Hello Registered Voting Members & Observers of the 2021 Northwest Washington Synod Assembly!
The Synod Assembly is THREE weeks away - and the planning team is finalizing plans for our online time together on Sat., May 15, 9am-4pm.
Each week we will send an email to you - highlighting various aspects of the assembly and inviting you to review materials so that you are well-prepared for the assembly.
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First, a REMINDER - you will need your own device (computer or tablet) for joining and participating in the synod assembly. We will be using the Zoom platform for our meeting, including Zoom Polling for all of our voting.
We have heard that a couple congregations were considering hosting their delegation of voting members in a large space in their church to be together for the assembly. You could certainly do this - however, we need EACH person to log in separately with their own device for voting. (You will want to consider how to ensure no audio feedback with multiple devices in one room - and possibly practice ahead of time!)
To be prepared and feel comfortable with the Zoom platform, please download the desktop client (or app to tablet) and sign up for a Zoom account NOW - to allow time to practice. Here are some helpful links:
Already a pro at Zoom? Great! But PLEASE be sure to update to the latest version so that you have all of the latest functionality!
Everyone will have an opportunity to practice logging into and using Zoom during our orientations, so plan to attend.
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Second, a heads up about the check in process on May 15.
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In order to begin on time at 9am, we must begin checking people in at 8am. During the check in procedure, our registration team will verify voting members and ensure that your name appears correctly - just like we would at an in-person meeting. (Learn about how to change your name in one of the Zoom tutorials above.)
- All people in the meeting will be asked to have their name appear in this format: First Name, Last Name, Congregation/City, Preferred pronouns:
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Example: Patti Gonzales, First/Bellingham, she/her/hers (Learn more about pronouns here.)
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We have designated staggered check in times based on last names:
- 8:00am - A-G | 8:15am - H-P | 8:30am - R-Z
- Please mark your calendar for your assigned check in time. THANK YOU!
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Next, please review these proposed changes to our synod constitution that will be considered for adoption during our assembly. There will be opportunity during our orientation sessions to learn more about these - and ask questions - so plan to attend.
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changes proposed by our NWWA Synod Council - HERE
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changes recommended by the 2019 ELCA Churchwide Assembly - HERE
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for your reference, find the current synod constitution - HERE
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Finally, a reminder to please mark your calendar and plan to attend one of these (highly-encouraged-to-attend) one-hour online Orientation Sessions:
- Monday, May 3 at 7pm
- Tuesday, May 4 at 5pm
With over 370 voting members set to attend this one day assembly, it is VERY important that you attend one of these sessions so that you are prepared and have any questions answered before the assembly begins!
During each of the sessions, we will review:
- Zoom etiquette and tricks
- How we will do our business - Parliamentary Procedure & Standing Rules
- How we will vote - Voting Procedures
- What to expect - Overview of the Assembly Agenda
- Proposed Constitutional Changes
If you would like to learn more about the budgeting process and the proposed synod budget, please plan to attend the additional Pre-Assembly Budget Hearing via Zoom on: Wednesday, May 5 at 6pm.
Zoom links for these three pre-assembly meetings will be sent in the April 30 email!
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With gratitude for your partnership,
The 2021 Synod Assembly Planning Team
