Home District Programs Justice Ministries Spring 2011 Webinars Series

Spring 2011 Webinars Series

Spring Webinars:

Please note that all times listed are in the Pacific Time Zone.

 

Youth Ministry: Where Are We Now? Where Are We Going?

Tuesday, March 29, 7 pm (PDT)

Facilitator: Tandi Rogers serves as the Interim Director of the Youth and Young Adult Office of the UUA, as well as the Program Specialist in the Pacific NW.

Summary: What have we learned since the Youth Consultation in the mid-90s? Where are we with the resulting Youth Ministry Working Group Recommendations? We will explore all these, share experiences, challenges, and what is working.

Links to websites or articles for pre-reading:

Governance: Considerations for the Mid-size Church

Thursday, April 14, 7 pm (PDT)

Facilitator: The Rev. Dr. Ken Brown is currently District Executive of the Pacific Southwest District. A UU minister for 36 years, he was the founder of the UU Urban Ministry of Los Angeles serving as its first Board chair. He was also the consulting minster at First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles from 1994-1996. He has also been chair of the UU Urban Church Coalition in the 1980's and again in the 1990's.

Summary: Is your congregations model of governance wagging the dog or serving your mission? Are you using an old model you've outgrown? Choosing a model of governance to meet the needs, culture and mission of a congregation is crucial. Join us as we explore considerations.

Handing Down and Taking Up -- Your Capital Campaign

Tuesday, April 19, 7 pm

Facilitator: Barry Finkelstein has been a Unitarian Universalist congregational stewardship consultant since the Fall of 2007 and has since worked with twenty congregations on annual budget drives, capital campaigns, and strategic planning. Barry has enjoyed participating in stewardship since his introduction to the canvass at the UU Church of Arlington, VA in the 1980s, and found his true calling as a UU stewardship consultant.

Summary: Antoine De St.-Exupery wrote, "In a house which becomes a home one hands down and another takes up the heritage of mind and heart . . . " Earlier generations built the faith that we gratefully inherited. They invested their energy, talents, and resources in dreams of a future they could scarcely imagine. Let us build that faith for the next generation. A capital campaign is one of the ways that we hand down and take up our heritage. Join in this webinar to explore the place of a capital campaign for our modern Unitarian Universalist congregations and what to consider when planning one.

Links to websites or articles for pre-reading: http://congregationalstewardship.blogs.uua.org/2010/12/03/stewardship-as-spiritual-discipline/

Leadership Development for Small Congregations I: Change and Crisis

Sunday, April 24, 3-4:30 pm (PDT)

Facilitator: Kristen Dillon has been a member of the Mid-Columbia Unitarian Universalist Fellowship for the past 10 years, having served as the congregations President, RE Coordinator and Administrator at various times through the years. She works as a family physician in Hood River, where she lives with her husband, Paul Blackburn, and two daughters.

Summary: How does an effective religious community face change and crisis? Through intention, discernment, appreciative inquiry, clear communication and celebration. You'll be in good hands with proven congregational leaders Kristen Dillon who has put these strategies into action.

Transforming Nominating Committees

Tuesday, April 26, 7 pm (PDT)

Facilitator: The Rev. Nancy Bowen is a birthright Unitarian Universalist, raised in All Souls Church in Tulsa, OK. A graduate of Smith College and Yale Divinity School she holds fellowship as a community minister - meaning that her service to our movement is in larger settings, like Mountain Desert District. She has been district executive in MDD for 5 1/2 years and served Clara Barton District in the same capacity until 2001.

Summary: Many of our congregations are recognizing that a small nominating committee working for a few months prior to the annual meeting cannot provide the kind of informed and inspired leaders needed by congregations. Lets explore the history of this model and consider how we might create a pattern that is more supportive of healthy and vital Unitarian Universalist congregations. I will share ideas from MDD congregations making this transition.

Campus Ministry Start Up Strategies for Congregations

Wednesday, April 27, 7-8 pm

Facilitator: Kayla Parker is the Campus Ministry Associate on the UUAs Youth & Young Adult Office team. She is inspired by the radically inclusive multigenerational work being done by congregations in our region, and is looking forward to the opportunity to continue the growth of this movement with us.

Summary: If your congregation has a community college, trade school, college or university in your area, then this webinar is for you. There are many ways to support a campus ministry program and when done joyously is an energizing, symbiotic relationship.

Links to websites or articles for pre-reading: http://www.uua.org/religiouseducation/campusministry/index.shtml

Governance in Smaller Congregations

Thursday, April 28, 7-8 pm

Facilitator: Janine Larsen is in her seventh year as UUA District Executive in the Pacific Northwest, and covered the governance portions of the 2010 General Assembly workshop on "Leadership in Small Congregations." Janine is a member and past president of the Woodinville UU Church (WA).

Summary: If fewer than 100 people regularly gather for worship at your congregation, you'll serve them best with leadership tools that fit, not those designed for a larger church. We'll look at governance systems that tend to work well in smaller congregations, and have time for sharing about your governance issues and questions. For current and prospective Board members and professional staff. Limited to 25 participants (or 20-23? You know, what our license is - more would be unwieldy, I think)

Resource Links: Familiarity with UUA resources for small congregations is always recommended: http://www.uua.org/leaders/congregationsizes/small/index.shtml

Social Change & Small Group Ministry

Wednesday, May 11, 7 pm

Facilitator: Rev. Deborah Holder serves the Mountain Desert District in the role of program consultant and MDD Justice Ministries coordinator. Prior to entering the ministry, she earned a Masters degree in community organizing and served the UU Veatch Program at Shelter Rock.

Summary: When organized to express the values of empathy, respect, humility, spiritual growth, and solidarity, small groups become the unit of personal and communal transformation. When supported by small groups and grounded in the principles of restorative justice, our congregations become powerful laboratories - a faithful community of practice and its members become the midwives of Beloved Community. Our time together is primarily focused on the meaning and purpose of social change activity in the context of UU/interfaith communities with less emphasis on infrastructure. For those unfamiliar with small group ministry infrastructure and process, please visit http://www.smallgroupministry.net. Multigenerational congregational teams are encouraged to participate.

Policy Governance: What's Basic, What's Flex?

Tuesday, May 17, 7 pm

Facilitator: The Rev. Margaret Keip Margaret is a semi-retired UU minister who has been Carver Academy trained and consults on request with UU boards.

Summary: Policy Governance(R) is an integrated governance structure designed by John Carver to help boards advance the missions of non-profit and public organizations. Unitarian Universalist boards have been adopting it because its values reflect our own. How does it fit the unique character of congregations?

Leadership Development for Small Congregations II: Navigating Dangers

Sunday, May 22, 3-4:30 pm

Facilitator: Kristen Dillon has been a member of the Mid-Columbia Unitarian Universalist Fellowship for the past 10 years, having served as the congregations President, RE Coordinator and Administrator at various times through the years. She works as a family physician in Hood River, where she lives with her husband, Paul Blackburn, and two daughters.

Summary: How does a religious lay leader enter into danger zones with grace and maintain low-anxiety? What are preventative policies and protocols? What are your hot buttons? We will explore these questions and share strategies among our group.

Stewardship for Small Congregations:Keep it Simple and Not (Too) Scary...

Wednesday, May 25, 7-8:30 pm

Facilitator: The Rev. Cecilia Kingman has been a stewardship educator and fundraising consultant for over a dozen years. She has worked with congregations throughout the country and has led workshops for the Thomas Jefferson District, the Metro New York District, and the Pacific Northwest District. She has taught UU University seminars and in 2009 was the Co-Dean for the UU University Stewardship Track. Rev. Kingman currently serves the Cascade UU Fellowship in East Wenatchee, WA.

Summary: Small congregations face specific challenges in stewardship work. There is little to no staff support for the tasks of fundraising, and leadership is already stretched thin. In addition, smaller congregations are not always well served by the usual methods of raising funds, like giving circles and special dinners for high pledgers. The intimacy of a smaller congregation can also be a block to good fundraising. After all, it's scary to ask for money from people you know. And what do you do when half the congregation is on the canvass committee and the other half is on the board?

Not to fear, though--there are good practices for smaller churches and fellowships, and fundraising can be a fun and meaningful experience for everyone involved. In this webinar, we will discuss simple and creative ways to fund your congregation's mission and vision.

Posted Friday, 25 March 2011 13:54 Written by Jess Cullinan

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