The Maine Conference will be traveling to the National Youth Event in Knoxville Tennessee leaving on Wednesday, July 23rd and returning on Tuesday, July 29th. We will be traveling by bus – seeing a lot of the countryside, spending one night along the way for each leg of the trip and having fun, important conversation, playing, worshipping, and coming to know UCC young people from all over the country.

This year’s theme, “Living the Life”, will call many important subjects into discussion.
- What are the issues we face today – and what is our response to them?
- What are we thinking and what do we want people to know?
- How shall we be people of faith in a many splendored, many faceted world?
- What do we have to learn from each other? And how will we put these learnings to work.
Fun, faith and fellowship will be the order of our time together, and we are looking forward to the Maine Conference delegation’s trip out to Tennessee, and return with all they will have to tell.

Here are the Facts as we know them today:

Trip Dates: July 23-29, 2007. This includes travel time by bus. Conferences throughout New England will be traveling by bus, all of us converging on Knoxville on the 24th of July.

All youth between 13 and 18 years of age are invited.

The Conference Group is limited to the first 100 registrants; 80 young people and 20 adults.

The cost of the trip is now $650. This includes both fees for our travel costs and for the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Many thanks go to the Resourcing the Local Church committee who have made this possible with scholarships of $100 per young person or chaperone for up to 100 people!!!

Your registration form, with $100 non-refundable deposit, is due in the Conference office before April 15th. If your complete payment is received at the Conference Office by April 15th, you will receive a $20 discount. They are available from your local church or on the Maine Conference website. Thanks to you who have registered already!

We are registering as a group from the Maine Conference. To be eligible for the scholarships, do not register individually or as a church.

Complete payments are welcome anytime, but they must be received in the Conference office by June 15th, accompanied by all of the necessary forms, including registration, medical authorization, and travel consent forms. All the forms may be found on the Maine Conference website (www.maineucc.org) on the National Youth Event page.

Spring Meeting: There will be a mandatory meeting for all participants, group advisors and parents to be held on May 18th at the Waterville Church at 2 pm.

Program Information packets from the Univ. of Tennessee will be sent to you by the Conference office once we receive it.

Chaperones: There will be a ratio of 1 adult to 6 young people on the trip. All chaperones will be required to complete a background check similar to that of camp counselors at Pilgrim Lodge. Final decisions of who the chaperones will be will be left to the discretion of YMAT, although we certainly welcome suggestions from all local churches involved. We are committed to having at least two chaperones who will either be a nurse or doctor. (Talk to your favorite nurse or doctor!!!)

Can our church send youth to the NYE even if we don’t go with the Conference Group?
Absolutely, but local church organizers will have to make all your own arrangements, and you will not be eligible for the Conference scholarships or discounts. We will, however, be happy to sell you a nifty Maine Conference NYE T-shirt. And welcome you to sit with us and be part of us in Knoxville.

Help us design a Maine Conference Tee-Shirt!
We have heard that a tee-shirt exchange will be part of the fun at National Youth Event!! We are welcoming submissions of designs that speak of National Youth Event and its theme, “Living the Life!” and the great State of Maine!!! Send your ideas to the Maine Conference Office, 28 Yarmouth Crossing Rd., Yarmouth, ME 04096, before May 15. The contest is on!!!

If you have any questions, please contact Heidi Bennett at the Conference office at 207-846-5118 or heidibennett@maineucc.org