Rev. Barbara Meyers' Ministry

Quarterly Report to MPUUC Board of Trustees

June 2007

 

To the MPUUC Board of Trustees,

 

The following is a list of the activities I have engaged in during the last quarter as part of my endorsed community ministry.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

 

Yours in faith,

 

 

 

Rev. Barbara Meyers

 

Education

Caring Congregation Program

There are a number of activities with regard to the Caring Congregation curriculum:

• A group of mostly UU Chicago-area congregations is arranging me to train about 20 trainers how to lead Caring Congregation classes in their churches November. The UUA Grant will cover some of the expenses. The Central Midwest UU District office is organizing the training.
• Taught 6-week version of the Caring Congregation curriculum at Palo Alto Presbyterian Church in the spring. Used this as an opportunity to make it more ecumenical, a long-term goal.
• Contacted Jesse Jaeger, Director of the UUA Youth Programs, about providing mental health information for the existing Chrysalis Youth Ministry Training Program, which trains youth advisors. The specific trainings in question are: Chaplaincy Training, and Basic and Advanced Youth Advisor Training. He agrees with Betty Jeanne and me that mental health information should be included and we have started a dialog about how best to do this, as part of their planned curriculum update.

Classes and Seminars Given

• Led 6-week class on Caring Congregation at the Palo Alto Presbyterian Church.
• Gave a 1-day workshop to the Oakland Pastoral Associates about pastoral mental health care
• With Kurt Kuhwald and Jane Ramsey, gave Community Ministry workshop at Starr King School for the Ministry and Pacific School of Religion to educate students about community ministry.

Classes and Seminars Taken

• Participated in an April 11 SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) training on Funding Anti-Stigma Efforts.
• Took an on-line 3-week seminar from the Wayne E. Oates Institute entitled "Encountering Depression and Anxiety in Ministry" May 7 - 25.
• Attended 3rd International Disability Film Festival, Berkeley, June 2.

County Education Effort Continues

• With the Consumer Affairs Director of Alameda County Behavioral Healthcare, continued an effort to educate county administration of the importance of religious faith to recovery from mental illness.

Award Received

Recipient of the 2007 Junella Hanson Memorial Award, for a Unitarian Universalist in the Pacific Central District of the UUA who has demonstrated true excellence in teaching and faith development.

Books Read

• Behind the Masks - Personality Disorders in Religious Behavior, by Wayne E. Oates, Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1987.
• Confessions of a Workaholic, by Wayne E. Oates, New York: The World Publishing Co., 1971.
• I, Rigoberta Menchu, An Indian Woman in Guatemala, edited and Introduced by Elizabeth Burgos-Debray, New York: Verso, 1984.
• Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, ed: Germer, Christopher, Siegel, Ronald and Fulton, Paul, New York: The Guilford Press, 2005.
• Popol Vuh - The Definitive Edition of the Mayan Book of the Dawn of Life and the Glories of Gods and Kings, translated by Dennis Tedlock, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1985.
• The Religious Care of the Psychiatric Patient, by Wayne E. Oates, Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1978.
• William James - In the Maelstrom of American Modernism, by Robert D. Richardson, New York: Haughton Mifflin, 2006.

Healing

Reaching Across

• Continue working about quarter time at Reaching Across organization. A recent increase in their funding has allowed me to be compensated at a higher rate than was done before.

Support Groups

• Continued co-leading new interfaith support group for people with depression and sadness.
• Continued to recommend support group for families of those with mental illness. Have gotten feedback that this has been helpful

Pastoral Associates

• Resigned as chair of Pastoral Associates. Very well qualified replacement identified.
• Will continue to give training to Pastoral Associates and be compensated for this.

Priestly

• Led service on March 25 "Stages of Recovery from Mental Illness" at the Redwood City congregation. It was well received.
• Led worship on May 9 at minister's retreat on "Keeping Vigil"
• Planned for weddings of two couples to happen in August and September.

Social Justice

• Participated in Alameda County Mental Health Services Act Planning Council This group does Alameda County Mental Health Services Act (MHSA Proposition 63) MHSA program portfolio reviews, budgetary actions recommendations, and prioritization of new programs.

Community Awareness

• Pilot show of Mental Health Matters shown for 4 Saturdays on Comcast cable TV stations in Alameda County. After experience in taping the first TV show, decided to make a regular show. This involves:
  1. Recruiting and training a crew. 19 people have volunteered. Training to be scheduled.
  2. Agreeing on subjects to cover, and people to invite
• Mental Health pages on MPUUC web site continue to be widely accessed.

Anti Stigma Effort

• Attended monthly meetings of the Public Awareness Committee of the Mental Health Board.
• The community access TV program (above) has been planned with them.

UUA Accessibility Committee

• Led the designing of a banner for the Accessibility Committee with input from people with disabilities.
• Mental health guidelines are being promulgated.

UU Mental Health Chat forum

• UU email chat list for people interested in a UU mental health ministry has been set up.

Other

• Met with Community Ministry Advisory Committee every quarter
• Chaired MPUUC Mental Health Committee which meets every 6-8 weeks
• Met with Committee on Ministry from MPUUC monthly
• Met with mentor Rev. Dave Sammons every 4-6 weeks
• Met with other UU community ministers every 2 months
• Met with Tri-Cities Interfaith Association every month
• Participated in newly-formed Community Ministry Cluster meetings with other PCD community ministers. Will meet once every 2 months.