Mailing Addresses
CUUPS-TwinCities
c/0 FUS
900 Mt. Curve Ave.
Minneapolis, MN 55403
The Pagan Institute
P.O. Box 6809
Minneapolis, MN 55406
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On this page...
PLEASE TAKE NOTE:
Unless otherwise stated, these classes are offered by CUUPS-TwinCities in partnership with The Pagan Institute.
Do to circumstances beyond our control, the room location of CUUPS classes and discussion groups is subject to change. Generally, they will be held at the ground floor level on the GROVELAND AVENUE side of First Unitarian Society. In those cases ONLY the Groveland Avenue door can be expected to be open.
However, in the event that a registered student needs wheelchair access, classes may be held elsewhere, possibly even at First Universalist Church, 3400 DuPont Ave., Minneapolis. By REGISTERING for a class, you ensure that we can contact you by email in the event of a change of location.
A new Pagan choral group is forming in Minneapolis, and all interested people of good will are invited to join.
Director Khrysso Heart LeFey has led group singing in various spots
around the country, where he is known for promoting fun, empowerment, and an inclusive spirit, mostly (but not always) in a folk idiom.
New to the Twin Cities, Khrysso invites one and all to come join him
for unencumbered singing at times and places to be announced.
There will be no auditions--Khrysso believes that "if you can talk,
you can sing." Where singers fit in will work itself out as the group
develops.
This venture is a gift to the community. There are no dues or admission fees involved. (Freewill offerings will always be cheerfully accepted, of course...)
There will be no commitments, per se. If the group develops to a point at which it performs, commitments to individual performances will be expected, but otherwise he envisions an informal "pick-up choir" format. If you show up, you're a member during that session.
What will make this group a "Pagan" choir will be not so much
adherance to "Pagan" music all the time as a commitment to material
that affirms a global, self-empowering, feminine-honoring vibe.
Subject matter tied to the Dominant Religious Paradigm will be
de-emphasized as a matter of course, naturally.
If you're interested in being put on the choir's mailing list, please
respond here:
"I'd rather put a song on people's lips than in their ears."
--Pete Seeger
Dates and times TBA here.
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Enchanting:
Chants & Hymns
Chanting and singing are not only wonderful ways to heal and nourish one's soul, they are also wonderful community-building practices. Whether you sing only for yourself (and your favorite deity) or are already comfortable with teaching chants, you'll learn new ones and have a great time. Included in the series are Pagan devotional chants and hymns, circle casting, Pagan carols, chants for dancing, lullabye magick, raising energy, and more.
Drums and other acoustic instruments are welcome, too!
Each student will receive songsheets of the material we'll learn together. (Bring a 3 ring binder)
No pre-requisites.
Sliding scale: $5-10 per session.
Classes are held at
First Unitarian Society, 900 Mt. Curve Ave., Minneapolis. Enter from the Mt. Curve side of the building; we will be singing on the patio off the lower assembly hall. In case of rain, enter on the Groveland side of the building.
We will meet occasionally. SEE the CUUPS Calendar for next meeting.
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Performing at CUUPS' seasonal festivals and other events.
Sight reading not required. Audition.
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Ritual in Theory & Practice
Drawing from the fields of Jungian psychology and history of religions, as well as from over 35 years of experience in several ritual traditions, we'll explore the dynamics which underlie the many traditions of Pagan ritual. This is not a cookbook course, but rather a course in the underlying principles. Prior ritual experience is a plus, but not required.
RTP I: The Outer Form
RTP II: Sacred Time
RTP III: Pagan Liturgical Practice/Communal Worship
RTP IV: Liturgical Design and Leadership
Subsequent Ritual in Theory and Practice courses require the above as pre-requisites and will be announced soon.
The courses are intended to be taken sequentially, but advanced students may test out of RTP I and II and III to determine if they will have the same conceptual foundations. The tests are taken on site, by appointment and cost $10.
Classes are held at
First Unitarian Society; our classroom will be accessible from the GROVELAND AVE. entrance, directly across from the Walker Art Center. In pleasant weather, classes may take place in their private shade patio. Doors open 15 minutes before class begins.
Directions, map: www.firstunitariansociety.org/directions/main.html
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Ritual in Theory & Practice I:
The Outer Form |
Taught by Dr. Christa Landon.
4 sessions Thursday evenings in September from 7-9 pm
or 1 day intensive: inquire for times
You will learn:
> What ritual is and why it's a universal feature of culture.
> Some of the universal elements of ritual
> Dynamics of Tradition: major sources, how traditions evolve
> basic principles of ritual magick
> Purification in the Pagan worldview
> Beyond Good Intentions: Why "Intention" differs from wishing.
> Basic "ritual hygiene": boundaries and grounding
> Public ritual etiquette
> Breath and visualization exercises for charging and grounding
> Chants and spells for casting and opening circles
> Some Pagan devotions
No prior experience is required, but this is NOT a "cookbook" 101 class.
Students are encouraged to participate in a ritual team (with CUUPS or otherwise) to apply what they are learning and to bring those experiences into discussion.
Registrations are now being taken for the course for which there will be a $60-100 (income-based) sliding scale fee which includes printed materials. The times and dates of classes are set by the availability of the first 3 to pre-register. |
Session I
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What IS ritual? What is tradition? What IS Magick? |
Session II
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What is "Intention" and how is it different from wishing?
What is "purification" in ancient and modern Pagan ritual? |
Session III
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Breathing, visualization, raising energy, grounding --
what are all of these, how can these skills be developed? |
Session IV
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Ritual Hygiene and Etiquette |
Ritual in Theory & Practice II:
Sacred Time
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You will learn:
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Diurnal Cycles
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Seasons
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The Wheel of the Year: Eight Festivals
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Perpetual Cross-Tradition Pagan Calendar
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Astronomical Events and How to Use Them to Intensify
Magick
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Lunar Cycles
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Planetary Aspects and Planetary Days
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Sacred Space and Liminality
Extensive reading materials will be provided in advance on payment.
Saturday intensive: This class will be offered again in Spring 2009.
Sliding Scale Fee: $60-100. includes all reading materials.
Prerequisite: Ritual in Theory & Practice I |
Session I |
Sacred Time and Sacred Space: universal concepts
Paleolithic and Neolithic Monuments and Sacred Time
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Session II |
Seasons in Agriculture and Human Life
The Wheel of the Year: Eight Festivals
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Session III |
Astrological Understanding of Time
A Brief Introduction of Astrological Concepts
Applying Astrology to to Intensify
Magick
Diurnal Cycles, Planetary Days, Planetary Hours
Time and Ancient Pagan Practices
Pagan Holydays and the Problem with Reconstructing Calendars
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Lunar Events and Modern Pagan Worship |
Ritual in Theory & Practice III:
Pagan Liturgical Practice and Communal Worship
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You will learn:
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Psychological and Magickal Functions of the New Moon Ritual
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Sacred Time and the New Moon
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New Moon Ritual Structure
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New Moon Spells for memorization
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Minor Keys to the Inner Realm (astral and etheric planes);
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Fundamental concepts in Magickal Healing;
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Fundamental concepts relating to the Group Soul;
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Principles for creating devotional rituals.
This course is intended for people who have some ritual experience, at least as an observor, and who want to take a larger role; those who have practiced "cookbook rituals" will gain a deeper theoretical understanding. Those with no experience with energy work will get extra assistance to learn to sense energy.
Students will be encouraged to take roles in public ritual at public CUUPS events or in other settings. Students will be expected to complete practical homework as well as reading assignments.
Extensive reading materials will be provided in advance on payment.
To be arranged. Pre-register with all available times.
Sliding Scale Fee: $60-100. includes all reading materials.
Prerequisite: Ritual in Theory & Practice I and II, or examination. |
Session I |
The psychological, social, and magickal functions of the new moon ritual |
Session II |
The essential magickal structure of new moon rituals. |
Session III |
Mana, Orenda, Wakanda, Chi: An introduction to the inner plane dimension of the New Moon Ritual, healing magick, and basic protection magick. |
| Session IV |
The Transformative Power of the Group Soul |
Four additional and more advanced courses in Ritual in Theory and Practice
will be offered
in Winter/Spring 2008-2009
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Pagan Path: Sunday, Sept. 28 , 1-3 pm
Each of us is on a journey of discovery, and it is good to find companions on the road.
Wherever you are on the Pagan path, you have your own story to tell. CUUPS invites you to share that story and learn a little about how it connects with stories of other area Pagans and the larger story of the Pagan community of ancient history and modern hope.
CUUPS members will also answer questions about our experiment in building Pagan community.
We'll share where we have come from and what we are seeking now. CUUPS members will also answer questions about our experiment in building Pagan community and what we have learned as Pagans from Unitarian Universalism. Relatives, curiosity seekers, and Pagans of any path are welcome to attend.
Relatives, curiosity seekers, teens, and Pagans of any path are welcome to
attend. This session is free, but you do need to RSVP to ensure that there will be enough packets prepared for all.
NOTE: We expect to hold this gathering in the lovely shade garden outside the lower assembly hall of First Unitarian Society, accessible from the Mt. Curve entrance. In the event of rainy weather, we will meet on the ground floor accessible from the GROVELAND AVENUE entrance, across from the Walker Art Museum. However, if any attendee needs wheelchair access the location of this meeting is subject to change. YOU NEED TO RSVP to know for sure where we'll be meeting.
We will repeat this event on a Saturday in August to be announced. See the CUUPS Calendar for future dates. This program is re-offered several times a year as we receive requests.
Location, directions, map: http://www.firstunitariansociety.org/directions/main.html
Merry Meet!
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Pagan Scriptures:
Beyond the Book of Shadows |
6 sessions to be arranged in Fall 2008.
instructor: Dr. Christa Landon
"Pagans are not people of the book; we are people of the library."
Many Pagans are unaware that ancient Pagans had scriptures, and that some of these have survived the past 16 centuries of persecution. We will discuss issues of classics and canon: what are the texts, ancient and modern, which are most powerful and authoritative among us? How can we discover them? By what criteria might such texts be selected?
In this course each student will begin his/her own "looseleaf Pagan bible."
Voluminous printed materials will be provided, including many ancient Pagan texts in translation, generally unknown to modern Pagans. Please bring a durable standard-sized 3 ring binder for them. A durable D-ring type is recommended.
Registrations are now being taken for this program. Please register with the evenings or weekend days on which you could attend. You will be contacted.
$80-120 sliding fee which includes extensive printed materials.
Dr. Christa Landon, instructor.
Register Here.
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Session I
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Scriptures, Classics, Canon & Criteria
Scriptures: We had them first! Modern and ancient sources.
On what basis do we select a text as a Pagan classic? |
Session II
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The Book of Shadows as a Pagan Institution
At least since Gerald Gardener, the BOS has existed as a received text and as living and growing corpus. We'll compare several of these published before 1980. While content is most important, we'll consider formats for producing a physical edition. |
Session III
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Ancient Surviving Pagan Religious Classics
Where to find them (in translation!)
The hermeneutic of retrieval, editing and commentary. |
Session IV
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Modern Religious Pagan Classics |
Session V
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Constructing your OWN "looseleaf Pagan Bible"
Crafting the hard copy: some alternatives.
Student presentations of materials you've selected. |
Session VI
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Constructing your OWN "looseleaf Pagan Bible"
Student presentations
of materials you've selected. Discussion. |
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Who Owns the Coven?
Foundations of Community & Polity
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Who Owns the Coven?
Foundations of Polity & Community
6 sessions
Saturdays, 4:00-6 p.m. beginning March 29.
Who "owns" a coven, a temple, or a grove? The initiatory lineage? The creators of the tradition? The leadership? The members?
Who makes the decisions?
What kinds of authority are there within the group?
These are all questions of polity. The classes will focus on alternatives and the benefits and weaknesses of each.
Taught by Dr.
Christa Landon (bio).
6 sessions this fall.
Are you are a Pagan leader or aspire to be one?
Are you one of the hundreds of thousands of Pagan solitaries seeking community? Are you frustrated by the conflicts and "witch wars"? Are wondering about how Pagans may organize more effectively in the future?
This unique class addresses important underlying questions:
Who "owns" a coven, a temple, or a grove? The initiatory lineage? The creators of the tradition? The leadership? The members?
Who makes the decisions?
What are the sources and kinds of authority within the group?
Who is accountable?
How can we avoid both the tyranny of the majority and the tyranny of the minority?
How can Pagans organize into larger groups to accomplish goals beyond the power of small groups?
These are all questions of polity. The classes will focus on alternatives and the benefits and weaknesses of each.
Registration: Sliding scale $60 (low income) - $120. Cost includes extensive printed materials. No textbooks required.
If you are interested in taking this course, contact us to be added to the waiting list; remember to include your available days/times and phone number.
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Thinking about Community:
Some Basic Concepts and Questions
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| Session II |
Communities
in Modern Paganism:
Models of Organization |
| Session III |
Covens, Covenants, and Congregations:
How Structures Shape Leadership |
| Session IV |
Consensus Process: What is consensus?
What are its advantages and limitations? |
| Session V |
The Multicelled Organization:
Small groups working together can achieve what they can't do alone. Why is it so hard for Pagans to develop? |
| Session VI |
Shared Ministry: Imagineering Pagan Communities through
Vision Questing and Covenanting. |
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| Practicing
Paganism |
Taught by Dr.
Christa Landon (bio).
8 sessions Fall 2008
Are you looking for a deeper grounding in essential elements of Paganism? Have you graduated from Wicca/Paganism 101 and how graduate school courses might teach Paganism?
Drawing
from Jungian psychology, comparative religions, and nearly four decades of practice, this series is
accessible to seekers new to Paganism but also offers long
term practitioners new perspectives. Those who are interested in interfaith communications will learn to share Pagan perspectives in terms and theories which graduate schools and seminaries teach.
If you are interested in
comparative religions or communicating with clergy in interfaith settings, this course will be doubly helpful. It will provide you with some
academic tools which can deepen your appreciation of your Pagan
religious experience and help you to communicate it to seminary-trained clergy.
Registration: $15 per session or $80-120 sliding scale for the series, which includes extensive printed materials; partial scholarships (work
exchange) are available. If you register for the whole course, you can participate in the online Q&A and discussion on the class's private message board. Register
here for spring 2008.
Classes are generally held at
First Unitarian Society,using the GROVELAND entrance which opens 30 minutes before a class.
Registered students will be notified in the event of relocation of the class.
NOTE: You MUST be a registered student to attend.
Directions, map: http://www.firstunitariansociety.org/directions/main.html
This series will be repeated in a different time slot this fall or as demand develops. If you are interested in participating but cannot attend the spring session, contact us to be added to the waiting list; remember to include your available days/times and phone number.
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Natural Theology
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Theology
is thinking about our Ultimate Value. What are the underlying
assumptions shared by most Pagan traditions, ancient and modern?
What sources do we draw from? What is the ultimate authority? What
do we mean by "The Gods"? |
The Goddess
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Known by a thousand
names, the Divine Feminine engages in all aspects and stages of a
woman's life, and a man's. Was there a single "Great Goddess" or was Goddess worship generally polytheistic? |
The Masculine
Faces of God
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King, Warrior,
Magician, Lover -- the God also imaged in many ways, only some of
which are honored in Christianity. The God who is lover and brother -- as well as
father and son -- is a very different person than Monotheists encounter. |
The Dyad
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Modern Western
culture tends to view opposites as enemies, embraced in a death
struggle. Pagans view opposites as lovers, embracing to create new
life. |
Sacred Times
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Sacred TIME has been important to Pagans for millennia, doubly so since our temples were destroyed 1700 years ago. We'll review the meaning and importance of Solar festivals,
agricultural season festivals, lunations (New Moons) and full Moons. |
History
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A quick review of
Western Paganism from paleolithics and neolithic evidence of ancient Paganism,
its classical development, oppression and survival under
Christian governments, its rediscovery in the Renaissance and
Enlightenment and its rebirth in the Age of Aquarius. |
Ethics & Magical Effectiveness
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The metaphysics of
benevolence; magickal boundaries; Karma, dharma, and doing no
harm. What commitments could create and maintain "perfect love and perfect trust?" By what behavioral covenant among Pagans could Witch Wars and lesser interpersonal conflicts be minimized? |
Metaphysics
of Magick
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What magick is, what it isn't, and why we spell it that way.
Models from systems theory, evidence from psychological research.
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Proposed program, to be offered when 4 students are registered
Pastoral Care of Pagans in Prison
In response to many requests from prison chaplains, prisoners, and Pagan volunteers, we are sponsoring a program for Pagans of all traditions who wish to serve as advocates, counselors, and priestly care-givers to Pagans and other non-Christians who are prisoners or transitioning out of the criminal justice system.
Many Pagans, whatever their traditions and training, have experienced difficulties in being recognized as clergy by prison officials. This program is designed to resolve that problem by directly addressing prison officials concerns and developing interfaith dialog. Part of the concern of prison officials has to do with lack of training and screening standards among Pagan trads. Most clergy of Christian faiths have participated in basic Clinical Pastoral Education full time for a minimum of 12 weeks after their first year in graduate school seminary. Indeed, this is a requirement for accreditation by the Association of Theological Schools.
Until Pagan seminaries can participate in formal CPE programs, the only way for Pagans to have this training is to complete a year or more of graduate school at a Christian or Unitarian or interfaith seminary or divinity school.
Our program is an experiment, and intended to be a pilot project in pastoral clinical education in the prison setting for Pagans, Native American religious leaders, Unitarian Universalist laity, and practitioners of other alternative religions.
The faculty will include prison chaplains currently employed by the State of Minnesota, Wiccan or other Pagan volunteers who have worked as visiting clergy with prisoners, a prison social worker and former warden, and Unitarian Universalist clergy.
The training provided will presume that the participants knows their own traditions and can lead inter-trad worship; you need not be ordained to participate.
Our program consists of
1. an application process, including a reflective essay about your own identity as a religious care provider and why you are interested in participation in this program;
2. required reading;
3. preliminary seminars including sharing expectations: an overview of what we hope to do over the year. group dynamics and collegiality; the action/reflection model; principles of pastoral care; penal culture: understanding the penal mind; penal culture: understanding the concerns of the institution's staff, with an emphasis on the staff chaplain; boundaries and identity; basic clergy self-care; interfaith/intertrad religious worship;
4. visitation/reporting: Each participant commits to at least 1 visitation session each month at a facility of his/her choice.
5. monthly seminar: These will consist of a training program to expand our knowledge base, sharing cases, and an open session to address issues as they arise.
Participants will be have access to a private listserv and message board to facilitate communication and sharing resources. We hope this pilot project will offer a model to which Pagans in other areas can point as they attempt to improve relations with prison officials elsewhere. Whatever mistakes we make can be used to develop good practice standards.
Costs include: travel to prison/s and to seminars, printed materials, modest honoraria for instructors.
A waiting list for the next class is now being formed. We need a group of 3 to begin. If you are interested in the challenge, or if you are already working in prison outreach and would like to be on the teaching team, please contact us.
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Courses offered independently of Pagan Institute. |
Astrology 101: Sat., October 18, 9am - 4 pm
Estelle Daniels will be giving her all-day Astrology 101 intensive workshop on October 18.
The intensive is designed to introduce astrology to those who may have little or no previous learning but have an interest in the subject. We start with "what's your sign", go through various factors, and at the end of the day, we're putting charts up on the wall and interpreting them together. It's intense, but fun, and the talk includes a handout which can help in further astrological studies. Bring your chart, and the charts of family members and we may interpret them briefly.
The event takes place in the Community Room at the Uptown Lunds in Minneapolis, near Lake and Hennepin. It's totally accessible, with an elevator and the accessible bathrooms are right outside the room. Outside food and drink are not allowed, but as we're in a Lund's with a Caribou attached, most anyone will be able to get whatever they need for lunch.
Because of space considerations, we can only have a limited number of students--please pre-register at ncgrfei@aol.com to assure your space. Email ncgrfei@aol.com for questions or further details.
Gather at 8:30am and we start at 9am sharp and go to 4pm. A suggested donation of $10 will be requested and the proceeds after expenses will go to NCGR STARS, Twin Cities.
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Contact us.
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