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WORDS FROM YOUR AREA CONFERENCE MINISTER
 

November 10, 2022

Dear Siblings in Christ,
 
On Tuesday, my family woke up at 4am to witness the lunar eclipse. The whole sky was glorious, and as I lay under piles of blankets looking up, I thought about the great cloud of witnesses we had celebrate at church just two days prior. In the fog of my tired brain, the cloud of witnesses turned into a universe of stars and planets, their light and reflections from ages past reaching out to our world now. What a beautiful, breathtaking existence God has crafted for us. What a blessing it is to dwell under these stars; what a blessing it is to be formed in faith by these saints of the church. I am particularly aware this week of those who have lost a loved one in the past year, as we enter this season of first holidays without their presence. May you have the space you need to remember and grieve; may their memories live on in your own life. As I write this, I am especially aware of the death of clergy with ties to our region in just the last few weeks, including Alice O'Donovan (obituary below). Alice was the first openly lesbian pastor to be ordained in CT and she actively served the church with gusto and spirit until last spring. I give thanks to God for all the ways she spread Christ's light while on earth and rejoice in the ways it will continue to shine from the celestial heavens. 
 
In faith, hope and love,

 

ASSOCIATION & CHURCH EVENTS
(Central MA & Windham CT)

Do we have your church leaders listed correctly?

Please have your church administrator (or whoever handles your church's email account) visit the Church Dashboard (part of the Southern New England Conference's data base) to make sure we're connecting with all the current leaders in your church. If you have difficulty logging into your account please contact Nancy Stubbs at stubbsn@sneucc.org.


CONFERENCE & REGIONAL EVENTS/INFORMATION
Please go to sneucc.org/events to see all posted events

      

 

Quarterly Racial Justice Training for all:

 

Both clergy and lay people are welcome to join us for this 3-1/2 hour, on-line racial justice training facilitated by Rev. James D. Ross II, Minister for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. 

NEW OFFERINGS in 2023!

Racial Justice Training for Authorized Clergy and MIDs: 
Wednesday, Jan. 18, 9 AM-12:30 PM
 
Racial Justice Training for All
Wednesday, April 12, 7-9 PM AND Thursday, April 13, 7-8:30 PM


Thursday, November 17, 3:30pm ET - Becoming a Creation Justice Church


A Call for Worship Communities to Pursue World Peace

by Peter Kakos and E. Martin Schotz, MD

In June 2019, basing itself on Jesus' Golden Rule, the 32nd General Synod of the United Church of Christ overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons. In order to see the words of the Synod become living spirit, it is critical for our churches to understand world peace and the path by which it can be achieved. Here is a call for our worship communities to study a critical document, which was a basis for the Nuclear Atmospheric Test Ban Treaty, a document that has enormous relevance for today: President John F. Kennedy's American University speech of 1963. read more


 

THE CENTER FOR TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP

The Center for Transformational Leadership equips clergy and lay leaders, congregations and covenantal partners of the SNEUCC with resources, tools and support to create a new vision and do the transformative ministry they are called to do in the local church, local community and the world.
We believe God calls us to bring new life as agents of change, and so  we embrace and encourage adaptive and transformative leadership wherever the Body of Christ is gathered. SIGN UP HERE to receive the Center for Transformational Leadership's monthly newsletter, Innovation Now!


Fall 2022 Lunch & Learn schedule

Lunch & Learn for Leaders is a monthly series hosted by the Center for Transformational Leadership. Every third Thursday, join us at noon for an hour-long session of learning and discussion. Each month we will offer a bite-size opportunity to learn valuable concepts and practices from a subject expert. Our wide-ranging topics are relevant to areas of mission and ministry that you, our authorized ministers and lay leaders, have indicated are timely for your congregations.                 

Lunch & Learn for Leaders | Introduction to Christian Contemplative Practices: Thursday, November 17th from 12:00-1:00 PM (REGISTER)  

Engaging Christian Contemplative Practices: Series starts Wednesday, January 18th from 7:00-8:30 PM (REGISTER)
Writing Pastors, Writing Faith; Creativity as Spiritual Practice - An Affinity Group for Clergy: Series starts Thursday, January 26th, 2023 (REGISTER)

 

Please click here to read more and to register.

Read newsletter issues  HERE.

 

DISCIPLESHIP OPPORTUNITIES AT A GLANCE

SNEUCC Confirmation Retreats '22-'23

Register your group for a facilitated retreat in 2022-2023! Chose from seven dates and three great locations.
In addition to our overnight retreats, consider our Weekend Retreats at Silver Lake! These events will include two nights with four meals, a full stay from Friday from 7:00pm to Sunday at 11:30am, and programs include team building, games, and campfire time on Saturday. Cost is $195 per person.
Registration is now open! Go to sneucc.org/events and select your preferred date. To ensure a spot for your attendants, you will be asked to make a deposit for each participant. Final count and full payment are due 21 days prior to the retreat. Please see each registration form for important information and policies.

Click here to read and learn more!
 

OUTDOOR MINISTRIES & MISSION OPPORTUNITIES

The Southern New England Conference engages in Outdoor & Retreat Ministry with the following sites:

Silver Lake Camp & Retreat Center

Edwards House Meeting & Retreat Center, Framingham, MA

Do You Need a Day Away?

Edwards House is now offering Complimentary
Retreat Days to SNEUCC Lay and Clergy Leadership
Click here for the November & December schedule.?


Pilgrim Day Camp, Framingham, MA

Irons Homestead, Glocester, RI


Fueling Inclusion, Voice, and
Opportunity for All

WAMS Works with individuals and community partners to inspire economic and education equity through social change. Click here to learn more about WAMS. 


Worcester Fellowship

Please check their website for updated information.

 

TEMPORARY MINISTERIAL COVERAGE LIST

 

The Southern New England Conference maintains Temporary Ministerial Coverage (TMC) lists for all 6 SNEUCC regions. These lists contain Clergy and Lay people that are interested in providing Sunday Supply, Sabbatical Coverage, and Bridge Coverage. All the people included on the list have had a Criminal Background Check and are required to have Boundary Awareness Training as well as Racial Justice Training. 

These TMC lists are regularly updated in real time.  If your church is in need of a list please reach out to the Program Support Associate for your Region:
North Central & Northwest Regions: Deb Holmes, holmesd@sneucc.org
South Central & Southwest Regions: Roz Hooks: Hooksr@sneucc.org
Northeast & Southeast Regions: Lynn Varney: Varneyl@sneucc.org

If you are interested in being included on any of the Temporary Ministerial Coverage regional lists please contact Jill Ford at fordj@sneucc.org

ACTIVE FOOD PANTRIES AND OUTREACH MEALS


The attached list is an updated list of churches in the North Central Region that currently have active food pantries and outreach meals for people in need. Please email Deb Holmes at holmesd@sneucc.org to have your church information included or updated. North Central Region List.

TRANSITIONS

 

Please click here to view all of the SNEUCC Transitions.

 

CELEBRATIONS

November Ordination Anniversaries

60 Years
The Rev. Graham Ward

55 Years
The Rev. Gerald Kupperschmidt

45 Years
The Rev. Dr. Edward Bernald
The Rev. Karen Haringa

35 Years
The Rev. Dr. Dawn Clark

25 Years
The Rev. David Rozewski

15 Years
The Rev. Jen Munroe-Nathans

 Please contact Deb Holmes if we have missed your anniversary.
Anniversaries are listed from 5 years and forward in increments of 5.


If your church is celebrating a mile anniversary please let Deb Holmes know so that entire North Central Region can celebrate with you!


New O&A churches!

Please Welcome The United Church of Clinton
and the First Congregational of Rutland
as the newest ONA churches in the region!

 

OBITUARIES

The Rev. Alice L. O'Donovan passed away on November 8, 2022.  She was a member of the Storrs Congregational Church.

A Celebration of Life is tentatively scheduled for November 20, 2022 at Storrs Congregational Church.  Arrangements are made by Potter Funeral Home, 456 Jackson Street, Willimantic, CT 06226. When more information is public we will post it here.


The Rev. John J. Adams of Hampton NH, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, October 18, 2022.  John leaves his wife Jane, his children David and his partner Christine, Elizabeth and her husband Bill; sister-in-law Marian Parks, and many nieces and nephews, and special friends. John was predeceased by his parents, his in-laws Dr. Donald and Nora Durman, his brother and sister-in-law Pat and Tom Schwartz and Dr. Bud Parks.
Services will be held at 11 AM on Saturday, November 19, 2022 at the First Congregational Church of Hampton, 127 Winnacunnet Road, Hampton, NH.
Please click here to read more.

                   

 Please click here to view all SNEUCC obituaries. 

CLASSIFIEDS

 

Please click here to view all SNEUCC Classifieds


ASSOCIATION MEETING INFORMATION

 

Central MA Association Meeting Information:

The Committee on Authorized Ministry:
Third Thursday of the month at 9:30 AM.
The Board of Director's:
Fourth Wednesday of the month at 6:00PM

Meetings are via Zoom or in-person at the First Congregational Church in Shrewsbury


Windham Association Meeting Information:

Monthly Council meeting:

First Tuesday of the month from 2:00PM to 4:00PM. via Zoom. 

 

 

North Central Region of
The Southern New England Conference, United Church of Christ

508-244-4399
holmesd@sneucc.org 
www.sneucc.org/north-central

Office Hours: 
Monday: 8:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Tuesday-Thursday: 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday: Closed

This newsletter is made by possible by your church's contributions to
Proportional Giving to Our Church's Wider Mission.