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Resources for Youth and Young Adult Ministry When you hear or read the words “White Supremacy,” what thoughts come to mind, what emotions surface? For some of us, it is a fear-filled phrase that conjures images of white hoods and robes that seems totally dissonant with our...

In the April Webinar, Natalie Briscoe, Congregational Life Staff in the Southern Region, and Kim Sweeney, Congregational Life Staff in the New England Region, talked about new models and methods for stellar Youth Ministry that may challenge our assumptions about...

Registration for General Assembly 2017 in New Orleans, LA, June 21-25 is in full-swing. It's not too late to join fellow Unitarian Universalists in worship, learning and action! Learn more here.

UPDATE: This webinar will be hosted live on April 12th at 1pm EST and it will be recorded. We are canceling the previously scheduled Thursday evening webinar to encourage attendance the #Uuwhitesupremacyteachin  webinar on Thursday, April 13 at 8 PM eastern. More...

Part of a successful youth ministry is creating and maintaining sustainable systems and organizational tools, like calendaring, directories and templates, to keep the youth ministry program running as a vital part of the congregation and so it can live on after a volunteer or...

What is the role of spiritual community in these times? We’ve been asking that question over and over, particularly as we think about our upcoming Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly. What is the point of gathering, especially a gathering that takes so many...

The Many Faiths within Unitarian Universalism The latest addition to the Skinner House Books (SHB) series exploring the many faith traditions that also find a home in Unitarian Universalism (UU) has just been published. "Humanist Voices in Unitarian Universalism" explores...

Energize this Legacy APPLICATION DEADLINE EXTENDED | GRANTS AVAILABLE Announcing the Living Legacy Project (LLP) All Youth Civil Rights Pilgrimage, June 5th-9th, 2017! This 5-day pilgrimage will be led by LLP board members Reverend Gordon Gibson and Reggie Harris, beginning in...

Inclusive Youth Group Dynamics If you've found yourself here on Blue Boat it's a fairly safe assumption that at some point in your Unitarian Universalist life, you've created a covenant with a youth group or religious education class. Eric Bliss, Youth Ministry Specialist for...

A Seat at the Table: The Transformative Practice of Being Together Early this year, the congregation I am a part of in Knoxville, Tennessee, Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church (TVUUC), helped bring an Interfaith program called A Seat at the Table (ASATT) to...

Inclusive Ministry in a Diverse World As Unitarian Universalists (UU) we say that we build inclusive community where you can explore your identity without boxes - that we are multi-racial, Latino/a/x, Asian, Black, Native, and White; rich, middle class, poor; young and old;...

For many, leaving their birth congregation is a rending experience, and finding a new home congregation a daunting one. Every instance of this transition is a personal story which, when shared speaks to the universal experience of seeking and belonging. This is the first in a...

Pastoral Care To and With Youth Let’s be frank. The world changed on November 9th, 2016 (the day Donald Trump was elected president of the United States). For many of us our day-to-day experiences may not be much different, we still move through the world with varying levels of...

Last October, Jaidyn Bryant (Jr. Dean), Eric Broner (Sr. Dean), Colleen Lee (Sr. Worship Coordinator) and Hannah Rigdon (Sr. Business Manager) travelled all the way to UUA Headquarters in Boston in service of a single mission: to galvanize the youth of our Unitarian Universalist...

Kim Sweeney, Lead for Faith Formation and Safe Congregations, works in New England and loves rules. She says “I love rules, structure, routine and clarity.  Maybe it stems from my time spent serving in the military, but I imagine my own comfort with rules and structure existed...

This homily was delivered by intern minister and UU young adult Joseph Boyd after the murder of Terence Crutcher at All Souls Unitarian Church, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. - Ed. by Joseph Boyd In the aftermath of Terence Crutcher’s death, this has been a busy week at All Souls. For...

What does a Healthy Youth/Adult Relationship Actually Look Like? In every training or conversation with adults working with youth, Evin Carvill-Ziemer, Congregational Life Staff in the Central East Region of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is peppered with questions...

Lend Your Faith to Spring Seminar 2017 The Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office has extended the application deadline for Youth Chaplains to serve at the 2017 Intergenerational Spring Seminar "Interfaith Action to End Armed Violence", April 6-8, 2017 in New York City....

Have you ever asked a Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) staff person for an advisor training and been told some form of, “We don’t do advisor training anymore,” or, “There’s one weekend training on the other side of your region a couple of months from now”, and wondered...

Discounted Registration Rate for Young Adult Women The International Women’s Convocation affirms each person’s right to identify for themselves who they are and to express themselves in a way that is authentic to them. Members of the International Women’s Convocation include...

Confronting the Work My Privilege Means I Must Do The following is the first of five reflections on a service trip that members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara YRUU group made to New Orleans, LA. The group spent three days in New Orleans and six on the north shore of...

Learning How to do Anti-Racism Work at Home The following is the first of five reflections on a service trip that members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara YRUU group made to New Orleans, LA. The group spent three days in New Orleans and six on the north shore of Lake...

The Right to Joy – to Combat Injustice The following is the first of five reflections on a service trip that members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara YRUU group made to New Orleans, LA. The group spent three days in New Orleans and six on the north shore of Lake...

Broadening My Morality The following is the first of five reflections on a service trip that members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara YRUU group made to New Orleans, LA. The group spent three days in New Orleans and six on the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain, working...

Apply to Serve as Youth Caucus Co-Dean and See What You Learn! by Eric Broner, Co-Dean, Youth Caucus 2016-2017 My week in Columbus at General Assembly was full of many things—questions, answers, memories, regrets, and above all, lessons learned. Not only was Columbus my...

Facing the Legacy of Slavery The following is the first of five reflections on a service trip that members of the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara YRUU group made to New Orleans, LA. The group spent three days in New Orleans and six on the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain,...

Apply Before July 25 to Lead "Interfaith Action to End Armed Violence" Every year in April the Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office Intergenerational Spring Seminar takes on big issues on an international scale. In April 2017 the seminar focus is on people of many faiths...

LEAD YOUR PEERS @ GA Youth Caucus Deans are the leaders of the volunteer Youth Caucus Staff for General Assembly and applications are now open through August 10th. Deans work with the Youth Caucus Staff to fulfill the purpose of Youth Caucus, which is to serve youth who want...

Krista Tippett Speaks at the 2016 Ware Lecture by John Newhall Krista Tippett, the host of On Being and author of three books, will  deliver the Ware Lecture at General Assembly this year. As the host of a radio show focused on spirituality and living fully, she is a logical...

More than 20% of teenagers and young adults suffer some type mental health stress, and as many as 30% of adolescents experience one major episode of depression before reaching adulthood.¹ And while this information is sobering, it is heartening to know that this is also the age...

Julie Brock wrote this newsletter column for First Unitarian Society of Madison and shared it with us given how relevant it is to young adult ministry everywhere.  Thanks Julie! by Julie Brock Having young people in church is pretty great. Youth bring new energy, fresh...

We asked each of your candidates to tape themselves talking about why they want to serve as Youth Observer to the Unitarian Universalist Association Board of Trustees. Watch and listen to what they said, and vote! Read about each of the Youth Observer candidates here.  ...

One or Two Year Terms: Four Candidates to Meet Friends, it is that time of the year again! It's time to elect the next Youth Observers to the Unitarian Universalist Association Board of Trustees. , Olivia and Caleb describe their role as the current Youth Observers in this...

Broad Spectrum Welcoming I recently attended the Peek Award movie screening at the Utah Film Center. The Peek Award, named after Kim Peek, the inspiration for the 1988 movie Rain Man, honors artists and film subjects who positively impact society’s perception of people with...

Ever think to yourself, “ACK! There are too many awesome Unitarian Universalist youth opportunities out there, how am I ever going to do them all!?” Sometimes it feels like a high stake game of checkers where you just can't figure out the strategy. Luckily, programs are...

“Small but mighty” is a phrase I enjoy. Possibly because I am a petite woman of short stature, yet I like to think I’m relatively powerful. But more than that it’s because that’s how I see our faith. Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a tiny religion and a young one too, though our...

Isabelle McCurdy explains the difference you will make... Isabelle McCurdy, Senior Business Manager for the General Assembly 2016 Youth Caucus, was one of the driving forces behind the successful 2015 Youth Caucus Action of Immediate Witness, "Support the Black Lives Matter...

Valentine’s Day is over but that’s no reason to stop sharing the love! Our congregations are generally pretty good at sharing love. From child dedications for our infants to memorial services at life’s end, our congregations are there for the full journey. So how do we share...

In honor of the Standing on the Side of Love 30 Days of Love 2016 campaign, Steven Ballesteros speaks up about the important work of supporting Youth of Color.  As a Unitarian Universalist young adult of color I have at times lacked a sense of belonging and of being...

  In honor of the Standing on the Side of Love 30 Days of Love 2016 campaign, Phebe Hawes speaks up about being a light of love in a time of hate. In order to love alike, we need not think alike ~Francis David. This quote got me thinking. I come from a suburban, mostly...

Sheila Schuh, Director of Religious Education at First Unitarian Church of Rochester, NY recently told us about an innovative idea to bring people together across congregations to start a dialogue about racial justice. The youth in your congregation could be a catalyst for a...

And Why This is Great News for Your Congregation by Elizabeth Mount Well, you can’t have missed all the articles about the Millennial generation. I hear we’re entitled, arrogant, narcissistic, selfish, lazy, politically disengaged, gullible, technology absorbed, and isolated...

Dear UU Religious Professionals: My name is Alex Jensen and I was a Summer Seminary attendee the first year it was offered by the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries in 2013. Having graduated, I have had the privilege of watching...

THRIVE HERE Save the dates!  Thrive Youth West is July 9-13, 2016 at First Unitarian Society of Denver and Thrive Youth East is July 27-31, 2016 at Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church in Bethesda, Maryland! "Being able to bond with other people of color within the UU faith...

Hello Friends, My name is Kirbey Geissler and I’m writing to tell you about my experience with Unitarian Universalism (UU), specifically Summer Seminary. Summer Seminary is a week-long introduction to what being a religious professional could look like for a group of 15-20...

Thanks to @KennySWiley for bring to our attention this thoughtful collection of reaction to the spate of violence we have witnessed in recent weeks. We encourage you to read, reflect, and respond (either in the comment section of this post, or by submitting your own thoughts or...

The Revolution Will Not be Televised? Make it Happen by Reading – TOGETHER Skinner House Books and Beacon Press announce Justice and Spirit: The Unitarian Universalist Book Club on Goodreads. If you are interested in spirituality, religion, and social justice, whether Unitarian...

Camp Unirondack Transforms :| Into :) If there is one thing that seven years at Camp Unirondack has taught me, it is that camp is not just for kids. I know, I know, camp director rhetoric if you’ve ever heard it right? But let me tell you why it’s true. It stems from a struggle...

Worship and GA Talks Coordinators Needed! APPLICATIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY OCTOBER 4, 2015 (CLICK HERE) Ayla Halberstadt and Cameron Young, YA@GA 2016 Co-facilitators have a cool pitch for you... I am Ayla Halberstadt, a co-facilitator for YA@GA 2016! I am the director of...

 “Wow. You may not be ordained, but you’re doing ministry already.” – Rev. Peter Morales, President, Unitarian Universalist Association(UUA). Watch as Eliana Okeson, UUA Summer Seminary 2015 graduate, delivers her “preach-off” sermon at First Universalist Church of Denver...