Tech Forum

As a new bishop, I'd like to be able to gain wisdom from other bishops who may have had experience dealing with similar issues as myself.
A 'Bishop's forum' would be a great way for bishops to share ideas and experiences. This forum would have to limit access to only bishops.
If the General Authorities monitored this forum, they would get some feedback and knowledge about some of the issues that bishops are dealing with.

It would be nice to also have an organized list of resources (gov, employment, welfare, drug, sex etc) submitted by bishops for bishops and opinions about these resources. Maybe these lists would be organized first by region or state.

We send email to all the bishops and Stake Presidency in my stake to accomplish this. We ask questions or post ideas. It works well to get feedback from others. While we don't share sensitive or confidential info, it's secure to the point that only the bishops and Stake Presidency see the email. I think it would be a great asset to have such a forum here but imagine that it would be frowned upon given the many sensitive topics discussed publicly.

Look to your stake for a list of resources - they probably already have one. The problem with making a general list is that so many services are applicable to a specific area.

Another venue for obtaining this type of wisdom is the quarterly Stake Bishop's Welfare Committee. It should be attended by the Bishops (only) of the stake and is an opportunity to receive training on various topics: Fast Offering use, counseling with members, how to use LDS Social Services, etc.

We have had invited guests come to speak to this committee about welfare service opportunities, LDS Social Services - to explain their processes and you should expect and what they expect. We have also arranged to tour facilities at the Bishop's Storehouse, LDS Employment Services, etc.

This committee meeting has been a great source for new bishops in helping to navigate the expenditures of Fast Offering funds. The only drawback for new bishop may be that this committee only meets quarterly. However, the committee chairman, usually one of the senior bishop's in the stake, is available anytime for questions, as well as the stake president.

This is one of the functions of the Stake Bishop's Welfare Committee described by MRK.

If you are looking for community resources, you might do a Google search to see if 2-1-1 has been implemented by your state.

For example:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=211+utah
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=211+oklahoma

With this service, the bishop (or anyone else for that matter) can call 2-1-1 and ask for lists of community resources, such as
"What food banks are available near _____?"
"Where can I go in ______ for help paying rent/utilities?"
"Where near ______ can I find free/low-cost dental or medical care?"
etc.