Welcome to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter
The Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter includes the seven county metropolitan area that includes Ramsey, Hennepin, Dakota, Washington, Carver, Scott, Wright and Anoka.
For information on our new and growing chapter, please contact us at MSPChapter@TheTransitionNetwork.org.
The Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter is connecting women and helping them make the most out of their "50 years and forward" transition journey. While every woman's situations may be varied, we can all learn and find support from other women who are also experiencing cha
nge.
We are constantly reaching out to as many women as possible to make connections and planning as many events as we can. We already have active Special Interest Groups and are now in the process of creating more Transition Peer Groups. For more information about the Minneapolis/St. Paul Group, please contact Steering Committee Chair Jill Goski at MSPChapter@TheTransitionNetwork.org.
February at a Glance
Join us for upcoming chapter events ----
Wednesday, February 17 -Wellness Wednesday: Tapping
Thursday, February 18 - Get Connected
Wednesday, February 24 - Wellness Wednesday: Informational Meeting for MSP Caring Collaborative
Wednesday, March 3 - Wellness Wednesday: Tapping
This is a second offering of the session offered on February 17 with Susan Temple
Wednesday, March 31 - Wellness Wednesday: Contentment and Joy
MESSAGE FROM CHAPTER CHAIR JILL GOSKI
TTN Understanding Our Whiteness Program
TTN recognizes that 2020 was a year of heightened awareness of racism in our country. Individual TTN members and some of our MSP Chapter SIGs and TPGs have been working to educate themselves on issues of racism, unconscious bias, and white privilege and the role they play in a system that denies equity to all our citizens. In order to make change, we believe we need to acknowledge the impact of “white privilege” and the ways in which it is the foundation upon which systemic racism is built.
TTN, through the Boston Chapter, has initiated the Understanding Our Whiteness program, oriented to participants who identify as white, with the goal of enabling participants to explore and understand their white privilege in a non-judgmental environment and decide within themselves how to take action against racism. This program delves deeply into the origins of systemic racism and resultant impacts.
The workshops are two hours, once/week for 7 weeks. The size of the group is about eight participants with two facilitators. Each week is a different topic. The topics follow a sequence of learning and include:
- Listening: The importance of listening respectfully to each other’s stories
- White Privilege: What “white privilege” really looks and feels like
- History: The history of systemic racism in the United States
- Microaggressions: Understanding the harm caused by micro-aggressions and how to stop them
- Language: Language that creates barriers to understanding and productive action
- Allyship: How to be an ally in the fight against racism
- Reparations: Current thinking about reparations, and how to consider options
Between meetings, the participants are provided a variety of materials to read and listen to that may take 2-3 hours. Although that may sound like a lot, the materials are engaging and impactful and are mixed media.
The workshop was originally developed in 2015 by members of a church in Massachusetts who were involved in racial justice work. The group designed the ground rules and agreements that are what make the workshop effective and unique. The focus is on reading and listening to a variety of materials week by week on the 7 specific topics, processing them together as a group, and really listening to each other's stories and thoughts in a structured format. It is NOT a discussion group or circle. It is about listening and learning together. One of the members of the original group brought the workshop to Tufts University where it has been offered over the past few years.
Because we believe the program will have positive impact to our community and great value to our members, we are offering this program free of charge.
The Understanding Our Whiteness Program is currently offered by National TTN for cross chapter participation. In December, when the program was opened for registration, six groups filled within two hours. Two groups were added to accommodate some of those waitlisted. All eight of these groups began meeting in late January. A similar number of groups are planned to begin in March. If you are interested in more information about the Understanding Our Whiteness Program contact Jill Goski at jill.goski@gmail.com. To get on the waitlist for this program contact Ginny Kiefer from the Boston Chapter of TTN at kieferginny@gmail.com.
Three of our MSP Chapter members are trained as facilitators for the Understanding Our Whiteness Program: Ginny Jacobson, Janis Weller and Jill Goski. Additionally, a new chapter SIG on Race and History is targeted to begin this spring. Stay tuned for more information.
TTN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SUSAN COLLINS
Farewell, Best Wishes, and Special Thanks to Susan Collins for her Leadership as TTN Executive Director for the past seven years! Susan has decided to step down effective January 31.
RECENT EVENTS
Minneapolis/St. Paul Chapter
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Due to demand, a second meeting is scheduled for 6:30 on March 3.
Register on the TTN website or Meetup and invite a friend!
After a few member jokes about needing tap shoes or a bucket for maple sap, Susan introduced herself and then gave a brief history of the technique.We then learned, practiced and discussed our reactions to the technique and how it helps people.
Susan also shared a couple quotes:
“There are only 2 mistakes one can make along the road to truth:not going all the way and not starting.” The Buddha
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movies they had watched, foods they had tried, and ideas for intentions for the New Year.
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We ended the evening with a quote by Dr. Seuss:
Thanks to Jean and Marilynne for hosting.
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After our check-in everyone shared a memory about when they “Felt at Peace.” Interestingly, most of us talked about family and being in nature. “It’s the little things.” We ended with a discussion on other TTN events that had been attended by some of the group and the upcoming winter and how we plan to survive and thrive!
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Material from www.thetransitionnetwork.org, 23:30:31 February 24, 2021.
Copyright © The Transition Network 2021
