Southwest UU Women's Conference

Dallas, Texas on March 4-6, 2011

KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Rev. Tamara Lebak - Associate Minister, All Souls, Tulsa, OK

“Generation Nexxt” 

Saturday Night Entertainment by Big Bad Gina
Happy Hour Music by Cherion

Women and Maidens 13 and older, please join us for a weekend exploring ourselves, our spirit and social justice while having fun with music, movement, and art. Download a 1-page flyer or a printable brochure. You may register using the online form below or download a printable registration form.

Registration includes:

• FRIDAY EVENING - registration begins at 3 pm. Opening ceremony with entertainment, admission to the Bazaar
• Buy your raffle tickets at the Bazaar. Raffle items donated by vendors will be on display.
• Late evening “Jam Session” with Jane Kittner
  (bring your voice, your favorite instrument and a song to share)
• SATURDAY - breakfast, lunch and dinner, all day soft beverage service
• Theme Speaker, workshops.
  Bring your swimsuit and join Becky Warren for an early evening “Water Aerobics” class.
• Raffle drawing after dinner.  Buy your raffle tickets at the Bazaar.
• The Red Tent Room, entertainment Saturday night; More Bazaar
• SUNDAY MORNING - breakfast, closing ritual and SWUUW membership. We’ll have you ready to go in time to attend one of the area church services, if you wish.

To Register:

• You may register online (scroll down) using a credit or debit card via PayPal.
  or mail this printable form with your check (made out to SWUUW) to the conference registrar:
  Paula Rose, 9511 Liptonshire Dr, Dallas, TX 75238
• Each person attending MUST register separately (even if you are in the same family or household as another person attending).
• Pre-register if at all possible to help us plan space, food and a wonderful weekend for you.
• To receive a 10% discount register by FEBRUARY 1.
• Registering on-site will ONLY be possible if space is available.
• There are no discounts for Workshop Presenters. Vendors who are also attending, please contact the Registrar.
• You may still apply to be a vendor.
• To help our “village” stay in touch, we will distribute all participants’ contact info to all others, via email unless otherwise requested.
• To assist your sisters who might otherwise be unable to attend, please donate generously to the Scholarship Fund.

LODGING

Remember to reserve your hotel room Call 800-972-2518 and give them the 3 letter group code: UD1
Holiday Inn Select North, Dallas, TX· http://www.hiselect.com/dal-north
Room rate $79 (price guaranteed if you mention the Conference and reserve before February 9, 2011.
Free parking and shuttle service from DFW Airport (contact the hotel, please)

T-SHIRTS!

VIEW PHOTO and SIZE CHARTS

REFUNDS

SWUUW REFUND POLICY - to be administered by the SWUUW Board -

• Only 50% may be refunded until Jan 15
• Only 25% may be refunded until Feb 1
• No Refund after Feb 2.

This refund policy will allow us to pay deposits and fees necessary prior to conference date.

QUESTIONS?

• About registration -- Please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it @ This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
• About the conference -- Please email conference co-convener Carol Currie, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it @ This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Thank you for registering for the conference! See you in Dallas!

EARLY MORNING ACTIVITY

Wake Up with Chi Gong – Gerry Veeder
Ever wondered what all those Chinese are doing in the Beijing parks early in the morning? It’s Chi Gong, a series of gentle movements & breathing to move your internal energy. Chi= Energy, life force.      Gong= Discipline, skill, exercise. It helps to wake you up, get the kinks out, & center you for the rest of the day. No previous experience is necessary. If you can stand up & breathe at 7:00 in the morning, you can do Chi Gong. It’s done standing up, in comfortable clothes & flat shoes or barefoot.
Gerry Veeder studied Chi Gong for 5 years with Master Mai Su Chan, a Martial Arts Master from Taiwan. She has been practicing Chi Gong for 12 years, and begins every morning with these exercises.

MORNING WORKSHOPS

am 1    Rev. Tamara Lebak - More about Generation Nexxt
Theme Talk Discussion:  This is your opportunity to talk with Rev. Tamara Lebak about the ideas she has presented in her theme talk.  Participants will have a chance to ask questions raised in the theme talk and comment.   Copies of her book will be for sale during this workshop.
Rev. Tamara Lebak is an independent consultant, executive coach and ordained Unitarian Universalist Minister with change management experience that focuses on maneuvering between multiple levels of system from the personal to the global.  For more information please see SWUUW.org
Lecture or Lecture with Q and A

am 2    Shams Cohen - Our Longing for Justice   
What does "social justice" mean; are we doing it; how are we doing it; are the means and the ends in alignment with our UU values? What inspires you; what breaks your heart; what calls you to give thanks; and what can you envision? How can I help? Let's talk about our individual and congregational desires to show up for the world we dream about and give each other a hand over the obstacles!
Born and raised UU, Shams Cohen is currently serving our movement as the Social Justice Ministerial Intern at First Unitarian Dallas. Shams is a 4th year seminarian at Starr King School for the Ministry, which has a pedogogical focus on educating to counter oppressions and create just and sustainable communities.

am 3     Linda VanBlaricom - Earth Ministry 202   
The documentary film, "Bag It" will be shown and discussion of how one UUCLR covenant group's service project for 2011 will be an Earth Ministry using a monthly film and supper program to educate and connect the larger community.
Linda VanBlaricom is the current SWUUW president and a long time member of UUCLR. She is a lover of documentary films and planet earth and wants everyone to come see this fabulous film.
Multimedia Presentation

am 4    Shari Withey - Attainable Sustainability
Practical applications of a more sustainable life style. Including home improvements, energy efficiency, gardening ideas, wildscaping, living more simply and frugally. Living lighter on the earth and sharing real ways to reduce your carbon foot print. Sharing everyday life ways. Using Scott and Helen Nearing as our models.
Shari Withey is a Health Education Professional,  and Soul proprietor at Willow Bend Garden. Living the simple life, from Coop organizer to solo world traveler, she is a Grower, student, mother, teacher, daughter, dancer of life.
Hands on, Participatory Workshop

am 5    Kay Fuselier - Acting As A Spiritual Practice
Theater games will provide opportunities for deepening our spirits by practicing living in each moment, beyond our words, into integrating our minds, bodies, and emotions.
From improvised games of childhood, through college and regional performances in five states, I continue to enjoy the fun of expressing and sharing joyful PLAYING that transforms into REALITY.
Hands on, Participatory Workshop

am 6    Gretchen Ohmann - Try A Piece of "Cakes"
The "Cakes for the Queen of Heaven" curriculum examines, “How would your life have been different if, when growing up, the divine had been imaged as female?”  This workshop will present an overview of the recently revised curriculum and a sample interactive session.
A past member of the Central Midwest District Women and Religion, Gretchen was active in retreat organization, and helped CMwD W&R and CMwD Women's Connection (formerly UUWF) present Cakes Train-the-Trainer sessions. She is a Continental UUW&R co-convener.
Presentation with Small Group Discussion

am 7    Melissa Magdaleno – Zumba
The Zumba® program fuses hypnotic Latin rhythms and easy-to-follow moves to create a one-of-a-kind fitness program that will blow you away. Our goal is simple: We want you to want to work out, to love working out, to get hooked. The routines feature interval training sessions where fast and slow rhythms and resistance training are combined to tone and sculpt your body while burning fat. Add some Latin flavor and international zest into the mix and you've got a Zumba® class!
Melissa Magdaleno is public school Alternative Academics classroom teacher originally from CA. She has a background in Theatre Arts from Cal State University Long Beach and earned her first teaching credential from Sonoma State University. At one time she was a Kindermusik Educator. Melissa wants women everywhere to love their bodies for who they are and to know that they are beautiful; she has found that Zumba is a way to tap into that primal joy of moving.
Arts-based Experience (music, visual art, dance, crafts)

am 8    Lynn Lawrance - Family Love Letter
Completing a family love letter is a way to pass along treasures—memories and mementoes as well as financial assets. Learn how to personalize and ease the difficult process of decision making.  We'll make it easy for you by giving you one.
Lynn Lawrance is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ specializing in retirement planning and investment management.  A 4th generation Unitarian, she has been a member of First Unitarian Church in Dallas for more than 25 years.
Open Discussion

EARLY AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS

ea 1    Paula Rose - Understanding Yourself Inside and Out
Utilizing collage, guided meditation and music, participants will gain a better understanding of who they present themselves to be and who they are in their deepest selves. Please bring $1 for materials.

Paula Rose is a longtime UU and teacher. She continues to refer to the insights gained after attending this workshop years ago at the Oklahoma City SWUUW Conference.
Arts-based Experience (music, visual art, dance, crafts)

ea 2    Susie McGee and Erin McGee - Passing on our Gifts to the Nexxt Generation
Erin and Susie will share the goals and work of Heifer International.  They will share their experience in the Global Village that helped clarify that we already have what we need.
Susie and Erin attend Horizon UU church in Carrollton.  They have been involved in raising money and awareness for Heifer International for several years.  This past summer they had the opportunity to participate in the Global Village at Heifer Ranch in Arkansas.
Multimedia Presentation

ea 3    Rebecca Crystal - Journal Writing Sources
Round Robin of resources for the journaler, followed by a group activity, led by a woman with 40 years of experience.
Journaling for over 40 years, Rebecca Crystal is a Neo-Pagan Feminist· UU Seminarian published poet/writer who, as a psychotherapist, encourages Clients to write.
Hands on, Participatory Workshop

ea 4    Paula Gribble and Gretchen Ohmann - Facebook and Twitters and Skypes, Oh My!
Trying your best to communicate but feeling left in the dust with the dinosaurs? An overview of the online crazes, with a slide presentation full of information that you can take home. Part of the session will be a forum for asking questions and sharing tips to help you function on the World Wide Web.
Paula Gribble is currently the Coordinator of Lay Ministry and Music Director for the UU Church in Little Rock, Arkansas. She previously served as co-convener of the SWUUC Spring conference in 2007 and the SWUUW Conference in 2008. Paula is a graduate of SWUUC’s Dwight Brown Leadership School and has been a UU for 11 years. Gretchen Ohmann didn’t jump into computers until adulthood, but can swim pretty well anyway. She does web design and communications but admits to not being able to program her VCR. She is Communications Coordinator for Central Midwest District.
Lecture or Lecture with Q and A

ea 5    MarySue Foster - Appreciative Inquiry: Never Meet a Stranger
Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a powerful and proven organizational development tool that is easy to learn and practice. After a few moments of theory, we\'ll launch into small group interviews and partner exercises to develop irresistible questions -- questions that will light up your life and spark memorable conversations.
MarySue Foster is a graduate of Starr King School for the Ministry with an MA in Religious Leadership for Social Change. She has led AI workshops for more than 20 years and founded three organizations based on AI as an intergenerational community-building tool.
Hands on, Participatory Workshop

ea 6     Mary Kay Hamilton – Interplay
InterPlay helps us celebrates our uniqueness, reduces stress, gets us in touch with our body wisdom, and creates enchanting connections with others! And it is FUN! We will use movement, dance, storytelling, music and stillness in easy incremental steps to inform both playful and significant interactions. Delight becomes infectious as we easily overcome the “speed bumps” of self-consciousness to access self-awareness and creativity. Appropriate for all ages and abilities.
Mary Kay Hamilton, LPC-S, NCC is a licensed therapist and Certified InterPlay Leader, trained by InterPlay founders Cynthia Winton-Henry and Phil Porter. Mary Kay is also Senior Women’s Therapist at Genesis Women’s Shelter in Dallas. Mary Kay has used InterPlay in her work with recovering trauma victims and has led InterPlay in many venues including a Texas women’s prison to the slums and
villages in India. She has been a member of Horizon UU Church for the past 22 years.
Arts-based Experience (music, visual art, dance, crafts)

ea 7    Charlise Hill-Larson - Writing Down Your Life: Using Journaling to Deepen Your Spirituality and Relationships
A workshop designed to help participants explore their spirituality, practice and relationships. To enter into depth writing, we'll utilize sitting meditation/contemplative prayer, walking practice and timed writing. Participants will be asked to bring a journal or notebook with art supplies to share in order to embellish each woman's journal. This is a great introduction to timed and depth writing.
Charlise Hill-Larson holds a M.Div. degree from SMU, and she is a clinically trained pastor. She is the Director of Pastoral Care at First UU Dallas. Through her experience as a woman and a pastor, she has come to value journaling and timed writing as a tool to reach one\'s inner depths.
Spiritual Practice

ea 8    Susan Hamilton - Conscious Leadership
The strength of our ability to lead others depends on self awareness and the courage to tap the power of our experience.
Susan Hamilton is steeped in adult learning, leadership development, and nonprofit program development. She has a love for hiking solo, composting and reading.
Presentation with Small Group Discussion

LATE AFTERNOON EVENT

Big Bad Gina: Renée Janski, Jori Costello and Melodie Griffis - We Are Each Other's Muses
Big Bad Gina is ready to play with YOU as together we get our vocal groove on!! Participants, whether you think you can sing or not, are encouraged to an open heart and voice as we create meaningful music together thru vocalizing, harmonizing, mesmerizing rhythm and vocal creations!
Big Bad Gina is a high-energy, womyn empowering trio full of knee buckling 3-part harmonies and instrumental bliss. With a mix of styles and genres, award-winning Big Bad Gina delivers a power-house performance you won't want to miss!
Arts-based Experience (music, visual art, dance, crafts)

DURING FREE TIME

Linda VanBlaricom, Paula Gribble and Kathy Calhoun - SWUUW Strategy
Let us report to you where we have been, what we have accomplished in the past year and let us hear from you about where we will go in the future. Linda is currently pres of SWUUW, Paula is nominated to become pres of SWUUW next, and Kathy has been at every SWUUW conference except for one. Town Hall Meeting/Forum for Comments

Becky Warren  - Water Aerobics
How about some movement in the “deliciously warm” pool before dinner and dancing?  Experienced class leader will help you use up some of the energy you’ve been collecting while sitting in workshops all day!

Thank you for registering for the conference! See you in Dallas!