March 2017

Dear Committee on Ministry colleagues,

General Synod will be here before we know it (June 30 – July 4 in Baltimore), and we hope you’ll encourage your Members in Discernment to attend this important event in the life of the United Church of Christ.

In support of MIDs attending General Synod, United Church Funds is making available stipends of $1075 to each conference to help cover the cost of bringing a MID to Baltimore. To qualify for this MID-to-Synod stipend, which comes from the Richard and Helen Brown Endowment, a conference’s proposed Member in Discernment must:

• be named by the Conference Minister or other designated conference leader;
• be a first-time attendee to General Synod;
• register for Synod at the reduced MID registration rate;
• agree to participate in all Synod events expected of a conference’s regular delegates;
• attend the Friday morning pre-Synod MESA gathering for MIDs;
• be willing to share their General Synod experience afterward with other MIDs as they are able.

In addition to the stipend, a varying travel allowance will be given to each conference to support the proposed MID’s attendance to Synod, with the travel allowance varying based on the distance of each conference’s MID from Baltimore. (See the travel allowance table online here.)

Please identify your conference’s MID by May 1 by sending their name and contact information to brown@ucfunds.org. By May 1, if any conference does not have a qualified MID who is available to attend Synod, then that conference’s allocation will be made available to other conferences that request additional MID-to-Synod stipends on a first-come-first-served basis after May 1.

Additional questions and clarifications can be emailed to brown@ucfunds.org. Thank you for sharing this incredible opportunity with your MIDs.

Blessings,
Rachel Hackenberg

The Rev. Rachel G. Hackenberg
Minister for Committee on Ministry Resources & Conference Support
Ministerial Excellence, Support & Authorization (MESA) Team
Local Church Ministries, United Church of Christt
ucc.org/ministers