Outdoor Asemblies in Brutal Heat..Why?

Room 215

Hi all,
I don't know whether anyone's raised this topic before, but I don't understand why the Society persists in scheduling these summer assemblies out of doors, often in some of the most unhospitable weather and locations known to man.
Over the years, I've heard countless stories about people fainting, and even dying in the sweltering heat, and this includes infants who dehydrate. It all seems so pointless when the WTS now owns and operates so many air concitioned buildings of its own, and and where suitable indoors sites are readily available for rent.
Philadelphia is one case in point: why insist on using the Vet stadium when there is a plethora of indoor facility options all over the Northeast? Are they so callous and indifferent to the friends' well-being?

ozziepost

The main reason would be: (drum roll).... MONEY along with a bit of pigheadedness.

Here in Oz we have ours at the worst time for families who have high school children. The Higher School Certificate is conducted right at the same season as District Conventions.

And what about those Circuit Assemblies? We're hearing of circuits having just a 3 month break between SAD's and Circuit Assemblies.

Quite common to have C.O. visit straight after an assmbly.

What would you expect from leaders who are going "to rule the world".(Brooklynite Mercante speaking to a Special Meeting in Sydney, Australia last year)

Cheers,
Ozzie

"It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness."
Anonymous

GentlyFeral

Yeah, convention memories...that's what has kept me away from church conventions all the six years I've been a Unitarian Universalist.

Until last year. A friend of mine was helping to plan the local UU district convention and suckered me into designing the altar. So then, of course, I had to attend. What a contrast.

The setting: a big comfortable dining room in the Hilton Hotel. A posh dinner was served after the first session that Friday night. You had to sign up and pay for the dinner, but dessert afterwards was free to everybody -- and one of the major speakers gave her (yes, HER) talk while we enjoyed the cake.

Saturday, the convention broke up into workshops, so you could actually pick and choose what you heard. There was literature available, but nobody was compelled to buy it (and they were REAL books, too!). Saturday ended in a dance party -- it was wonderful to see the teens and the middle-aged activists gettin' down with the spry old man shaking his elderly groove thing on the dance floor. I spotted the same gentleman in the "pick-up" choir Sunday morning during the main service. Oh, didn't I mention the live music?

The children had an entire local church building all to themselves on Saturday, with plenty of amusing things to do, and a Sunday-school class at the hotel while the adults enjoyed the Sunday service.

Maybe I'll do it again next year -- or not. And if I don't, nobody will look at me funny.

Gently Feral
Beautiful Downtown Babylon

Ranchette

This reminds me of another guestion I used to ask every summer.
Why do they recomend hotel/motels in the getto!!? The prices were not any better than what we could get by using our corporate discount in a nice area of town.Some of the friends cars were stolen and things stolen from the rooms.
They never seemed to be concerned with our saftey.It got so bad we finally started getting our own rooms for the saftey of our family.

so, outdoor assemblies in the blistering summer heat doesn't surprise me.
Ranchette

Satanus

gently

Towards the end of my church phase, i visited a music presentation at a unitarian church. It was a very professional choir. The interior design was also very impressive. Unitarians are among the most highly and probably the most intelligent church group.

S

buffalosrfree

Yes, I too, Hated the dreaded DCs espeically those at the first or mid June. Did they even have a clue as to the heat? I don't think they care, it would be too hard to set them up in the fall. I didn't go this year and probably will only attend in the future to keep wife company if I attend at all. I found most of them boring, and non motivating and that was when i believed, now they are beyond boring and only opportunities to snooze. As far as hotels in the ghetto, they must be listening to Elvis Presley's music when it comes time to set up the hotel accomodations. Buff

joelbear

I think that witness conventions are set up specifically so individual witnesses will have to show a form of personal sacrifice in loyalty to the organization. That's why they are made uncomfortable in my opinion

Joel