Our AGM will take place on Friday May 29th and Saturday May 30th. The EOORC AGM usually begins on the Friday morning and ends before dinner time on Saturday. An agenda will be available towards the end of April, and at that point we will confirm the meeting times for this year’s AGM.

Our theme speaker will be the Rev. Morgan Bell. He will be speaking about Evangelism in a Time Such as This. Morgan is the Director of United Church Studies at Montreal Dio. The Faculty and Staff page for Montreal Dio shares: “As an ordained minister in The United Church of Canada, Morgan has served in pastoral, youth, and music ministries in congregations across Ontario. Alongside his ministry, he is completing a PhD in Theological Studies at the Toronto School of Theology, where his research focuses on Karl Barth’s doctrine of the Trinity, political theology, and the intersection of doctrine with issues of gender and justice. He has taught at theological schools in Canada, including the Atlantic School of Theology and Vancouver School of Theology, and contributes actively to the life of the wider church through writing, teaching, and public speaking.”

Information about other speakers and workshops will follow soon!

Trinity United Church in Smiths Falls is an accessible building. There is an elevator which goes to up to the sanctuary (where the meeting will be held) as well as down to the hall (where we will have meals). An operator will be available throughout the AGM. Please use the door on Market St. North to enter the building. There is a wheelchair accessible and gender neutral washroom on the upper level off of the sanctuary, as well as on the lower level in the hall.

As usual, we will have headsets available for translation and amplification. We encourage everyone to use these.

For the parts of the meeting which are in the sanctuary, we will have some chairs available as well as the pews. These are cushioned chairs, and there are some with arms as well as some without arms. Many of the pews also have cushions. There is a spot available near the front where a section of pew has been removed to create a good space for someone using a walker or wheelchair.

Do you have more questions about accessibility? Is there a way we could remove any barriers to your participation in the meeting? Please feel free to contact Natalie Matkovsky (NMatkovsky@united-church.ca).

Closer to the event, we will share more information about parking.

We will have an equity monitor at the meeting, and this person will be identified at the AGM.

We will have coffee and tea available on arrival and at some of the break times. (There will also be muffins and fruit in the morning on Friday.)

A meal plan is available and includes lunch and dinner on Friday, as well as lunch on Saturday. The cost for the meal plan is $60, which can be paid in cash or by tap on the Friday morning.

Menu: Lunch on Friday will be sandwiches, pickles, veggies and desserts. Dinner on Saturday is lasagna with salad and buns, along with a variety of cakes for dessert. Saturday lunch will be a casserole with salad and desserts. (Note: This menu is a draft and could be edited.)

Special Diets: At each meal, we will have options that are vegetarian, gluten-free and dairy-free. If you would like one of these options, please note this on your registration. You are welcome to contact NMatkovsky@united-church.ca if you have questions about the menu. Unfortunately, we are not able to accommodate other special diets. If you have a particular diet and would like to bring your own food, we would be happy to provide fridge space and you are welcome to use the microwave. (Please do contact NMatkovsky@united-church.ca in advance to ensure we’ll have enough room in the fridge.)

You are always welcome to bring your own food to the meeting. Unfortunately, we don’t have a fridge or microwave available for all participants since the caterers will need use of the kitchen. If there is a special reason why you need fridge space or microwave use (ex. storing baby food or pumped milk, storing medications, food allergies or intolerances, etc) please contact Natalie Matkovsky (NMatkovsky@united-church.ca) in advance of the meeting or indicate this under “accessibility” on your registration form.

I would like to sign up for just one meal. Is this possible? The meal plan is for all three meals. Unfortunately, we cannot separate the meals. Trinity United Church is in downtown Smiths Falls and there are a variety of restaurants nearby (including fast food options like Burger King, Tim Hortons, and Subway, as well as a number of excellent local restaurants available for take out or dine in). If you are not choosing the meal plan, you are welcome to bring your own meal from home (please see above note about fridge space), bring a take-out meal back to the church hall, or dine out and come back to the meeting afterwards. 

Everyone is welcome to attend! Please be sure to register, even if you are just coming for one day or part of the day, so that we can have enough chairs and refreshments for everyone.

EOORC members (including ministry personnel and elected lay representatives can vote.

Would you like to have display space/have a table at the event? We would be happy to provide space for organizations in EOORC to share their activities. Please contact Natalie Matkovsky (NMatkovsky@united-church.ca).

We will have worship – including hymns, scripture and prayers – at many points throughout the AGM.

Trinity Smiths Falls has an outdoor Labyrinth, which they have graciously invited us to use. If would like to take a moment to walk to labyrinth, you are very welcome to do so.

A chapel space and chaplain will be available at the meeting.

There will not be a children’s program or youth program at the AGM. However, children and youth are very welcome to attend the meeting. Trinity Smiths Falls has an unstaffed nursery with some toys, as well as a nearby room called the “Upper Room.” This room is separated from the sanctuary (where the meeting will take place) by some glass, and there is a speaker which can be turned on so it is possible to hear what is happening in the sanctuary. You are welcome to bring some toys from the nearby nursery into this area so that children would have a larger play space. There are also some tables and chairs. (Of course, as always, children are welcome in the main part of the meeting too!)