Annual Gathering

 

Workshops

Workshop Schedule

Session I Friday, June 5th
(3:45 p.m. - 5:15 p.m.)

F-1 So Why Should My Local Church Care About the UCC?
Rev. Dr. Jane Fisler Hoffman, Interim Conference Minister (View Bio Here)
This question is often spoken or acted out in unspoken ways! This workshop will offer resources and ideas for pastors and lay leaders who want to help their congregations answer this question with support and enthusiasm for our United Church of Christ.

F-2  New Perceptions: Dealing With Change in the Church 
Rev. June Boutwell, Interim Associate Conference Minister (View Bio Here)
"The only sense that is common in the long run is the sense of change…and we all instinctively avoid it." (E.B. White) Come and learn how to confront rather than avoid change and use it as an opportunity for new understandings of community, new openings for ministry and outreach, and a new sense of the Spirit moving

F-3 Renewal in SCNC UCC’s Small Churches
Gary Roberts, Associate for Church Development & Renewal (View Bio Here)
If your church has less than 75 adults, this is your subject. This workshop will help you start to clarify your church’s options, mission objectives, and plan for the future. It will also help acquaint you with the resources available from the Conference and elsewhere that can help you achieve your church’s goals.

F-4   Thanks for the School Kits!
Julie Brumana, Church World Services (View Bio Here)
The Conference has collected School Kits for Church World Service (CWS), now what? Where do CWS Kits go and what purpose do they serve? From Kentucky to New Orleans, from Haiti to Indonesia, material aid, like the various CWS Kits and Blankets, provide comfort and safety in times of natural and man-made disasters. This is so important, but there is more. CWS Kits and Blankets also supplement the long-term relief and development efforts of our partners around the globe. This workshop will show you how CWS uses material aid in times of crisis and in times of recovery. You will also learn about the immaterial ways that communities are transformed, through building partnerships and organizing local leadership. Photos and stories will be shared, with emphasis on hurricane response and rural cooperatives in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Time will be available for Q&A and discussion.
F-5 Thirst: Water Challenges for the 21st Century, A Border Perspective
Dr. Carlos J. Correa Bernier (View Bio here)
To successfully address the nation’s water resource problems that are likely to emerge in the next 10–15 years, we must seek lasting solutions that are creative, scientific, economically feasible as well as theological based. Through our workshop we will highlight the central concerns over water supplies and quality and will try to examine some of the immediate answers available to us as one the species that share our fragile planet.

F-6 Q & A with Treasurer and Business Manager
Rev. Hal Schultz, CPA & Conference Treasurer and Keith Clark, Conference Business Manager
(View Hal's Bio Here) (View Keith's Bio Here)
Hal and Keith will be available during this time to answer questions related to the Conference’s finances and budget. Other questions related to local church finances are welcome too.

F-7 Q & A with Rev. Dr. John B. Cobb 
Dr. John B. Cobb, Emeritus Professor and Founding Co-Director of the Center for Process Theology
(View Bio Here)
Take advantage of an opportunity for open conversations with a leading scholar. Ask "everything" you ever wanted to know about Process Theology.

F-8 Journeying Into Spiritual Direction 
Elsa M. J. Seifert, Sillpoint Art of Spiritual Direction Intern (View Bio Here)
An introduction to Spiritual Direction: What on earth is Spiritual Direction? What brings us to search for a Spiritual Director? How do we get started?

F-9 Tools To Protect Your Church's Ministry  
Charlie Cutler, The Cutler Group (UCCIB Representative)
(Visit The Cutler Group Here )
Overview of legal environment that churches in California and Nevada face. Why churches are involved in litigation and tools to help you avoid litigation.

Faith and Culture In a World of Diversity
has been moved from Saturday to Friday
out of respect for Shabbat (day of rest).

F-10 Faith and Culture In a World of Diversity
Rev. Jerry Stinson, Senior Minister, First Congregational Church of Long Beach (View Bio Here)
This workshop will feature a panel of people who will each share their own unique and inspiring faith journeys. They will do so in relation to issues of culture and religion. The four panelists will be: Rabbi Haim Beliak, founder of Jewsonfirst.com; Edina Lekovic, Communications Director for the Muslim Public Affairs Council; Madison Shockley, Pastor of Pilgrim UCC in Carlsbad; Mark Nakagawa, Senior Minister of Centenary United Methodist Church in Los Angeles. Jerry Stinson, Senior Minister at the First Congregational Church of Long Beach, will be the moderator for this discussion
Session II Saturday, June 6th
(10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)

S-1 Up On The Mountaintop To Pray: Self-Care for Pastors
Rev. Dr. Barbara E. Miner (View Bio Here)
Pastors serve so many, sometimes at a price to themselves. There are times when we must remember that Pastors are People, too! Topics Include: Time Management, Resting, Meditation, Physical Exercise, Emotional Duress, Isolation and Trust: A Pastor's Need for a Confidant
Faith and Culture In a World of Diversity
has been moved from Saturday to Friday
out of respect for Shabbat (day of rest).

S-2 Faith and Culture In a World of Diversity
Moved to Friday


S-3 Ease-ing into Life
Rev. Dr. June Goudey, Pastor, United Church of Christ in Simi Valley (View Bio Here)
Ease is the condition of being without discomfort; when we ease into life we learn how to experience freedom from pain, worry, and agitation. This workshop uses InterPlay techniques to offer a calming and playful antidote to daily stresses and guarantees immediate experiences of grace that will ease your life in unique and lasting ways.

S-4 Thanks for the School Kits!
Julie Brumana, Church World Services (View Bio Here)
The Conference has collected School Kits for Church World Service (CWS), now what? Where do CWS Kits go and what purpose do they serve? From Kentucky to New Orleans, from Haiti to Indonesia, material aid, like the various CWS Kits and Blankets, provide comfort and safety in times of natural and man-made disasters. This is so important, but there is more. CWS Kits and Blankets also supplement the long-term relief and development efforts of our partners around the globe. This workshop will show you how CWS uses material aid in times of crisis and in times of recovery. You will also learn about the immaterial ways that communities are transformed, through building partnerships and organizing local leadership. Photos and stories will be shared, with emphasis on hurricane response and rural cooperatives in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Time will be available for Q&A and discussion.
S-5 The Art Of Parables: Reinterpreting the Teaching Stories of Jesus in Word and Scripture
Rev. Charles McCullough, Artist & Author (Learn more here)
McCullough will interpret each of the New Testament parables through sculpture, as seeing and approaching the parables visually opens up new levels of understanding. He will take full account of the social, economic, and political context in which the parables were told.

S-6 “Going Green”: Helping Churches Become Environmentally Friendly
 Rev. John H. Pomeroy, Co-Pastor, Pasadena First Congregational Church, UCC & Cornerstone Fund Western Regional Representative (View Bio Here)
This workshop offers a simple resource guide for helping our church become more environmentally sensitive. We will share with one another what works and what doesn't when it comes to changing lights, converting air-conditioning systems, using less water on our church grounds and whole host of other "green" strategies.

S-7 Planned Giving: The Gift That Lives On
James Rosenquist, Registered Representative and Agent with Prudential (View Bio Here)
Introduction to planned giving. Why give a planned gift? How can a planned gift help your church/charity? How can it benefit you and your heirs? How do I learn more?

S-8 Journeying Into Spiritual Direction
Elsa M. J. Seifert, Sillpoint Art of Spiritual Direction Intern (View Bio Here)
An introduction to Spiritual Direction: What on earth is Spiritual Direction? What brings us to search for a Spiritual Director? How do we get started?

SY-9 Balance (for Youth Only) 
Youth Roundtable (Who is the Youth Roundtable?)
A workshop for the high school youth of the conference. The YRT wants to show that we have great concerns about the youth of today and our choices for the future. Our workshop will showcase the differences we make as youth of the SCNC-UCC and how we can blow people away with our skills, motivation, confidence, and personalities.

* NEW WORKSHOP ADDED *

S-10 Managing Endowments in Hard Times
Rev. Nelson Murphy, United Church Foundation (View Bio Here)
The United Church Foundation, a national ministry of the UCC, provides investment management services to UCC churches and organizations. Rev. Nelson Murphy, the Foundation’s Marketing & Education Director, will lead a workshop dealing with long-term investing and how the Foundation is responding to the current financial crisis. It will cover topics such as creating an endowment policy, investment policy, gift acceptance policy, and other ways to effectively manage an endowment fund.