Volunteer seasons

A season is the stretch of weeks you ask volunteers for, such as “Autumn 2026”: you add its dates (plans), put people on them, and send each person one request for the whole season. Each volunteer then answers yes or no for every date they are on, in the member portal.

How to use it

Add a season

1. In the staff dashboard, open Services.
2. Choose Add season. (If your church has no seasons yet, the page says No seasons yet and shows the same button.)
3. Name: what volunteers will see, such as “Autumn 2026”. Up to 80 characters; two seasons can’t share a name.
4. From and To: the first and last day of the season.
5. Choose Add season. The page switches to the new season.

Choose a season

The season picker at the top of the page lists your seasons, newest first. When you open Services, it shows the season running today. If none is running, it shows the next one to start; if none is coming, the last one to end. If two seasons overlap today, it shows the one that started most recently.

Beside the picker you see the season’s state (Draft, Requests sent or Closed), its dates and how many plans it has.

Add the dates (plans)

A plan is one service on one date, such as Sunday 9:00 AM on October 4. With the season chosen, choose Add plan for each date, then say what each date needs and put people on it. How to do that, and how to read the grid, is in The schedule; this article covers the season around it.

Send requests

When the season’s dates are filled in:

1. Choose Send requests. The button shows how many people haven’t been asked yet, such as Send requests (12).
2. Add A note to go with it if you like, such as “Thank you for serving this season.”
3. Choose Send.

Each person gets one request for the whole season, covering every date they are on, however many that is. They answer each date separately. The season changes to Requests sent, and each person’s record notes how many times they were asked to serve.

If you add someone new later, Send requests shows them in its count and asks only them. If you put someone who was already asked on another date, that date joins their request straight away.

Close the season

When you are done asking for a season, choose Close season, then Close season again to confirm. No more requests go out for it, and you can’t add plans to it. Everything people answered stays, and volunteers can still change their answers.

Archive, restore or delete a season

Archive a season

Archive a season when it is over and you no longer want it in your way.

1. Choose the season, then Archive season.
2. Confirm with Archive season.

An archived season leaves the season picker and volunteers’ schedules. Its dates, requests and answers all stay. You stay on the season after archiving it, marked Archived, and can read its grid but not change it.

Find and restore an archived season

1. Choose Archived seasons. The button shows how many there are, such as Archived seasons (3).
2. Next to a season, choose Open to read its grid, or Restore to bring it back.

You can also choose Restore season while you are looking at an archived season. A restored season comes back exactly as it was, including whether its requests had gone out or it was closed. Its dates show in volunteers’ schedules again.

If every season is archived, Services says Every season is archived. Add the next season, or choose Archived seasons to open or restore one.

Delete a season made by mistake

Delete season appears only while nobody has been asked about the season and nobody has answered for it, for example a season added twice or with the wrong dates.

1. Choose the season, then Delete season.
2. Confirm with Delete season. The message tells you how many plans go with it.

Deleting removes the season, its plans and who was put on them. Since nobody was asked, nobody is told. This can’t be undone.

Once anyone has been asked or has answered, the season is part of people’s history: archive it instead.

What volunteers see

Volunteers answer in the member portal, under My schedule:

• Waiting for your answer: each date they are asked for, with the position, team, service, campus and season, and your note at the top. They choose Yes, I’ll be there or No, I can’t. Saying no lets them add A word for your scheduler, such as “Away that weekend”.
• You are on: the dates they said yes to, with Change to no.
• You said no: the dates they said no to, with Change to yes.
• Dates you cannot serve: they choose Add dates to add a day or a range with an optional reason, and Remove to take one away.

A date inside one of their blocked-out dates carries a You are blocked out badge; they still decide. The portal’s home page also says how many serving dates are waiting for their answer.

Volunteers don’t see cancelled dates, dates that have passed, or any date from an archived season. Their answers show in your grid straight away.

Good to know

• Who can do it. Owners, administrators and ministry leaders can add seasons and plans, send requests, close, archive, restore and delete. Staff can view the schedule and open archived seasons, but change nothing. Volunteers answer only for themselves.
• Staff limited to their campuses can archive and restore a season, but can’t delete one: a season covers every campus. An owner or administrator can.
• Requests arrive in the member portal. HoW doesn’t email or text a request yet. Let your volunteers know to look under My schedule.
• Volunteers see a date as soon as you put them on it. It shows in their My schedule page right away, before you choose Send requests. Sending adds your note and marks them as asked.
• A volunteer needs a portal login linked to their record. Without it, My schedule tells them no record is linked to their login yet. Link it on the person’s record, under Portal login.
• Blocked-out dates apply to every team. In the grid, an orange dot on a name means that person blocked out that date. A blockout doesn’t decline anything by itself.
• Who is on how often sits beside the grid: each person’s number of dates in the season, with their yes and no answers. Often marks anyone on half the season’s dates or more.
• Children’s records. If you can’t see children’s records, a young volunteer is counted in a cell (“1 you cannot see”) but not named.
• Names stay taken. An archived season keeps its name, so a new season can’t reuse it.
• No editing a season yet. You can’t rename a season or change its dates on the screen. If nobody has been asked yet, delete it and add it again.
• Closing and archiving are different. Closing stops requests but keeps the season in the picker. Archiving takes it out of the picker and volunteers’ schedules. You can archive a season whether or not it is closed.
• Your plan. Services is a feature your church’s plan includes or adds; see Your plan under Settings.

If something isn’t right

• “Another season already has that name. Archived seasons keep theirs.” Choose a different name, or restore the archived season with that name.
• “A season ends after it starts.” Check From and To.
• “… was not deleted: someone has been asked or has answered since. Archive it instead.” Someone sent requests or recorded an answer while you were deciding. Use Archive season.
• “… was not deleted: your account is limited to campuses, and a season covers every campus. An owner or administrator can delete it.” Ask an owner or administrator, or archive it instead.
• There’s no Delete season button. Someone has been asked or has answered for this season. Archive it instead.
• A season disappeared from the picker. It was archived. Choose Archived seasons to find it.
• A volunteer can’t see their dates. Check that their login is linked to their record, that the date hasn’t passed or been cancelled, and that the season isn’t archived.
• “Send requests” is grayed out. Everyone on the season’s dates has already been asked, or nobody is on a date yet.
• “… was not archived” or “… was not restored. Check your access and try again.” Your role may not allow it. Ask an owner or administrator.

What DCX support can do

With your permission, DCX support can open a support session on your church to look at your seasons with you and see why a season, a date or a volunteer’s answer isn’t showing as you expect. Support can also switch Services on for your church.

How this compares with Planning Center

If you’re coming from Planning Center Services:

• Plans are the same idea. In both, a plan is one service on one date, with teams and positions to fill.
• Seasons instead of service types. Planning Center groups plans by service type (such as “Sunday Morning”). HoW groups them by season, a stretch of weeks you ask for at once.
• The grid is like the Matrix. Planning Center’s Matrix shows many plans at once, with positions grouped by team. HoW’s season grid works the same way, and it is how you always schedule.
• One request per season. Planning Center sends requests per plan, by team, by person or for a whole plan. From the Matrix it can combine many requests into one email per person. In HoW, one request per person per season is how it always works.
• Answers per date in both. In Planning Center a volunteer accepts or declines each position and time, with an optional decline reason. In HoW they answer each date, with an optional word for the scheduler.
• When volunteers see a date. In Planning Center, someone scheduled but not yet sent their request can’t see the plan. In HoW, they see the date in the portal as soon as you put them on it.
• Where requests arrive. Planning Center emails requests, and volunteers can also answer in the Church Center app. HoW requests are in the member portal only for now; it doesn’t email them yet.
• Blockouts. Both apply a blockout to every team and warn the scheduler. Planning Center also allows partial-day and repeating blockouts; HoW takes a day or a range, with a reason.
• After a decline. Planning Center can automatically send the request to the next available team member, or let the volunteer choose a replacement. HoW doesn’t yet; you see the answer in the grid and put someone else on.
• Archiving. Planning Center archives a whole service type, with its teams, and an administrator can restore it. HoW archives a season; your teams stay in use.
• Deleting. Planning Center lets you delete a plan or a service type and recover it within 30 days. HoW deletes a whole season only while nobody has been asked or answered, and it can’t be undone. Once people are involved, you archive it, which keeps everything.