At Foothills we talk about the “tangled blessing of life.” How joy, celebration, growth and connection are as a part of life as pain, grief, sadness, disconnection and challenge. Living in the middle of this tangled blessing is not easy and cannot be done by ourselves alone. We need other people — not to fix us or our problems but to care about us, to truly listen, to witness to depths of our souls, to remind us we are not alone — even if we feel it.
Being Better is a roughly monthly series of workshops focused on developing the skills to be there for those we care about when it matters most. Each month from January to May, you are invited to deepen and practice your relational skills with the goal of being better friends, partners, parents, and citizens.
Being Better Schedule:
Listening Like It Actually Matters | Jan 24 from 9am to noon
We listen all the time but how deep do we go? Listening is one of our most powerful tools to use at work, at home, and with those we love, yet we seldom consider how to get better at it. This three-hour workshop explores the fundamentals of listening and offering care to another person through accompaniment.
Mental Health First Aid | February 21 from 8am to 5pm
Mental Health First Aid gives you the skills to assess and assist someone experiencing an emergency related to mental health or substance use. Learn the risk factors and warning signs, as well as strategies for supporting someone in crisis and non-crisis situations.
Yet-to-be-finalized offerings:
- Forgiveness for Real: Do I have to? How?
- Angry Guys: Emotions, Feelings and Being a ‘Man’
- Crossing the Cultural Divide: Best Practices for Relationships Across Difference
Rev. Sean is Foothills Acting Senior Minister while Rev. Gretchen is on Sabbatical.
Responsible for Worship, Justice Ministries, Faith Formation Strategies and sits on Foothills Executive Leadership Team with Director of Finances and Operations Katie Watkins.
Sean was born on Treaty 7 land in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and comes to Foothills after four years in New England where he completed seminary at Harvard Divinity School where he studied alongside future imams, rabbis, justice activists, and other Unitarian Universalists. Sean is a self-proclaimed nerd — particularly about history, current politics, science, and Star Wars. Outside of ministry you will find Sean hiking or cooking up a storm with his partner Charles, watching his son’s basketball games, all under the watchful eye of their dog Dollie.