Welcome, Evin!

We are excited to announce that the New England Region has a new lead! Rev. Evin Carvill Ziemer (they/he/she), has been promoted to Developmental Lead for NER. Please see this letter from Director of Congregational Life, Jessica York. Kindly share this good news with your members, colleagues, and fellow congregants; and please help us in saying WELCOME to Evin!

NER Career Opportunity

Are you interested in engaging with the UUA and the New England Region in a new way? Please see our current open job posting for Congregational Life Field Staff (PDF). We encourage you to enquire and/or apply today.

There Be Dragons,

a Message from Meck Groot

To change, you must face the dragon of your appetites 

with another dragon: the life-energy of the soul.

~ Rumi

I remember sitting in the foyer of the conference center of my first ever General Assembly after I was hired to work for Mass Bay District. I watched as someone constructed a tower out of four milk crates. The first crate they set down had a large letter E displayed on each side. On top of that they set a crate with the letter V on all sides. The third crate had an O. On top of that came the final crate with the letter L. When I left the foyer, I encountered such towers of L.O.V.E. throughout the conference center. That was the GA that launched “Standing on the Side of Love,” now called “Side with Love.”

As I have worked for UU districts and the New England Region since then, I have seen Unitarian Universalists struggle together to learn more deeply what it really means to be grounded and centered in love. That struggle has involved a great deal of calling in and calling out, debate, anger, heartache, grief, introspection, experimentation, breakthrough and celebration.

I could not have guessed when I started this job that UUs would today be considering the following proposed statements for Article II of the UUA bylaws:

• The purpose of the Unitarian Universalist Association is to actively engage its members in the transformation of the world through liberating Love.
• We draw from our heritages of freedom, reason, hope, and courage, building on the foundation of love. Love is the power that holds us together and is at the center of our shared values. We are accountable to one another for doing the work of living our shared values through the spiritual discipline of Love.



Love as the liberating force by which the world is transformed? Love as a spiritual discipline? Whoa! and Wow!

What stands out to me is that this is not language the Commission pulled out of thin air. This is language crafted after the Commission listened to a wide diversity of UUs talk about their faith and their hope for the faith. This is language that reflects the longings of the collective Unitarian Universalist heart. Whoa! and Wow!

In my work with colleagues and with you these 15 years, it has been my hope and intention to support, challenge and equip our congregations for ministries in which love is a verb. As I approach retirement, I thank you for teaching me what you know about love, for demonstrating its power, and for keeping faith in that power. I thank you for allowing me to participate with you in facing the dragon of our individual and collective appetites with the life-energy of the UU soul whose name, I believe, is Love. 

If ever there were ever a time to harness the power of that dragon, surely it is now.

Dear Friends:

Please join us for a virtual celebration in honor of Meck Groot, who is retiring after 15+ years of faithful service to the UUA. 

We are delighted to celebrate all the ways Meck shared her gifts with us and the wider UU movement. Please plan to join us in wishing her well for what’s next in her “rewirement”!

Thursday, August 17th

4:00-5:30pm Eastern

Meck's Retirement Celebration Registration Form

Please wear blue if you are able!

We look forward to celebrating Meck with you!

-Your New England Region team

Contribute to the UU Disaster Relief Fund

In the wake of recent flooding in parts of Vermont, Massachusetts and upstate New York, we appeal to Unitarian Universalists to contribute to the UUA's Disaster Relief Fund. The damage in Montpelier, Vermont is substantial, and other congregations have also experienced impact.

The Disaster Relief Fund was created to support UU congregations and their communities when catastrophe hits. Over time, the fund has helped congregations and their communities after they have experienced wildfire, flood, hurricane, freezing and other disasters. With the increasing occurrence of severe weather and its impacts, the fund's resources are in continual need of replenishment. We urge you to consider making a donation if you are able.

Board/Leadership Retreats… Together!

(in-person)

Congregational Leaders: Do you find yourself asking any of these questions?

• Our congregation’s membership is aging. How do we get younger people to join the congregation? 

• All our kids seem to have disappeared during Covid. How do we get them back? 

• We don’t have enough volunteers! How can we get younger people to volunteer?

• Our financial future is feeling shaky. How can we ensure a sustainable future? 

If so, you are not alone! We are hearing these same questions everywhere we go. As the new congregational year begins, we invite you to gather the leaders of your congregation with the leaders of your neighboring congregations. Instead of retreating separately, let’s retreat together. 

New England Region staff will lead participating leadership teams in common discussions of our common challenges, and you will also have time specifically with the leaders in your congregation for team-building. 

All participating teams will also be invited to join an online learning community to extend the conversation with regional staff and with each other through the whole congregational year. 

Dates/Locations/Registration:

Saturday, August 26, 10:00am-3:00pm ET - UU Congregation of the Upper Valley in Norwich, VT - register here**

**Register your leadership today! Registration deadline is Sunday August 20.

Saturday, September 9, 10:00am-3:00pm ET - UU Society of Greater Springfield in Springfield, MAA - register here

Saturday, September 16, 10:00am-3:00pm ET - Follen Church in Lexington, MA - register here

Saturday, October 14, 10:00am-3:00pm ET - UU Community Church in Augusta, ME - register here

Registration is required and is on a sliding scale: $50 / $40 / $30 per person. Please note, registration includes lunch. If this fee represents a hardship, please email newengland@uua.org and we’ll see what we can do.

Liberating Governance:

The Constancy of Mission and Practice (online)

When our congregations are in transition or experiencing change, how do we keep the ministries going? We’ll explore mission and practice as foundations in tumultuous times, either for a particular congregation or for the larger context.

This next gathering will be held on Thursday August 31, 7:00-8:30pm ET.

Please sign up for our email list. You will automatically receive the registration link and all materials for this gathering, as well as the invitations for future gatherings.

NER Fall 2024 Programming:

As we move through the summer, the New England Region team is looking ahead to the programming that will be offered this fall. Please keep an eye out for opportunities to engage with these offerings:

• Joint Board Retreat: A Pre-Community of Practice - please see more information above

• Spiritual Leadership for Culture Change: A Community of Practice - this community of practice launched in 2022 for anyone — lay people and religious professionals — interested in embedding the practices of Spiritual Leadership in their congregational life and beyond. By supporting individuals in these practices, congregations help shape culture to reflect our Principles and deepest values.

• Liberating Governance for Our Times: A Community of Practice - please see more information above

• Spiritual Leadership for Small Group Ministry - a planning guide and resource materials for seven small group ministry sessions on Spiritual Leadership as an orientation to living our deepest values. Available in August.

• Congregational Board and Trustee Quarterly Gatherings - Join with your peers to share ideas, strategies, questions, concerns, and support. These gatherings are open to current board members and those who will be on the board within the next several months. Our next gathering will be announced in our August newsletter.

• Congregational Administrators Quarterly Gatherings - Join with your peers from around the region to share ideas, questions, concerns and support. Our next gathering will be announced in our August newsletter.

New DRE: Settling in Series (online)

This 3-part series course, offered in an online format, will be on Fridays,

August 11, 18, and 25, 1:00-3:00pm ET.

If you are a newer religious professional serving in UU faith development, this series will provide connection, community, and content! Rev. Marisol Caballero, Rev. Sarah Gettie McNeill, and Nancy Combs-Morgan (Credentialed Religious Educator-Leadership Level), will facilitate the training, along with a number of guest speakers.

Registration is required at a cost of $175 for all three sessions. Continuing Education Grant Funds may be available, please apply. The registration deadline is Friday August 4 or when maximum capacity is reached.

Dimensions of Faith Development Renaissance Module (online)

Tuesdays August 15 , 22, 29 and September 5, 12:00-2:00pm ET

Dimensions of Faith Development Renaissance Module will enable a grounding in the original work of Natalie Briscoe which brings:

• A view of Faith Development that is central to the congregation's work and weaves together all of the primary ministries of a religious body.

• Develop a method for dismantling white supremacy culture within their congregation and in the world through the content and method of Lifespan Faith Development within their congregations.

• Envision a model for "What's Next" in our work of dismantling white supremacy culture that leaves participants feeling empowered to move forward with the work; and

• Take away a collection of stories that both forms a multicultural narrative for our faith journey and communicates our UU values.

This module will be co-led by Lillian Drab-Braddock and Nancy Combs-Morgan, Congregational Life Consultants in the Southern Region of the UUA.

Registration is required at a cost of $200 for all four sessions. Continuing Education Grant Funds may be available, please apply. The registration deadline is Tuesday August 8 or when maximum capacity is reached.

System Theory Renaissance Module (online)

Fridays September 8, 15, 22, 29, 12:00-2:00pm ET

Central to our understanding of congregational systems is a grounding in the awareness that “everything we do is faith development; everything we teach is Unitarian Universalism and that the congregation is the curriculum.”

That expression, by Connie Goodbread, is the first part of going deeper into congregational systems, yet the second part must include an immersion into System Theory.

The “System Theory” Renaissance Module will:

• Examine human beings as emotional, intellectual, and physical beings.

• Everything that human beings create, discover, destroy and build is born out of our humanity.

• Explore and clarify what it means to be a Unitarian Universalist.

• Discuss the human qualities that help and hinder the growth of a beloved community.

The overarching lens of System Theory will ground the experience and aid religious educators, and other religious professionals to apply these learnings to their own professional context.

Registration is required at a cost of $200 for all four sessions. Continuing Education Grant Funds may be available, please apply. The registration deadline is Tuesday September 1 or when maximum capacity is reached.

Religious Educator Professional Meet-Ups 2023-2024 (online)

First Tuesdays: August 1 2023, November 7 2023, February 6 2024, May 7 2024 12:00-1:30pm ET

Religious education professionals from across the continent are invited to virtually join members of the UUA’s Faith Development Co-Lab for a time of connection with other religious educators around a theme.

The August 2023 connection theme will be "Threshold Conversations" - what they are, and discussing what they might mean for you. Future connection themes will be announced at the end of each meet-up. Registration is free and required at least 24 hours before each meet-up. Learn more and register today!

Fall GIRE Professional Interim Training Series - Part One and Part Two (online)

The Guild of Interim Religious Educators (GIRE) is offering its acclaimed Transitional Religious Leadership Class, Parts 1 and 2, open for now registration. Part 1 is on Thursdays August 17, 24, 31, and September 7 12:00-2:00pm ET; Part 2 (prerequisite: completion of Part 1) is on. Thursdays November 2, 9, 16, December 7, and 14 12:00-2:00pm.

If you have been thinking you need transitional leadership skills to navigate the choppy waters of leadership in your congregation – this is for you. If you are serving a congregation where a change in leadership is occurring – this is for you. If you want more skills in your ‘toolkit’ to help you be a stronger, more inspired leader during changing times – this is for you! Open to all religious professionals, lay and ordained. Welcome all – to the world where our religious leaders have the skills to not only survive – but thrive!

Registration is required for a fee. The registration deadline for Part 1 is August 10. The registration deadline for Part 2 is October 22.

National Youth Advisor Discord Channel (online)

The brand new National Youth Advisor's Discord Channel is up and ready to spark conversations about youth ministry.

It's a space for our volunteers and professionals to create a virtual community supporting UU youth ministry. 

Let's get this party started!

Leading From the Heart

Register for sessions on either Wednesdays September 6, October 11, and November 1 5:00-6:30pm ET OR Thursdays September 7, October 12, and November 2 10:00-11:30pm ET.

In this 3- part series for budding and experienced leaders, participating will ground you in your own spiritual soil, acknowledge roots, discern flowers, find abundance, and preserve seeds to keep the harvest going.

Topics will include: UU and ancestral theology, the synergy of passion and mission, living out of conviction.

Find out more. Registration is required and available on a sliding scale.

Jubilee Three Anti-Racism Training (hybrid)

Friday October 20, 6:00–9:00pm / Saturday October 21, 9:00am–8:00pm / Sunday October 22, 12:00–6:30pm

Do you wish to deepen your understanding of how race and ethnicity play out in our institutions and our daily lives? This 2-½ day workshop is open to everyone – of any faith or none – who wants to journey toward making a stand against racism and nurturing a multicultural future. 

The workshop includes presentations, discussions, videos, exercises, and small group work. Offered remotely by program developer Paula Cole Jones with the support of two experienced trainers, the program can be taken at home via Zoom, or in the company of others on Saturday and Sunday in UU sanctuary locations TBD (greater Boston area). There are multiple breaks each day, including a 2-hour lunch break on Saturday, allowing time to gather, make connections, and break bread together. Registration is required for a fee. More information available (PDF).

Large Congregation Board Training (online)

Are you a board member of a large “corporate” sized congregation with multiple staff focused on mission, policy, and strategy?

Your LeaderLab team is offering a training especially for you! Self-paced pre-work will include frameworks such as Hotchkiss's Governance and Ministry partnership, conflict and change dynamics, cultural competencies, fiduciary responsibilities, efficient meetings, mission-based budgeting and decision-making, self-differentiation and boundaries, and spiritual grounding. In the live session you will be able to engage with board members from other large congregations as you work on case studies and creative problem solving. You will also be given planning tools for a self-directed goal-setting session.

Pre-work available: Tuesday August 1

Interactive Live Session: Saturday August 26, 12:00-4:00pm ET

Registration is required at a cost of $200 per congregational team. The registration deadline is August 19.

UU Wellspring: Spiritual Dive into the Proposed Article II (online)

Updated to include the five amendments passed at the June 2023 General Assembly, this four-session program engages you in the Purposes, Values and Covenant, Inspiration, Inclusion and Freedom of belief of the proposed Article II which will be voted on at General Assembly 2024. 

You can bring this four-session program to your congregation and run as many cohorts as possible between now and General Assembly 2024 for a one-time cost of $150. Individuals can also sign up to be with other Unitarian Universalists from around the continent in sessions run by UU Wellspring at a cost of $100 per person. An optional journal is available to companion you in this program and keep all of your growing ideas and experiences in one place. Registration is required.

Join a UU Wellspring cohort and see how Article II resonates with your heart! Contact us or email Linnea Nelson, Executive Director.

Sharing Gifts: Music Offering (online)

Rev. Craig Werth has served as pastor for Nottingham Community Church UU in Nottingham, NH for the past six years. During that time, he has composed more than a dozen songs for service and ceremony as well as short pieces for congregational singing. Rev. Werth's music is on his YouTube page as a community offering. Please share with your congregation and beyond!

Next UUA Board Open House (online)

Tuesday August 15 7:00pm ET

One way the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) Board of Trustees serves the more than 148,000 members and over 1,000 member congregations of the UUA is through open communication and transparency in its own work.

To further encourage this open dialogue, the Board hosts monthly Open Houses. All are invited to attend and participate. Bring your comments, questions, and suggestions, and chat about the Board’s work and the Unitarian Universalist (UU) issues that matter most to you.

Registration is free and required.

The 3 C's of Staff Relations: Covenant, Conflict, and Community (online)

Thursday, September 28, 2:00-5:00pm ET

Good staff relations are a vital element in supporting healthy and vibrant congregations. Whether you are in a new transitional ministry position or serving a congregation where you are settled, connecting to and building collaborative relationships are of primary importance.



The Guild of Interim Religious Educators (GIRE) invites you to explore the 3 C’s of Staff Relations: Covenant, Conflict and Community. Understanding these elements can spell the difference between a collaborative, healthy staff team and one that finds itself adrift. This class will cover the importance of covenants – as they impact staff ministry teams and the congregation; examine conflict – both how it occurs and how to navigate it; and focus on building healthy staff relationships and the ways in which our relationships as religious professionals impact the communities we serve.

This three-hour class can be the key to starting your ministry off in the healthiest ways possible. GIRE educators Deborah Weiner, Leah Purcell, and Lily Rappaport are your facilitators.

Registration is required at a cost of $55; GIRE members receive a discount. The registration deadline September 15, or when maximum capacity of 20 participants is reached.