Remember who you're caring for.
One shared book for the bishopric and the ward's presidencies. It shows who you're caring for, how to approach them, who has been in touch, and what the council is doing about it.
The Area Book is in beta. What you enter is kept, and the screens will keep improving as wards tell us what's missing.
Caring for a ward shouldn't start over every few years
A new presidency starts from nothing.
What the last one knew left with them.
Each leader keeps a separate list.
No one has the whole picture.
No one is sure who has been by.
One family gets three visits in a week, and another gets none for months.
How it works
Who uses it
Bishopric
Everything in the book. Only the bishopric can set a person's next ordinance or lock a record.
Elders quorum and Relief Society presidencies
Flags, contacts, ministering and council focus for the people they care for.
Young Women and Primary presidencies
The same shared book, so the whole council works from one list.
Stake presidency and stake clerks
Each ward's council focus, read-only.
The Area Book is for the bishopric and the presidencies who minister.
In a ward, and across a stake
A ward on its own
The bishopric and presidencies share one book, kept in the ward.
A ward linked to its stake
Same book, same access. The stake presidency and stake clerks also see who is in council focus, what the ward is doing and how long since the last contact.
At the stake
One row per ward: who is in council focus, how long since each was contacted, and how many people and families the ward is caring for. Locked and archived records stay with the ward.
The details
Five views
Everyone, In council focus, No contact in 90+ days, New to the ward, and No one ministering.
Do not contact
Mark someone do not contact, and every leader sees it before reaching out. The bishopric or any presidency can set it or clear it.
Short and easy to read
Flags and a contact log say what matters at a glance, so the next presidency can read a record in seconds.
Ministering, as you know it
Type who's assigned, and re-confirm it when you check. The elders quorum and Relief Society presidencies make the assignments with the bishop's approval (General Handbook 21.2.1). The book just remembers them.
Some things stay with the bishopric
Some matters are too sensitive for a whole council (General Handbook 4.4.6). The bishopric can lock a record, and the book then shows only the name until the bishopric unlocks it.
Archive and restore
When a family moves away, archive them. Their record stays whole if they come back.
Frequently asked questions
Where do we write notes?
There's no free-text notes box. A shared box fills up with "visited, doing well," so the book uses agreed flags and a simple contact log. Council focus has one line for what the ward is doing, and one for where things stand when you close it.
Can the stake see our area book?
The stake presidency and stake clerks see each ward's council focus: the person's name, what the ward is doing and how long since the last contact. The rest of the book stays with the ward.
What happens when a presidency is released?
The book stays with the ward. The next presidency sees every flag and contact, and the closing line from each past council focus.
Why only three in council focus?
The limit keeps the council working on a few people at a time. Close one to open another.
What does Beta mean here?
The Area Book works, and what you enter is kept. We're still refining the screens and wording with the wards that use it.
Give your ward council one book to work from
Try the Area Book, and the rest of Wardzen, free for 30 days.
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