THE WEEKLY NEWS
February 20, 2024 | Volume 16 No. 6
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Online In-Person Registration is now closed!
In-Person registration for Prepared to Serve 2024 in now closed. If you weren't able to sign up in time you still have a chance to participate! for a reduced cost of $25 you are able to join us virtually for our amazing panel discussions! They will be on the following subjects:
- Youth in New Hampshire UCC Churches
- How General Synod Shapes Us
- Re-imagining the Church Using the Lessons from Improv
- Church Governance for a Changing Church
Don't miss out! Register here: nhcucc.info/pts2024
Virtual registration ends February 23. Walk in registrations will also be accepted.
We hope to see you on February 24 in Pembroke or online!
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Applications for New Office Administrator
Now Open
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The New Hampshire Conference seeks candidates to serve as our Office Administrator. The Office Administrator is the primary host and hospitality provider for events held at the Conference Office, maintains the Conference directory database and calendar, completes bank deposits, provides administrative support for the Conference Annual Meeting and Prepared to Serve events, arrange for periodic bulk mailings, and many other administrative tasks to support the mission and ministry of the Conference. A position description is available upon request.
The Office Administrator position is a 37 ½ hours a week, non-exempt position. Salary information available on request. Full benefits (health and dental insurance, pension, etc.) are provided.
Interested candidates should submit a resume (with references to contact) to the Reverend Gordon Rankin, Conference Minister, at grankin@nhcucc.org.
The New Hampshire Conference is a Racial Justice, Just Peace, Open and Affirming Conference of the United Church of Christ.
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Legislative Advocacy Training
with Planned Parenthood NH Action Fund
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Save the Date! Tuesday, March 5, from 9-12, at the NH Conference Office, 140 Sheep Davis Rd, Pembroke, NH.
Across the country - and here in New Hampshire - we hear about threats against an individual’s right to bodily autonomy, including abortion access and gender affirming health care. What can faith leaders and clergy do to oppose these attacks?
Join Planned Parenthood New Hampshire Action Fund for a 3-hour workshop specifically for faith leaders, both lay and clergy. During the workshop, we will cover what’s happening nationally, as well as in the NH State House, you’ll hear first-hand experiences from clergy and faith leaders who have used their voices in these debates, and we’ll cover the ins-and-outs of ways to get involved immediately. We need your help, now more than ever.
Click below to register!
https://www.weareplannedparenthoodaction.org/a/clergy-faith-leader-ppnhaf
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The "5th Stream" Study Book | |
Make a commitment this February to begin plans for a 2024 study of the book Afro-Christian Convention: The Fifth Stream of the United Church of Christ. Use the free PDF Study Guide found on the Pilgrim Press website https://www.thepilgrimpress.com/ to:
- Discover the origins of the Afro-Christian Convention in the 19th century,
- Explore the values that sustained Afro-Christian tradition throughout the 20th century, and
- Celebrate the legacy of Afro-Christians that widens and deepens our UCC commitments for ministry during the 21st century and beyond.
“To know the beliefs, movements, and events comprising [our] history is to begin to accept ownership and to be shaped by it. . . . In that process, insights are gained, perspectives brought into focus and visions renewed.”
The Shape of the United Church of Christ, Louis H. Gunnemann, 1977.
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Lenten Materials from Join the Movement | |
Engage in a weekly book study of The Risk of Being Woke throughout the season. Join the Movement will provide a Discussion Guide with facilitation hints, discussion questions, and session outlines to help guide you and your community. You could also use the questions for personal reflection in a journal or as seeds for mediations.
Download the Discussion Guide – Click here
Use their 40-Day Rising Up Journey – Woke Lent 2024 Calendar which includes daily reflections on the themes and quotes from the The Risk of Being Woke, ways to connect the Movement for Black Lives and Palestinian liberation, and spiritual practices and actions that help you build your capacity for racial justice activism and nourish your soul.
Click here to download the Woke Lent 2024 Calendar
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Quilting/Reduce/Reuse/Recycle:
Lessons for Church Ministry
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What if the goal isn’t to throw away old forms of church, but rather to figure out how to reduce, reuse, and recycle our resources? The next form of church will be different, but will be based on our eternal foundation of proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. How do we build creative strength for discerning God’s New Thing for the next generation? We’ll use quilt making as a model for how to select from our stash of habits and practices, how to cut off what we don’t need, and then how to put it back together to create a beautiful new vision for God’s work in the world.
9 am to 3 pm Saturday March 2 at Rindge Congregational Church
$100 per church for 3-8 participants from your congregation.
Lunch included.
Tell us you are coming at pastoronthecommon@gmail.com
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National Setting Learning Opportunities | |
Thursday, March 14, 1:30 – 4:30pm ET, Retired Minister Boundary Training with Rev. Tara Barber
Maintaining healthy boundaries is challenging at any stage in ministry and it is particularly tender and difficult attending to boundaries as we transition out of our last call, and while in retirement. "A Sure Foundation", "The Ministerial Code" and Rev. Dr. Bruce Epperly's new book, "The Jubilee Years" along with case studies, will provide the content of this training. Rev. Tara Barber will offer this focused Boundary Awareness Training for those entering and living in retirement.
Thursday March 14, 4:00 - 5:30pm ET, Online Gathering for UCC Educational Chaplains
Join Rev. Anissa Glaser-Bacon, Minister for Ministers in Specialized Settings, for an open ended conversation about the present and future needs for Educational Clergy and Chaplains in the United Church of Christ. This meet-up is intended for those serving as chaplains in educational settings; participants are encouraged to register in advance.
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Wilderness First Aid Training at Horton Center |  | |
Horton Center is excited to host a SOLO Schools Wilderness First Aid course open to anyone interested in getting certified.
June 8th-9th, 2024
Lodging and meals are available as well as add-on certifications (CPR and Wilderness First Responder recertification).
We hope you'll join us!
What is Wilderness First Aid?
This training is perfect for outdoor enthusiasts or trip leaders interested in a basic level of training for short trips. Accidents happen. People get hurt, sick, or lost. The temperature drops, the wind picks up, and it starts to rain. Would you know what to do? Many backcountry emergencies are preventable, and even when bad things happen, sometimes the wrong care can make things worse.
By learning a few basic skills, you can make the difference between a good outcome and a bad one-and maybe even save a life.
Topics covered in the training include Response and Assessment:
- Musculoskeletal Injuries
- Environmental Emergencies
- Survival Skills
- Soft Tissue Injuries
- Medical Emergencies
How do I learn more and sign up?
Click HERE!
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You are invited to Celebrate Cindy Bradley's Retirement
Save the Date! Wednesday, March 6 from 3pm-6pm
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Join us on March 6, from 3pm-6pm at the Conference Office, as we celebrate the retirement of our beloved Administrative Assistant, Cindy Bradley. After nine years of dedicated service to our Conference, Cindy will be retiring effective March 15, 2024.
We are immensely grateful for Cindy’s contributions, which have helped our Conference thrive. This celebration is a small token of our appreciation for her unwavering commitment and hard work.
If you are unable to make the March 6 date, we ask you consider writing her a letter thanking her for her many years of service! Please mail your letters to 140 Sheep Davis Road, Pembroke, NH 03275 c/o Thaddeus Sieverding.
We look forward to seeing you at the celebration as we honor Cindy’s remarkable journey with us!
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UPCOMING CONFERENCE EVENTS | |
| Prepared To Serve 2024
Pembroke Academy (now with hybrid offerings) | Feb 24
Register Here | | |
| Cindy Bradley Retirement Party
Conference Office | Mar 6
Save the Date | | |
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In the middle of Black History Month we lift up a prayer of thanksgiving and praise for the beautiful, profound and extensive contributions of Black Americans to the life of our nation throughout history. May these contributions never be forgotten and may we acknowledge with sorrow the ways that they have.
God, we ask that you keep us awake and alert to the sin of racism within ourselves and our society. We pray that you might guide us as we listen to the voices of your prophets, both those of old speaking to us from the pages of scripture, and those in our day and time crying out for justice. May we all work for a day and time when our people, all people, ‘shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation; neither shall they learn war any more.’
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On Sunday, March 3rd, at 3pm the South Congregational Church of Newport, UCC will be installing Rev. Daniel Adam as their Pastor and Teacher.
On Sunday, March 10th, at 3pm members of the Southwest Association are invited to attend and support Traceymay Kalvaitis's ecclesiastical council at the Hancock Congregational Church.
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Sunday Schedule: February 25, 2024 | |
The Conference Ministers are not scheduled to be attending any outside events this Sunday. | | |
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Monday - Friday | 8:00 am - 4:30 pm | |
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The Weekly News is published to promote the mission and ministry of the New Hampshire Conference of the United Church of Christ.
These announcements are intended to be brief, timely, and of a general interest to our Conference readers. Supportive links are provided whenever they are available. We encourage you to forward these materials to others in your church using the link below and to share them in your bulletins and local church newsletters.
Send your items to Communications@nhcucc.org. The deadline for submitting items for the next issue is Thursday at 12:00 PM.
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