Western Ontario Waterways Regional Council

UCC 360 Anti-Racism Program
2025-03-12 18:00 - 19:30 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
UCC 360 ANTI-RACISM:

Have you engaged in previous anti-racism or racial justice training?
Are you ready to take your antiracism education a bit deeper, within a United Church context?

If you answered yes to both questions, this is for you:

UCC 360 Anti-Racism Program
with antiracism educator Rev Alcris Limongi, and Minister for Social Justice Dr. John Egger.
An in-depth 4.5 hour course offered over three weeks,
sponsored by the tri-regional councils of Antler River Watershed (ARW), Horseshoe Falls (HF) and Western Ontario Waterways (WOW).

Please plan to attend all three Wednesdays: Feb 19, Feb 26, and March 12, 2025 @ 6:00-7:30 PM Eastern
(Note: we take a week break for Ash Wednesday)
Session topics will include:
– A 360 View of Yourself, and developing your Antiracist Personal Purpose (APP)
– A 360 View of your immediate context (your church or regional council context)
– A 360 View of the United Church of Canada
.
(If you have to miss a session a recording of the session will be available, but will not include breakout discussions.)

This is not an introduction to anti-racism, but is intended for people who have engaged in some previous anti-racism training. If you are not sure if your previous anti-racism work has prepared you for this session, contact Thérèse Samuel tsamuel@united-church.ca

Advance registration required. Click to register now.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
There is no registration fee. The costs for this program are fully covered by Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls and Western Ontario Waterways Regional Councils.
For information contact Thérèse Samuel tsamuel@united-church.ca

Bio: Rev. Alcris Limongi

The Rev. Alcris Limongi was born in Venezuela and has been a member of the United Church of Canada since 1996. She has served the Church in different capacities. She was a Th.D. candidate in NT at Emmanuel College and the Racial Justice, Gender Justice and Sexual Minorities Program Coordinator at the General Council Office. She also was the Liaison to the UCW National and to Affirm United. She was the staff lead for the GC40 Commitment to Inclusion, and has served as facilitator of the UC Racial Justice Mandatory training since 2009. As an Ordained Minister she served at Parkdale United Church in Ottawa for five years and currently is part of the Center for Christian Studies in Winnipeg staff team as Program/Educator.
She offers both experience and perspective from our national denomination structures a well from a local-congregational community and based ministries.
Rev. Alcris trained in Courageous Conversations about Race with the Pacific Educational Group. The focus has been identifying systemic racism and racial differential gaps, as well as facilitating Courageous Conversations.
Her own identity as a racialized woman in Canada, her life experience between marginality and privilege in different ways, combined with a sound theological education, and personal and theological commitment to justice, have helped her develop a particular lens, what she calls “the gift of her brown eyes” to the Church. Her passion is to encourage racial majority and minorities to engage together identifying, naming, interrogating, interrupting and dismantling racism. She is a teacher/preacher/facilitator with creativity, flexibility, and openness to respectfully listen and learn from cultural differences. She adds “English is not my native language, which is both strength and weakness. It is a strength because with language I also bring different perspectives of defining and understanding reality”.

This is not an introduction to anti-racism, but is intended for people who have engaged in some previous anti-racism training. If you are not sure if your previous anti-racism work has prepared you for this session, contact Thérèse Samuel tsamuel@united-church.ca

Registration information coming soon.

Liaisons Gathering
2025-03-25 19:00, 2025-05-27 19:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
A time for connection, mutual support, and information sharing.
We are meeting on Tuesdays January 28th, March 25th, and May 27th at 7PM on Zoom.
For more information contact Micol Cottrell at mcottrell@united-church.ca
Register now here: https://regionalcouncil789.formstack.com/forms/liaisons_gathering

Godly Play
2025-03-29 09:30 - 12:00 (America/Toronto)

Adopt a Body of Water
2025-04-22 10:00 - 11:15 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Children and Youth Ministry Webinar:
Adopt a Body of Water 🌊🌊🌊
Contact Kathy Douglas, Tri-Regional Council Minister of Faith Formation for the Zoom link KDouglas@united-church.ca

Kids Across the Regions
2025-06-06 - 2025-06-07 | Camp Bimini, 3180 Perth Rd. 113, St. Pauls, Ontario, N0K 1V0, Canada
Registration is now open for Kids Across the Regions:
Child participant registration HERE
Leader participant registration HERE
Question? Contact: Kathy Douglas, Minister Faith Formation KDouglas@united-church.ca

Tri-Regional Affirming Ministries Network Online Gathering
2025-06-07 12:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Saturday June 7, 12 noon
The Tri-Regional Affirming Ministries Network invites you to:
Spring Into Summer and Have a Gay Old Time
Don your gay apparel and joining us online to celebrate pride month.
This will be a great opportunity to connect with others in the three regions who are working on affirming issues, and to share resources and questions with them.
For a link to the meeting, please contact John Egger, Minister, Social Justice at JEgger@united-church.ca

HFRC Spring Meeting 2025 (Hybrid)
2025-06-14
Hybrid and In-Person
When: June 14th
Where: St. Andrew’s United Church, Hamilton
Celebration of Ministry: St. Andrew’s United Church, Hamilton at 4pm, In-person and Livestreamed on YouTube

Recognizing Disinformation and Misinformation
2025-06-24 10:00 - 11:30 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Online workshop June 24th 2025, 10:00-11:30 AM, EDT.

Christ calls us to love our neighbours, but disinformation and misinformation all too often drive a wedge between us and others.
This workshop will help you

be alert to disinformation and misinformation
reduce the harm caused by false and misleading information
and model truth-seeking online behaviour

Facilitator: Sara Speicher of the World Association for Christian Communication (WACC)

Register in advance for this meeting:
https://united-church.zoom.us/meeting/register/0v6pJo-sR_aP0qRFJ5ENmQ
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
There is no fee. Costs of this workshop are covered by the Discipleship and Justice Commissions of Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls and Western Ontario Waterways Regional Councils.
For information contact Thérèse Samuel, Minister for Right Relations and Social Justice tsamuel@united-church.ca

Mission Support Grant Deadline
2025-09-22 08:30 (America/Toronto)
More Information here:
https://wowrcucc.ca/mission-support-grants/

Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion – Online
2025-09-24 10:00 - 11:30 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Join us online Wednesday, September 24th at 10:00-11:30 AM for Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion, and take your acknowledgement of Territory to the next level by considering the Spiritual Covenant.
Many congregations who have been acknowledging the territory for the past few years are asking what meaningful action they can take to move their acknowledgment from words to actions. You are invited to Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion, an online opportunity to begin the conversation about making a spiritual covenant.
You’re warmly invited
to this special event featuring Adrian Jacobs of the Turtle Clan, Cayuga Nation, sharing on the Spiritual Covenant—a reflection on land, relationship, and reconciliation on Wednesday, September 24th, from 10:00-11:30 AM.
Adrian Jacobs will offer a leadership in this workshop and communion service that will inform and inspire the discernment of churches on any traditional territory who wish to consider concrete action to live into their acknowledgment of territory. The workshop and worship will be grounded in history and scripture, and will invite you to deeper relationship with the land and the peoples on the land, and the Creator, Christ and Spirit. (For more information about the Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion and the Spiritual Covenant, see below.)
The road to a decision about a faithful action by your community of faith is an ongoing journey. Come prepared to engage and to learn, and then bring your reflections to your home church for prayerful consideration.
Bread and Juice for Communion
This workshop will include an online communion service, so have your own juice and bread ready. For juice, you are invited to honour Indigenous tradition with strawberry juice, a local Indigenous medicine. If you would like to make strawberry juice, here is a simple recipe you can use:
https://tworowtimes.com/healthy-roots/jihsodahk-the-leader-of-the-plants/. If you are not able to use strawberry juice, feel free to bring any fruit juice of your choice.
Register in advance for this event:
https://united-church.zoom.us/meeting/register/2BNM7atZRhKNuAGAeO_1nA
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Read More Here

WOW UCW Fall Gathering
2025-10-20 10:00 - 15:00 UTC | Drayton United Church, 34 Main Street E, Drayton, Ontario, N0G 1P0, Canada
Please see the attached poster below, inviting you to sing along with us at our next WOW Regional UCW Gathering on Monday, October 20, 2025. It will be both an in-person and online Gathering. We hope some of you will gather together with friends to have a watch party – or perhaps I should say a singing party as it is always more fun to sing in a group. See the poster for further details. There will be some members from Pine River United Church who travelled on a study tour to Zimbabwe this summer. They are excited to share their adventures and learnings with you.

Next week, Nancy Lenox and I will be in Mississauga at a retreat centre for the annual National UCW executive meeting. Approximately 40 women from across Canada will gather to share news about the past year, and discuss how we as an organization can continue to support each other on our life and faith journeys. It is always an exciting week. You are invited to join your sisters across Canada and share in the installation of the new national president and in the final communion service Friday, September 19 at 9:30 am. Use the link below:

https://united-church.zoom.us/j/82956406085?pwd=[REDACTED]

Kathy Douglas' Retirement Party
2026-01-16 13:30 - 15:30 (America/Toronto) | Avondale United Church, 194 Avondale Avenue, Stratford, Ontario, N5A 6N4, Canada

Zoom Clergy Gathering - Making the Most of Study Leave
2026-01-22 13:00 - 14:15 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Zoom link:

Topic: Workshop on Study Leave
Time: Jan 22, 2026 01:00 PM America/Toronto
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81883645749?pwd=[REDACTED]

Meeting ID: 818 8364 5749
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Worshiplude 2026
2026-01-31 - 2026-02-01

Tri-Region Regional Representatives Gathering
2026-03-26 14:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
📢 Tri-Regional Regional Reps Gathering
We invite all regional representatives to join our gatherings.

🗓️ Thursday, March 26, 2026 at⏰ 2:00 PM
🎤 Guests:
Daniel Reid – Toronto United Church Council (TUCC);
Olas Ben-Wilson – GC Statistics, and
Laura Black – Minister, First Thirds Ministry & Faith Formation (ARW, HF, WOW)

🔗 Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 827 3791 1619; Password: [REDACTED]

Questions? – contact your Congregational Support Minister (ARWCSM, HFCSM, WOWCSM)

Shared Shelves
2026-04-15 10:00 - 14:00 (America/Toronto) | Regional Councils Office, Hamilton

Tri-Region Regional Representatives Gathering
2026-04-23 19:00 - 20:00, 2026-05-28 14:00, 2026-06-24 19:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
📢 Tri-Regional Regional Reps Gathering
We invite all regional representatives to join our gatherings.

🔗 Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 827 3791 1619; Password: [REDACTED]

Questions? – contact your Congregational Support Minister (ARWCSM, HFCSM, WOWCSM)

Towards 2035 Townhall Meeting
2026-04-29 19:00 - 20:30, 2026-05-06 19:00 - 20:30, 2026-05-12 13:30 - 15:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Towards 2035 Townhall Meeting
You may have seen the presentation at the Regional Councils fall meeting…you may have heard about it from a colleague or fellow congregation member…you may have seen the General Council resources for Communities of Faith…you may be asking yourself “What does this all mean?”
Please join me (Executive Minister Mark) for a time of conversation, and answering questions of what does Towards 2035 mean in your local context, and what resources are needed for us to be this group of:
resilient, inspired, diverse contextual communities of disciples
seeking to continue the story of Jesus
by embodying Christ’s presence in the world!
These sessions are open to clergy, lay reps, chairs of boards/council’s congregation members. Please register for a time at fits your schedule:
Wed April 29th 7-8:30pm
Wed May 6th 7-8:30 pm
Tues May 12th 1:30-3pm
Blessings,

Rev. Mark Laird
Executive Minister, Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls, Western Ontario Waterways Regional Councils of The United Church of Canada
mlaird@united-church.ca

Liaisons Gathering
2026-05-26 19:00 (America/Toronto) | Online via Zoom
Liaisons Gatherings
A time for connection, mutual support, and information sharing.
We are meeting on Tuesday May 26th from 7-8:30PM on Zoom.
For more information contact Micol Cottrell at mcottrell@united-church.ca
Register now here: https://regionalcouncil789.formstack.com/forms/liaisons_gathering

Clergy Retreat - Rooted and Rising
2026-06-03 - 2026-06-05 | Five Oaks Education and Retreat Centre, 1 Bethel Road, Paris, Ontario, N3L 3E3, Canada

Kids Across the Regions 2026
2026-06-05 - 2026-06-06
Registration links:
Kids/youth:https://regionalcouncil789.formstack.com/forms/kids_across_the_regions_2026_child
Leaders: https://regionalcouncil789.formstack.com/forms/kids_across_the_regions_2026_leader

Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion
2026-06-13 09:00 - 13:00 (America/Toronto)
Learn about Spiritual Covenants and how your church can live into right relations by attending the all-ages Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion.
Don’t miss this special all-ages community event, online or in-person at Six Nations Polytechnic in Ohsweken, Sat. June 13.
Click for Info and to Register Now
