[Lekooks] Fw: New Congregational Life Consultant for MidAmerica!

Sat Apr 16 10:47:45 CDT 2016

Another update from MidAmerica Region UUA~~~

---------- Forwarded Message ----------
From: MidAmerica Region UUA <midamerica at uua.org>
To: gymbeau at netzero.com
Subject: New Congregational Life Consultant for MidAmerica!
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2016 16:42:22 -0400 (EDT)

  New Congregational Life Consultant for the MidAmerica Region!      To: James Hansen          We are proud to announce that the Rev. Sharon Dittmar will be joining our MidAmerica Regional staff team, come August 2016! She will be filling the opening left when Nancy Heege retired this past December.

During the search process, we received over 25 applications for this position, and it became a difficult job to pare them down to a reasonable number to interview. Many would have brought incredible gifts and skills to MidAmerica, and although we knew that we could only offer the position to one person, we wish that we were in a position to offer it to several of those we interviewed. Eventually, Sharon was offered the position-we believe that her gifts and skills will enhance our work as a staff team, and that the "fit" is just right.

The Rev. Sharon Dittmar is currently the minister at First Unitarian Church in Cincinnati, a position that she has held since 1998. During her tenure there, Sharon has helped develop leadership in the congregation so that they can work toward understanding their mission and vision, articulate their values and goals, and develop a strategic plan to help them become a more vibrant congregation. First has increased their membership more than 20% during Sharon's tenure. In the role of Good Officer she has become a respected source of perspective and advice to her ministerial colleagues. When asked about her successes in ministry, Sharon emphasized the important of developing emotional intelligence and of focusing on developing long-term strategies with partners.

Sharon is also developing her own ministerial practice in a way that fits well with our MidAmericaUUA New Leader discussion. She has just completed the Academy of Leadership from Parker Palmer's Center for Courage and Renewal. As Palmer said, "New leadership is needed for new times, but it will not come from finding more wily ways to manipulate the external world. It will come as we serve and teach and lead and find the courage to take an inner journey.... That, faithfully pursued, will take us beyond ourselves to become healers of a wounded world."

Intercultural work has been a hallmark of Sharon's time in Cincinnati. First Unitarian Church is located in Avondale -a vibrant African American community with high rates of poverty and violence. The congregation partners with local agencies to tutor children, stock and assist clients at a local food pantry, and house families experiencing homelessness. Sharon and First also work with local immigrant rights organizations and mosques to build relationships and promote tolerance.   Sharon has been actively involved in the Avondale Concerned Clergy, the only woman and only European-American in the group. In 2001 Sharon helped First Church to a formal reconciliation with the descendants of the Reverend W. H. G. Carter, a Black Unitarian minister shunned by the AUA in the 1930s. Sharon is well-known for her public speaking, appearing on television, radio, and newspaper interviews, as well as a live-streaming Shabbat service with a local rabbi.  

Sharon had this to say about her move to being a Congregational Life Consultant in MidAmerica: "I look forward to applying 19 years of ministerial leadership and problem solving to help congregations navigate the challenges of changing ministry in the 21st century. Through training with the Center of Courage and Renewal, I hope to bring renewed focus to questions of purpose, assets, relationship building, innovation, and wonder."

Sharon graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. She received her Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School. She lives in Cincinnati with her husband and son. 
Welcome Sharon!
     MidAmerica Region is building 
a new era in Unitarian Universalism, 
where UUs visibly live our faith, 
create connections, grow our membership, and 
welcome all persons who share our UU values. 
 MidAmerica RegionUnitarian Universalist Association2355 Fairview Ave. #312, Roseville, MN 55113
Web:  http://midamericauua.org  Phone: 312-636-9724Email: midamerica at uua.org Central Midwest, Heartland,  and Prairie Star Districts of the 
Unitarian Universalist Association
joined together as 
MidAmerica Region in July 2013.  

 MidAmerica Region Unitarian Universalist Association, 2355 Fairview Ave. #312, Roseville, MN 55113SafeUnsubscribe™ gymbeau at netzero.comForward this email | Update Profile | About our service providerSent by midamerica at uua.org in collaboration withTry it free today
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