Save the Date! Community Summit – Saturday, May 16
Dear Friends,
Over the past several years, something meaningful has been taking root around The Meetinghouse. What began as a shared hope for a place of belonging, renewal, and community flourishing is steadily becoming a living reality. As we look ahead to the next season, we want to pause, listen deeply, and discern together what wants to grow here.
To help guide this moment, we will be hosting a Community Summit on Saturday, May 16, and we warmly invite you to mark your calendars now.
The purpose of this gathering is simple yet profound: to listen for the strengths, hopes, and possibilities already present in our community, and to imagine together how they might flourish in the years ahead.
The day will be facilitated by Dr. Anita Howard, who many of you will remember from the Beloved Community conversation we hosted several years ago. Anita brings deep experience in helping communities engage meaningful dialogue that leads to shared insight and constructive action.
Our conversation will be guided by Appreciative Inquiry, a collaborative approach to community change that begins not with problems, but with what is already life-giving and working well. Through a structured process, we will explore together:
- What we most value about our community
- When we have experienced it at its best
- What possibilities might be emerging for the future
- How we might participate together in bringing those possibilities to life
Rather than simply planning programs, this summit is about cultivating the conditions for a thriving community—one rooted in belonging, wisdom, and shared responsibility.
Serving on the Design Team are Lisa Cambridge-Mitchell, Heather Cochrane, Meredith Caplan, Shelly Fisher, Alex Harris, Elizabeth Long, Bobby Opotzner and Fanta Waterman.
More details about the schedule and how to register will follow soon. For now, please save the date:
Community Summit
Saturday, May 16
The Meetinghouse
Together we thrive,
Debbie Rundlett
PS — As part of our preparation, we are conducting a discovery process to listen to the experiences and hopes of the wider community. If you would like to participate in a short interview, we would love to hear from you. Simply email me to let me know.
More about how The Meetinghouse is responding to the moment we are In
Communities everywhere are experiencing a time of profound transition. Many people feel increasingly isolated, institutions are under strain, and rapid cultural change has left many searching for places where meaningful connection, reflection, and shared purpose can take root.
Healthy communities require more than services or programs. They require places where people can gather across generations to cultivate belonging, strengthen character, and imagine together the future they hope to build. The Meetinghouse exists to steward such a place.
The Meetinghouse is a community commons dedicated to the formation of people and communities for a flourishing future. Rooted in the historic New England meetinghouse tradition yet oriented toward the challenges of our time, it brings people of all ages together to deepen belonging, nurture wellbeing, and cultivate wise leadership.
