Learn to flourish as you age at Lake Junaluska’s Festival of Wisdom and Grace

Register today for this annual event which features worship, workshops, learning, entertainment and fellowship to help participants navigate transitions, live into their talents and passions, cultivate their relationship with Christ and engage topics that matter with courage and conviction. 

New this year, is an Older Adult Ministry Training Track, a cohort for clergy and church leaders new to older adult ministries and facing ageing congregations, which will meet concurrently with the existing Festival of Wisdom and Grace. CEUs are available. A special scholarship is available for clergy and lay people who are newly appointed or assigned to congregations with many older adult members and who require financial assistance to attend. The scholarship will cover the selected room, board and program fee. The deadline to apply for the scholarship has been extended to Saturday, May 31.

To find out more about the Older Adult Ministry Training Track visit https://bit.ly/LJWGOlderadultminstrytrack. To apply for a scholarship visit https://bit.ly/LJWGOlderadultmnstryscholrshp.

The theme for this year’s Festival of Wisdom and Grace is “Letting Our Story Speak and is centered on the scripture Joshua 4:21-22. The keynote speaker is Tracy Radosevic, a worship pastor and internationally-acclaimed storyteller, educator, retreat facilitator and coach. Radosevic hails from Canton, Ohio, but has lived in Baltimore, Maryland, since 1997. In her spare time she co-hosts “Faith in Focus,” a monthly podcast about movies people of faith should see. She plays accordion and ukulele.

Music will be provided by the Rev. Laura Jacquith Bartlett, a clergy member of the Oregon-Idaho Conference and member of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada. For 17 years, Bartlett has led the “Great Hymns of the Faith” series at a United Methodist retreat center in Oregon. She has served as a church musician in numerous settings, and has led workshops and training sessions across the country. 

Entertainment will be provided by Andy Offutt Irwin, a storyteller, theater director, singer-songwriter and Shakespearean actor, who was artist in residence at Emory University’s Oxford College from 1991 to 2007. 

The conference preacher will be announced at a later date.

Workshop leaders and their topics are:

·  Andy Offutt Irwin – Pin the Tale on the Narrative                                         

·  Amy Densk – Writing a Meditation for the Upper Room

·  David Bingham – The Story and the Witness, Alcoholism and Addiction: To Listen and to Respond                                             

·  Adrian Bush – Peace of Mind In One Place: Having Your Story Ready For When it Counts

·  The Rev. Laura Jaquith Bartlett – Singing the Stories of Faith 

·  Bishop Kammerer – Scripture Reflections on Jesus and Life-Giving Water, Cherokee IV pontoon boat 

·  Robert LaCosta – Refired Not Retired

·  The Rev. Jonathan Brake – What Story is Creation Telling? 

Participants also will have time to explore Lake Junaluska and enjoy its gardens, places of meditation, lakeside trail and more. To register or for more information, call 800-222-4930 or visit the Festival of Wisdom and Grace website.

Lake Junaluska is a place of Christian hospitality where lives are transformed through renewal of soul, mind and body. Learn more about Lake Junaluska and be a part of our community by subscribing to our enewsletters at https://bit.ly/LJStayConnected.