By Marilyn Miller

School administrators. Elementary school teachers. Middle school teachers. Children’s counselors and therapists. Pastors. Church educators and Children’s Pastors. College professors.

Bosses and supervisors.

These are just a few of the leaders and professionals who will find value in attending “Third 

Culture Kids: An informative Seminar” on Thursday, April 11 at 6 p.m. at the Minden Presbyterian Church on Broadway. (Use the parking lot entrance)

Of course, if you are a TCK, you should attend. Just who is a TCK??

“Third Culture Kids are identified by a childhood spent largely in a culture other than that of their parents. Some call themselves ‘military brats,’ but they might also be the children of business-people, missionaries, or diplomats,” said Rev. Keith Mariott, pastor of the Minden Presbyterian Church and a “TCK” himself.

“While this lifestyle can bring benefits like learning foreign languages and experiencing different ways of life, it can also adversely affect the health and wellbeing of TCKs, as they struggle with their sense of belonging in the world.”

Minden’s proximity to Barksdale Air Force Base and Louisiana’s reliance on the oil and gas industries have historically led to a large incidence of TCKs in area schools, churches and the workforce.

“This is the fastest growing demographic in the world and makes up 7-10 percent of the population of the United States,” pastor Mariott said. “If the question ‘Where are you 

from?’ is best answered with a paragraph – you might be a TCK.”

“’Third Culture Kid’ is a term used increasingly in the international community, but TCKs are not always children. TCKs are those who, as children, spent a good portion of their developmental years in a culture other than the ‘passport’ culture of their parents.”

“These are adults whose culture is neither that of their birthplace, nor of the ‘foreign’ lands in which they grew up,” Mariott continued. “They have formed a unique third culture that has no national or cultural boundaries. They fit in everywhere, and yet nowhere in particular.”

The April 11, 2024 seminar will focus on:

• Learning to identify the TCK in schools, colleges, businesses and churches;
• Acknowledging the unique nature of their culture;
• Identifying different behavioral patterns associated with TCKs;
• Identifying losses and wounds caused by a mobile childhood;
• Accepting that TCKs view the world through the lens of multi-cultures;
• The awareness that TCKs are chameleons, and experts at mirroring those around them, including their counselors, teachers or bosses;
• Recognizing the special gifts of a cross-cultural upbringing, and more.