Our Blue Boat Home: Living the Seventh Principle

Annual Conference 2009 Archive 

April 3–5, 2009
Duluth, Minnesota

Hosted by the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth

This year in scenic Duluth:

We explore a broad spectrum of environmental and sustainability issues and their relationship to each and every one of us. The Keynote Speaker is a pioneer in sustainable agriculture. The Judy Lecturer wrote “Blue Boat Home”, one of our favorite songs. We devote one of the traditional workshop sessions to a Presidential Forum on the candidates for the UUA Presidency. Two pre-conference workshops are offered Friday on Racial Equity and Environmental Justice.

Highlights

Keynote Speaker Linda Barnes and Mark Runquist, stewards of high hopes gardens, LLC

Arthur M. Judy Lecturer Peter Mayer, singer and songwriter

Saturday Night Entertainment Sara Thomsen, singer and songwriter

See Conference Highlights for more information about the speakers and entertainment.

Conference Reading

Blessed Unrest, by Paul Hawken – recommended by Keynote Speaker Linda Barnes. More information

Awards

Awards are given every year at the Annual Conference. Read the award descriptions, and if this sounds like someone you know, fill out a nomination form for them! (Deadline for nominations: January 31, 2009.)

Posters to print

Download a poster about the Annual Conference to display in your congregation.

8.5“ x 11” Annual Conference Poster   (687 KB) 11“ x 17” Annual Conference Poster   (684 KB) 8.5“ x 11” Environmental Justice Workshop Flyer   (600 KB)

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The 46th Annual Meeting of Prairie Star District, UUA, will be held on Saturday, April 4, 2009, from 5:00 to 6:15 p.m., at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites, 200 West 1st St. Duluth MN 55802. The agenda for the meeting includes adoption of the 2009–2010 Prairie Star District budget, the election for the positions shown in the report of the Nominating Committee, and such other matters as may properly come before the meeting.

Business Meeting Links Delegate Counts A list by congregation of the number of delegates per congregation for 2009. Proposed Budget (in PDF Format — 60KB) The proposed budgets will be printed in the Annual Report which will be distributed to all delegates at the Annual Conference. Nominating Committee Report (in PDF Format — 36KB) A list of the candidates for officers, directors, and others to lead Prairie Star District, with biographical information. Voting Delegates Congregational Delegates

Every affiliated congregation in good standing is entitled to a specific number of delegates who can vote at the meeting. The number of delegates is determined by number of congregation members. Each congregation may send as many participants to the conference as desired, but only the delegates accredited on the Web site will be able to vote. All conference participants including delegates should complete a Registration to attend the Annual Conference.

Procedure for accrediting congregational delegates:

The congregation should select its delegates according to its bylaws. The deadline has passed for naming delegates online. Please send your delegates to the Conference with a letter signed by an officer or minister of the congregation stating the name of the congregation and the names of the delegates. This letter can be presented at the delegate sign-in section of the Conference registration desk. Fellowshipped, settled, and interim ministers are automatically delegates. Please do not list them with the delegates selected by the congregation. People who will be delegates should also register like other conference participants. (The accreditation process above does not do that; it merely identifies who the voting delegates are.) Delegates who have been accredited on the Web site must also sign in at the Registration desk at the Conference (before 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 4, 2009) to show that they are in attendance. They will then be given a sticker for their name badge indicating that they are entitled to vote. There will not be paper credentials to carry to the conference. Additional Delegates

There are two other groups of delegates:

Fellowshipped, settled, and interim ministers and ministers emeritus are entitled to be delegates (in addition to the delegates selected by congregations). Members of the PSD Board of Directors are also entitled to be delegates.

Procedure for additional delegates:

There will not be paper credentials for these delegates, and their names should not be listed with the congregational delegates. Persons who are delegates by their ministerial or Board member status should sign in at the Conference (before 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 4, 2009) to show they are in attendance and will be given a sticker for their name badge indicating they are entitled to vote. All conference participants including delegates should complete a Registration to attend the Annual Conference.

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Friday

Child care up to grade 6 will be provided at the Holiday Inn on Friday night, during the opening ceremonies and keynote address, from 6:45 to 9:45 PM.

Saturday

Child care will take place at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth which is located approximately 3 miles from the conference hotel. Parents will be responsible for driving their children to and from the church premises; carpooling and local transportation assistance will also be available with signed permission.

Children from infant through grade 6 will be cared for with appropriate activities and programming. Snacks and lunch will be provided. Older children will be taken on a field trip in the afternoon to one or more local sites, depending on the weather.

Saturday child care hours

Morning Only: 8:30 AM to 1:00 PM All-Day: 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Sunday

Activities for children and care for infants will also be available on Sunday morning at the UUCD, where the worship service will be “rolling” from 9:00 am through noon. Conference participants will be able to come at their convenience after checking out of the hotel and leave when they need to for their travel arrangements.

Child Care Registration

Child care registration is included on the adult registration form; child care permission forms must be submitted along with the adult registration form. If you are registering online, please print the permission form and mail it to the address on the form. Registration is not complete until the permission form is received. Forms are available on the Registration page.

The fee for children grade 6 and under is

$60 for Friday evening and the All-Day Saturday session, or $40 for Friday evening and the Morning Only session on Saturday.

Deadline for Child Care Registration: March 16, 2009

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Keynote Speaker Linda Barnes and Mark Runquist 

Linda Barnes and her husband Mark Runquist, along with their three children, live in a restored farmstead in rural Iowa and are stewards of high hopes gardens, LLC. They operate a small diversified farm reminiscent of the self-sufficient farms of years gone by, but incorporate modern features such as wind energy and a farm blog. Linda proposed and founded a certified organic 140 acre “incubator” farm adjacent to Marshalltown Community College where she teaches biology, developed the program curriculum, and raised over $700,000 to make the farm a reality.

Linda holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota-Duluth, a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Iowa State University, and was granted seven US and international patents for biotechnology before switching her focus to sustainable farming. She and her husband are one of the first partners in Wholesome Harvest Organic Meats, an organic meat co-op that distributes products nationwide. She has recently visited rural agricultural enterprises in Mexico and in Costa Rica. She is a member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Ames and is a frequent presenter to the Fellowship and to local service and clubs and Midwestern farming conferences.

Recordings

Here is an audio recording of this presentation which begins with an introduction by the Rev. Brian Eslinger, UU Fellowship of Ames, Iowa: download MP3 (67 MB)

Judy Lecturer Singer/Songwriter Peter Mayer 

Singer and songwriter Peter Mayer is well known to UUs in our area. He is the author of the well known and much loved song Blue Boat Home.

Peter writes songs for a small planet—songs about interconnectedness and the human journey; about the beauty and the mystery of the world. Whimsical, humorous, and profound, his music breaks the boundaries of “folk”, and transcends to a realm beyond the everyday love song, to a place of wonder at the very fact of life itself.

Peter began playing the guitar and writing songs when he was in high school. He studied theology and music in college, and then spent two years in seminary. After deciding that the priesthood wasn’t for him, he took a part-time job as a church music director for 8 years, while performing at clubs and colleges and writing and recording his music. In 1995 he quit his job and started touring full-time. Since then, Peter has gradually gained a dedicated, word-of-mouth following, selling out shows from Minnesota to Texas, New England to California. He has eight CDs to his credit, and has sold over 50,000 of them independently.

Recordings

Please note: The video and audio below are presented by special arrangement with Peter Mayer. Please do not embed or otherwise redistribute them without permission.

Here is an audio recording of this presentation which begins with an introduction by Gina Dugan and Stan Nichol, co-chairs of the Annual Conference Program Planning Committee: download MP3 (61 MB)

Saturday Night Entertainment Singer/Songwriter Sara Thomsen 

Sara Thomsen is a singer-songwriter with a soulful voice, poetic lyrics, and haunting melodies. Her music comes from the heart, and that’s where it takes you. With a voice richer than the best mid-west soil, her songs carry you inward and outward—in, to the particulars of your own life, and out into the shared humanity of us all. Her performance style is easygoing and full of humor and depth, capturing the audience’s full engagement. Sara’s music gently enfolds and unfolds the listener.

Sunday Music

The service on Sunday morning will feature several music groups, including the Conference Choir, which invites all interested Conference attendees to participate. The Choir will rehearse the “Rainforest Song” by Jim Scott, selected by Karen Bauman, Music Program Administrator at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth.

Karen will contact music directors throughout the Prairie Star District so music can be purchased and rehearsed.

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The following table gives membership certified for 2009 and the corresponding number of delegates each congregation is entitled to have vote at the Prairie Star District Annual Business Meeting.

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Q: What does my registration include?

A: An adult registration includes the conference and its activities; breakfast, lunch, and the banquet Saturday, April 4; and breakfast Sunday April 5. A youth registration includes the conference; breakfast and lunch with the larger group on Saturday; a youth dinner party on Saturday night; and breakfast Sunday morning.

Q: Do I register for the Pre-conference workshops at the same time?

A: Yes:

For the Social Justice Workshop on Environmental Justice there is an extra charge of $5.00 with Conference registration. Registration will also be available at the door, with a charge of $10.00. For the GRACE (Growing Racial and Cultural Equity) Workshop there is no charge, but do indicate on the Conference registration form if you plan to attend.

Q: How do I reserve a room at the hotel?

A: This is separate from your conference registration, and you will need to make it yourself. Information about hotel reservations is on the General Information page.

Q: What is the phone number for the Holiday Inn?

A: 218-722-1202

Q: Where is the Holiday Inn and how to I get there from Highway 35 going north?

A: The hotel is in downtown Duluth, at the corner of 1st Street and 2nd Avenue West. The address is 200 West First Street. Driving into Duluth on Interstate Highway 35, take Exit 256B and turn left onto Lake Avenue, then left on 1st street. As soon as you cross 2nd Avenue, the Holiday Inn parking ramp is on your left.

Q: What if I’m coming from Wisconsin?

A: From Highway 53, follow the signs to Interstate Highway 35 North, then follow the same directions as above.

Q: What if I’m coming from the North on Interstate Highway 35?

A: Who comes from the north to Duluth (we’re just kidding)? Take the Lake Avenue exit and turn right, then follow the same instructions as above.

Q: Is there anything to know about the Holiday Inn parking ramp?

A: Yes. You must drive on the left side of the ramp, instead of the right. It’s clearly marked but feels a bit awkward.

Q: Once I’m in the parking ramp, can I leave?

A: Yes. As a guest of the hotel, you do not pay to park, and you can come and go as you please. Just remember to drive on the left once you’re inside the ramp, and remember that you must always turn left to exit onto 1st Street, which is one-way.

Q: How can I get to the conference site from the airport?

A: Normally there are cabs at the airport for arriving flights. Or, you can call a cab:

Q: If I get stuck, whom can I call?

A: These UUCD members are ready to help you:

Q: What about dinner Friday night?

A: If you wish to stay downtown, the Local Arrangements Committee recommends:

Local Arrangements heartily recommends that you venture down to Canal Park*, which, besides offering shopping and cultural attractions, boasts these restaurants and more:

* Canal Park is on Lake Avenue, over the freeway, towards Lake Superior. If weather permits, it’s a nice walk of about 15 minutes from the Holiday Inn.

Q: How do I get from the Holiday Inn to the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth (UUCD)?

A: Directions:

Exit the parking ramp left onto 1st Street. Turn right on 3rd Avenue West and then right onto 2nd Street. (This is a one-way street.) Drive to 21st Avenue East and turn left. Follow signs to UMD and St. Scholastica, which will tell you to turn right on Woodland Avenue. Travel about 4 blocks, through the stoplight at Kent Road. Turn left one block after the stoplight, onto College Street. Stay on College Street past UMD, through a stop light. Look on your right for Missouri Street, very closely followed by the “835 Unitarian” sign that tells you to turn right into UUCD.

Q: Where on the radio dial is public radio?

A: Minnesota Public Radio in Duluth is on the FM dial at 100.5 (News) and 92.9 (Classical).

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Location

Most conference activities will take place at Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites, 200 West 1st St., Duluth  MN 55802. (See Accommodations below for more information.)

Google Map for Holiday Inn

Selected activities (noted in the activity description) will take place at the UU Congregation of Duluth, 835 W. College St., Duluth, MN  55811.

Google Map for UU Congregation of Duluth Registration

Registration is available online with a credit card or by mail with a check. To register, see the Registration page.

Adults

Adult Registration includes all conference activities and meals.Adult Registration fee:

$130 on or before March 6, 2009 $150 thereafter

Lodging is not included in the registration fee. See Accommodations below.

Youth

Youth Registration is available to attendees in grades 7–12. Youth registration requires both parental permission and the presence of an adult sponsor who will be attending the conference.

A youth registration provides all conference activities plus a field trip and special youth dinner on Saturday night. Youth participants will also create the worship service on Saturday evening.

Youth need to make hotel reservations with their families or sponsors.

To provide needed information, youth, parents, and adult sponsors should review and complete both the regular Conference Registration and the Youth Supplement (permission) that are on the Registration page.

Youth Registration Fee: $60Deadline for Youth Registration: March 16, 2009.

Child Care

Child care will be available Friday evening, during the day on Saturday and during the service on Sunday.

Child care registration is included on the adult registration form; child care permission forms must be submitted along with the adult registration form.

The fee for children grade 6 and under is

$60 for Friday evening and the All-Day Saturday session, or $40 for Friday evening and the Morning Only session on Saturday.

Deadline for Child Care Registration: March 16, 2009

Meals

Adult, youth, and child registrations include Saturday breakfast, lunch, and dinner, refreshments during breaks, and Sunday breakfast. Youth will have their own dinner separate from the adult participants on Saturday evening. Child care includes snacks and lunch.

Extra Saturday lunches ($14) are available for guests of those who receive awards at the lunch, or other non-participants, by adding the cost when registering.

Vegetarian meals will be available, if selected on the registration form, and special dietary considerations for children can be noted in the children’s registration section of the form.

Special Needs

The registration form contains space to indicate any special assistance you may need while at the conference.

Carpooling

To coordinate a carpool to the conference with other attendees from your area, please visit our carpools page. We will be coordinating carpools from the hotel to the Saturday workshops that are held at UUCD.

Accommodations

The conference hotel is:

Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites200 West 1st St.Duluth MN 55802 map1.800.477.7089 (toll free)1.218.722.0233 (fax for reservations)http://www.hiduluth.com

The hotel is located in downtown Duluth, within walking distance of Lake Superior. Parking is free for hotel residents. The reception area is on the 3rd floor, accessed by elevator from the Holiday Center main floor, or through the parking garage. Wireless access is available throughout the hotel. There are two swimming pools, with a kiddie pool at one and a hot tub at the other.

The conference rate is $84 per night, available through March 6, 2009. The PSD group booking code is UUA.

Room Sharing

To coordinate with those interested in sharing a hotel room with another conference participant, see room sharing.

Conference Choir

Conference participants are invited to join the Conference Choir. The choir will assemble at 5:00 pm on Saturday, at the hotel, to rehearse the “Rainforest Song” by Jim Scott, to be sung at the Sunday Worship Service at UUCD. You may indicate interest on the Registration Form.

Scholarship Fund Donations

The Prairie Star District Board has authorized the creation of a scholarship fund to subsidize attendance at future Annual Conferences for those who could not otherwise attend. When you register for this year’s conference, you may choose to make a voluntary contribution to this fund.

Scholarship Applications

Thanks to individual contributions from members of congregations all over the District, we were able to give 16 people scholarships of $75 each this year to help offset the cost of attending the Prairie Star District Annual Conference. These scholarships were intended to encourage first time attendees, seminary students, youth and young adults, congregational delegates and leaders, and to promote diversity.

Applications are now closed since there are no more funds available for scholarships this year.

Scholarship recipients have been notified by email. They should register and pay the full registration fee. Scholarship checks will be distributed at the Annual Conference. Exhibits

The Conference will include a UU Bookstore and space for other exhibitors. Exhibit space is available for $25 per 6-foot by 30-inch table. For more information, call Cheryl Sabot, or e-mail

Exhibitors may apply for exhibit space using our Prairie Store. Exhibit Application deadline: March 10, 2009. Applications for Exhibit Tables are no longer being accepted since all available tables are assigned.

Prairie Star District reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to dismiss, prohibit, or evict any exhibit or exhibitor that does not conform to the dignity and general business character of the Prairie Star District Annual Conference or to the stated principles of the Unitarian Universalist Association.

Banner Parade

The Banner Parade will be Friday evening, and banners will be displayed throughout the Conference. You are invited and encouraged to bring your congregation’s banner, with pole, for the parade.

To learn more about creating a banner, visit: http://www.uua.org/documents/gaoffice/bannerspecs.pdf

Questions?

For more information, email registrar@psduua Or contact: Janet Magree,

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 GRACE Gathering #1

Information, Inspiration, Education and Leadership for Growing Racial and Cultural Equity in Your Congregation

When you are making your travel arrangements to go to the Prairie Star District Annual Conference in Duluth April 3–5, 2009, plan to arrive in time to attend the GRACE Gathering on Friday from 10 am to 4 pm at the Radisson Hotel Duluth Harborview. (We encourage you to send at least 2 people from your congregation to this workshop so that workshop participants will have an ally and partner when they return to their home congregation to begin or continue the work of anti-racism.)

Workshop Description

Spend an energizing and informative day with members of the Prairie Star District’s GRACE Team and others from congregations in the PSD. The day includes presentations, discussion and many opportunities to connect, reflect and gear up for action.

Telling Our Stories: Why are you here? Towards a Common Understanding: Definitions of Racism, White Privilege, Internalized Oppression, Institutional Racism, Culture and Ethnicity. Where Are We Now? Assessment of your Congregation on the continuum of becoming and Anti-Racist institution What Resources Do We Have? Ways and resources to initiate and AR agenda in your congregation. Where Do We Go from Here? Each congregation develops and action plan: What 2 things will you work on when you return home? What is your time frame? When can the Team contact you to follow up on your progress? Where

Radisson Hotel Duluth Harborview
Note: The Radisson is less than one-half mile from the Holiday Inn, where the Annual Conference is being held.

When

Friday, April 3, 2009
10 am – 4 pm with a FREE LUNCH buffet included

The GRACE Gathering ends in time to get back to the hotel for the opening session of the Annual Conference.

GRACE Team members

John Edmonds – Rochester, MN
Andrew Hanft (youth) – Ames, IA
Kelley Hughes – New Brighton, MN
Clara Jacob – Sioux Falls, SD
Rev. Patricia Jimenez – Minneapolis, MN
Laura Schlatter – Minneapolis, MN
Cheryll Wallace – Omaha, NE
Nathan Woodruff – Lincoln, NE

Cost

There is no cost for this workshop and a FREE LUNCH will be included.

Registration

You can register by selecting “GRACE Gathering Pre-Conference Workshop” on the Annual Conference registration form.

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Two candidates are competing for the office of Unitarian Universalist Association President succeeding the Rev William G. Sinkford, who completes his second term of office in June 2009.

Rev. Laurel Hallman Rev. Peter Morales

The Presidential Forum, moderated by Prairie Star District leaders Kathryn Bowman and Kathy Burek, will explore the candidacies of the Rev Dr Laurel Hallman, senior minister of the First Unitarian Church in Dallas, and the Rev Peter Morales, senior minister of Jefferson Unitarian Church in Golden Colorado. The Forum will feature spokespersons for each candidate, the UUA election process, and a time for Q & A. This is your opportunity to become informed about the choices for the next chief executive officer and primary spokesperson of the Unitarian Universalist Association.

The forum replaces the customary early afternoon workshop session (Workshops B).

For more information about the upcoming UUA elections at General Assembly, see UUA Elections.

Recordings

Here is a video recording of this presentation which was introduced by Kathy Bowman, PSD President.

2009PresForum.flv

Audio only recording: 2009PresForum.mp3

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Paul Hawken. Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement In the World Came Into Being and Why No One Saw it Coming. 352 pp. Hardback: Viking, ISBN 0670038520. Paperback: Penguin, ISBN 0143113658.

A leading environmentalist and social activist’s examination of the worldwide movement for social and environmental change.

Website: http://www.blessedunrest.com Five-minute video : http://www.blessedunrest.com/video.html

Keynote Speaker Linda Barnes has chosen this book to be read, digested, shared ... and then discussed in a workshop session at the 2009 PSD Conference in Duluth. We are hoping that folks all over the Prairie Star District will buy copies from their local bookstores and prepare to share with each other what they have learned.

Paul Hawken has spent over a decade researching organizations dedicated to restoring the environment and fostering social justice. From billion-dollar nonprofits to single-person dot.causes, these groups collectively comprise the largest movement on earth, a movement that has no name, leader, or location, and that has gone largely ignored by politicians and the media. Like nature itself, it is organizing from the bottom up, in every city, town, and culture. and is emerging to be an extraordinary and creative expression of people’s needs worldwide.

Blessed Unrest explores the diversity of the movement, its brilliant ideas, innovative strategies, and hidden history, which date back many centuries. A culmination of Hawken’s many years of leadership in the environmental and social justice fields, it will inspire and delight any and all who despair of the world’s fate, and its conclusions will surprise even those within the movement itself. Fundamentally, it is a description of humanity’s collective genius, and the unstoppable movement to reimagine our relationship to the environment and one another.

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