In Minnesota, the snow is deep and it's cold outside, but there is much happening in PSD: special activities for youth and young adults, more online workshops than ever, and looking ahead to spring, Annual Conference in April in Des Moines. Read on for the details.
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A small but mighty group came together at the Unitarian Fellowship of Lawrence, Kansas in early January to learn about hunger and put their energy toward helping others. The Lawrence Interdenominational Nutrition Kitchen (LINK) serves close to 200 meals four times a week and members of all ages from the Unitarian Fellowship of Lawrence serve at LINK regularly. PSD youth pitched in by making eight hearty casseroles and two desserts and serving the guests at LINK side by side with volunteers from the host congregation.
This event was the second of three social action-oriented events for PSD youth this year. The next one will take place in early March at First Unitarian Church of Omaha, Nebraska where we will participate in a hunger project which local UU's have already been serving. Keep an eye on http://www.psduua.org for details.
Youth Combating Homelessness
In early November, 35 youth and adults from three PSD states came to UU Church of Minnetonka, Minnesota for the PSD Northern Youth Action Con. They learned about homelessness, participated in The Sleepout (a Twin Cities campaign that raises awareness and funds to combat homelessness), and shared their experiences with the congregation on Sunday morning. One youth wrote a moving account of her experience. Read it at http://www.psduua.org/Newsletter/60January2011Youth.
Annual Conference 2011
Registration is open for the 2011 PSD Annual Conference, "It Matters What We Believe" to be held April 8-10 in Des Moines, Iowa.
Come for the terrific speakers, the fabulous workshops, and the wonderful people you will meet. The Conference is multigenerational; children and youth are encouraged to attend.
Consider attending one of the free online workshops offered by District staff and knowledgeable guest speakers. To participate all you need is high speed internet access and a separate phone line.
Volunteers - Best Practices in Care and Feeding January 27, 2011
PSD is hosting a Young Adult Retreat at Camp Carol Joy Holling on Feb 25-27. So save the date and plan to join us in Ashland, Nebraska at the same site we use for Camp StarTrail. Got kids? Bring 'em! We'll have a multigenerational gathering where we learn, relax, cook, and serve together. Details forthcoming at http://www.psduua.org/YoungAdults
Midwest Leadership School
for Adults MidWest Leadership School (MWLS) develops lay leaders in the Unitarian Universalist (UU) community. The week-long intense program includes UU history and theology, elements of worship, leadership development, and group and system dynamics. It uses an intense set of workshops, discussions, intimate small groups, worship preparation, personal theological exploration and growth sessions. MWLS will be held July 17 - 23, 2011, on the campus of Beloit College in southeast Wisconsin. For information or a registration form, visit http://www.mwls.org/.
for Youth
Registration for Youth MidWest Leadership School is open and we already have people registering to attend. Space is limited so register early. Youth MWLS will be held July 17 - 23, 2011, on the campus of Beloit College in southeast Wisconsin. Scholarships from PSD are available. Check out http://www.mwls.org/ for info and to see a great video of 2010 participants.
We are excited that we have Deb Kline, from the UU Fellowship of Ames returning for a third year as a Resident Assistant, and we are thrilled to introduce new teaching staff members Becca Herron from Peoples Church in Cedar Rapids, IA and TJ Murphy from First Unitarian of Omaha, NE. TJ attended MWLS in 2009 and Becca participated in 2010. Thanks, and welcome aboard to all three!
President's Column
by Kathy Burek Do we need Districts? If so, what for? These questions are coming to the forefront as the UUA Board, UUA President Morales, the UUA District Presidents' Association, and the Prairie Star District Board begin to imagine a governance and service delivery structure suited to the 21st Century. Read more about imagining a new UUA at http://www.psduua.org/Newsletter/60January2011President and send someone from your congregation to the workshop on this topic at the Annual Conference.
Opportunity to Participate in Social Witness Decisions
Congregations now have the opportunity to participate in a number of UUA social witness decisions.
Vote in the Congregational Poll to approve placing the Draft Statement of Conscience (SOC) Ethical Eating: Food & Environmental Justice on the final agenda for General Assembly 2011 (closes Feb 1, 2011)
Submit comments on the Draft SOC Ethical Eating: Food and Environmental Justice (closes Feb 1, 2010)
Submit comments on the Draft CSAI Immigration as a Moral Issue (closes March 1, 2010)
For previews of the comment forms as well as directions on how to vote, please see http://www.uua.org/csw. Also available: "What Are We Voting On?" and a guide for collecting congregational comments.
UU History Contest
UU History and Heritage Prizes have been announced by the Unitarian Universalist Historical Society.
Prairie Star District is a growing community of healthy, vital congregations in covenantal relationship with one another, transforming ourselves and our world by living our Unitarian Universalist principles. 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.
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