Church News & Events
Share your news!
Pending review, we’ll publish it on the website and our weekly newsletter, In the Loop.
What’s happening at YOUR church? Tell us about it! Just write up an article and submit it to Wende by Thursday at noon to have it included in the following Monday’s Loop.
Wende reads your church newsletters and other materials and compiles the highlights to keep us up-to-date on the amazing work happening at the Southwest Conference churches and beyond.
Tag SWC and Wende on Facebook and Instagram to get our attention so we can share your posts! We’re @swcucc and Wende is @yeswende.
The congregation of Church of the Beatitudes invites friends and colleagues to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ordination of Rev. Rich Smith on Sunday, September 13. Ordained in 1976, Rich served five UCC congregations over a 39-year ministry, preaching more than 1,500 sermons and officiating hundreds of weddings, baptisms, and memorial services. In retirement, he remains active in the Southwest Conference, guest preaching throughout Arizona and serving with Rincon UCC in Tucson. Join in giving thanks for a lifetime of faithful ministry and service.
When: Sunday, September 13, 2026, at 10:30 a.m.
Where: Church of the Beatitudes, 555 W. Glendale Ave., Phoenix
What’s happening at YOUR church? Tell us about it! Just write up an article and submit it to Wende by Thursday at noon to have it included in the following Monday’s Loop.
Wende reads your church newsletters and other materials and compiles the highlights to keep us up-to-date on the amazing work happening at the Southwest Conference churches and beyond.
Tag SWC and Wende on Facebook and Instagram to get our attention so we can share your posts! We’re @swcucc and Wende is @yeswende.
What’s happening at YOUR church? Tell us about it! Just write up an article and submit it to Wende by Thursday at noon to have it included in the following Monday’s Loop.
Wende reads your church newsletters and other materials and compiles the highlights to keep us up-to-date on the amazing work happening at the Southwest Conference churches and beyond.
Tag SWC and Wende on Facebook and Instagram to get our attention so we can share your posts! We’re @swcucc and Wende is @yeswende.
Desert Garden United Church of Christ announces their 2026 Sawitski Memorial Lecture Keynote Speaker: Rev. Cameron Trimble!
November 9, 2026, 10 am Arizona time / 11 am New Mexico & El Paso time
Rev. Cameron Trimble is a UCC pastor, certified futurist, professor, and transformational leader who works at the intersection of faith, systems thinking, global justice, and religious innovation. As CEO of Convergence and Chair of Stop the Traffik USA, she helps congregations, organizations, and communities anticipate change, develop new strategies, and create more just and compassionate futures. Her work is grounded in the conviction that we are not simply here to predict the future, but to participate in transforming it. Her Piloting Faith: An Almost Daily Devotional by email or on Substack are moving Christians into action.
Desert Garden urges you to attend onsite, but a Zoom link can be provided. Rev. Trimble will join by Zoom. We hope you will share in this very special day.
From Dax Franklin-Hicks, Pastor:
Greetings, beloved Southwest Conference! My name is Dax Franklin-Hicks, and I use he/him pronouns. I am a Member in Discernment in the Southwest Conference since September of 2025. This August, I began serving as Student Pastor at Church of the Painted Hills (CPH) as part of my Supervised Ministry through Pathways Theological Education. I have entered a congregation marked by generosity, creativity, and a gracious sense of welcome - not only for the people of God, but for the formative work we will share.
Click through to keep reading Dax’s note and also a note from Moderator Nancy Traviolia
Conference Minister Dr. Toni Hawkins and Associate Conference Minister Dr. Derrick Elliott participated in the installation of Pastor Kejner R. Alfred as Pastor and Teacher of the Tucson Marshallese Ministry of the United Church of Christ, hosted at Rincon Congregational United Church of Christ!
Deep gratitude to Rev. Louis Mitchell, Pastor of Rincon Congregational UCC and COM-A Co-Chair, for his leadership and hospitality, and to Rev. Dr. Derrick Elliott for bringing the powerful installation sermon, “Yokwe and Amen.”
What a sacred and joyful celebration of covenant, calling, culture, and community!
Glory to God! May God richly bless Pastor Kejner R. Alfred and the congregation as they begin this new season of ministry together.
Pastor and people, walking together in covenant, trusting God for what is still unfolding.
The best is yet to come.
What’s happening at YOUR church? Tell us about it! Just write up an article and submit it to Wende by Thursday at noon to have it included in the following Monday’s Loop.
Wende reads your church newsletters and other materials and compiles the highlights to keep us up-to-date on the amazing work happening at the Southwest Conference churches and beyond.
Tag SWC and Wende on Facebook and Instagram to get our attention so we can share your posts! We’re @swcucc and Wende is @yeswende.
What’s happening at YOUR church? Tell us about it! Just write up an article and submit it to Wende by Thursday at noon to have it included in the following Monday’s Loop.
Wende reads your church newsletters and other materials and compiles the highlights to keep us up-to-date on the amazing work happening at the Southwest Conference churches and beyond.
Tag SWC and Wende on Facebook and Instagram to get our attention so we can share your posts! We’re @swcucc and Wende is @yeswende.