To support friends and families in Fountain Hills and neighboring communities who still struggle – consciously or otherwise – with fear, anxiety and isolation, Fountain Hills Presbyterian Church (FHPC) Pastor Bill Good will facilitate an in-person workshop on Sunday, Sept. 25, from 2 to 4:30 p.m. that will focus on personal transformation through reclaiming a sense of belonging.

This FHPC initiative is entitled, “Longing for Belonging: A Journey to Joy.” The workshop will take place in the fellowship center located on the FHPC campus at 13001 N. Fountain Hills Blvd. It is free and open to everyone.

Effective communication frequently stimulates community engagement among townspeople. Relatedly, interpersonal communication enhances people’s sense of belongingness.

Together they motivate people to attend church, perform community service or join civic groups such as a book or photography club.

However, psychologists say that the COVID-19 pandemic suspended a sense of belonging for many people and replaced it with fear and anxiety. Social isolation – a result of lockdown policies implemented during the pandemic – led many people to experience feelings of loneliness and a thirst for social connectedness. Two years later, many people still are longing to reconnect.

The workshop will focus on three stages of the transformational journey: Becoming, being and belonging. It will include handouts, music and film clips as well as interpersonal engagement.

Interested parties must register for the workshop. To sign up, call the church office at 480-837-1763 between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, or send an email to uncommoncommunity419@gmail.com.

Pastor Good is currently enrolled in a “Mastering Leadership” program after recently completing a “Transformative Leadership Group” course. Together they led him to personally recognize the importance of belonging.

“For many years, my pastoral perspective involved maintaining a professional distance with people in order to objectively help and guide them,” Good explained. “These two trainings made me realize how self-limiting that was. The trainings have expanded my view on the costs of isolating myself versus opening myself to belonging.

“The first course galvanized me regarding belongingness while the current program has strengthened my desire to share and try to help others achieve a greater sense of belonging,

“I believe most people do not want to be isolated, yet isolation continues to be part of the fallout from the pandemic. People need to connect with others. They need to belong.

“My goal with this workshop is for participants to depart with the clear knowledge and understanding that they have a place; that they belong to a community larger than themselves.”