2019 Convention Workshops

Our list of workshops for the 2019 Diocesan Convention is now available! Come early and discover vital ministries across the diocese, gain tools you’ll be able to use in your own congregations, and learn more about the 2019 budget and other resolutions that will be voted upon during this year’s proceedings. Workshops are the Friday of Convention, November 8, and are open to everyone, so come and join us for this incredible time of learning and community.

Refugee Resettlement Office

• Update on Refugee Resettlement Office: The Refugee Resettlement Office is evolving to meet the needs of refugees in Western Washington, which has one of the largest refugee populations in the nation. Join Greg Hope, director of the Refugee Resettlement Office, to hear about and discuss the current activities and future initiatives of this program. Hope has coordinated the church’s efforts to welcome refugees with shelter, food, clothing, English classes, and jobs since 1985. In addition, he has given special attention to helping refugee entrepreneurs start or strengthen businesses with loans, grants, training, and Individual Development Accounts (savings accounts to start businesses) through the New Roots Fund. (10:00am-11:00am, Room 2B)

Bishop’s Taskforce on Homelessness

• Un-Housed and Under-Utilized: We have a homeless crisis in our diocese. The church and other faith-based organizations are often characterized as under-utilized within our communities in regard to those who are un-housed. Come and learn about best practices your congregation can use to minister to those among us who are homeless and in need. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 2B)
• NIMBY to YIMBY The Crisis of Affordable Housing: Until there is an adequate supply of affordable housing, we will not resolve the homeless crisis in our diocese. Attend this workshop and learn about what exactly is affordable housing, why is it so difficult to build, and how each of us can work toward increasing the available stock. (1:00-2:00pm, Room 2B)

Chaplains on the Harbor

• Building the Freedom Church of the Poor: Staff from Chaplains on the Harbor will share this ministry’s history, strategy, major victories, and lessons from the past year, as well as plans and dreams looking forward. Come hear an incredible team of leaders share their own stories of working to build the kingdom on earth as it is in heaven (and learn something about street outreach, jail ministry, farming, human rights organizing, and the Poor People’s Campaign to boot!). Presenters will include the Rev. Bonnie Campbell, pastor; Aaron Scott, organizer; Chris Olive, farm lead; and Tracy Clayton, outreach lead. (10:00-11:00am, Room 2C)

Faith Action Network

• Social Justice Advocacy is Calling for You! Join the Rev. Paul Benz, co-director for program and policy at Faith Action Network, for a discussion about the difficulty of having conversations on social issues, as well as ways and resources for you and your congregation to be engaged in 2020 on the critical issues facing our state legislature and nation. Benz is the lead lobbyist and organizer for this statewide interfaith social justice organization, which is supported by the Diocese of Olympia. (11:15-12:15pm, Retail Space – Follow the Signs)

Diocese of Olympia Safety & Security Ministry

• The Nuts & Bolts of a Safety Ministry + Diocesan Radio Project for Safety Ministries Q&A: Join this workshop to learn the basic steps of setting up a Safety Ministry Team plus how to utilize the Diocesan Safety Ministry Radio Project for teams and day to day church operations. Topics will include: 1) the diocesan radio licensing project; 2) needs assessment, equipment options, and acquisition with a budget in mind; 3) diocesan FCC licensing implementation; and, 4) equipment display and demos. Resources will be provided, and there will be time for Q&A. Presenters: Ronald J. Miller, MS LEO (retired); Joanne L. Miller, RN, ARNP (retired); Church of the Good Shepherd, Vancouver, WA. (1:00-2:00pm, Room 2C)

Come and See…Go and Tell Secretariat

• What Are You Looking for? Come and See? Come and See…Go and Tell is the Diocese of Olympia’s expression of Cursillo, the Episcopal ministry of relationship, evangelism, and reconciliation. The emphasis of Come and See is on being God’s beloved child and living into our baptismal promises. Join Pam Tinsley and Barbara Blakistone to learn how this weekend experience connects head and heart to faithfully live out our baptism in daily life as supported by Christian community. Come and See builds from John 1:38. Andrew encountered Jesus for the first time when John the Baptist pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God. Then, Andrew and his other disciples began to follow him. Jesus turned and asked them, “What are you looking for?” Andrew replied, “Where is your heart?” Jesus simply said, “Come and see.” Workshop attendees will learn about the redesign of Cursillo for today’s lifestyles and will practice how Come and See applies in daily living. (10:00-11:00am, Room 1B)

Bishop’s Committee for Justice & Peace in the Holy Land

• Palestine 101 – Introduction to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and Role of the Episcopal Church: This interactive session will focus on participant questions through: 1) tracing origins and consequences of conflict by showing excerpts from the film 1948: Creation and Catastrophe; 2) an interview with Claude Soudah about his experience as a Palestinian Christian during the Nakba; 3) identifying efforts of the Episcopal Church to support Christians and Muslims; and, 4) exploring ways that we, as Episcopalians in the Diocese of Olympia, can work toward a just and peaceful resolution of this conflict. Members of the Committee: Bishop Cabby Tennis, Randy Urmston, Claude Soudah, John Narver, Mary Pneuman, and Mary Segall. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 1B)
• Palestine 102 – Bringing Peace to the Holy Land: How You Can Help: The Purpose of the workshop is to identify how congregations can develop a plan for helping bring peace to the Holy Land by organizing and taking action through education, advocacy, pilgrimage, travel, and volunteering. Since 2000 the Bishop’s Committee has initiated and maintained a network of educational, health, and social service ministries in Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon. Bishop Rickel is chair of the American Friends for the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem (AFEDJ). Members of the Committee: Bishop Cabby Tennis, Randy Urmston, Claude Soudah, John Narver, Mary Pneuman, and Mary Segall. (1:00-2:00pm, Room 1B)

College for Congregational Development

• Satisfied Churches Don’t Change – The Role of Dissatisfaction in Congregational Development: Is there a change, big or small, that you are longing to see in your congregation? Are you wondering why it hasn’t happened? It might be that your system needs to increase its dissatisfaction. Join the Rev. Canon Alissa Newton, Canon for Congregational Development, to learn about how the energy generated by dissatisfaction in your congregational system can be used to move your church toward positive change and help leaders plan for positive change in ways that work, and stick. (10:00-11:00am, Room 1C)

Adult Faith Formation

• Getting Ready for Psalms: Lectionary Year A arrives in December, and with it, a fresh set of psalms for Sunday worship. Join Matthew Moravec, St. Andrew, Tacoma, for an overview to the psalms as biblical texts. Topics will include consideration of different approaches to the interpretation of psalms, resources to help appreciate them, and ways to connect our congregations with their message. Whether you will be singing them or preaching them, we hope you will leave this workshop excited about the psalms of the coming church year. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 2C)

Faith Formation, Office of the Bishop

• What Are Young Adults Searching For & Can They Find it in the Episcopal Church? Join three dynamic young adults – Josh deLacy from St. Luke, Renton; Heather Irwin from Holy Cross, Redmond; and Katya Nemec from Emmanuel, Mercer Island – as they trace their spiritual journeys right up to the red doors of their Episcopal churches. Learn what drew them to the Episcopal faith and how you too can create space in your congregation where people in their twenties and thirties feel welcome and inspired. Drawing from their participation in October’s national Evolving Faith conference and from deep involvement with young adult programs across the diocese, Josh, Heather, and Katya will get you thinking about how to make church more inviting and relevant for millennials. (1:00-2:00pm, Room 1C)

Mental Health Task Force

• Bereavement – a Pathway to a New Way of Living: Grief is a normal response to loss or life change. Both profound and practical, this interactive workshop will include a panel discussion moderated by Bro. John Ryan and Alice Marshall of resources, strategies, and skills for facing grief. Through engagement with workshop attendees, you’ll deepen your shared understanding of grief’s place in our life’s journey. (10:00-11:00am, Retail Space – Follow the Signs)

Bishop’s Committee for the Environment

• Episcopal Households Act Together: Did you know that 40% of carbon emissions in the United States can be traced back to households? The Episcopal Church has made a carbon tracker tool available to households that will let them determine their carbon footprint and then take actions to reduce those emissions. The savings that each household makes are added to those of their church, their diocese, and the wider Episcopal Church. As of September 15, 110 households in our diocese were participating. Together they had saved 57 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, 13,045 kWh of electricity, 1,933 gallons of gas, and $14,485 in their household budgets. Participate in this workshop with members of the Bishop’s Committee for the Environment to learn more about Sustain Island Home, the Episcopal carbon tracker. The on-line carbon tracker is both engaging and easy to use. Learn more and join the campaign for care of God’s very good creation. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 1C)

Order of St. Luke

• Tools and Resources that Empower Laity to Pray: This workshop will involve communication and resources to connect you and your church community to a national and international organization, known as the Order of St. Luke (OSL). OSL was founded by an Episcopalian in the 1950s named John Gaynor Banks. These healing communities are wonderful ways to develop small group bible studies on the healing scripture of Jesus and can enhance prayer teams for Sunday morning worship. The workshop goal is to connect you to resources that are user-friendly and ready to go. All you need is five people to form a chapter in your area and you become part of a world-wide organization whose goal is to empower the laity to grow in confidence with healing prayers. Order of St. Luke Region 6 director and national board member, Saran Warne, will present a practical workshop with handouts that will connect both laity and ordained to small group prayer materials. (1:00-2:00pm, Retail Space – Follow the Signs)

Indigenous Network in the Diocese of Olympia

• It Ain’t Easy Being Native: Indigenous People, the Doctrine of Discovery, and the Episcopal Church: The situation of Indigenous Americans will be examined, beginning with the pre-Columbian historical context and the initiation and impact of the Doctrine of Discovery. The involvement of the Christian church, from early missionary and colonization efforts will be discussed, focusing particularly on those of the Episcopal Church. The current realities and challenges of Indigenous life will also be presented, with suggestions on how the church can most effectively and appropriately respond to the injustices of the past, many of which continue to the present day. Presenter: The Rev. Dr. Bradley S. Hauff is the Indigenous Missioner for the Episcopal Church and a member of the Presiding Bishop’s staff. He is originally from South Dakota, born in Sioux Falls and raised in Rapid City, and he is enrolled with the Oglala Sioux Tribe (Lakota) of Pine Ridge, as were both of his parents. He received his master of divinity from Seabury-Western Theological Seminary and his doctor of clinical psychology from the Minnesota School of Professional Psychology. Hauff worked for a time in the mental health profession, specializing in Native American identity formation and domestic abuse interventions. (10:00am-11:00am, Room 2A | 1:00-2:00pm, Room 2A)

Sound Alliance

• Listening for a Change: A Model for Strengthening Our Relationships within the Church and Connecting Across the Community: What is an antidote to the alienation and polarization that many of us are experiencing in our current environment? Our diocese is a member of the Sound Alliance, a broad-based organization in King and Pierce Counties. Join Dorothy Gibson to learn about this model of community organizing. Discover tools and strategies for strengthening connections within your congregation and across the community with other Sound Alliance members in other faith communities, unions, and community organizations to build power to act for the common good. If you are interested in developing your own leadership skills and working with others to strengthen our connections in our church and community, please join us. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 2A)

Convention Office

• Budget Forum: Have questions about the 2020 budget? Not able to attend the October 16 webinar? Join members of the Budget & Finance Committee to get your answers before it’s time to ratify the budget on Saturday. (10:00-11:00am, Room 1D)
• Resolutions Forum: Join resolution sponsors and members of the Resolutions Committee to hear more about the resolutions to be considered during this convention and get answers to your questions before it’s time to vote. (11:15am-12:15pm, Room 1D)
• Convention Orientation: Are you a first-time convention attendee? Been to convention before, but looking for a refresher on Robert’s Rules of Order or the work of the convention? Would like a preview of how our new electronic voting system will work? Join members of the convention leadership as well as our elections official in this session to learn more about how convention operates so that you’ll be prepared to fully participate in the convention. (1:00-2:00pm, Room 1D)