Getting to Know the New Transitional Conference Minister

The Conference welcomed Rev. David B. Lindsey earlier this month as Transitional Conference Minister. We asked him to share answers to a few questions to help you get to know him better!

What drew you to this position as Transitional Conference Minister?

I was drawn to this position for a host of reasons. I had a positive experience with the Minnesota Conference and its staff during my tenure as a pastor at Lynnhurst UCC in Minneapolis from 2007 to 2014. The Conference is one of the healthiest in the entire United Church of Christ, and the opportunity to serve on the Minnesota Conference staff is truly exciting. I’ve long been drawn to conference ministry and have been working for years to prepare for such an opportunity, including through mediation training, chairing conference committees, and attending conference ministry preparation events at the national office. When word of Shari’s transition went public, I felt a strong desire to serve in this role to help the Conference prepare for her successo

Describe the work you intend to do with the Conference over the next 18 months.

My task as the Transitional Conference Minister is two-fold. On the one hand, I’m here to make sure that the usual work of a Conference Minister – church support, staff management, fundraising, representing the Conference in the wider world, etc. – continues to be accomplished. On the other hand, I’m also here to help the Minnesota Conference through this interim period. Interim ministry is often defined by five core tasks:

• Coming to terms with history
• Discovering a new identity
• Managing shifts of power
• Re-thinking denominational linkage
• Committing to new leadership and a new future

CLICK HERE TO KEEP READING THE Q&A WITH REV. LINDSEY

Annual Information Review Due from Clergy

Clergy are required to fill out an Annual Information Review (AIR) form yearly so the Conference can maintain the most up to date ministry setting and contact information. It is also an opportunity to report on other standing requirements as well as request contact or other information from the Conference.

• Fill out the AIR form online
• Download and complete AIR form

Bob Olsen to Retire February 18

Bob Olsen, Generosity Officer for the Minnesota Conference, is retiring February 18. He shares that he will miss the many relationships he has made with our donors, our ministers, and our churches over the past several years, all of whom he calls "the lifeblood of the Conference." His immediate plans include spending more time with his family, practicing and making music, and working on personal projects that he has put off way too long, including a pop-up book of Saint Paul ice palaces.

To send Bob well wishes, or to stay in touch, you can use his personal email address (icepalacebob@gmail.com). Thank you, Bob, for your service, and may the next chapter in your life be full of joy and blessings!

Our Church’s Goals for Mission and Ministry Form Due Soon

Each year, churches pledge their Per Capita Annual Dues and their Our Church’s Wider Mission (OCWM) commitments with United Church of Christ denomination and the Minnesota Conference, UCC using the Our Church’s Goals for Mission and Ministry form. All UCC congregations should complete the form shortly after their annual congregational meeting in January/February.

The Our Church’s Goals for Mission and Ministry form was included with your Fourth Quarter Statement mailing. The form is also available online.

Thank you for returning your church’s form by February 29.

Hats Off to Conference Staff & Volunteers for Dealing With a Mountain of Paperwork (literally!)

The Minnesota Conference is in the final phase of the very long process of digitizing all Conference files. Volunteers spent months culling and organizing boxes and file cabinets of files.

This week, staff sent three cabinets and a huge volume of permanent files in basement storage off to a company that will transform everything to a digital format.

Thank you to our staff and volunteers for undertaking this laborious but ultimately so helpful work!

My Grandmother's Hands Book Study Starts Feb 5

Mondays, February 5, 12, 19, 26

6 – 7:30 pm via Zoom

Facilitated by Rev. Kelly Gallagher, Associate Conference Minister

You are invited to join a book study of Remaa Menakem’s groundbreaking book about generational, embodied racism and white supremacy. This book study will fulfill the Anti-Racism/Diversity Requirement for authorized ministers in the Minnesota Conference. LEARN MORE & REGISTER

Mark Your Calendar for the 2024 Our Whole Lives (OWL) Facilitator Training

April 12 @ 3:00 pm–April 14 @ 3:00 pm

REGISTER by Friday, March 29

Clergy and lay leaders who plan to offer an Our Whole Lives program in their congregations are invited to three days of facilitation training from April 12-14, 2024, at Camp Eden Wood in Eden Prairie, MN. Facilitator training will be offered for the OWL secondary curriculum (Grades 7-9, 10-12).

Our Whole Lives, or OWL, is a comprehensive human sexuality curriculum for elementary-age children through older adults, developed by the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association.

• Commuter Rate (training and meals): $250
• Double Occupancy Rate (includes training and meals): $350 (includes linens)
• Single Occupancy Rate (includes training and meals: $450 (linens included)

Participants from UCC congregations will receive a $100 registration discount through a generous subsidy of the Ashley Fund of the Minnesota Conference UCC.

Partner News & Events

Happy New Year from The Ministry Lab

The Ministry Lab is excited to share its New Year Newsletter highlighting the work the MN Conference UCC has helped make possible. The Ministry Lab had a wonderful 2023, full of creativity, collaboration, and transformation, and looks forward to more innovation in 2024!

Joys & Concerns

Send us your joys and concerns at communications@uccmn.org!

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