Ontario Election 2025: More than Tariffs Workshop
2025-02-23 15:00 - 16:15 (America/Toronto) | Online by Zoom link
Ontario Election 2025:
More than Tariffs A panel discussion
Sunday Feb 23, 3:00-4:15 PM EST on Zoom
Information to help you faithfully discern your vote and continue advocacy after the Feb 27th election.
Brief presentations by five panel members on selected topics.
Panelists will respond to questions from the audience.

Advance registration required:
https://united-church.zoom.us/meeting/register/Pfy-0rDhQt-l-V5KqspFkw
For more information contact:
Thérèse Samuel tsamuel@united-church.ca and John Egger jegger@united-church.ca

Moderator:
Rev. Éric Hébert-Daly serves as the Executive Minister to ECO and EOO Regional Councils in Eastern Ontario. He was ordained in 2020. He served for 5 years as Responsible, Ministries in French, for 9 years as the National Executive Director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. Éric spent 17 years working in federal political circles and 7 years as a registered lobbyist. He also brings a hope-filled passion for the church.

Panel Members
Charles Barrett is a retired economist, who was actively involved in policy dialogue in North America, and the Asia-Pacific region in international economic relations, human resources development and capacity building. He has broad research experience and has written extensively on Canadian and international policy issues. He is a member of Riverside United Church, Ottawa and Eastern Ontario Outaouais Regional Council.

The Rev. Dr. Jessica Hetherington is an ecotheologian and ordained minister in the United Church of Canada. Working at the intersection of ecology and theology for 20 years, she inspires people of faith to transform their actions in response to the climate crisis. She currently serves as commissioner on climate justice with the World Council of Churches and the World Communion of Reformed Churches. Sign up for her weekly newsletter: Faith. Climate Crisis. Action. (https://jessicahetherington.substack.com/).

Bryan Smith is a long-term member of the Oxford Coalition for Social Justice, an organization committed to work and advocacy on a wide range of social and environmental issues locally in the County of Oxford and across the planet. It stands in for the Ontario Health Coalition and stands up for public health. Bryan is a retired teacher, and is active in providing school lunches and community dinners, and promoting local foods, the avoidance of waste, community events, and public health.

Rev. Jeffrey Dale (they/he) is the Minister at College Street United Church in downtown Toronto. Jeffrey is a harm reduction advocate and community educator, working with harm reduction advocacy groups throughout the Province of Ontario to educate communities of faith and the wider society regarding the needs of people who use drugs.

Rev. Susan Eagle is the minister at Grace United Church in Barrie. She chairs both the Ecological and Social Justice Commission for Shining Waters Regional Council, and the Steering Committee of the provincial interfaith coalition, ISARC, which does policy analysis and advocacy for income security, homelessness and employment rights. She has worked with newcomer and low-income individuals and sole-support families as a community outreach worker, and served on London City Council for 13 years.

This workshop is presented by the Social Justice Network of Ontario Regional Councils (SJNORC) with representation from Eastern Ontario Outaouais, East Central Ontario, Shining Waters, Canadian Shield, Antler River Watershed, Horseshoe Falls, Western Ontario Waterways and Prairie to Pine Regional Councils of The United Church of Canada.
Engage, Pray, Vote.

UCC 360 Anti-Racism Program
2025-02-26 18:00 - 19:30, 2025-03-12 18:00 - 19:30 | 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

Adopt a Body of Water
2025-04-22 10:00 - 11:15 | 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

ARW UCW Annual Gathering 2025
2025-04-26 08:45
Click here for Agenda
Click here for Registration Form

Kids Across the Regions 2025
2025-06-07 | Camp Bimini, 3180 Perth Road, St. Paul’s, 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 | 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

Mission Support Grant Deadline
2025-09-22 08:30
More information here:
https://arwrcucc.ca/mission-support-grants/

Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion - Online
2025-09-24 10:00 - 11:30 | 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

Remembrance Day
2025-11-11

Kathy Douglas' Retirement Party
2026-01-16 13:30 - 15:30 | Avondale United Church, 194 Avondale Avenue, Stratford, Ontario, N5A6N4, Canada

Tri-Region PalNet
2026-02-11 19:00 - 20:30

Dementia Workshop
2026-02-12 10:00 - 11:30, 2026-02-19 13:00 - 14:30, 2026-02-26 19:00 - 20:30

Tri-Region PalNet Workshop
2026-03-07 09:30 - 16:00
Register Here for Tri-Region PalNet Event

Prayerful Decision Making
2026-04-22 10:30 - 12:00 | Online via Zoom
Wednesday April 22 10:30 AM-12:00 Noon on Zoom
As Christians we pray, “Thy will be done.” But, how can we know what God’s will is?
For hundreds of years, principles and practices developed by Ignatius of Loyola have helped Christians discern what God is calling them to do and be. While we may never be 100% sure of what God wants, prayerful discernment can help us make choices that bring us as closer to the abundant life that Christ offers.
This workshop offers a basic introduction to time-tested Ignatian discernment methods. Grounded in Christian faith, spiritual discernment can help us make small and large decisions in our lives, and can even be adapted to use in groups such as church boards, working groups, families and more.
Facilitator: Rev. Thérèse Samuel, Minister, Right Relations and Social Justice. Thérèse previously completed the Jubilee Program in Spiritual Direction and is currently completing doctoral studies in Spiritual Direction. She sees value in spiritual discernment for all aspects of personal and church life, including our efforts to seek justice, love kindness and journey humbly with God.
Advance registration required:
https://united-church.zoom.us/meeting/register/PyGErHonSHOQTyWSHj3V3A
If you have accessibility needs for online participation, or if you have any questions, please contact Thérèse Samuel tsamuel@united-church.ca

Strawberry Thanksgiving and Communion
2026-06-13 09:00 - 13:00
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

Great Lakes Collaborative Retreat
2026-08-23 - 2026-08-25 | Five Oaks Education and Retreat Centre, 1 Bethel Road, Paris, Ontario, N3L 3E3, Canada
Register Here for The Great Lakes Collaborative Retreat

Contacts:
Kathy Douglas kathymdouglas@hotmail.com
or
Lisa Hart lhart@wcucc.org
