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A Farewell Message from Rev. Mary Higgins, NNED District Executive
Five years we have been working together;
My time to retire is at hand.
Lines crease my face;
Lines of laughter; Lines of joy; Lines of profound gratitude at the way you have welcomed my ministry into your midst.
You will never be far from my heart as we move into an unknown future.
My faith in your capacities, courage and dedication does not waver.
Go in peace my friends. I will watch you from afar and smile in recognition at your successes and struggles. A life of purpose and meaning is worth every effort to create it.
In love and gratitude,
Mary
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The NNED Youth Assembly: A Snapshot
It all started with an idea. We dreamed of holding a Youth Assembly at Ferry Beach, complete with a dynamic keynote speaker, quality musicians, and a myriad of workshop choices, all grounded in our Unitarian Universalist faith. We put aside some money, found an available date at Ferry Beach, and hit the ground running.
Getting the Word Out. We started with the obvious. The flyer and registration forms were sent to every DRE and Minister in our District. They were displayed at the top of our website, and were included with every newsletter or electronic bulletin that left the District office. Invitations were printed and packets of them were mailed to every DRE in the hopes that every youth would be personally invited. The news spread to Facebook, and personal invitations were made at gatherings and meetings across our 3 states.
Workshop Planning. Several months in advance, we sent out a request for workshop proposals to all of our youth. We asked that they propose a workshop that they would co-lead with an adult on any topic of their choosing. We received two. This forced us to be creative, and quickly! It was a lot of work, but we found material in some of the Chrysalis Training materials at the UUA, and identified some volunteers to co-lead the workshops. We also invited several others to present some content specific workshops. Our hope is to have more workshop proposals from participants each year.
After months of planning, more logistics than one person could imagine, and a ton of excitement, the NNED Youth Assembly took place at Ferry Beach in Saco, ME, October 28-30, 2011................and, it SNOWED!
We certainly didn't see the snow coming, but it did not dampen our spirits. We kicked off the weekend with an orientation for both youth and adult sponsors, and some ice-breaker/getting to know you games. We had nearly 50 youth from 5 states, and adults who were ministers, youth advisors, DREs, parents, District Staff, and UUA staff. Everyone was committed to creating a fun, safe, faithful and memorable weekend!
What we learned:
* Almost all of the youth who attended learned about the event directly from their DRE.
* Many congregations offered scholarships and fundraisers to send their youth.
* A Fall Youth Assembly provides challenges in spreading the word and raising funds at the start of the church year.
* Participants almost unanimously agreed that the schedule for the weekend provided a good balance of scheduled activities and free time.
* There are LOTS of great ideas for future workshops already brewing!
* We need balance between reflection and action.
* Having separate weekends or completely separate Assemblies for Junior and Senior youth would be ideal.
* IT IS REALLY COLD IN MAINE AT THE END OF OCTOBER!
Some highlights from the weekend:
* Witnessing the inclusive and accepting nature of our youth
* New friendships were formed
* Roughly 15 youth participated in one of the UUA's latest projects, "Gathered Here". Their feedback will be shared with UUA leadership.
* Fantastic youth-led worship
* An energetic costume dance party
* Closing community workshop led by GoldMine graduates
We learned some other wonderful lessons and received a bounty of positive and constructive feedback. Here are just a few of the notes we received:
" I just want to say: YOU GUYS ROCK!!! It was one of the best experiences of my life." age 13
"i just want to thank everyone involved for making this weekend possible, it was awesome and I hop there are more like it. I haven't had good experiences at youth CONS and I'm glad this was a little different..." age 15
"It was awesome!" age 12
"There was a great sense of community and I felt that it was, as a whole, incredibly well planned and organized." age 17
"My whole congregation had a great time and that was one of the best things for me, to be able to share this experience." age 15
Where do we go from here? We know what we can do, and we have concrete feedback about ways to improve. Later this spring, a Conference Planning Team will be assembled to begin planning next year's NNED Youth Assembly. If you, or someone you know, would like to be a part of this planning team, pleaseemail Kim Paquette or call 603-228-8704.
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Multigenerational Worship and Music Planning: Saturday, February 11
(Snow Date February 18)
Concord UU Church, 274 Pleasant St., Concord, NH 
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
$15 per person or $30 per team
This workshop is advised for anyone involved or interested in crafting a multigenerational worship service: Ministers, DREs, worship committees, music directors, youth groups, etc. Read More
Registration:
Word doc
PDF |
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The NNED Awards Committee invites our member congregations to submit nominations for the 2012 NNED Awards which will be presented at the District's Annual Meeting and Spring Conference on April 14th, 2012 in North Conway, N.H.
The District Congregational Awards submission deadline is February 1, 2012.
Awards Nomination Form:
Word doc
PDF |
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DRE Call - Tuesday, January 3, 2012
7:00-8:30 pm
TOPIC: General Assembly 2012 and Cooking Together with Special Guest: Gail Forsyth-Vail, a master's level credentialed religious educator, is the Adult Programs Director in the Lifespan Faith Development staff group at the UUA. Gail is the 2007 recipient of the Angus MacLean Award for Excellence in Religious Education.
"Through the Cooking Together project, people of all ages who are passionate about immigration justice are invited to share, create and adapt materials to help congregations faithfully consider and respond to one of the major issues of our time, whether or not they will be sending delegates to Phoenix for GA 2012. Through this project, we will collect and organize what has already been developed by congregations, districts, and staff groups, and create new resources where there are gaps. "Cooking Together" includes both this blog, where people can talk about particular resources, and a web page offering a growing library of resources for Worship, Theological Reflection, Religious Education, and Faithful Witness for people of all ages and life stages."
You will receive notification with the call number and access code as has been done for the past couple of DRE calls. If you have not received these notifications, please contact NNED Administrator, Joy Blanchette.
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Our Caring Communities Pastoral Care Training
for Caregivers - Saturday, January 7, 2012
New Snow Date: January 21
Concord UU Church
274 Pleasant St., Concord, NH
9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. (lunch included
Cost: $25 per person ~ Pay for 4, bring a 5th person for free! Printable flyer
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REMINDER
Congregationally Based Justice On Tuesday, January 17, from 7:00-8:30 pm, you are welcome to a call. As District Justice Specialist, Karen Brammer will host a conversation for NNED congregational leaders to ask questions about congregationally based justice and to share what they have been learning. Contact the NNED office to sign up and get conference call information.
Congregational President Conference Call
The 2011 conference calls for congregational presidents have been animated and informative. On Wednesday, January 18, from 7:00 - 8:30 pm, the district will host the next call. Please email Joy at the district office if you would like to have the conference call information to participate. |
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Spirituality of Grandparenting Workshop March 31, 2012
Concord UU Church, Concord NH; 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Come take a day to talk about the joys of being a grandparent! We will talk about the roles grandparents play in their families and with their grandchildren. We'll talk about the complexities of being a local grandparent, and being a long distance grandparent. We will share ways in which we can pass on wisdom and tell our stories.
This workshop is for new grandparents, seasoned grandparents, and grandparents to be. It is also for any adult who has a special relationship with a child or youth as a grand-buddy.
Flyer
Registration:
Word doc PDF |
 NNED Annual Spring Conference to Offer Expanded Program for Youth
Who is invited?
YOU! The NNED Annual Spring Conference is open to everyone, regardless of age. We encourage congregations to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with each other.
What will we do?
The Spring Conference offers times for Worship, our Annual Awards Ceremony and Banner Parade, a dynamic Keynote Address by Linda Stout, and workshop choices. We will be offering multigenerational workshops for all ages, some specifically for senior youth (ages 14-18) as well as some for adults. You are free to attend the workshops that speak to you. The Red Jacket Inn is also home to Kahuna Laguna, Northern New England's first indoor waterpark. Passes to Kahuna Laguna are available to our conferees at a reduced rate of $15, good for the duration of our Conference.
When is it?
Registration opens at 5:00 pm on Friday, April 13th. The Conference ends on Saturday, April 14th at 4:00 pm.
Where will we stay?
We will be staying at the Red Jacket Inn in North Conway, NH. Youth ages 12-18 have the option of staying with their families by reserving a room at the Red Jacket or arranging for home hospitality, OR attending with an adult sponsor and sleeping in a shared space with either Junior Youth (ages 12-14) or Senior Youth (ages 14-18). These shared spaces will be offered at no additional cost and will include cots and linens. (Youth attending with an adult sponsor must have the approval of their DRE or minister. Adult sponsors must also have a background check on file with the NNED.)
Why should we go?
Here is an opportunity to gather with 150+ Unitarian Universalists from NH, ME, and VT! We will laugh, share stories, learn more about our neighbors, and meet new friends.
How do we sign up!
Visit www.nned.uua.org to download a registration form and find other conference documents. Be sure to register by 3/23/12!
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The Big Day of Serving is coming to Nashua, NH on May 12, 2012!
As a founding member of the NH Council of Churches, the Northern New England District of the UUA supports this interfaith endeavor! Here is an opportunity for your junior or senior youth group or Coming of Age class.
"As of right now, working with the community development personnel and Ward 3 Alderman, day long projects have been established which would require approximately 500 plus youth to complete. This is a day of service, prayer, and reflection with fun, food and faith interwoven. It is a day that will not only benefit a neighborhood in Nashua, but also set the stage for other similar days in the future throughout New England. It is also an opportunity for youth groups to sample the work camp experience to see if such a week long mission might be possible for them in their future schedule. "
Please join us!
Here is the website with all the information and here is the YouTube video
Stay tuned for more information!
Kimberly Paquette
NNED Multigenerational Ministry Director |
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Grants Available from the Lewis Downing Trust 
The Second Congregational Society, Unitarian Universalist in Concord, NH, invites New Hampshire congregations and ministers (intern, active or retired) to apply for a grant from the Lewis Downing Trust. Grants are available for "ministers-at-large" to preach and disseminate Unitarian Universalism in NH, as well as for congregational projects such as special programs, guest preachers or advertising campaigns to make a church more effective to its members and the community. The deadline to apply is March 1, 2012. We expect to award over $10,000 to be distributed among five +/- selected applicants. For more information, please visit the Lewis Downing website page or leave a message for the Treasurer at (603) 224-0291.
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Happy Holidays from Your NNED Staff
Mary, Karen, Kim, Joy and Jen
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