United Women in Faith - Western North Carolina Conference

We believe love in action can change the world.

Mission u 2025

July 18-19, 2025

The Catholic Conference Center, Hickory, North Carolina

Passionate about mission?
Love to learn?
Want to engage with others who are?
Then Mission u is right for you!

Online registration opens May 15!

Click Here to Register for Mission u 2025!

Mission u 2025 Details!

Registration is ONLINE only, and open May 15 through June 30.  (There is no onsite registration.)

Registration costs vary with housing and student type. Fees for full-time students range from $100 (non-resident with meals) to $250 (all meals and private room with private bath), depending on type of accommodations. Housing is first come first served to stay on site.

Dates: Friday, July 18 through Saturday, July 19

Location: The Catholic Conference Center, Hickory, North Carolina

Coming Soon! Conference Gram – June 2025 – Mission u Issue

Childcare will be NOT be available.

Study books should be ordered in advance; they will not be available for sale at the event. You may order a study book for pickup at Mission u as part of the registration process, if you register by June 15th. If you choose to order a book to be delivered to you (which will increase your shipping costs), you may do so at https://uwfaithresources.org/

  • Adult Study: Practicing Hope is an adult curriculum exploring hope, particularly when hope seems hard to find. The curriculum asks questions such as: What is hope in the face of neofascism? What is hope in a time of genocide? How do we imagine a future for the next generation as our planet grows hotter by the season? What tools do we have to face these hard realities? How does Christ teach us to embody hope when our backs are against the wall? This study’s purpose is to allow all of our communities to cultivate hope that is honest about our current conditions (refugia), hope that is restorative when everything feels urgent (rest), and hope that is possible even when we transgress (repair).

Kindle version of the adult study is available at www.amazon.com.

Hands-on Mission:  Gift cards for Western North Carolina Conference Hurricane Helene Long Term Recovery efforts in Western North Carolina.

CEU/Advanced Lay Servant Credit: Participants can apply to receive CEU’s and Advanced Lay Servant credit. Forms will be available at Mission u.

Schedule outline: Check-in will begin at 9:30 AM on Friday, July 18th. Mission u will open with worship Friday at 10:30 AM. Lunch will be served at 12:00 noon and the first session will begin at 1:30 PM. Dinner will be served at 6:00. Breakfast Saturday will be served at 8:00 AM.

First-timer Scholarships: Each District offers a $150 scholarship for a person attending Mission u for the first time. Information and applications are available from your District President. Additional scholarship funds are often available through you local unit; contact your unit president for information.

For everyone’s safety and well-being, we will follow all CDC protocols in place at the time. See separate tab for our COVID safety protocols.

 

All registration fees include lunch and dinner on Friday, and breakfast and lunch on Saturday. All lodging rooms include 2 double beds and private bath, same as a hotel room, all linens provided. Housing is first come first served to stay on site. Register early. The following are the registration costs based on the type of participant:

  • Full Time Resident – Private room w/bathroom ($250)
  • Full Time Resident – Double room w/bathroom ($175)
  • Full Time Resident – Triple room w/bathroom ($150)
  • Full Time Resident – Quad room w/bathroom ($125)
  • Full Time Non-Resident with meals ($100)

REFUND POLICY:  Registration fees are not refundable.

Our Mission u 2025 Retreat Leaders are:

Adult Mission Study – Practicing Hope:

  • Nancy Litton
  • Martha Efird
  • Sandrea Williamson
  • Tracey Owens

Music Leaders – Amy Johnson and Donna Ireland

Gift cards for Western North Carolina Conference Disaster Ministries: Hurricane Helene Long Term Recovery

  • Bring gift cards for any amount for:
    • Lowe’s Home Improvement
    • Home Depot, or
    • Walmart
  • Please put your gift card(s) in a plain white envelope. Write on the outside the amount, and the type of card.

 

School Officers:

Email any of these school officers with questions about Mission u 2025.

The health and safety of our members and attendees is a top priority for United Women in Faith. We all want to meet in person, and experience the special gift of sharing time together for our retreat. To do that, we will continue to lean into doing no harm, and making efforts to keep everyone safe. With that in mind, the following health safety measures will be in place for our retreat. Please confirm below that you will follow our health safety measures:

  • Mask wearing will be by personal choice for participants while inside buildings.
  • Participants agree that they will stay home if they have any symptoms of illness, have tested positive, or have a known recent exposure.

Our 2025 Adult Mission Study

Welcome Home: Adult Curriculum

Practicing Hope is an adult curriculum exploring hope, particularly when hope seems hard to find. The curriculum asks questions such as: What is hope in the face of neofascism? What is hope in a time of genocide? How do we imagine a future for the next generation as our planet grows hotter by the season? What tools do we have to face these hard realities? How does Christ teach us to embody hope when our backs are against the wall?

This study’s purpose is to allow all of our communities to cultivate hope that is honest about our current conditions (refugia), hope that is restorative when everything feels urgent (rest), and hope that is possible even when we transgress (repair).

Resources for Children and Youth

Hope as a Resurrection People: A Children's Curriculum

Hope as a Resurrection People is a children’s curriculum that helps children build trust in Jesus to bring them comfort and support as they find courageous hope in the face of uncertainty. As they move through each session, they will develop their understanding of hope by reflecting on important people, communities, places, activities, personal goals, and desires for the future. Then, they will look for ways to build communal hope to be the change our world needs today.

Communities of the Spirit: Living into Hope as Resurrection People – Youth Curriculum

Communities of the Spirit is a youth curriculum that examines the inexplicable hope we find in early post-resurrection Christian communities and how they kept hope alive even in seemingly hopeless times. Inspired by Justo González, Regina Heater names these “Communities of the Spirit” and asks how we can create such communities today by examining common themes found in the post-resurrection stories: bravery, miracles, rituals, time and diversity, the fruit of the Spirit, and adversity and perseverance.

Click Here to donate to the Mission u 2025 Love Offering

Our Love Offering will be a Gift to Mission Giving through United Women in Faith / United Methodist Women.

Countdown to Mission u 2025!

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Each year, United Women in Faith gather to learn more about missions and about being in mission. In a United Methodist News Service commentary, Schools of Christian Mission …now MISSION U, were described as some of the very best lay faith education being offered in The United Methodist Church.

Mission u Program Books:

    2025 MISSION U COMMITTEE:

    LaDonna Butts, Dean; Nancy Litton, Assistant Dean, Karlah Burton, Coordinator; Joanie Strohm, Lynn Alexander, Bess Redmond, Lynda Morris, Laquetta Barbee, Vickie Brown, Betty Durham, Kim Eller, Cathy McCauley, Deborah Brooks,  Diann Back, Sherry Sink, and Lynne Gilbert.