Electronic Resources For Leaders

Two new resources are available to help congregational leaders.

• UU World is helping religious educators use the magazine more effectively by sending an e-mail announcement previewing the next issue just before it arrives and including the “What in the World?” study questions. Sign up at www.uua.org/mailman/listinfo/uuworld.

• InterConnections Resources is a new Web site created by the Office of Lay Leadership Development to help you find answers to questions about leadership issues and resources. It’s at www.uua.org/programs/layleader and it has four parts: Quickstart (for immediate answers); Events for Leadership (conferences, workshops, etc.); FAQ (more than 100 frequently asked questions and answers); and the InterConnections Resource Library, a searchable database of articles from this newsletter.

Now’s the Time . . .

. . . to cultivate candidates for the governing board.

. . . call those folks you haven’t seen this fall or who have fallen behind on pledges.

Good Techniques, Volunteers Create
Successful Canvass

Face-to-face canvassing, a good team of volunteers, and diligent planning helped create a successful annual canvass for the UU Church in Reston, Va. (202 members), just a year after the church completed a dual capital campaign and annual canvass that raised $725,000 and almost $200,000 for the operating budget.

John Gudgel, co-chair of the 2003-04 stewardship campaign, reports that last spring’s canvass raised $214,000. “The process included a voluntary survey that not only asked questions about UUCR, but also asked questions including people’s birthday, favorite color, hometown, religious background, etc. Both the member and canvasser gave answers so that they got to know one another. The surveys went into a member database.

“I had a great support team. In addition to my co-chair Gene Remmers, I had an events chair, advanced campaign chair, and communications chair; significant support from the ministers, treasurer, and finance chair; and over 25 percent of the congregation was actively involved in canvassing and planning. One of the events was an offsite catered all-church dinner attended by over 100 members.”

Small-Group Topic Book

The UU Community Church, Augusta, Maine, a leader in the small group ministry movement, is selling a new small group ministry session book. The book of 25 session outlines, including discussions on curiosity, shadow, power, perfection, and longing, can be used by any congregation in a small-group setting, says the Rev. Calvin Dame.

Order for $25 plus $3 handling from the church at 69 Winthrop Street, Augusta, ME 04330. Checks should be made out to UUCC.

Canvass Materials

John Levine of the First Unitarian Society of Ithaca, N.Y., has a collection of annual canvass materials from various churches at http://unitarian.ithaca.ny.us/canvass/. Materials include canvass booklets, pledge packets, brochures, and letters. He also welcomes additional materials at johnl@unitarian.ithaca.ny.us.

Unitarian Sunday School Society Offers RE Grants

The Unitarian Sunday School Society, founded in 1827 by William Ellery Channing and others to promote “moral and religious education in the church schools,” now has a Web site at www.uua.org/usss.

The society, for 85 years the source of all Unitarian curricula, teaching, training, and worship materials, now awards grants to individuals and organizations to develop curricula or programs that promote liberal religious education. It also sponsors an annual competition, the Lifespan Worship Award for a worship service that best encourages faith development for all ages. It carries a prize of $750.

In each of the past two years the society has funded more than $17,000 in curricula, book, and other RE projects. A list of those grants is on the Web site. Grant manager is Kathy Cronin, director of religious education at First Parish, Brewster, Mass., kathy@fpbuu.org.

Quick Tips for Treasurers

A page of “Quick Tips for Treasurers,” including information about Fair Share giving and the Annual Program fund is at www.uua.org/giving/apf/treasurer.html.

Congregations and Elections

Rules about what congregations can and cannot do concerning lobbying, elections, and supporting candidates and issues are available on the Web site of the UUA’s Office of Advocacy and Witness.

Go to www.uua.org/uuawo and look for “The Real Rules: Congregations and IRS Guidelines on Advocacy, Lobbying, and Elections” (in PDF format).

Congregational Vitality Measured by More Than Just Numbers

Congregational vitality is about more than numbers, says a consultant at the Alban Institute, an ecumenical advisory institute that offer consultancy to churches. Key factors in a church’s health are the spiritual growth of its members, its participation in outreach activities, and its cultivation of members’ abilities and willingness to express their faith and use their talents in the world, says Rev. Terry Foland. To be truly healthy a congregation must serve not only its members but also the larger community.

Too many members, says Foland, aren’t that concerned about outreach. “In a consumer-oriented culture such as ours, a good many people think that what the church needs to provide is something for them. They don’t think of the church being called to service beyond itself, so that’s one of the struggles that congregations often face when they begin the process of reinventing themselves.”

Most congregations, says Foland, have retained a post-World War II business model structure of a board and functioning departments which may be too outdated to successfully meet the church’s needs. “In today’s culture a lot of people don’t want to commit themselves to a two- or three-year term on a committee that meets once a month . . . but they are willing to commit three to six months to a task or issue they feel is important.”

These comments were excerpted from the article “It’s About Discipleship,” in the December 2002 issue of Congregations, the magazine of the Alban Institute. For additional information about the Alban Institute’s publications and services, visit the organization’s Web site at alban.org.

Interweave Booklet

Interweave, the UU organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their allies, has a new booklet called “How to Start a BLGT Group” for those interested in beginning a new chapter or looking for ideas on running an existing one.

For a copy, or information about Interweave, e-mail the editor at mountaingirl@vtlink.net or write to Interweave, 167 Milk St. #406, Boston, MA 02109.

Environmental Camp A Summer Possibility

In addition to the summer camps featured in the Spring 2003 issue of InterConnections, Martie Olson, director of religious education at Peoples Church UU, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, recommends another.

Olson organized an EARTHcamp for Kids, a concept developed by John Denver’s Windstar Foundation. Twenty children in grades 4, 5, and 6 participated in the five-day camp, held at a nearby Franciscan spirituality center. “It was a wonderful success,” said Olson, who previously trained at the Windstar Foundation in Colorado. In addition to children from Peoples Church the camp was open to children outside the church. It also helped the church make a connection with the spirituality center.

The camp featured hands-on nature activities plus games, theater arts, and music. Olson plans to repeat it next summer. For information, contact Olson at martie@avalon.net or the foundation at www.wstar.org.

Calling the District Office: Can Just Anyone Do It?

Can just anyone from a congregation call the district office for advice?

Anyone can call her office, says Nancy Heege, district executive of the Prairie Star District. “If a church member calls to complain about something the board or minister are doing, we refer them to their local resources—Committee on Ministry, etc. My own practice is to follow up with a phone call to the congregation’s leadership to ask if I might be of help in such a situation.”

She adds that congregational leaders should call the office when they want help with strategic planning, growth issues, leadership training, transitions in ministry, and when seeking a minister for the first time. Many districts have program consultants in areas such as religious education and youth services and can offer those additional services as well.

Media Relations Book Helpful to UU Groups

Skip Wood, a UU who has spent a career in the news business, has produced a 40-page booklet to help nonprofit organizations, including congregations, get news coverage for their events. Wood, a producer for North Dakota Public Radio, has also been a television news producer and journalism teacher. He has done media workshops for the Prairie Star District. Getting Coverage, An Insider’s Guide to Effective Media Relations, covers determining what a news story is, writing and distributing a news release, how to act during an interview, and what to do when the news is bad.

The booklet is $17.95 from Rexwood Communications, 708 S. 9th Street, Moorhead, MN 56560 or go to www.cableone.net/wood.

Parish Hall Display Keeps History Alive

Bill Parke, historian of the UU Church of Buffalo, N.Y. (506 members), keeps its history in front of members with a wall display in the Parish Hall. The exhibit chronicles John Quincy Adams’ visit there in 1843 as a guest of Millard Fillmore. It includes a diary entry from Adams describing his visit and the sermon. Other exhibits feature Adams’ role in defending the captives of the slave ship Amistad and the 2003 visit of the recreated Freedom Schooner Amistad to Buffalo harbor. The exhibit is temporary, but is meant to “whet the appetite” of members for a permanent display and remind them of their religious heritage, says Parke.

Lay Leadership Tips E-mail List Available

Harlan Limpert, the UUA’s director of lay leadership development, has begun a new e-mail list to communicate with congregational leaders. Limpert will use the list to send out information to leaders every two to four weeks with leadership tips, ideas, quotes, and best practices, plus upcoming regional or continental leadership events. Limpert will also use the list to assemble articles and other resource materials on a given leadership topic.
Sign up for the list, Lay Leadership Tips, at uua.org/mailman/listinfo/layleadershiptips.