Additional News Coverage on the Ogden Annual Conference

The Ogden Standard-Examiner was on hand for the keynote address and Youth Assembly of the Annual Conference as well as our Saturday witness event:

A first-night welcoming dinner included words from District President Jim Turner, followed by a ceremonial lighting of the chalice by the Rev. Nancy Bowen.

"We are called to practice loving," Bowen said as she lit the ceremonial flame. "To celebrate the freedom that Unitarian Universalism offers us."

After the lighting, a traditional parade of 10 district flags -- with names like Boulder, Pagosah, Columbine, Billings, Pocatello and Grand Juntion emblazoned in colorful lettering -- marched through the ballroom.

Friday's keynote speaker, the Rev. Dr. Terasa Cooley, from Boston, explained "adaptive leadership" to conference attendees.

"Leadership hasn't necessarily changed, our world has changed," she said. "Our world requires a different leadership these days because of the way in which it changes so quickly around us."

Cooley addressed new and unique challenges that are presented in contemporary society and what Unitarians can do to overcome them and be leaders in their religious, social and personal lives.

More coverage on all of the events of the conference can be found on the "Live from the Annual Conference" blog. Please feel free to submit your own accounts as well, to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Posted Tuesday, 19 October 2010 14:16 Written by Jess Cullinan

Pacific Northwest Regional Webinars in February

In addition to the webinars offered right here through classes.mdduua.org, the Pacific Northwest District website is hosting a series in February:

• Dip Your Toes in Adaptive Leadership with Rev. Carmen McDowell; February 2, 7pm PST
• Preaching for the Lay Leader with Rev. Dr. Marilyn Sewell; February 7, 4:30 – 5:30pm PST
• Pastoral Associates/Lay Ministry Programs- Part 2 with Rev. Stephen Ames; February 9, 7- 8:15pm PST (For those that attended Part 1 in January)
• Stewardship Follow-up with Mary Gleason; February 21, 7pm (For those who attended the PNWD Stewardship workshop on 1/21/12)
• Youth Advisor Coaching: Youth-Adult Boundaries with Anne-Marie Davidson & Nancy Combs-Morgan; February 28, 7pm PST

For more information, download this flyer (PDF: February 2012 Webinars), and register at pnwd.org.

Posted Friday, 27 January 2012 15:36 Written by Jess Cullinan

Photos from the 2010 Annual Conference

An album of pictures from the Annual Conference in Ogden, UT, including the witness event on Saturday evening, are now posted at Facebook. Many thanks to David Manning and Bob Blauvelt for their wonderful submissions.

If you have photos from Ogden, please send them to me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

More reports from Saturday's workshops are forthcoming from MDD staff. Keep checking back for updates!

Posted Wednesday, 13 October 2010 12:48 Written by Jess Cullinan

Program Information for Building Beloved Community: The Resilient Power of Stories

Preparations are well underway, and you can register online now for this year's Building Beloved Community event, "The Resilient Power of Stories!"

This year’s MDD Beloved Community program builds on past year’s Justice Ministries offerings with continued attention to adaptive leadership. Adaptive or transformational leadership requires understanding a group’s culture and assessing which aspects of it facilitate social change and which might be barriers. Our time together this year will focus on the meaning and purpose of justice ministry in religious community with attention to stories: How do we frame our own stories? How do we frame the stories of our community? How does the sharing of stories help us learn about one another and connect to the past so that together, we can move forward in the present?

To help guide our journey together, we’ll be joined by Unitarian Universalist minister, Jan Christian and Scholar-activist James Tracy.

An unexpected email, decades after her brother’s death in Vietnam, connected the Rev. Jan Christian to others still haunted by that day and their journey together revealed that going back can change the way we go forward. Rev. Christian chronicles this journey in her book, Leave No Brother Behind: A Sister's Memoir. She brings years of experience in a restoring justice - making model and will help us explore the power of stories to bring healing in our own lives, in our congregations and in the community.

James Tracy,  a social justice organizer in the San Francisco Bay Area, and co-author of Hillbilly Nationalists, Urban Race Rebels, and Black Power, spent ten years capturing the stories of cross race/cross class coalitions that pooled their resources to build a vibrant and radical movement for racial and economic justice. Whether our 2012 Phoenix GA, justice ministries in congregations, the budding Occupy movement, or today's immigrant rights coalitions, exploring these untold stories helps us understand that we don't have the luxury to walk separately anymore.

In addition to gaining new insights and leadership skills, one of the many benefits of participating in Building Beloved Community is co-creation of a joyful, learning community where people at all levels of development are working together on something they really care about. In order for us to create a dynamic community and deepen the experience for everyone, we request that you commit to the entire event starting Friday evening and closing with Sunday morning worship. Sending leadership team from your congregation strengthens internal capacity offering mutual support for bringing new understandings and resources home to your congregation.

Congregational Teams: Leadership teams representative of congregational life are strongly encouraged and will be the primary container for sharing individual stories, engaging presenters, and interacting with the larger group. You can register an unlimited number of teams (Board, Youth Ministry, Committees, etc) at the reduced team rate. Travel subsidies for congregations traveling the greatest distance are available to MDD Fair Share congregations on a first come basis. Send request to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Note: Minors must be accompanied by an adult with signed permission from parent or guardian.

Parents! During the conference we are offering a Peacemaking Workshop for Children ages 5 – 12. Please make a workshop reservation by January 10 noting the names and age of your children on the registration form. Upon request, childcare is available for children 4 and under at the rate of $20/per child. Please bring snacks; lunch provided. Contact Eleanor VanDeusen, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Kristin Famula, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , for Peacemaking workshop details or to request childcare.

See this page for registration and lodging information, and we'll see YOU in Denver!

Posted Friday, 02 December 2011 14:16 Written by Deborah Holder