Prairie Star District

Welcome to the second email PSD newsletter.

If you’d like to read the previous email newletter or many of the previous hardcopy newsletters, they are archived on our Web site.

If you know someone who would be interested in District news, there is a link at the bottom to forward this newsletter.

If you want to become a subscriber to receive the newsletter regularly, click on the link in the right-hand column.

Nancy Heege
District Executive

Collaborative Growth Initiative

If you have an idea for a project that would help your congregation grow and involves a partnership with one or more other UU congregations, grant money is available.

The Prairie Star District Board of Directors has announced the Collaborative Growth Initiative, a special opportunity for multi-congregational initiatives that promote the growth of Unitarian Universalism within Prairie Star District. The District is funding this initiative using the resources created through the UUA Association Sunday this fall. Prairie Star District will receive a grant equal to 25 percent of the resources contributed by participating Unitarian Universalist congregations in the Prairie Star District.

The Board welcomes proposals from multiple congregations collaborating for growth. More details are available on the PSD web site.

and Get Help for Your Canvass

Martha Easter-Wells has been one of the UUA’s most successful Fundraising Consultants. She’s worked with many congregations across the United States, including several in Prairie Star District. She also assisted with the capital campaign for the new kitchen at Camp UniStar. We’re lucky enough to have engaged her for a weekend in January to lead a Stewardship Workshop. We’re excited about having her share her knowledge and expertise with you.

The workshop will be January 25–26, 2008, at the UU Fellowship of Ames, IA. [That’s about as close to the midpoint of the District as you can get, accessible by I-35 and just a few miles north of I-80.] The workshop will begin on Friday evening and run through late afternoon on Saturday.

Each team participating will receive a copy of the new book by Wayne Clark, Director of Congregational Fundraising Services for the UUA. The book is called Beyond Fundraising: A Complete Guide to Congregational Stewardship.

The workshop is open to teams of 3 or more from congregations. Cost for a team of 3 is $125; additional team members are $40 each.

For more information about the workshop and to register, see the PSD Web site.

Once a year all UU congregations are asked to report their membership numbers to the UUA. That process for 2008, called certification, began in mid-November of 2007. Instructions for certification were sent to all congregations. Information is available online at http://dyn.uua.org/congregation/ .

All congregations must file for certification by February 1, 2008, in order to be certified. This process is used to report a congregation’s official membership numbers, which determines its Annual Program Fund Fair Share contribution to the UUA, the District Fair Share, the number of member delegates it is allowed at General Assembly, and the number of voting delegates at the PSD Annual Meeting. Only certified congregations may send voting delegates to the 2008 General Assembly.

in Northfield and Lawrence

Trainings for adults who want to lead the OWL (Our Whole Lives) sexuality education curriculum will take place this winter in Northfield, Minnesota and Lawrence, Kansas. The Lawrence training, January 11–12, 2008, will cover the elementary curriculum. The Northfield training, February 1–3, 2008, will cover the middle school and senior high curriculum. Registration information is available on the the PSD Web site at the links highlighted above.

News about PSD people and congregations is now on our Web site. There is news about anniversaries and new buildings plus photos of the people involved in planning the new southern PSD camp.

 
Prairie Star District is one of nineteen districts of the Unitarian Universalist Association. We serve almost 70 congregations in the Upper Midwest. We have three full time staff people and three part time program and support staff members who work with many volunteers to assist congregations. To learn more about us, see our Web site.