Chain Reaction Day: Tuesday, January 21, 2020, 8:15am-1pm
Chain Reaction Day
- Explore the unspoken assumptions we make on a daily basis,
- Increase our awareness of how our differences can enhance our relationships,
- Begin to engage in conversations about difficult topics.
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Morning Keynote Speaker: Kesha Ram
 Kesha Ram Kesha Ram served four terms in the Vermont House of Representatives on behalf of Burlington. When she began in 2008, she was the youngest state legislator in the country. In 2018, she graduated from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government with a Master in Public Administration. She is now a candidate for State Senate in Chittenden County. She has worked for the City of Burlington as the Civic Engagement Specialist and for Steps to End Domestic Violence as the Legal Advocacy Director. She is a 2006 Udall Scholar, a 2007 Truman Scholar, and serves on the boards of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England and the Vermont Natural Resources Council. Closing Keynote Speaker: Reverend Dr. Leon Dunkley, Minister, Woodstock North Universalist Chapel.
 Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley The Rev. Dr. Leon Dunkley is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist. The church of his childhood was the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Monmouth County in Lincroft, New Jersey. From this church and from its minister, Reverend Harold Dean, Leon learned about the sweetness of life. He received his undergraduate degree at Tufts University and his Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Pittsburgh. He was interested in traditional drumming of Ghana and the Republic of Zaire, the Kora tradition of Senegal, the Gamelan traditions of Java and Bali in Indonesia, the African American and jazz tradition(s) in the Americas and, most recently, in Bluegrass and Country Blues. He sings and plays several instruments— including guitar, piano, conga, gangogwe (West African double bell), didjeridu. He is just getting started on the dobro and octave mandolin. Leon entered the Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, California. He studied under Rev. Dr. Rebecca Ann Parker for three years before moving to St. Paul, Minnesota to serve Unity Church—Unitarian. He was in St. Paul from 2008 to 2012. He served the Unitarian Universalist Church of Silver Spring in Maryland from August of 2012 until June of 2017. In September of 2017, he began his service to the North Universalist Chapel Society in Woodstock, VT. He is writing a book on spiritual growth and radical forgiveness in an age of racial violence and social strife. |