Pacific Mountain Region

The Gathering Place
2022-04-13 13:00 - 14:30 (America/Vancouver)
The Gathering Place a time of online, Mini-Retreats for United Church Ministry Personnel (active or retired).
Happening once a month via Zoom, Ministry Personnel are invited into 90 mins of being in community.
You can expect practices with colleagues such as check-in, pray, laugh, share sacred stories and maybe even singing a little — together.
The Gathering Place is Free and Drop-In Style. It’s hosted by the PMRC’s Ministry Personal Support Team, contact Karen Millard or Marc Coulombe for more information.

Held the 2nd Wednesday afternoon of the month.
1-2:30pm Pacific / 2-3:30pm Mountain
Online, via Zoom

Registration is required each month to receive the Zoom link. It is not a recurring link. Register here.

Office Closed for Easter
2022-04-15 - 2022-04-18

Town Hall
2022-04-20 13:00 - 14:00
Topic: PMRC Town Hall Meeting
Date: April 20th, 2022
Time: 1pm Pacific / 2pm Mountain
Join Zoom Meeting
https://united-church.zoom.us/j/99140047519?pwd=[REDACTED]

Meeting ID: 991 4004 7519
Password: [REDACTED]
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Meeting ID: 991 4004 7519
Find your local number: https://united-church.zoom.us/u/acyMSMMcml

PMRC Office Move
2022-04-21 - 2022-04-22
The PMRC office will be closed Thursday, April 21 and Friday, April 22, while we move into our new offices, located at 6000 Sussex Avenue. Please be patient when trying to contact staff members.
We will reopen on April 25, 2022!

Just Conversations
2022-04-21 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
Hello friends,
This week’s Just Conversations has been cancelled. We encourage you to join Jane Dawson, our Justice Minister, at next month’s Just Conversations, taking place on May 19, 2022.

Justice work in the church can often feel lonely and discouraging, working for change that doesn’t come easily, if it comes at all. Just Conversations is a monthly online gathering for anyone in PMRC wanting to connect with others involved with justice work around the region. It will be a chance to deepen your justice work in your faith, share stories about what is happening around the region and develop strategies for working together to support each other in “being the change.”
Just Conversations will take place on the third Thursday of every month, beginning on January 20th, 2022, from 10am Pacific / 11am Mountain.

Just Conversations is free and drop-in style
Open to ministry personnel and congregation members · Registration is required for the Zoom access. Register here.
Facilitated by the PMRC’s Ministry for Justice (contact Jane Dawson (jdawson@united-church.ca) for more information).

The 2nd Annual Festival of Biblical Telling: In the beginning was the Word
2022-04-22 - 2022-04-24 | Online
The Wisdom and Witness of Biblical Telling

APRIL 22-24, 2022 | AN INTERNATIONAL ONLINE FESTIVAL
Co-sponsored by LeaderShift, and The Network of Biblical Storytellers of Canada
The Annual Festival of Biblical Telling
Every year, storytellers from across Canada, along with India, the USA and abroad, gather to hone their storytelling skills and repertoire in a 2 1/2-day Festival of Biblical Telling. This Festival takes place April 22-24, 2022 – and you are invited! This is an opportunity for people who love the Word to come together – to listen and tell, to hone their skills at sharing that Word aloud. By Heart.
Full details and registration are found here.

Save and Share this PDF Poster (8.5×11)

Leaders Online Gathering
2022-04-26 13:30 - 14:45
United Church leaders and ministers wanting support and collegial connections, regarding children & family ministries are welcome to this weekly, online gathering! Hosted by Rev Mary Nichol, First Third Ministry Staff, for all those in leadership with Children, Youth, Families, Young Adults in a United Church setting – whether paid or volunteer in dedicated ministry with children and families, or a piece of your ministry.

Time: 1:30pm – 2:45pm PT / 2:30-3:45pm MT
Online via Zoom

Details here, register at this link!

Financial Forum 2022
2022-04-27 14:00 - 15:00
Financial Forum 2022
Wednesday April 27, 2022
2-3pm Pacific / 3-4pm Mountain
Pacific Mountain Regional Council executive members and finances staff will present the regional council’s financials (2019 audited statements), and take questions about the finances. This is an opportunity for membership to learn about the financials.
Sign Up Here: https://mailchi.mp/ffc74a8c8c7d/gm-2022-financial-forum-april-27
Thank you for signing up to attend.
You will be emailed a Zoom link for the Financial Forum in the week prior to the April 27 gathering.

Spring Silent Mini-Retreat
2022-04-30 09:30 - 13:30
This Saturday, April 30, the UVic campus ministry and The Contemplative Society are co-hosting a Spring Silent Mini-Retreat from 9:30am to 1:30pm.
The event will include centring prayer, Taize singing, labyrinth-walking, walking through Finnerty gardens, and other mindfulness activities. We will conclude with a soup lunch.
We would love for you to join at the University of Victoria Multifaith Centre! If you’re able, please register at this link.
We suggest a donation of $5-$20.
Greg Powell (gregpowell@uvic.ca) and Henri Lock (admin@contemplative.org) are happy to field any questions.

No Town Hall Today
2022-05-04 09:00
Friends,
The usual routine for Pacific Mountain town halls is changing as the life of church in the world shifts and changes. Stay tuned for updates!
Future town hall gatherings will be announced in the News of Note emails from the regional council office.
Be signed up to the PMRC email list (sign up here) so that you don’t miss out!

Blessings,
PacificMountain Staff

From Decision-Making to Discernment
2022-05-04 10:00 - 11:30
A Year-Long Program for Church Boards and Ministry Personnel
With Susan Beaumont
Most congregations rely on rational decision making to guide their leadership choices. Liminal seasons invite us to shift out of rational decision-making mode and into a more discerning mindset. Discernment is an attentiveness to God that, over time, develops into a shared sense of God’s intention for us and our community now. This year long program will equip you and your board for deepened group discernment practices.
PARTICIPANTS IN THIS PROGRAM WILL:

Enter a three-way conversation engaging God, the soul of the leader, and the soul of the institution.
Challenge the default position of most congregations to resort immediately to group decision making.
Deepen their skills as group discernment facilitators.
Learn how to structure a group discernment process and where to locate discernment activity in the life of a congregation.
Develop a toolbox of practices for opening to God and listening to one another.

Click here for full details and to register.

VST Convocation 2022
2022-05-10 19:00 - 21:00 | Christ Church Cathedral, 690 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC, Canada
VST will hold its 2022 convocation in person this year! We are thrilled to hold this in-the-flesh celebration at Christ Church Cathedral, May 10 at 7 p.m. (690 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC V6C 2L1). While last year’s double online convocation for the classes of 2020 and 2021 was wonderful and unique in the history of the school, this year we will be together to enjoy each other’s company in the beautiful sanctuary of Christ Church Cathedral.
Our speaker for the event will be Dr. Elin Kelsey, author of Hope Matters: Why Changing the Way we Think is Critical to Solving the Environmental Crisis. She is a scholar, speaker, educator and award-winning author. Over 40 graduates will receive degrees and diplomas. We will acknowledge The Rev Germaine Lovelace, winner of the President’s 2022 Thoughtful, Engaged and Generous (TEG) Christian Leader Award. You are most welcome to attend this joyous occasion.
More details are available at VST’s website.

The Gathering Place
2022-05-11 13:00 - 14:30, 2022-06-08 13:00 - 14:30
The Gathering Place is a time of online, Mini-Retreats for United Church Ministry Personnel (active or retired).
Happening once a month via Zoom, Ministry Personnel are invited into 90 mins of being in community.
You can expect practices with colleagues such as check-in, pray, laugh, share sacred stories and maybe even singing a little — together.
The Gathering Place is Free and Drop-In Style. It’s hosted by the PMRC’s Ministry Personal Support Team, contact Karen Millard or Marc Coulombe for more information.

Held the 2nd Wednesday afternoon of the month.
1-2:30pm Pacific / 2-3:30pm Mountain
Online, via Zoom

Registration is required each month to receive the Zoom link. It is not a recurring link. Register here.

Young Adult Supper Social
2022-05-15 18:00 - 20:30
We are back! YAY! Let’s get together.

What is on your heart and mind? How is your spirit? What was the last thing you watched on a screen that left you thinking about things in a different way? What do you yearn for? This is time for young adults and a leader or two to gather, eat a great meal and share conversation about what is important to you.

A Gathering of Young Adults, 18 years+, in the Lower Mainland. It is a free event. We buy dinner, you buy your drink.

The Young Adults Supper Social is time for young adults and a leader or two to gather IN PERSON, eat a great meal and share conversation about what is important.

DATE: Sunday, March 13th, Sunday, April 10th, Sunday, May 15th
TIME: 6 pm – 8:30 pm
AGES: +18 years
LOCATION: Will be shared with the participants after Registration
LEADERSHIP: Pamela Evans
COST: It is a free event

The event requires PROOF OF VACCINATION. Please make sure you bring it to the gathering. Registration here.

To Be Determined ~ Town Hall
2022-05-18 09:00
Friends,
The usual routine for Pacific Mountain town halls is changing as the life of church in the world shifts and changes. Stay tuned for updates!
Town hall gatherings will be announced in the News of Note emails from the regional council office.
Be signed up to the PMRC email list (sign up here) so that you don’t miss out!

Blessings,
PacificMountain Staff

Just Conversations
2022-05-19 10:00 - 11:00, 2022-06-16 10:00 - 12:30
Justice work in the church can often feel lonely and discouraging, working for change that doesn’t come easily, if it comes at all. Just Conversations is a monthly online gathering for anyone in PMRC wanting to connect with others involved with justice work around the region. It will be a chance to deepen your justice work in your faith, share stories about what is happening around the region and develop strategies for working together to support each other in “being the change.”
Just Conversations will take place on the third Thursday of every month, beginning on January 20th, 2022, from 10am Pacific / 11am Mountain.

Just Conversations is free and drop-in style
Open to ministry personnel and congregation members · Registration is required for the Zoom access. Register here.
Facilitated by the PMRC’s Ministry for Justice (contact Jane Dawson (jdawson@united-church.ca) for more information).

PMRC Family Retreat
2022-05-20 - 2022-05-23
Family Retreat at Camp Pringle – May 20-23, 2022
A Family Retreat for United Church families of all ages in the Pacific Mountain Regional Council is to be held on May 20-23, 2022 at Camp Pringle on Vancouver Island. We will gather together in community over the long weekend through worship, singing, camp activities, and much more! Families will be in their own bubbles for safety and will be given their own accommodation and washroom facilities for their use.

DATES: May Long Weekend. May 20-23
AGES: All ages, Family oriented
LOCATION: Camp Pringle (Shawnigan Lake, BC Vancouver Island)
LEADERSHIP: Sarah Prestwich
COST: $150-Adult (18+), $100-Children (3-18), Free-2 & under

Remember – financial support is available; the event fee will not be a barrier to participation.
Check of double vaccination proof in place.
Details and registration here.

Office Closed for Victoria Day
2022-05-23

Implementing Reconciliation
2022-05-31 19:00 - 2022-06-03 19:00
Pacific Mountain and Chinook Winds Regions are pleased to present “Implementing Reconciliation” for our continuing discernment of the Calls To The Church and Calls to Action from a regional perspective. Join our discussion on what implementing reconciliation looks like for your community of faith.
Dates: May 31, June 1, 2, 3 2022
Time 7 PM PT/8 PM MT
Register through Jotform at this link.

Sussex Office Closure
2022-06-08, 2022-06-09, 2022-06-10
Friends,
The PMRC Office is closed Wednesday June 8 and re-opening Wednesday June 15, 2022 due to the travel and working dates of the 4th Annual General Meeting. There will be no Community Connections on June 8.
Thank you for your understanding and patience while you wait for replies to emails and phone messages once the Office re-opens on June 15. Some staff may be checking emails and phone messages during the office closure dates; specific details may be available in individual staff voicemails and autoreplies.

May this mid-June time of community, discernment, business and worship – whether participating in the General Meeting, and in your own communities of faith and ministry – be a time where we all are Rooted and Grounded in Love. We give thanks to God for the call to be the church, and be God’s love in the world! Amen.

Blessings,
PMRC Office

2022 Regional Council General Meeting
2022-06-09 - 2022-06-12 | Prince George Conference and Civic Centre, Prince George, BC, Canada
Mark these dates in your calendar! The June 2022 Regional Council General Meeting Gathering will be held in person in Prince George BC. The specifics are coming a few weeks from now, but we hope that folks can generally block off these days, knowing we’ll be meeting during them. If you’re not able to attend in person, an online option will be available.

Sussex Office Closed
2022-06-13, 2022-06-14

Office Closed for National Indigenous Peoples' Day
2022-06-21

Leaders Cohort Series: A Spirituality of Race for First Third Ministry Leaders (1/3)
2022-06-24 09:30 - 11:00
This 3-session, online Series accompanies those who are attending VST Summer School course “A Spirituality of Race for Children and Youth (and those Who Love Them)”.
Full details on the how the Leaders Cohort Series works along side the VST Summer School course are found here: VST Course Cohort
Register for VST Summer School Course Here:
A Spirituality of Race for Children and Youth (and Those Who Love Them)
Register for Leaders Cohort Series Here:
A Spirituality of Race for First Third Ministry Leaders
See our Facebook Event Page to Invite others to the Series!
Share the Event Page: VST Course Cohort
https://www.firstthirdministry.ca/vst-course-cohort.html#/
Inquires? Please contact Mary Nichol: MNichol@united-church.ca

www.FirstThirdMinistry.ca

Office Closed for Canada Day
2022-07-01
