Registration Now Open for the ARW/HF Bi-Regional Council Spring Meeting 2026
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Thank You Volunteers!
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Towards 2035 Townhall Meetings
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Register here now: https://forms.office.com/r/ZjvMB4TVKL
Time to Report!
Community of Faith Documents due for 2025
It is that time of year to work on your Community of Faith’s Annual Report and to complete the Community of Faith Self-Assessment Checklist as well as your updated Community of Faith Profile.
Annual Report
Your Annual Report should be uploaded to your Community of Faith’s account on ChurchHub. If you are unsure how to do this, please see this helpful how-to article here.
You will also need to update the officer roles including your Regional Lay Representative for your Community of Faith’s ChurchHub account. Here is a handy video from the UCC on how to do this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHsoNoQh8jo. There is also further information on the regional websites; ARW, HFRC and WOW.
Please email a copy of your annual report to your respective Congregational Support Minister at; HFCSM@united-church.ca, ARWCSM@united-church.ca, WOWCSM@united-church.ca.
Your report will be reviewed by members of your Regional Congregational Support Commission.
What To Include in Your Annual Report?
The following is a list of things required by The United Church of Canada’s 2026 Manual that need to be included in your Annual Report;
- Minutes for the previous year’s Annual Meeting
- Financials including Treasurer’s report, year-end statements, proposed budget
- A letter of review of the Financials from an independent person
- A list of the legal names of the Trustees
- Membership stats including new members, marriages, baptisms, deaths
- Contact page including names and contact info for the Officers (governing body Chair, Secretary and Treasurer), chairs of committees
Self-Assessments for Community of Faith:
Self-Assessment for Communities of Faith can be found on Toolkit #11. Self-Assessments are helpful to highlight areas that may need to be addressed.
Community of Faith Profiles:
Your Community of Faith Profile should also be reviewed and updated annually. Information on Community of Faith Profiles can be found on Toolkit #2 on your regional website.
Information for all of the above is found here:
ARW Toolkits; HF Toolkits; WOW Toolkits
Spring Regional Meetings:
The Horseshoe Falls and Antler River Joint Regional Meeting will be held at the Lamplighter Inn & Conference Centre, London, ON from June 26-28, 2026.
WOW’s Regional Meeting will be held on May 22-23, 2026 at the Unifor Family Education Centre, Port Elgin, ON.
Additional information will follow about each regional meeting. Please watch your regional newsletters. Subscribe to your regional newsletter ARW, HF, WOW.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. ARW: Karlene Kimber, HF: Beverly Tyhurst and WOW: John Neff.
Thank you for taking the time to complete this important annual task for your Community of Faith!
Hiring Announcement
We are pleased to announce the hiring of Laura Black to the position of First Third Ministry Faith Formation Minister, serving the Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls, and Western Ontario Waterways Regional Councils.
Laura will begin her ministry on Monday, February 2nd, 2026. She brings a deep commitment to faith formation, collaborative leadership, and nurturing spiritual growth across diverse communities. Laura is excited to work alongside the councils, congregations, and leaders of these regions as they continue to support meaningful faith development for First Third Ministry.
Please join us in warmly welcoming Laura to the region and this important ministry. We look forward to the gifts, energy, and vision she will bring to this role!
More about Laura:
Laura Black joins the team with a lifelong connection to the United Church of Canada and a deep call to faith formation and community leadership. Rooted in curiosity, placemaking, and nature‑based practices, she is passionate about co‑creating spaces where the brilliance of God’s children can shine.
For more than a decade, young people have been at the heart of Laura’s ministry. She has supported emerging leaders through Christian education, intergenerational programming, camp and creative arts ministries, Youth Forum, and her consulting work with The Hub community network. Nationally, she served as a Commissioner and Table Leader at the 40th General Council. Her experience also spans human rights, conflict management, leadership and interfaith initiatives with domestic and international students as both faculty and staff in post-secondary education.
Relationships ground Laura’s ministry. She is rooted in a large close-knit family, and is married and raising a wise, deeply feeling child. Often you can find them playing games, paddling the Nith River, or on a basketball court. She has accompanied survivors of gendered violence, supported people living with mental illness, and worked to amplify Indigenous knowledge in efforts to decolonize systems. She holds a Master of Education in Teaching and Learning specializing in Inclusive Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Social Development, with studies in child development, family systems, world religions, marginalized populations, emerging technologies, coaching and mentoring.
A national award‑winning organizer and collaborator, Laura is also a published author in the Journal of Transformative Learning. She has led teams in applying Global Diversity Equity and Inclusion Benchmarks (GDEIB), accessible customer service practices, and collaborative agreements. She has coordinated wide-ranging justice‑focused initiatives such as a Food Security Collective and Human Trafficking Symposium. She strives for deep listening, strategic thinking, and collective action while helping communities find shared purpose and turn meaningful ideas into real impact.
Laura looks forward to joining the teams of Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls, and Western Ontario Waterways Regional Councils as the First Third Ministry, Faith Formation Minister. She’s excited to learn from each and every one of you in your unique context while contributing her gifts to shared spiritual growth and formation.
Introducing Laurie Stevenson, Minister of Pastoral Care to the Region
Welcome Rev. Laurie Stevenson!
We are delighted to welcome Rev. Laurie Stevenson as our new Minister of Pastoral Care, beginning her ministry with us on November 3rd, 2025.
Rev. Laurie brings a deep commitment to compassionate care, spiritual guidance, and community connection. Her presence will be a blessing to our region as she walks alongside ministry staff and congregations, offering support, prayer, and pastoral leadership.
We look forward to the gifts she will share, the relationships she will nurture, and the ways she will help us grow together in faith and care. Please join us in extending a heartfelt welcome to Rev. Laurie as she begins this meaningful journey with us.
Welcome, Rev. Laurie!
