 Hello, everyone. My name is Reverend Darrell Goodwin, and I have the privilege and the honor of serving as your first Executive Conference Minister here at the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ. I wanted to record a video for you in the first week of my service as your Executive Conference Minister. I wanted to introduce myself a little bit to you, but then to invite you to partner with me over the next few months and prayerfully the next few years. So some logistical kind of get-to-know-you things. The first I wanted to talk about this thing. Why is this man wearing this collar? I wear the collar really as a testament of activism, specifically because there are still some folks in our community who do not believe that because of a liberal and progressive theological construct which I have, or because of the skin I'm in, or because of who I choose to love, that somehow I don't have a right to be a reverend or a minister. And so I wear the collar to yet again reaffirm that there are people who look like me, people who are in my embodiment, people who God has created as me, as an open LGBT human being, that I truly also have the right to be called of God to do Christian ministry. So it's not to sort of be a Paul Star, but it is to say in the larger context that I also am a minister. I also, you'll notice that most folks will refer to me as Reverend Goodwin. It is my preference, not because I don't like Durell, but two things. One, because again, often folks who look like me who are in my embodiment are often discounted with the work that they've done in graduate school or a doctor program by not using the honorific that's appropriate for the role. And so again, it is not to create distance, but it is to honor, it is to honor myself, it's to honor the tradition of my ancestors and the hard work that they have deliberated to get me to this point. So I would prefer to be called Reverend Goodwin, and you will see me often in this collar. And I hope that again, the more people who see and meet a Reverend Durell Goodwin, an African American, openly LGBT human being, if they will also begin to change and shape their understanding of who can be called and who God is choosing to do ministry in this world. In terms of our conference, the first thing I need from you is to be a prayer partner with me. I need you to pray for all of the staff who are returning, pray for our staff who are transitioning out of their roles, pray for those who won't be here right away in January, but they're on their way in February. Pray. Pray that they're able to come to a conference who lovingly accepts them. Pray that they're able to do the deliberative work of Jesus Christ on the earth. Pray that they are willing and ready to help each and every one of you and your congregations to offer the good news of Jesus Christ, which is simply that we are loved by God and there's nothing that we can do to earn that love and there's nothing that we can do to lose it. I'm joined by some amazing leaders. I'm joined by a Reverend Dr. Audrey Price. Reverend Dr. Audrey Price is going to serve as our Executive Minister for Strategic Operations and I believe that this is a called woman of God who's called for such a time as this to help our conference to strategically move forward in new and innovative ways. I'm also blessed to have serving on the side of Reverend Dr. Audrey Price, Don Hammond, and Don is going to be serving as our Executive Minister for Finance and Policy. Together Don, Audrey and I are going to be moving forward with what you've called us to do as your conference staff. They will both be sort of working with all of our conference staff to make sure that we're not assuming we know what you want and what you need as our local churches and associations but that we are in partnership with you so we might discern what is it that you're hoping from the conference and maybe there's some room for you to think critically about what you want to offer to the conference and I'm not just talking about our church's wider mission or I'm not just talking about the ways in which you will participate in proportional giving but I'm talking about how you will be a part of the spiritual and social justice framework of who we are called to be at Southern New England Conference. An invitation that I want to ask you to do for me right away is to walk alongside me. Walk alongside me at the beginning. I'm going to do some things that I hope I will knock out of the park. There will be other things that you may not have wanted to happen in a particular way. I'm going to make mistakes. I'm going to do some things that I might reflect on and say uh I wish I had moved forth differently but with you praying for me with you trusting God for and with me and with you partnering and making the Southern New England Conference exactly what God has called it forth to be I think we're going to be all right. A more tangible thing in the midst of this pandemic is I want to ask for a favor. Many of your churches have had sewing ministries or you've had folks who knit so I'm going to ask you to send to our conference offices either in Framingham or here in Hartford. Purcells. Purcells first and foremost I'd like to have a prayer shawl for every staff member of the Southern New England Conference of the United Church of Christ. I'd like to give every staff member a prayer shawl knitted and prayed over by someone in one of our congregations. Then the second thing I'd like to do is whenever someone is installed as a pastor or whenever someone is called to do ministry here in the Southern New England Conference that we will give them as the gift from our collective family a prayer shawl. Why am I saying begin with this symbol? I want to be covered and surrounded in prayer. I want our staff covered and surrounded in prayer and I want their prayer to be coming from each and every one of your congregations. You may say well what if we send too many what are you going to do with them all? Then I want to start sending prayer shawls to our coveted partners and I want to send prayer shawls ecumenically and I want to send prayer shawls in an interfaith context. When we think about doing ministry what if every one of our towns the mayor had a prayer shawl, the chief of police had a prayer shawl, the director of health and human services had a prayer shawl, the governor of Rhode Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts had a prayer shawl that came from the Southern New England Conference churches that we would be a physical presence in the lives of those with whom we want to connect. So promise every week you won't get a video for me. I promise every week it may not be as long as this one but thank you for listening. Thank you for praying with me and for me. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful work that God is doing in each and every one of us. Have a blessed week and pray for me on this first week. God bless you.