Category: Uncategorized

Desired Learning Opportunities 

From Janet Tillman, UURMAPA Connections Coordinator

UURMAPA members were asked about the learning opportunities they would like to see available through UURMaPA’s Skill-Sharing Network. To date, the responses to this question are:

• Learn from others about maintaining a web site and presence on social media. I am working with a group of individuals who are working to preserve the oldest Universalist Church building in Canada. I see this as an opportunity to promote Universalism’s theology… including an annual Universalist re-union in Nova Scotia Canada.
• Explore with others about the direct line between Unitarian Universalism and the European Enlightenment. I see a theological thread that helps me to have optimism for our future.

As you can see, the sky is the limit regarding knowledge/skills to share and people’s desire for learning opportunities. 

• Is it possible that a facilitator (or co-facilitators) would be interested in a time-limited series of discussions about the direct line between Unitarian Universalism and the European Enlightenment? Groups of this nature could be an abbreviated version of a focused-interest group. Those not wishing to commit to an on-going general or focused-interest group may prefer a 6-8 session format exploring a particular topic.
• Is there someone out there who can share their skills maintaining a website as well as a presence on social media? 

If you can provide the requested skills noted above, or you have a skill to share or would like to add your desired learning opportunity to the Skill-Sharing Network, contact me at connections@uurmapa.org. 

“Perhaps the secret of living well is not in having all the answers but in pursuing unanswerable questions in good company.” -Rachel Naomi Remen

See also:

Skill-Sharing Network: What is it and how does it work?
Current Skills Being Offered 

Current Skills Being Offered 

From Janet Tillman, UURMAPA Connections Coordinator

I am happy to announce that three very generous UURMAPA members are offering skills to share. The offering of the following skills marks the beginning of the UURMAPA Skill-Sharing Network. I hope to add more skills to the list in the coming weeks. Be sure to check the website periodically for updates.

• Beginning Spanish – Jeff Jones (Smyrna, GA)

I have provided Spanish Classes at the College for Seniors in Asheville, NC. I am happy to offer a full year of beginning Spanish (32 weeks), and a year later, I can offer a full year of intermediate Spanish (28 weeks).  I estimate that 4 hours of preparation per week are necessary to get the full benefit of the classes. I also ask those taking my classes to give two hours per week to serve the immigrant community. It is completely on the honor system, and no one needs to tell me what they are doing, although sharing experiences and ideas on serving the immigrant community could be beneficial to all in the class. You simply must agree to it as part of signing up for the class.

As to 32 weeks of Spanish, it would be divided into 4 parts, each part taking 8 weeks, with a short break between parts. Each class will be 2 hours long, with a 10-minute break in the middle of the class. The classes will be 2-4 p.m. EST on Thursdays. The schedule for the classes is:

• Part 1 (the first 8 weeks) starts Thursday, April 2, and goes through Thursday, May 21.
•• Part 2 (the second 8 weeks) starts Thursday, June 4, and ends Thursday July 23.
••• Part 3 will be in September and October.
•••• Part 4 will be in January and February 2027.

My goal is to teach a class of 6-10 participants using Zoom. The classes are very interactive and fun. If you are interested in learning Spanish, contact me at jeffjonesuu@aol.com.

• Composting/Recycling – Jaco ten Hove (Bellingham, WA)

If you’re tossing out your household kitchen waste—such as coffee grounds and eggshells—and you’re not recycling yard waste, such as leaves and grass clippings, you’re wasting good stuff! All these items, which would otherwise end up in a landfill, belong in a compost bin—your own or a nearby commercial one. As an experienced (and certified!) Master Composter/Recycler, I can offer counsel and coaching on composting/ recycling from general guidelines and pep talks to specific habits and routines that improve the odds for keeping your waste out of landfills. Join me in my new ministry: Waste Diversion. Contact me at bthishere@gmail.com for more information.

• Appreciating Technology + Tips on Maintaining an Old Building – Norm Horofker (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

I am a retired mechanical engineer with plant management experience. How that relates to sharing skills with other ministers is to be determined… perhaps sharing optimism for appreciating the present and the amazing future of technology. I also have experience maintaining old buildings. Contact me at nhorofker@aol.com to begin a conversation about technology or that old building you are maintaining.

If you are interested in learning the above skills or have questions about the skill being offered, contact the person offering the skill for more details.

I love those connections that make this big old world feel like a little village. – Gina Bellman

See also:
Skill-Sharing Network: What is it and how does it work?
Desired Learning Opportunities 

What is it and how does it work?

Imagine UURMaPA as a virtual community where members share their unique talents, knowledge, and skills. Skill-Sharing Networks can be fun and transform the virtual community into a vibrant hub of learning and support! These sharing sessions could be one-on-one or in groups. They could be completed in one session or multiple sessions based on the skill/knowledge being shared. 

Within UURMaPA’s membership, the skills and knowledge that could be shared by retired ministers and partners are varied and vast. Skill sharing could relate to cooking, travel, technology, finance, various crafts, photography, downsizing, mechanics, sewing, etc. The sky is the limit! You could view these as opportunities to share practical tips on anything. We all know you can go to YouTube to learn how to do all sorts of things. Sometimes, having a conversation with someone who has experience with the task at hand is the best way to learn. Some examples of skills and practical tips are:

The joy of air frying Taking great photos on your phone Supplies needed to do rock painting Best 5-ingredient recipes What to consider when buying a new computer Is co-housing for me Rewards of being on the planning team for UURMaPA conferences

Caring for orchids Living sustainably Mediterranean cooking made easy How to navigate Ancestry.com Travel tips for seniors First steps in downsizing  Growing herbs indoors Tips on doing electronic photobooks How to use Zoom’s many features

Your input is needed to make this a great success! To determine the types of skills that could be shared. Please send your responses to the following questions to Janet Tillman at connections@uurmapa.org. 

1. What skills or knowledge do you have that you would be willing to share with other UURMaPAns via Zoom? Please be very specific. Remember, the sky’s the limit!

2. What learning opportunities/tips would you like to see available to you via an UURMaPA Skill-Sharing Network?

I love those connections that make this big old world feel like a little village. – Gina Bellman

See also:
•••Current Skills Being Offered 
•••Desired Learning Opportunities 

A service of remembrance will close out the first day of our spring conference. We will honor the memory and service of 15 colleagues during the third session of the conference on Monday, April 27. Tom Schade is leading a group of members who will produce the service.

Jan Carlsson-Bull is researching the lives of the deceased and writing the remembrance narratives. She said that the process is like “opening a door to a house of many mansions.” She reflected on her own ministry, “When I led celebrations of life during my ministry, I often asked myself: ‘How many lives did …. live? Surely many more than the years of their life.’ So it is for the lives I am honored to distill for the remembrance service.”

Jan’s process is mindful. “Upon first reading the notice I receive of the passing, I begin. I follow clues such as an obituary posted by a funeral home. If I can find family members, I follow up with them, expressing how our hearts opened with their loss, and asking them to edit and enliven what I write. I am often given a photo that reveals the vitality of their loved one. Incorporating a spoken narrative into a remembrance service seems as fleeting as life itself, but no less precious.

“It is such an honor to open each and every door and step inside.”

In the service we will honor and remember:

Rev. Linda DeSantis
Rev. Dorothy Meek
Rev. Harry C. Green III
Rev. John Fordon
Rev. Patricia Trudeau
Rev. Margaret (“Meg”) Barnhouse
Rev. Michael Douglas O’Kelly
Rev. Walter Frederick Wieder
Rev. Penelope Witte Alderice
Rev. Sandra L. Ingham
Dr. F. Everett Morris
Rev. Lynda Sutherland
Rev. Don Wheat

Our conference theme is “Keeping it Together While Democracy Is Falling Apart,” and will be presented on the second day by the Dr. Glen Thomas Rideout. The conference will feature a minister’s odyssey with the Rev. Diane Miller, and a partner’s odyssey with Barry Finkelstein.

Connecting rooms, where we can interact with others on a deeper level, are planned for three sessions. The last session on Tuesday will feature Dr. Rideout in a concert of music that underscores the theme and inspires us to live into our role in keeping it together in challenging times.

Regional pods and local watch parties offer a way to experience our virtual conference in community. Currently, pods are being developed in Kingston, Massachusetts and Wilmington, Delaware. Some financial aid is available to those who attend pods.

To register, please visit uurmapa.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3106236

Inflation and tariffs finally caught up to us, and we regret that we must raise our fee for the conference to $70. However, if you register before April 6th, your cost will only be $50. Early registrations help us make better plans for the conference.

Help with all things registration is available from Barbro Hansson, the registrar. Scholarships are available if you need help with the fee. If you have never attended a UURMaPA conference, the board happily waives your fee. If you would like a scholarship or you are a newbie, please send a message to conferences@uurmapa.org for more information. You will receive a special code to use when registering. 

We look forward to greeting you in April at our spring conference. In the meantime, know that every one of us has a part to play in our struggles for inclusivity and justice. If you live in the USA, you might be a little closer to the heat, but if you are not, you are still here, you are more than a witness, and we’re all in this together. 

We are happy to present two Odysseys at this spring’s UURMaPA Conference: Barry Finkelstein and the Rev. Diane Miller. Barry shares his story with us on the opening day of the conference, Monday, April 27, and Diane visits with us on the 29th.

Barry says that “Writing brings clarity to my thoughts; it’s a kind of alchemy. I am inspired by Adrienne Rich who said that ‘you must write and read as if your life depended on it.’

“And so far, my Odyssey is having the same effect. I’m drawn to inflection points that helped shape me and yield insights. While the memories evoked are not new to me, their importance is. The odyssey-writing process is pulling important events into a life.   

“I love storytelling, and engaging with people, gives me new insights about myself and my place in the world. I grew up in a family of talkers—loud talkers—and things become more real when spoken about.

“I’m hopeful that my story will be valued by others. I feel good about my life, my choices, my good luck, and the help I’ve received. I look forward to sharing my story.”

Diane has lived a full life, so much so that she doesn’t have room for all her memories. She said, “Some people have Proustian memories, and some people have kept diaries and journals. I’m startled at how much of my life is hazy and forgotten, and that I need to look up things to confirm the facts.

“I expected to be the expert about my own life, but I feel more like an unreliable witness. Writing my Odyssey is an exercise in putting the pieces together.

“Being asked to present my Odyssey brings trepidation, anxiety about technology, and deep appreciation for colleagues who are inviting me to tell my story.”

Like many others, Diane has thought about the culture of Odysseys in our tradition. “I wonder when the practice of Odyssey presentations began in our ministry, and how it evolved.”

Diane thought that someone has probably looked into that, but we are glad the tradition has come to us, and we welcome Barry and Diane to our conference.

The conference opens on April 27, and Dr. Glen Thomas Rideout will present our theme, Keeping It Together When Democracy Is Falling Apart, on the second day of the conference. He will also present a short concert of his music that evening.

Worship services will open and close the conference, and a service of remembrance will honor our colleagues not among us. Breakout rooms have been arranged for each day of the conference, where you will be able to have a closer connection with your friends and colleagues.

To register, please visit: uurmapa.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3106236  The registration fee for the spring conference to $70.00. Save a Jackson! Register before April 6, and your fee is only $50.00.

Scholarships to cover the fee are available, and if you have never attended one of our conferences, the board will happily waive your fee. For assistance with fees or registration questions, please write to Barbro Hansson at conferences@uurmapa.org.

Pods for in-person participation are organized in Wilmington DE and Kingston MA. Write Richard Speck at rgspeck@comcast.net for information about Wilmington or Judy Campbell at revdocmom@comcast.net for information about Kingston.

We hope to see you on April 27!