United Church of Madrid Offering Basic Lay Servant Course
A Basic Lay Servant Course is being offered at United Church of Madrid. Helen Langford will be leading the course. The first class is scheduled for May 19th beginning at 6:00 p.m.. Remaining classes will be scheduled at that first class to see what is convenient for the whole class.
You can order your book here from Amazon or from Cokesbury here
** At this time the church is requiring for masks to be worn while attending the class **
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In Person Conference Postponed
to October 6-8 to be held Remotely
The Sessions Committee of the Upper New York Conference gathered by Zoom on the morning of Thursday, April 21 to discuss growing concerns about the uptick in COVID-19 cases in Upstate New York and throughout the United States.
Members of the Committee shared both their own perspectives and what they have been hearing from others regarding the comfort level of gathering more than a thousand United Methodist from across Upper New York at Onondaga Community College’s SRC Arena. In the end, while there was a great sense of loss about not being able to gather in-person for the third year in a row, the Committee overwhelmingly agreed that the top priority had to be the health and safety of the individuals that would be asked to attend. The decision was made to institute a backup plan that has been in place since the Committee started planning for an in-person Annual Conference gathering.
Annual Conference will be postponed to Oct. 6-8, and it will be a virtual gathering. The plan is to use the same technology that was used at the 2021 virtual Annual Conference gathering, which was relatively well received.
Postponing Annual Conference creates a new set of logistical concerns to address and the decisions about those concerns will be shared once they are made. In the meantime, anyone who has already registered for the planned in-person Annual Conference gathering will receive full refunds. The processing of refunds will start immediately but could take a couple of weeks to complete. If you made a hotel reservation, you should contact the hotel directly to cancel.
“We know that there will be many different reactions to the news of Annual Conference being postponed and moved to a virtual event,” said the Rev. Joellyn Tuttle, Chair of the Sessions Committee. “Many will be disappointed; many will be relieved; and many more will be some combination of the two. Ultimately, this decision puts the health of the members of the Annual Conference first and that felt right to the Committee. Our first desire was to do no harm, and we are confident that we can pull together an excellent virtual event in October.”
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Phishing Emails Again!!
D.S. Rev. Weeden has been notified that people are receiving phishing emails again that appear to come from him.
Please note that any email Rev. Weeden sends out will only be from his work email that is mikeweeden@unyumc.org and he would never send anything from a gmail account to you. Also note that he would never solicit any gift cards or anything else from anyone.
If you receive this kind of email please DELETE it and do not respond or open it.
Thank you
Northern Flow District
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Grants Available for Projects
It is the desire of the UNY Conference United Women in Faith (formerly UMW) to offer grants to non-profit community and faith-based organizations that follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and address the needs of women, children and youth within the boundaries of our conference.
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Trip to Holy Land 2023
The clergy team of Syracuse United Methodist Ministries (Revs. Andy Anderson, B.J. Norrix, Jee Hae Song, and Alicia Wood) invite you to join them on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, Feb. 14 – Feb. 24, 2023.
You will explore, learn, and fellowship as you visit Caesarea, the Sea of Galilee, Cana, Nazareth, Samaria, Jacob's Well, the Dead Sea, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, and much more. The cost of the trip starts at $3,448, leaving from JFK, New York. There is also an option to extend your trip through Jordan for an additional cost.
You are encouraged to register immediately with only $100. Register by May 14 ($100 off), June 14 ($75 off), July 14 ($50 off), August 14 ($25 off). Brochures with more details and registration forms are available. Please contact:
Jee Hae: jeehaesong611@gmail.com, 404-825-8025 (cell), for a brochure, online registration link, if you have any questions, or need more information.
There will also be an informational session on May 3 at Erwin First United Methodist Church that you can attend in-person or via Zoom.
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Training to Help You Deal with Everyday Struggles you Will Find in Any Ministry Setting
Transitional Intentional Interim Specialist Training (TIIMS) is designed to help pastors and congregations deal with the stresses of our culture in this time of uncertainty. While this training is specifically designed for those entering an interim situation (death of pastor, long pastorate, pastor leaving ministry, etc.), the training will help you deal with the everyday struggles you will find in any ministry setting.
This training is a three-phase experience spanning six months of time. Phase I is a three-day introduction to the concepts and principles of Interim Ministry. Phase II is a time in one’s ministry setting using some of the tools and principles learned in Phase I. Phase III is a re-gathering of the group.
Contact Jane Sautter with questions or register with the form here. She can be reached at 315-225-6170 or pastorjfs@gmail.com.
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Job Opportunities for Upper New York Conference
The Upper New York Conference has job openings, please click here for more information.
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Upper NY LPLS 2022
The Upper New York LPLS (Local Pastors Licensing School) Will be held May 9th to May 15th 2022 at
Casowasco Camp and Retreat Center
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Connect with Us 2022
Attached is the Connect with Us Academy 2022 announcement with the continuing education course schedule and descriptions --along with the registration form. These are high-quality courses. The full cost per course is just $75. The courses include videos and printed resources as well as 1-2 short zoom sessions. These courses are available to all clergy and CLMs. The pastor may invite one lay leader to attend the course with them without cost. A team of pastors from the same district may wish to register for these courses. The only written assignment is a short implementation plan at the end of the course for one CEU credit. Textbooks are not required. Videos and resources are provided for each course.
Your continuing theological education is important. Please consider registering for these courses.
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Tending the Soul Training
Tending the Soul, a training program in Missional Spiritual Direction and Congregational Formation, will be starting a new cohort in November 2022. The program is designed for lay and clergy. Perhaps more than any other time in our recent past, the ability to listen deeply for God, to remain centered and non-anxious, and to hold sacred space for others is an essential tool in ministry (both within your local congregation and the greater community).
Click here for more information and a brochure with all details on the program and how to apply.
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Conference Office Looking for your Stories!!
We’re looking for stories of a church vitality! Stories that inspire! Stories that motivate! Stories that can encourage churches throughout the Upper New York (UNY) Conference to try something new to live out the mission of the United Methodist Church, to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
- May: Accountability groups
- June: Supporting marginalized or oppressed individuals and communities
- July: Church membership growth
Throughout the first half of 2022, we are asking for narratives of church success stories. Click here to read more about this initiative.
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Stewardship with
Rev. Susan Ranous
April 27, 2022
TALKING ABOUT MONEY IS IMPORTANT –
EVEN IN CHURCH
Too often, we avoid talking about money in church, don’t we? Sometimes it’s because we’re uncomfortable talking about money at all; sometimes it’s because we’re in church; and sometimes it’s because people hate it when we talk about money.
If we believe that what is said from the pulpit is important to people, then money should be talked about from the pulpit, because money is important. An article I read said when we don’t talk about money, we’re implying:
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1. Money isn’t important; or
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2. God only cares about the money you give; or
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3. We don’t talk about money in the church, so you’ll need to find out how to manage your money from the world.
Ouch! I’m not sure any of those implications is what we should be relying upon!
I’m not saying we only talk about money, but people deal with money every day, and many times every day, so they need our help, our wisdom and our encouragement in handling and managing it.
Jesus talked about money in his teaching about 15% of the time! So not talking about money takes a pretty good chunk out of the New Testament, doesn’t it?
How about if we talk about money, sharing God’s financial principles and providing them with the tools that will help them fight against the world’s influence?
I encourage you to think about sharing money in this way, instead of only doing it under protest, and only when we want money FROM people!
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Safe Sanctuaries Training Schedule for 2022
Attached is a flyer for all upcoming Upper New York Safe Sanctuaries Zoom training session for the year, along with registration links and dates.
We will continue to send reminders prior to registration by an individual bases but we wanted to make sure all dates were available to the conference, districts and churches.
You will notice that the dates are strategic as we want to make it available prior to summer VBS programs, Fall Sunday school start up and a couple others in between. We have also set two Training of Trainer dates which we will ask those who wish to become a trainer in their local church and/or their districts to join.
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2022 Holiday Schedule
The District Office Will Be closed on the Following Dates
May 30th Memorial Day
July 4th Independence Day
September 5th Labor Day
November 24th and 25th Thanksgiving
December 23rd Christmas Eve (Observed)
December 26th Christmas (Observed)
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Northern Flow District
District Superintendent
Rev. Michael Weeden
Administrative Assistant
Tammy McAdam
Regional Associate
Rev. Rich Weihing
District Associate
Nancy Stanley
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Northern Flow District Office Hours |
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Monday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
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Northern Flow District
93 East Main Street, Second Floor
PO Box 208
Gouverneur, NY 13642
Phone: (315) 535-5149 FAX: (315) 535-5151
Upper New York Annual Conference
7481 Henry Clay Blvd,
Liverpool, NY 13088
Phone: (315) 898-2000 Fax: (315) 898-2027
Bishop's Office
7481 Henry Clay Blvd,
Liverpool, NY 13088
Phone: (315) 898-2020 Fax: (315) 898-2150
The Media Resource Center of UNYAC
Visit the website at
Our mission is to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."
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