At GA 2017, delegates voted by holding up their yellow delegate cards. At GA 2023, all voting is likely to be electronic.
Do you think you might want to be a voting delegate at the upcoming UUA General Assembly, which occurs June 21–25? It is possible to be a GA delegate by traveling to its location in Pittsburgh, or by connecting remotely through the Internet.
For more on GA in general, see this article from the December Heirloom: General Assembly 2023. The broader GA program includes lectures, workshops, worship, entertainment, and talking with UUs from all over the continent. All of this can be a great experience, whether you are a delegate or not and whether you attend in person or remotely.
Indications are that most of the business of this year’s GA will be about two things: The UUA Presidential election and the Article II Bylaws revision. For more information, see the accompanying article, The 2023 General Assembly Has Important Business.
Lay member delegates from our church generally pay their own registration fee, which can range from $0 (or a donation) for people who participate remotely in only the business sessions, to $400 for people who participate in person and register by February 28, to $600 for people who participate in person and register late. The registration fee can be reduced or eliminated by being accepted to work in volunteer jobs at GA, and some financial assistance is available from the UUA. Scholarship assistance is also available from Heritage Church, and those needing such help should contact Rev. Bill Gupton (email below). More information on registration fees is on the UUA website page for General Assembly Registration.
Heritage UU Church can have up to four lay member delegates at GA. (Our Senior Minister is automatically a delegate by virtue of his position, and our Director of Lifespan Faith Development can be a delegate automatically if certain conditions are met.) Heritage Church also can (and probably will) appoint alternate delegates. The decision on who will be our church’s lay member delegates will be made by our Board of Trustees, and the Board plans to do this at its February 13 meeting.
If you would like to be considered for a delegate role, please send an email to both our Senior Minister, Rev. Bill Gupton, and our Board President, Julie Kane. The deadline to apply to be a delegate is February 5, 2023. In your email asking to be considered, please indicate why you want to be a delegate, and state what you consider to be your qualifications to be a delegate. Email addresses are provided below.
Rev. Bill Gupton:
Julie Kane:
12/14/2022.
