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by Rev. Kim Wood, Conference Minister
At the Southeast Conference Annual Meeting, held June 2-3 in Atlanta, the theme was “Imagine: Renewing Church and Self.” Time and again, as folks talked about renewing the church, conversation turned to nurturing and supporting our youth and young adults. The Fiscal Year 2023 Missional Budget has almost $15,000 focused on youth and young adult initiatives for fellowship and leadership. These funds are focused toward such efforts as staffing our Winter Youth Retreat, planning and preparing for a 2024 Regional Youth Event, supporting and resourcing our local churches seeking to build and sustain youth programs and initiatives, as well as creating avenues for resource sharing. It includes offering training opportunities, such as Our Whole Lives (OWL) curriculum training, for children and youth program leaders, and developing and locating tools for such topics as gun violence, racism, and social justice.
Renewing our commitment to supporting, nurturing, and cultivating leadership in our children, youth, and young adults in the Southeast Conference is crucial, not only to their well-being, but also to our way forward as the Church. It’s possible with your support!
Please consider supporting the Southeast Conference commitment to the youngest generations of the church by making a significant gift to the SECUCC Friends of the Conference Fund. Whether that means $1 or $1,000 (or maybe even more), your contribution will help us move beyond imagining to doing. If you are an individual who understands that our youth are not just our future, they are our NOW, I urge you go to https://southeastconferenceunitedchurchofchrist-bloom.kindful.com/ and donate to the Friends of the Conference. If you are a local congregation, I invite you to go beyond your OCWM giving with an extra gift/offering for the Friends of the Conference Fund. Together, our gifts, big and small, make a difference in how we resource our youth and youth leaders. It’s possible, with your support!
