.

17. Decisions for the Rooted volunteer team

Before launch, the team should agree on:

1. The intended age range and geographic reach.
2. Membership eligibility and any application requirements.
3. The role and authority of Praying Mothers leadership.
4. Whether the platform will be open to all members or invitation-based.
5. Which activities will be offered during the initial launch.
6. Whether facilitated romantic introductions will be included at launch or introduced later.
7. Who may access member profiles and optional relationship preferences.
8. The safeguarding and complaint-handling process.
9. The budget, ownership, and long-term maintenance of the platform.
10. The measures that will define a successful first six to twelve months.

Closing statement

Rooted is an initiative built on the desire of Praying Mothers volunteers to create a positive and supportive community for young adults.

By prioritizing faith, friendship, respect, and intentional connection, Rooted hopes to provide an environment where young adults can grow together, develop meaningful relationships, and, where mutually desired, explore the possibility of marriage.

The initiative will be guided by prayer, responsible leadership, clear boundaries, and a commitment to creating a welcoming community where each person is valued regardless of their relationship status.

Rooted in Christ. Connected in community. Intentional about relationships.

Open items and status

This section is kept apart from the plan above. It lists what is not built yet, what still needs a decision or confirmation, and what needs review before the public launch. It should be updated as items are completed.

Built since the first release

• The shared prayer wall, with requests, praise reports and encouragement, a choice of who sees each post, optional anonymity, "I'm praying", comments, and moderation by coordinators.
• Reporting and blocking, available next to every post, comment and introduction. Blocking is private and two-way, and it ends any introduction between the pair.
• The Intentional Connections questionnaire, separate introduction preferences, and a restricted Introductions workspace for coordinators. Introductions need both people's consent, and contact details are shared only after both say yes.
• The full set of application statuses (including waitlisted and withdrawn), the option to decline an interview, and emails for status updates, interview invitations, confirmations and reminders.

Planned, not built yet

These are described in the plan or the policies but do not exist in the app today:

• Private messaging between members, which would start only after a mutual introduction, and any member directory. Today contact details are shared once both people say yes, or a coordinator arranges how they connect.
• A restricted safeguarding and incident process kept separate from ordinary reports. Reports currently go to coordinators who have the Community area.
• Restricting or suspending a member's account, and an appeal process. Coordinators can hide content, and a super admin can remove a coordinator's access, but there is no member suspension tool.
• Discussion on events.
• Reminders for introductions that have gone unanswered, and scheduled follow-up check-ins after an introduction.
• Event attendance tracking (check-in and no-shows), event feedback surveys, and resource view tracking.
• Scheduled publishing, and archiving of events and resources.
• Task assignment and reminders for coordinators, and assigning a feedback item to a coordinator.
• Multi-factor sign-in for coordinators, and suspending a coordinator (today access can be removed).
• An analytics-only coordinator role with aggregate reports. Analytics are limited to super admins today.
• Narrower access to member profiles. Every coordinator can read profile details today, because names appear on attendee lists and feedback.
• Automatic deletion when retention periods end, except for prayer posts, which are removed after 12 months by the daily scheduled job. Other deletion, and account deletion itself, is handled by hand today.
• A native phone app. Rooted installs on a phone from the browser instead.

To be confirmed before launch

The volunteer team still needs to supply or decide these:

• A monitored support email address. Until then, the Feedback page is the contact route in the policies.
• The organisation's legal name, mailing address and governing law, for the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
• Email sending: verify the sending domain, create the email service key, connect it to the app and to sign-in emails, and test delivery. Until then, sign-in emails come from the database provider's limited default sender, which only reaches the team's own addresses, and notification emails are not sent.
• The sign-in link expiry and the approved sign-in redirect addresses in the authentication settings.
• Approval of the data retention periods in the Privacy Policy, and a target time for completing deletion requests.
• The hosting region and plan, and the log and backup retention of each service provider.
• Who handles concerns, who may read them, how serious concerns are escalated, and any response-time goal.
• The decisions listed in section 17: age range, eligibility, geography, the role of Praying Mothers leadership, open or invitation-only membership, launch activities, whether introductions launch at the start, who may see profiles, budget, and the measures of success.
• Whether to keep the commitments in the Privacy Policy not to sell data, not to run advertising and not to use tracking.
• Who the prayer coordinators are, and which coordinators hold the Introductions area (it is never given automatically). Reports and the prayer wall are handled by coordinators with the Community area.
• The written procedure for serious reports: who the safeguarding lead is, how an urgent concern is escalated to ministry leadership or outside authorities, and what happens to a member after a serious report.
• The daily scheduled job: the secret must be set in the hosting settings and in the database. Until it is, event and interview reminders are not sent and old prayer posts are not removed automatically.

Reviews needed

• Attorney review of the Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Community Guidelines. This includes how religious and relationship information is treated, agreements with service providers, any limit on liability, event risk wording, content and copyright complaints, and governing law.
• Review by a pastor or trusted ministry leader of the Community Guidelines and the dating, boundaries and relationship resources. The resource articles are general encouragement and have not been reviewed by a pastor, counselor or adviser.
• A read of each service provider's terms and privacy documents.

Checks to run before opening to the public

• Confirm by hand that one member cannot see another member's profile photo.
• Send test sign-in, announcement and reminder emails, and confirm they arrive and are not marked as spam.
• Try each coordinator area with a test account to confirm the limits work.
• Run the account deletion process once from start to finish.
• With test accounts, try the whole flow end to end: post anonymously, report a post, block a member and confirm neither can see the other's posts, then run an introduction from proposal to both saying yes.
• Confirm that a member who skips the questionnaire sees nothing about introductions beyond the explanation page.
• Replace or remove any sample or test content.