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The Prairie Star, Issue 66: February 2012
 The Prairie Star | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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I'm looking forward to seeing many of you at the Annual Conference in April. It will be a good opportunity to hear more about regionalization plans. We always appreciate your comments and suggestions for the newsletter. Click on the "email the editor" link in the menu on the left to send us a message. Nancy Heege, District Executive This issue of the PSD Newsletter, and previous issues, can be read at http://www.psduua.org/Newsletter . New LookIf you have visited our web site in the last month, you've probably noticed the new design and color scheme we changed to when we upgraded our web site software. That color scheme has now migrated to this newsletter. We are grateful to Brock Ray (Michael Servetus Unitarian Society, Fridley, Minnesota) for consulting on the web site design and color scheme. Annual Conference 2012 Lessons from War and PeaceWars and rumors of wars are so much a part of our lives that we often fail to consider that a truly peaceful world is possible. Prairie Star District takes up this theme, "Lessons from War and Peace; Stories of Hope, Faith and Courage," at its Annual Conference, April 13-15, in Bloomington, Minnesota. Two challenging speakers will present the theme for the weekend. Reverend Jim Eller, who has spent many years working on issues of reconciliation will present the keynote speech on "The Glory of Courage and the Joy of Reconciliation." The Judy Memorial Lecture by Thomas Weiner is "The Toll War Takes on All Who Are Called to Serve." This weekend conference is a time to meet with UUs from our eight-state area to talk and share together our insights, questions and hopes. How can we apply our UU principles to the difficult questions of war and its costs, economic, physical and emotional. Middle and high school youth will be attending their own Con within the conference -"ConScience," which will explore the way UUs make moral decisions, especially as they relate to war and peace. The conference will have many activities throughout for youth and younger children. A limited number of scholarships are available. Apply by February 29 at http://www.psduua.org/AnnualConference2012/Scholarships. Don't miss the March 14 deadline for early registration. For more information go to http://www.psduua.org/AnnualConference2012. Justice GA 2012 by Kathy Burek, PSD President UUA President Rev. Peter Morales recently extended an invitation for all UUs to attend General Assembly in Phoenix, Arizona, June 20-24, 2012, which will focus on justice for immigrant communities (see the video at http://www.uua.org). I, too, encourage as many of you as possible to attend GA this year. Plans are under way to make this GA a meaningful combination of worship, workshops, and witness. ... Article continues at http://www.psduua.org/Newsletter/66February2012/PresidentsColumn . Regionalization Updateby Kathy Burek, PSD President The process of creating a proposal for a new regional governance structure to replace our three districts is under way. A Transition Team consisting of the three district presidents and three district vice presidents has been formed. The Team is putting together a project plan, starting with creating the vision and values for the new entity. We'll be sharing the vision and values with Annual Conference participants at a board-sponsored workshop. ... Article continues at http://www.psduua.org/Newsletter/66February2012/PresidentsColumn . UU Summer CampsIf you're already dreaming about the warm, sunny days of Summer 2010, we invite you to consider attending a UU camp. Camp StarTrailCamp StarTrail will be held July 29 to August 3, 2012, near Omaha, Nebraska. Join us for a multigenerational camp that celebrates and explores Unitarian Universalism, in the beautiful rolling hills of the Platte River Valley. See http://www.psduua.org/pmwiki/CampStarTrail/CampStarTrail . Camp UniStarCamp UniStar in northern Minnesota offers a full summer of week-long programs. See http://www.psduua.org/Camps/CampUniStar for more information. The 2012 program is posted. Midwest UU Summer AssemblyMUUSA takes place one week in July near St. Louis, Missouri. For more information see http://www.muusa.org/ Coming Webinars Check out these free online workshops. To participate all you need is high speed internet access and a separate phone line. MidAmerica Youth Advisor Workshop SeriesTuesday, February 21 Committee on Ministry WorkshopsTuesday, February 28 Small Congregation Series with Rev. Andy PakulaSaturday, March 31 Tuesday and Thursday workshops are at 6:45 PM; Saturday workshops are at 10 AM. For more information and to register see http://www.psduua.org/Workshops/FutureWorkshops . Midwest Leadership School
Midwest Leadership School for Youth (ages 14-18) challenges and trains Unitarian Universalist youth in three areas: Leadership Skills Development, Worship, and Religious Values & Heritage. Both will be July 15-21, 2012 in Beloit, Wisconsin. See http://www.mwls.org/ Adult Religious Education Resource by Nancy Combs-Morgan There is a tremendous new Adult Religious Education resource: In ten workshops, What We Choose: Ethics for Unitarian Universalists by Rev. Amber Beland and Rev. Manish Mishra-Marzetti, explores how we do and could make choices grounded in our "deed over creed" UU faith. Examine frameworks for ethical decision making, from Kant's categorical imperative to personal experiences one has lived in one's social/political place in the dominant society. For more information, go to http://www.uua.org/re/tapestry/adults/index.shtml on the UUA website. 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 http://www.psduua.org . | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Midwest Leadership School is a week-long intense program which includes leadership, group and system dynamics, UU history and theology, and elements of worship. The program is designed to provide insights, confidence, and enrichment for each participant's congregation, work, and personal life.