Remember your first women's retreat? Decades ago it was a huge deal to get away and attend...because it was the only chance you had to gather with like-minded women. These days we are gathering all over!
The great news is that St. Lawrence District women have formed a W&R group and will be hosting a retreat this fall...and the Florida District W&R which just disbanded has discovered a whole new group of women willing to start it back up! I know we'll be hearing more from both regions. Revitalizing UU Women's Groups: A How-To Manual created by The Association of Universalist Women of Minneapolis some years back, is still available online. CMwD W&R and SWUUW publish conference guidelines on their websites.
Here are some of the upcoming retreats:
Central Midwest District Women and Religion
August 6-8, 2010
You are invited to join us for our annual Summer WomanSpirit retreat held at Ronora Lodge and Retreat Center in Watervliet, Michigan! Workshops, woods, walking, worship and more.
“Sowing Seeds of Gratitude” is our theme. We all have so many things for which we are grateful, and each one is a viable seed to plant and nurture allowing others to share in the labors which created the seeds. During this retreat we will take a special look at the gratitude we have toward the Earth and all she provides. We will also look at things for which we are grateful on a personal level, sharing what we are comfortable sharing and learning how those around us perceive their own gratitude.
E-mail: sws@womenandreligion.org More information: www.womenandreligion.orgRegister online: www.regonline.com/SWS2010
Thomas Jefferson District
Womenspirit Fall retreat will be held September 15-19 at The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center in Highlands NC.
Womenspirit gathers each Spring and Fall and offers two sessions: The Institute and The Gathering. Each session focuses on sharing sacred time together through worship, learning, and individual and group activities. Women may choose to attend Institute or Gathering or both. E-mail: Membership@uuwomenspirit.org More information: www.uuwomenspirit.org
Northern New England District
Joseph Priestley DistrictOctober 1-4 The Theme Within: Intuitively access your inner wisdom through the process of collage. Friday Dinner through Sunday lunch. Meet and explore with other UU women in a peaceful suburban retreat house. Ample free time; close to a lovely nature trail (45 minute walk) at Haverford College. E-mail: slater.anne[at]gmail.com More information: www.jpdwr.org
St. Lawrence District will be holding its First Annual Women's Spirituality Conference October 15th & 16th, at May Memorial UU Society in Syracuse. Registration starts at 5PM on Friday and is followed by dinner, vespers and a concert. Saturday starts with breakfast followed by a panel of speakers who will be discussing "How I put my spiritual beliefs into action." There will be workshops in the morning, then lunch, followed by two additional workshop times with topics including Sacred Movement, Art & Spirituality, Journaling, Healing, Bodywork, Yoga and many others. We'll close with worship. For more information please contact Planning Committee Chair Jody Brown at jfb523@gmail.com or (315) 476-0447. Information will also be on the SLD website. Here's the Initial Brochure. Visit our Facebook page: http://www.slduuwr.org Visit our Facebook page: www.slduuwr.org.
Central Midwest District UU Women's ConnectionPlans are afoot for this year's event which will be planned again by the Connection Council. Stay turned for news as the program develops. Save the date and meet your sisters there again!
You are invited to share a weekend with other women of Florida's Northeast Cluster. Our goal is to share, learn, laugh, reflect and generally strengthen our connections to one another. This time together will take place at the Canterbury Conference Center in Oveida Florida February 4th, 5th and 6th 2011. One of the activities, for those interested, will be to discuss reactivating the Florida chapter of UU Women and Religion. There will be structured time as well as time to just hang out alone or with friends. Final program details to be determined; your input is welcome. Cost: $220.00 per person which includes double occupancy accomodations, six meals, hospitality bar (coffee, tea, water, soda fountain, whole fresh fruit) and use of the conference facilities. The grounds are lovely and will offer the opportunity to enjoy the natural surroundings. Check out the facility online at www.canterburyretreat.org.
Please email Allie by Friday June 18th if you are interested in attending.
A nonrefundable deposit of $20 is due by July 1st with final payment due October 1st, 2010. Checks are made out to Northeast Cluster with UU Women's Retreat on the memo line. Checks to Allie Gore 8062 SW 81st Loop, Ocala, Fl 34476
Central Midwest District Women and Religion
February 25-27, 2011 at Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Elkhart, IN -- Balancing our Power: Spirit, Self and Earth, featuring Margot Adler
Margot's keynote address will have the same title. She'll ask:
How do we use our power for good?
How do we relate to people who have more or less power, status or resources than we do?
How do we negotiate the power in our own lives?
How do we use our power to preserve and protect the Earth?
How do we build a sturdy spirituality in the face of these issues?
Many people think there are two different Margot Adlers. One is a 40-year veteran of public broadcasting, who is currently the New York correspondent for National Public Radio and a frequent voice on All Things Considered, Morning Edition, and Weekend Edition. The other is a chronicler and spokesperson for the contemporary Wiccan and Pagan movements, the author of Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today, and a Wiccan priestess who gives workshops in ritual and song. Shush! Don’t tell anyone. It’s the same person!
Adler started in radio in 1968 as a newscaster, reporter, and later the host of three talk shows in the 1970s and 1980s. She pioneered live, free-form talk shows that dealt with spirituality, feminism, ecology, and the interface between politics, religion, and culture. Adler is also the author of Heretic’s Heart: A Journey through Spirit and Revolution, which deals with her experiences as a student at Berkeley, a participant in the Free Speech Movement, a civil rights worker in Mississippi, and an activist and journalist during the Vietnam War.
A longtime Unitarian Universalist, Margot keynoted WomanSpirit 2000 in Milwauke Wisconsin, has led and participated in panels and rituals at the UUA General Assembly, for the Continental UU Women and Religion and Covenent of UU Pagans, and was one of the keynote speakers at the International Convocation of UU Women in February 2009. Adler resides in New York.
E-mail : wws@womenandreligion.org More information: www.womenandreligion.org
