Lunch-n-Learn Sessions, Friday, June 6, 2025, 12:00 - 1:15 p.m.

Lament, Forgiveness, and Healing - Julie Stoll 
The Friday morning plenary time will end with a healing service and a time of acknowledging and releasing some of our pain or hurt or loss to God. This lunch-n-learn will be a time for those who want to continue that conversation and look at the gift of lament and forgiveness as part of our walk with God.

Gen Alpha is not the Church’s Gen Omega - Chris Wilterdink, Discipleship Ministries
This interactive workshop covers basic demographic information about Generation Alpha (people born between 2010-2024), observations from churches who are doing ministry well with this age group, and thought provoking questions for church leaders to consider.

Cultivating Stewardship and Generosity - Sheri Meister
This interactive workshop will deepen your understanding of church stewardship. We will explore practical strategies for nurturing generosity, managing resources wisely, and strengthening your congregation’s mission. Whether you’re a pastor, church leader, or an engaged member, this session offers valuable insights to enrich your stewardship journey and that of your congregation. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect, learn, and grow together!

Seeing and Meeting Needs for Connection and Support - Brian Loken, LifeQuest development director; Conference Committee on Disability Ministries 
People with disabilities, especially if they're non-verbal and/or severely disabled, are often invisible people to the community around them. Yet, relationships and ministries with these individuals can be a transformative opportunity to see the Imago Dei in everyone and experience the gift of inclusion. Brian Loken, development director for LifeQuest in Mitchell, S.D., along with members of the Conference disability ministries committee, will lead this lunch-n-learn discussion about ways churches can partner with persons with disabilities and their families and the other organizations that support them in our communities as we see to be a church with truly Open Hearts, Open Minds, and Open Doors.

Guarded Hearts and Minds:  Peace that Surpasses Understanding - Rev. Ron Olsen, Diane Owen and panel of experts.
Our world is rapidly changing, there is massive uncertainty in so many areas, politically, socially, and economically. That uncertainty has the potential to disrupt our inner peace.  It doesn’t have to!  But if it does, where do we go to get it back?  Together with a panel of clergy and mental health professionals, we will explore today’s conditions contributing to stressful conditions, a few things we can do to reduce the contributing factors – for our people and for ourselves, and the resources that we have available to us, as clergy and laity, that can help us restore or maintain the inner peace God offers to us, even as our world is decidedly not at peace.

Lunch-n-Learn Sessions, Saturday, June 7, 2025 - 12:00 - 1:15 p.m.

Everyday Disciples:  Balancing Vocation and Accountability - Chris Wilterdink, Discipleship Ministries
Explore the Works of Piety and Works of Mercy introduced by the Methodist Movement as ways we can demonstrate our love for God and neighbor.  The idea of balanced discipleship means included time to rediscover our current spiritual practices, what may do us some additional good, and how what we practice informs how we live our lives and who we become accountable to.

Dream Forward - Revs. Kori Lehrkamp and Cory Thrall
If resources were not an obstacle and you were given permission to fail what ministry would you try in your community? Join Kori Lehrkamp and Cory Thrall for a Lunch-n-Learn on strategic visioning. Dreaming, strategizing, and visioning forward can be overwhelming if you are unsure where to begin. This Lunch-n-Learn will give you a taste of what is needed to navigate these challenges and move you forward in a healthy and strategic way. You will also  hear from a few of the pilot cohorts participants as we dream forward together with you!

Amplify Media: Digital resources for discipleship and worship - Beata Ferris, Discipleship Coordinator at Pierre First UMC
Join us for an exciting session on how your church can access high-quality discipleship and worship resources through Amplify Media, the digital media platform of the United Methodist Publishing House. In partnership with the Dakotas Conference, this initiative provides local churches with materials from Cokesbury, Abingdon Press, and original content created by Dakotas Conference clergy, laity, and musicians. Learn how your congregation can utilize these resources to enhance worship, small groups, and faith formation. This project is made possible through the Dakotas Connection Initiative Rural Ministry Grant. Don’t miss this opportunity to equip your church with impactful tools for ministry!

God in All Things:  Recovering our Spiritual Ties to the Land - Rev. Dr. Tim Eberhart 
One of the most universal responses to the question of where people experience God most intimately, among both Christians and non-Christians, is in nature:  on a mountain trail, at the edge of an ocean, while gardening.  How ought we United Methodists to think theologically about a creation-based spirituality?  John Wesley affirmed that "God is in all things," and that we should therefore "use and look upon nothing as separate from God, which indeed is a kind of practical atheism," but instead ought to see everything "as contained by God...who by his intimate presence holds them all in being...and is, in a true sense, the soul of universe" (Upon Our Lord's Sermon, III). This workshop will examine the spiritual and theological roots of our alienation from the land, explore John Wesley's ecological theology of God's universal presence in the whole of creation, and invite participants to cultivate a spirituality rooted and grounded in a loving relationship with the good earth.

United Methodist Volunteers in Mission (UMVIM) - Tammy Kuntz, NCJ UMVIM coordinator
What is United Methodist Volunteers in Mission? UMVIM resources help you serve safely and effectively in the many places you serve. The connection of UMVIM and Global Ministries and UMCOR provides a solid framework for individuals and teams to serve safely and with the knowledge that the relationships that are established as we work with our neighbors can be transformational. Learn how UMVIM can best support you and your local church as you connect, encourage, and empower the amazing people in your community, across the US, and around the world. 

New this year!

We are collecting Personal Dignity Kits, Home Care kits, and other items for Midwest Mission.

Personal Dignity Kit Shopping List:

• 1 hand towel - no kitchen towels
• 1 washcloth - no dishcloths
• 1 toothbrush (no multipacks)
• 1 bar soap - 3-4 oz.
• 1 shampoo - 12-19 oz.
• 1 deodorant - 2-3 oz. (stick, roll-on, or pump)
• 1 lotion - 8-10 oz.
• 1 1-gallon resealable plastic bag

Home Care Kit Shopping List:

• Liquid household cleaner - 56-80 oz. total (no spray bottles)
• Dish soap - 42-64 oz.
• Liquid laundry detergent - 100-150 oz. total
• 1 scrub brush - with or without handle
• 1-5 gallon round bucket with resealable lid

Your Donation Can Change a Life

By donating new or used items you are bringing hope and empowerment to people in need around the world and around the corner.  We do accept any items listed in our Kit and Projects Brochure, however, our current greatest needs are listed below.

New Items:

• Onesies and Sleepers - 0-6 months
• Receiving blankets - 28"x28" - 32"x32"
• Flannel fabric (at least 1 yard)
• Contractor trash bags (2mil+)
• Girls' underwear size 10-14, women's 5-8
• Shampoo 12-19 oz (no pumps)
• Lotion 8-10 oz (no pumps)

New or Gently Used Items:

• Wheelchairs, walkers, canes, crutches
• Shovels, rakes, and brooms
• Hand tools
• Hand Tillers

Learn more at midwestmission.org