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Clergy Coffee & Conversation
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Pause, breathe and connect.
Coffee and Conversation
Thursday at 10:00am here.
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Association and Church Updates
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Save the Dates!
Ordination, Gabrielle Sclafani, April 23, 2023, Barrington Congregational Church, RI
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You are doing great ministry! Let us help make sure others know about it. Tell us about your stories, news and event information. We’re waiting to hear from you. Email Lynn at varneyl@sneucc.org.
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.
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January through March Ordination Anniversaries
55 Years
Rev. Charles Simonson, January 1, 1968
50 Years
Rev. Nelson Murphy, January 1, 1973
Rev. George Peters, January 1, 1973
45 Years
Rev. William McCoy, January 1, 1978
Rev. David Mehl, January 1, 1978
40 Years
Rev. Julio Filomeno, January 1, 1983
Rev. Joy Utter, January 1, 1983
35 Years
Rev. Patricia Hazeltine, February 2, 1998
Rev. William Sterrett, January 1, 1988
30 Years
Rev. Jack Jones, Jan. 1, 1993
20 Years
Rev. Sharon Eckhardt, Jan. 1, 2003
Rev. Marilyn Ricci, Jan. 1, 2003
Rev. Nancy Strickland, Jan. 1, 2003
15 Years
Rev. Timoth Sylvia, Jan. 1, 2008
Rev. Kelly Thibeault, Jan. 6, 2008
10 Years
Rev. Cleo Graham, Jan. 20, 2013
5 Years
Rev. Shelly Moses, Jan. 20, 2018
Church Milestones in 2023
First Church in Weymouth - 400 years
First Congregational Church in Marion - 325 years
Old South Union Church in Weymouth - 300 years
Second Congregational Church, UCC, Attleborough - 275 years
North Congregational Church, Marlborough - 275 years
Four Corners Community Chapel, Cumberland - 150 years
Cotuit Federated Church - 100 years
Please contact Lynn Varney if we have missed your anniversary. Ordination Anniversaries are listed from 5 years and forward in increments of 5, and church milestones are in increments of 25 years from 100 years on. If your church is celebrating a milestone anniversary, please let us know so that the Northeast Region can celebrate with you!
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Conference and Partner Updates
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70 Attend First G.R.O.W. Gathering
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Seventy people from the four Associations of the Southeast Region of the Southern New England Conference came together on Sunday, March 12, for the first of six G.R.O.W. Together regional gatherings.
“We had an AMAZING time this afternoon in the Southeast Region with lots of conversation, community building, resource sharing, and laughter,” Rev. Ruth Shaver said.
by Tiffany Vail Read More
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'Braiding Sweetgrass' Online Book Study
Tuesdays at 6:30 PM, April 11 to May 9
Each week, Environmental Justice Intern Lillian Steinmayer will lead a discussion on a different section of this book in the context of environment, gratitude, and our role as Earth's children. Sign up here
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Save the Date! SNEUCC Annual Meeting
June 17, 2023
Worcester, MA - DCU Center
Roll Away the Stone Mark 16:1-4
The Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, the nominee for United Church of Christ General Minister and President, will give the Keynote Address at the 4th Annual Meeting of the Southern New England Conference on June 17 in Worcester.
If elected by the UCC’s General Synod in July, Rev. Thompson will be the first woman, and the first woman of African descent, to lead the denomination.
Read more, including information on the resolution deadline and vendor space.
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Ministry Matters: An Evening of Conversation
April 27, 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Seekonk Congregational UCC
Seekonk, MA
The Rev. Darrell Goodwin, Executive Conference Minister, The Rev. Eric Elley, Digital Minister, and Ms. Karen Ziel, Assistant Director of The Center for Transformational Leadership, will talk about new and exciting ministries offered by the SNEUCC and engage in Q&A
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Scholarship Available
The First Congregational Church of Harwich is pleased to make available a scholarship of around $500 from our Wood Fund this year. Ministry and Christian Education students who are members of congregations that are within the Southern New England Conference of the UCC are invited to apply for this scholarship to assist with the cost of attending seminary.
Application forms are available online at: https://firstchurchofharwich.org/our-ministry/first-church-scholarships/. Please note that application materials must be received by the First Congregational Church, UCC, Attention: Scholarship Team, 697 Main St, Harwich, MA 02645 by April 7, 2023 (the deadline for Wood Fund applications has been extended to April 7th, which is later than the date printed in the application forms and listed on the award website). Please email Del Borah if you have any questions.
Yale Youth Ministry Institute: Tending the Adolescent Soul: Offering Hope in an Age of Despair
March 25, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Yale Divinity School, New Haven, CT
Full day workshop with Mark Yaconelli
PRC: Countering White Christian Nationalism in Churches
March 28, 2:00 to 3:00 PM • Online
Rev. Jennifer Butler will examine how white Christian nationalism has shown up throughout history, and how people of faith have organized to push back and can do so again.
Spring 2023 Gathering for SNE Women's Connection!
April 15, 2023
Registration Form and
Recognized Women Form
New Partnership to Bring Incredible Days to Edwards House
The Southern New England Conference's Edwards House Meeting and Retreat Center is partnering with Incredible Days to host four weeks in July during which youth and intergenerational groups can sign up for mission programs where participants will stay at Edwards House and do daily service projects focused on addressing urban poverty in Greater Boston.
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Call for Clergy Renewal in 2023
In late 2022, the Council of Conference Ministers (CCM) and the Alliance of Associate Conference Ministers (AACM) of the United Church of Christ wrote a pastoral letter in which they urged every ministry setting to consider the following...continue reading here.
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Worship Resources
Worship is an essential and vital part of Christian community. In the United Church of Christ, we believe that each setting is best equipped to discern the Holy Spirit’s guidance for itself. That means each local church develops and leads its own worshipping life. However, the local church is never “on its own.” Through covenant, it is connected with every other setting of the United Church of Christ. This curated list of resources is offered by the wider church in covenantal support of our local churches.
Worship Resources - Southern New England Conference of the UCC (sneucc.org)
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News: 2022 Giving to SNEUCC Exceeds Expectations
Local church giving to the Southern New England Conference came in over budget for 2022 – welcome news as the new Conference emerges from the pandemic. Read the details, and see a thank you video from Board President Tracy Keene and a video looking at what was made possible by Proportional Giving to Our Church’s Wider Mission in 2022. Read more here.
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Proportional Giving Video & Infographic Available to Churches
Your congregation may be one of the many SNEUCC churches that will soon be adopting their 2023 Mission Plan (aka Budget) articulating how they anticipate using God’s resources under their stewardship to both show forth and embody the Light of Christ in the coming year. Read more and see video and downloadable infographic here.
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2023 STEWARDSHIP Resources
Apr 26 – Rethinking What God Calls Volunteers to Do
Register here.
May 24 - Building an Endowment
Register here.
All Stewardship Webinars offered in 2023 by the National UCC Office are listed here.
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New Search & Call Journey
Website Launched
The Area Conference Ministry Team is delighted to announce the launch of our new and enhanced webpage for the Search & Call Journey. As part of discerning who will be their next partner in mutual ministry, congregations also engage in vital conversations and discernment about who God is calling them to become and how God is calling them to serve.
The team has designed a 5-step process, built off the resources offered by the Ministerial Excellence, Support and Authorization Team at the National Setting. It includes an orientation video and updated and downloadable documents for each phase. Read more here.
Center for Transformational Leadership
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April Lunch & Learn: Caring Congregations: What the Pandemic is Teaching Us
April 20, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM • Online
Rev. Dr. Frederick ‘Jerry’ Streets will offer a framework for exploring some of the on-going positive and challenging results the influence of the pandemic is having on the church.
| Diversity, Equity & Inclusion |
Conference Launches Lenten Book Study on Microaggressions in Ministry
March 29, 2023 at 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM • Online
For people in congregations who want to learn how to be more welcoming, more inclusive, and more attentive to the way God is calling them to accompany ALL people along their spiritual paths at church.
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The Southern New England Conference engages in Outdoor & Retreat Ministry with these sites:
Edwards House Meeting & Retreat Center, Framingham, MA
Do You Need a Day Away?
Complementary retreat days for SNEUCC Lay and Clergy Leadership at Edwarads House on May 18, 2023. More information here.
Complementary retreat days for New England Non-Profit, Lay and Clergy Leadership on April 11 and June 1, 2023. More information here.
Irons Homestead, Gloucester, RI
Pilgrim Day Camp, Framingham, MA - Pilgrim Day Camp registration is full for the summer.
Silver Lake Camp & Retreat Center, Sharon, CT -
Nature & Neighbors: Environmental Justice Youth Retreats, May 6, 2023
Silver Lake summer camp registration is now open for campers entering grades 4 through 12 for five 1-week sessions running this summer from July 2 through August 5. Register before the end of March to get the early bird discount of $50 off each summer camp registration by using the code EARLY23. Click here for more information.
2023 Silver Lake Award Celebration
April 16, 2:00 to 5:00 PM, Farmington Gardens, Farmington, CT
This celebration, honoring Whendi Cook Broderick, will feature a live and silent auction, hors d'oeuvres, cash bar, and an opportunity to donate directly to the Silver Lake Scholarship Fund. Registration deadline is March 31.aa
Temporary Ministerial Coverage
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The Southern New England Conference has moved from a "pulpit supply list" to a new Temporary Ministerial Coverage List. The list contains 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 being required to have Boundary Awareness Training as well as Racial Justice Training.
If your church is in need of a list, reach out to Program Support Associate for the Southeast Region Lynn Varney at: Varneyl@sneucc.org or for North Central & Northwest Regions Deb Holmes at holmesd@sneucc.org or for South Central & Southwest Regions Roz Hooks at Hooksr@sneucc.org
If you are interested in being included on the new Temporary Ministerial Coverage List, please contact Jill Ford at fordj@sneucc.org.
Please click here to view all SNEUCC obituaries.
Please click here to view all SNEUCC transitions.
To see all SNEUCC classifieds, click here.
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This week we pray for:
West Parish of Barnstable, West Barnstable: Revs. Reed Baer and Christine Burns
The United Church of Assonet, UCC: Rev. Gregory Baker
The Pilgrim Church of Duxbury, UCC: Rev. William Ferguson
Moosup Valley Congregational, UCC, Foster, RI: Rev. Betsy Aldrich Garland
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REGIONAL NEWSLETTER SCHEDULE CHANGE
The Regional Newsletter will be sent monthly on the third Tuesday of the month. If you would like to have events included, please make sure to have them submitted by the second Friday of the month to Lynn Varney: varneyl@sneucc.org
Subscriptions
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| This is an edition of the Southeast Region (including the Barnstable, Old Colony, Pilgrim and Rhode Island Associations) E-Newsletter that will be sent every other week. If you would like to unsubscribe or change your email preferences, please visit this link and enter your email address. |
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Southeast Region ~ Area Conference Minister,
Rev. Dr. Patty Kogut
Associations:
Barnstable, Old Colony, Pilgrim, Rhode Island
kogutp@sneucc.org
Phone or text: 508-244-4416
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