September 24, 25, 26 at Five Oaks Education & Retreat Centre, Paris, ON
SUMMARY OF THE CONFERENCE: The Five Oaks Education and Retreat Centre in Paris, Ontario, is an Affirming part of the United Church of Canada. We received a warm welcome and information session from staff. According to Indigenous spirituality, where two rivers meet is a sacred meeting place. Five Oaks is at the confluence of the Grand River and Whiteman’s Creek.
On Sunday evening, Sue Anderson (LLWL) led a worship service on Grace based on Matthew 20:1-16.
On Monday morning, Dana Burtt, Workplace Wellness Specialist, led a session on Emotional Health: how to identify, understand, regulate and effectively express our emotions. Sydney Pereira, Professor, School of Business at Conestoga College, led a fast-paced presentation on social media.
After lunch we held our Annual Meeting led by PCSA President Silke Dorego, then we boarded a bus for a tour of Her Majesty’s Royal Chapel of the Mohawks in Brantford. Many of the attendees wore their “Every Child Matters” orange shirt for the outing. Barry Hill, an Indigenous Elder, told us the history of the Chapel and the Six Nations through the beautiful stained-glass windows. There had been a residential school nearby.
After Monday dinner we discussed various questions posed by attendees ahead of the conference: tips to avoid burnout; dealing with reduced and aging volunteers; tips & tricks for speed in Word; taking meeting minutes; PowerPoint free resources; logging music license; membership & accounting programs, and rental tracking.
On Tuesday morning, Lisa, an Ontario Provincial Police auxiliary officer provided presentations on Fighting Fraud and Personal Safety at home and in the office.
All this and so much more, including networking and having some great conversations with other church secretaries and office administrators, made for a great conference. The next conference will be in Niagara in October 2024. For further information about the conference, email [email protected]