Rocky Mountain Regional Goes The Distance

The Circles Came Over the Mountains …
… to see who they could be

By Jen and Joe Schwartz

What do you get when you combine two unique circles from either side of a massive mountain range? We think you get Magic!

In 2023, the Denver Circle and Utah Circle decided to join forces and bridge the mountain pass to create more community for all of our members.

The Denver/Colorado Circle had been formed in 2019, and the Utah Circle started in 2021. Since both circles were already integrating some virtual meetings, it was easy to expand and begin meeting together. We found ways to make sure that members who were not attending in person still felt included by creating ground rules for participation that allowed everyone to feel heard and connected. Also of note is that before merging, we had one Utah couple in the Denver circle, and one Denver couple in the Utah circle! This was a merge that definitely made sense.

While Rocky Mountain is by no means the only circle that covers a wide geographical range, we think that we are unique in having two primary cities (Denver and Salt Lake) in our circle, as well as couples from southern Utah and other parts of Colorado. Our circle has one of the few sibling couples in CCC – Tim (and Holly) Miller & Laura (& Scott) Strother! Our estimate is that the 11 couples in our circle have a direct impact on at least 200 people in our extended communities – we’re busy making a difference.

The best Quarterly Meeting we have had is highlighted in this month’s article about Regional Gatherings. Nine out of our eleven couples traveled to Grand Junction Colorado (approximately a 4-5 hour drive for each couple) for a weekend of fun, socializing, and of course our meeting – the other two couples joined virtually for those few hours. It was an amazing trip for us all, and some of us got to meet for the first time in person. We all now feel more connection with one another, and plan to make this an annual tradition.

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Jen and Joe Schwartz are in the Rocky Mountain Circle