Imagine our congregations as vibrant, growing centers of liberal faith, reaching out to the world with a message of hope! Congregations grow in number and impact one Sunday and one relationship at a time by focusing on mission, hospitality and spiritual depth.  Discover skills and practices to achieve vibrant, growing congregations at these and other GA programs.

Growing Healthy Congregations: Responding to Anxiety and Change
First of 3 workshops focused on building health in congregations and leadership. Congregations are viewed as emotional systems with identifiable processes that can support or block mission and growth.  Essential to health is the ability to manage anxiety and change. Each workshop focuses on a different aspect of congregational health.
Rev. Dr. Richard Speck
Rev. Kenneth Hurto

Growing Healthy Congregations: Non-Anxious Leadership and Healthy Relationships
Second of 3 workshops focused on building health in congregations and leadership. Congregations are viewed as emotional systems with identifiable processes that can support or block mission and growth.  Essential to health is non-anxious, thoughtful leadership and healthy internal relationships. Each workshops focuses on a different aspect of congregational health.
Patricia Infante
Rev. Joan VanBecelaere

Growing Healthy Congregations: Generosity and Spiritual Health
Third of  3 workshops focused on building health in congregations and leadership. Congregations are viewed as emotional systems with identifiable processes that can support or block mission and growth.   Essential to health is congregational attitude toward generosity, hospitality and spirituality. Each workshop focuses on a different aspect of congregational health.
Douglas Zelinski
Connie Goodbread

Congregations Count!
This popular workshop returns for a third year to help congregational leaders in their church’s membership efforts. Using tools from organizational development and quality process improvement, this workshop will show participants how to collect and use numbers to determine where a congregation can best focus their efforts.
Linda Laskowski

Lowering Barriers, Raising Commitment: Lessons Learned from Megachurches
Large evangelical churches’ success has less to do with doctrine and more to do with strengthening congregational bonds. The principles that evangelicals use to develop their communities can be authentically applied in growing our UU congregations. Learn strategies for outreach, integrating members, understanding member motivations, and increasing a congregation’s involvement.
Deborah Talen

Planning for Sustainable Growth
Leaders from 2 Central Midwest District Breakthrough congregations will explore the ways that they have used a deep, thoughtful and intentional process as a path to growth. The Appleton, WI and Peoria, IL congregations are growing in ways that will be sustained, not dependent on something transitory.
Rev. Michael Brown
Rev. Roger Bertschausen
Rev. Dottie Matthews
Dori Davenport Thexton

Breakthrough Congregation Workshop: Small and Medium Congregations
Hear the leaders of two of our four “Breakthrough Congregations” provide both inspiration and insight into how they have grown their congregations in both spirit and numbers by overcoming obstacles that had previously inhibited such growth.  This workshop is led by teams of lay leaders and clergy from the UU Fellowship of Mankato, Minnesota (100 adult members) and the UU Area Church at First Parish, Sherborn, Massachusetts (225 adult members).

Breakthrough Congregations Workshop: Medium and Large Congregations
Hear the leaders of two of our four “Breakthrough Congregations” provide both inspiration and insight into how they have grown their congregations in both spirit and numbers by overcoming obstacles that had previously inhibited such growth.  This workshop is led by teams of lay leaders and clergy from the UU Church of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (393 adult members) and Unitarian Church of Summit, New Jersey (516 adult members).