TO:        Presidents, Ministers, Religious Educators, Musicians, and Administrators of Member Congregations

FROM:   Eric Huffer, MidAmerica Region Board President

DATE:   April 13, 2018

RE:         CALL TO THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE MIDAMERICA REGION

This is the Official Call for the 2018 MidAmerica Region Ingathering and Annual Business Meeting:

Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Kansas City Convention Center – Room To Be Announced
301 W 13th St, Kansas City, MO 64105
Business Meeting begins at 4:30 PM Central Daylight Time

This Call to Meeting notification also includes:

• Tentative agenda for the Annual Business Meeting
• Rules of Procedure
• Congregational Listing of Delegate Numbers

Delegates:

The Bylaws of the MidAmerica Region of the UUA state that congregations and individual members of the Church of the Larger Fellowship may have the same numbers and kinds of delegates at the Region’s Annual Meeting as are permitted at the UUA General Assembly. This includes member delegates in the numbers set out in the UUA Bylaws. In addition, ministers in fellowship serving congregations, credentialed religious educators, credentialed musicians, and those serving as directors of religious education are also eligible to be delegates. Delegate cards in the appropriate numbers will be mailed to congregations in early May, 2018. Delegates must bring their delegate credentials to the Annual Meeting and register for their voting credentials.

Voting materials will be made available on the MidAmerica Region website (www.midamericauua.org/ra) and will be emailed to all administrators, presidents, ministers, religious educators, credentialed musicians, and those on our newsletter mailing list by May 21, 2018.

Questions?  Contact the Regional Office at 312-636-9724,or email midamerica@uua.org 

Dear MidAmerica Chalice Lighter,

It’s been five years since the Chalice Lighter programs of the former Heartland, Central Midwest, and Prairie Star districts were combined to form the MidAmerica Region Chalice Lighters Program. In that time, congregations from around the region have received thousands of dollars in grants funded by your generosity. The time has come to reassess the program, which we’ll be doing over the next year.

Our goal is to reformulate the program so that congregations can receive even larger grants for starting new congregations, acquiring meeting space, securing a minister, religious educator, or other professional staff, or providing for outreach and public relations. And as part of the selection process, the committee will be looking for proposals that are feasible, sustainable, and accountable. We’ll keep you informed about any changes in the program in the 2018-19 Chalice Lighter Call letters.

For the 2018 Spring Call, the MidAmerica Region Chalice Lighter Committee received eight applications—a record number! We are pleased to announce that these three have been chosen for this Chalice Lighter call:

• The Bismarck Mandan Unitarian Universalist Fellowship & Church in North Dakota will be receiving funds to hire a half-time clergy to provide ministerial support and guidance with the goal of developing a thriving congregation.
• The Open Circle Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, will also be receiving funds to assist the fellowship in moving their quarter time minister to half time.
• And the Second Unitarian Church of Omaha, Nebraska, will receive grant money to build two accessible and gender-neutral bathrooms.

For this Call, please donate by June 15, 2018

Jack Round, Lay Staff Member

MidWest Leadership School (MWLS) will be held from July 15 - 21 on the campus of Luther College in Decorah, Iowa.

Please mark your calendars and spread the word!

This will be our second year at Luther. Participants said they appreciated the scenic beauty of the location!

There is an Adult School and a Youth School, and we are unique among UU leadership schools in that the schools are designed to do several activities together and safely interact.

MWLS creates opportunities to learn about the history of Unitarian Universalism, about yourself as an individual, and your role as a member of a congregation in a larger movement grounded in liberal theology.

MWLS attendees come away from the experience with a better understanding of healthy organizational practices.

Is MWLS for you or someone you know? Anyone wishing to increase their leadership skills in a church context are encouraged to talk to us. Many incoming board members and presidents find this to be an excellent preparation for their service. Many youth enjoy being with like-minded peers, and the supportive environment enables them to help discern and activate their leadership passions.

Read more about MidWest Leadership School at www.mwls.org and follow us on Facebook for updates at https://www.facebook.com/mwls.org

MidAmerica Region is proud to announce a series of social justice webinars that are being done in collaboration with the Minnesota UU Social Justice Alliance.

Executive Director Rev. Ashley Horan and Statewide Organizer Pastor Danny Givens will help all our congregations prepare themselves better for social justice work.

These 75 minute webinars will be monthly, on the second Tuesday. Make sure to register for these webinars as space is limited! Details of the webinars are below, and each starts at 7:45 pm Eastern, 6:45 pm Central, 5:45 pm Mountain times. Webinars will be recorded, and will be available on demand for those unable to attend.

Watch videos of past webinars in this series: Social Justice Webinar Series

Register now for the next one:

Justice-Making as Faith Formation: Social Justice Ministry With Children & Youth Tue May 08 @ 7:45PM

A Strange Power to Spring in Us: Building Resiliency & Spiritual Grounding for Justice Makers Tue Jun 12 @ 7:45PM

View Full Calendar

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